11 But if you and your nation are willing to obey Nebuchadnezzar, I will let you stay in your country, and your people will continue to live and work on their farms.
12 After I had spoken to the officials from the nearby kingdoms, I went to King Zedekiah and told him the same thing. Then I said:Zedekiah, if you and the people of Judah want to stay alive, you must obey Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians.
13 But if you refuse, then you and your people will die from war, hunger, and disease, just as the Lord has warned.
14 Your prophets have told you that you don't need to obey Nebuchadnezzar, but don't listen to their lies.
15 Those prophets claim to be speaking for the Lord, but he didn't send them. They are lying! If you do what they say, he will have both you and them dragged off to another country and killed. The Lord has spoken.
16 When I finished talking to the king, I went to the priests and told them that the Lord had said:Don't listen to the prophets when they say that very soon the Babylonians will return the things they took from my temple. Those prophets are lying!
17 If you choose to obey the king of Babylonia, you will live. But if you listen to those prophets, this whole city will be nothing but a pile of rubble.