Baruch
Nebuchadnezzar gave me his signet ring, that I might pass the sentries going and returning. [He shows the ring on his finger.]
Abimelech
I have no more questions to ask. Let him deliver his message.
Baruch
When the Assyrian soldiers waylaid me, they took me to the king’s tent. Nebuchadnezzar has kept me under guard these eleven months. Sending for me yesterday, he said: “Wilt thou take my message to King Zedekiah?” Standing before him without fear, I answered: “I will.” Then spake Nebuchadnezzar: “Eleven months have I laid siege to this town. I have sworn that not again will I lie with woman until the gates of Jerusalem have been opened. But I will wait no longer. Should King Zedekiah wish for terms, let him hasten. Never has an enemy withstood me more stoutly. To none will I be more gentle than to him, should he hasten to sue for mercy.”
Abimelech
Nebuchadnezzar is a great warrior. It is an honor to have held out against him for eleven months.
Baruch
He said further: “If ye open the gates and humble yourselves ere the moon be full, I will grant you your lives. Every man may dwell in safety under his vine and under his fig tree. Though ye have shed our blood, I seek not yours, but only victory and renown. It is my will that from sunrise to sunset the nations should learn the news that none can withstand my sword; that there is no king but shall bow before me, the king of kings. I need but a sign, and your city shall be safe, your days long in the land.”