To him we are naught. To him our walls are but a handful of dust. Yet we can meet defiance with defiance. For eleven months he has been breaking his teeth against the ramparts of the city, and he would dismiss us with a smile. I am not worth a word, and he rates our town at a breath. Nevertheless my yoke is not yet ready; the walls of Jerusalem still stand. We have taught him to wait, but he has not yet learned his lesson. Shall I be the slave of his caprices? He would tarry but a day? Let him tarry for weeks and months. [Drawing himself up] Take this message to Nebuchadnezzar. Say unto him …
Baruch
[In alarm] Decide not in anger, King Zedekiah.
Zedekiah
[Rigid with astonishment] How darest thou interrupt me?
Baruch
[Kneels] I implore thee, save Jerusalem. Stretch forth thine hand in peace, lest the walls crumble and the temple be shattered. Lord King, I adjure thee, open the gates, open thy heart.
Zedekiah
[Wrathfully] “Open the gates, open thy heart”. I have heard those words before. They have been put into thy mouth. One stands behind thee speaking against me with thy voice.