In the text, you kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem is a form of address. Jeremiah addresses all these people directly. However, it is equally possible, and better in some languages, to say “Say this to the kings and all the people of Judah and everyone who lives in Jerusalem and comes into the city by these gates: ‘Listen to this message from the LORD.’ ” In order to avoid a series of quotations within quotations, Good News Translation shifts Hear the word of the LORD to indirect discourse, placing it at the end of the verse: “… to listen to what I say.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Jeremiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2003. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .