Jeremiah 42:2
And said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:) And said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:)
The words are spoken by the remnant left in Judah after Zedekiah's captivity, the survivors who acknowledge they have been reduced from many to but a few, as Jeremiah's own eyes can behold. They come to Jeremiah the prophet for counsel before choosing to flee to Egypt. They ask him to accept their supplication and to pray for them, even for all this remnant, unto the Lord his God, seeking God's guidance on their behalf. In so doing they present themselves as humble and promising to obey whatever instruction the Lord gives through him.
Their request was insincere, for they wanted advice that matched their own wishes rather than direction to remain in the land under Babylonian protection. As shown with the story in Jeremiah 42 and 43:1-7, they spoke to God without meaning what they said, which is prayer that is not sincere when it is only words spoken with the lips. They later rejected God's directions through Jeremiah when those directions conflicted with their desire to go to Egypt. They even accused Baruch of influencing him against them.