Jeremiah 38
38
Jeremiah in a Dry Well
1Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah heard that I was telling the people that 2the LORD had said, “Whoever stays on in the city will die in war or of starvation or disease. But those who go out and surrender to the Babylonians will not be killed; they will at least escape with their lives.” 3I was also telling them that the LORD had said, “I am going to give the city to the Babylonian army, and they will capture it.”
4Then the officials went to the king and said, “This man must be put to death. By talking like this he is making the soldiers in the city lose their courage, and he is doing the same thing to everyone else left in the city. He is not trying to help the people; he only wants to hurt them.”
5King Zedekiah answered, “Very well, then, do what you wish with him; I can't stop you.” 6So they took me and let me down by ropes into Prince Malchiah's well, which was in the palace courtyard. There was no water in the well, only mud, and I sank down in it.
7However, Ebedmelech the Ethiopian#38.7 Ethiopian: See Word List., a eunuch who worked in the royal palace, heard that they had put me in the well. At that time the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate. 8So Ebedmelech went there and said to the king, 9“Your Majesty, what these men have done is wrong. They have put Jeremiah in the well, where he is sure to die of starvation, since there is no more food in the city.” 10Then the king ordered Ebedmelech to take with him three men and to pull me out of the well before I died. 11So Ebedmelech went with the men to the palace storeroom and got some worn-out clothing which he let down to me by ropes. 12He told me to put the rags under my arms, so that the ropes wouldn't hurt me. I did this, 13and they pulled me up out of the well. After that I was kept in the courtyard.
Zedekiah Asks Jeremiah's Advice
14On another occasion King Zedekiah had me brought to him at the third entrance to the Temple, and he said, “I am going to ask you a question, and I want you to tell me the whole truth.”
15I answered, “If I tell you the truth, you will put me to death, and if I give you advice, you won't pay any attention.”
16So King Zedekiah promised me in secret, “I swear by the living God, the God who gave us life, that I will not put you to death or hand you over to the men who want to kill you.”
17Then I told Zedekiah that the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, had said, “If you surrender to the king of Babylonia's officers, your life will be spared, and this city will not be burnt down. Both you and your family will be spared. 18But if you do not surrender, then this city will be handed over to the Babylonians, who will burn it down, and you will not escape from them.”
19But the king answered, “I am afraid of our countrymen who have deserted to the Babylonians. I may be handed over to them and tortured.”
20I said, “You will not be handed over to them. I beg you to obey the LORD's message; then all will go well with you, and your life will be spared. 21But the LORD has shown me in a vision what will happen if you refuse to surrender. 22In it I saw all the women left in Judah's royal palace being led out to the king of Babylonia's officers. Listen to what they were saying as they went:
‘The king's best friends misled him,
they overruled him.
And now that his feet have sunk in the mud,
his friends have left him.’ ”
23Then I added, “All your women and children will be taken out to the Babylonians, and you yourself will not escape from them. You will be taken prisoner by the king of Babylonia, and this city will be burnt to the ground.”
24Zedekiah replied, “Don't let anyone know about this conversation, and your life will not be in danger. 25If the officials hear that I have talked with you, they will come and ask you what we said. They will promise not to put you to death if you tell them everything. 26Just tell them you were begging me not to send you back to prison to die there.” 27Then all the officials came and questioned me, and I told them exactly what the king had told me to say. There was nothing else they could do, because no one had overheard the conversation. 28#Ezek 33.21And I was kept in the palace courtyard until the day Jerusalem was captured.
Currently Selected:
Jeremiah 38: GNBUK
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.
Jeremiah 38
38
Jeremiah Is Thrown into a Well
1Some of the officers heard what Jeremiah was prophesying. They were Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehucal son of Shelemiah and Pashhur son of Malkijah. Jeremiah was telling all the people this message: 2“This is what the Lord says: ‘Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die in war. Or he will die of hunger or terrible diseases. But everyone who surrenders to the Babylonian army will live. They will escape with their lives and live.’ 3And this is what the Lord says: ‘This city of Jerusalem will surely be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon. He will capture this city!’”
4Then the officers said to the king, “Jeremiah must be put to death! He is making the soldiers who are still in the city become discouraged. He is discouraging everyone by the things he is saying. He does not want good to happen to us. He wants to ruin the people of Jerusalem.”
5King Zedekiah said to them, “Jeremiah is in your control. I cannot do anything to stop you!”
6So the officers took Jeremiah and put him into the well of Malkijah, the king’s son. That well was in the courtyard of the guards. The officers used ropes to lower Jeremiah into the well. It did not have any water in it, only mud. And Jeremiah sank down into the mud.
7But Ebed-Melech heard that the officers had put Jeremiah into the well. Ebed-Melech was a Cushite, and he was a eunuch in the palace. King Zedekiah was sitting at the Benjamin Gate. 8So Ebed-Melech left the palace and went to the king. Ebed-Melech said, 9“My master and king, the rulers have acted in an evil way. They have treated Jeremiah the prophet badly! They have thrown him into a well! They have left him there to die! When there is no more bread in the city, he will starve.”
10Then King Zedekiah commanded Ebed-Melech the Cushite: “Ebed-Melech, take 30 men from the palace with you. Go and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the well before he dies.”
11So Ebed-Melech took the men with him. And he went to a room under the storeroom in the palace. He took some old rags and worn-out clothes from that room. Then he let those rags down with some ropes to Jeremiah in the well. 12Ebed-Melech the Cushite said to Jeremiah, “Put these old rags and worn-out clothes under your arms. They will be pads for the ropes.” So Jeremiah did as Ebed-Melech said. 13The men pulled Jeremiah up with the ropes and lifted him out of the well. And Jeremiah stayed under guard in the courtyard.
Zedekiah Questions Jeremiah
14Then King Zedekiah sent someone to get Jeremiah the prophet. He had Jeremiah brought to the third entrance to the Temple of the Lord. Then the king said to Jeremiah, “I am going to ask you something. Do not hide anything from me. But tell me everything honestly.”
15Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I give you an answer, you will probably kill me. And even if I give you advice, you will not listen to me.”
16But King Zedekiah made a secret promise to Jeremiah. He said, “As surely as the Lord lives who has given us breath and life, I will not kill you. And I promise not to give you to the officers who want to kill you.”
17Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Lord God of heaven’s armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘You must surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon. Then your life will be saved. And Jerusalem will not be burned down. And you and your family will live. 18You must not refuse to surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon. If you do, Jerusalem will be given to the Babylonian army. They will burn Jerusalem down. And you will not escape from them.’”
19Then King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I’m afraid of some of the Jews. They have already gone over to the side of the Babylonian army. I’m afraid the Babylonians may hand me over to them. And they will treat me badly.”
20But Jeremiah answered, “The Babylonians will not hand you over to the Jews. Obey the Lord by doing what I tell you. Then things will go well for you. And your life will be saved. 21But if you refuse to surrender to the Babylonians, the Lord has shown me what will happen. 22All the women left in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out. They will be taken to the important officers of the king of Babylon. Your women will make fun of you with this song:
‘Your good friends led you the wrong way and were stronger than you.
Those were friends that you trusted.
Your feet are stuck in the mud.
Your friends have left you.’
23“All your wives and children will be brought out. They will be given to the Babylonian army. You yourself will not even escape from them. You will be taken prisoner by the king of Babylon. And Jerusalem will be burned down.”
24Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Do not tell anyone that I have been talking to you. If you do, you will die. 25Those officers might find out that I talked to you. Then they will come to you and say, ‘Tell us what you said to King Zedekiah. And tell us what King Zedekiah said to you. Don’t keep any secrets from us. If you don’t tell us everything, we will kill you.’ 26If they ask you, tell them this: ‘I was begging the king not to send me back to Jonathan’s house to die.’”
27The officers did come to question Jeremiah. So he told them everything the king had ordered him to say. Then the officers said no more to Jeremiah. This was because no one had heard what Jeremiah and the king had discussed.
28So Jeremiah stayed under guard in the courtyard until the day Jerusalem was captured.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Copyright © 2015 by Tommy Nelson™, a Division of Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.