Jeremiah 37

1 And Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned as king, instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah.

And then king Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, reigned in place of Jeconiah, the son of Jehoiakim. For Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, appointed him as king in the land of Judah.

2 But neither he, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, hearkened to the words of Jehovah, which he spoke by the prophet Jeremiah.

And neither he himself, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, obeyed the words of the Lord, which he spoke by the hand of Jeremiah, the prophet.

3 And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, to the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now to Jehovah our God for us.

And king Zedekiah sent Jehucal, the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah, the son of Maaseiah, the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying: “Pray to the Lord our God for us.”

4 Now Jeremiah came in and went out among the people, for they had not put him into prison.

Now Jeremiah was walking freely in the midst of the people. For they had not yet sent him into the custody of the prison.

5 And Pharaoh's army came forth out of Egypt. And when the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard news of them, they broke away from Jerusalem.

And then the army of Pharaoh went forth from Egypt. And hearing this, the Chaldeans, who were besieging Jerusalem, withdrew from Jerusalem.

6 Then the word of Jehovah came to the prophet Jeremiah, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, saying:

7 Thus says Jehovah, the God of Israel, Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, who sent you to me to inquire of me: Behold, Pharaoh's army, which has come forth to help you, shall return to Egypt into their own land.

“Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: So shall you say to the king of Judah, who sent you to question me: Behold, the army of Pharaoh, which has gone forth in assistance to you, will return to their own land, into Egypt.

8 And the Chaldeans shall come again, and fight against this city, and they shall take it, and burn it with fire.

And the Chaldeans will return and will make war against this city. And they will seize it and burn it with fire.

9 Thus says Jehovah: Do not deceive yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us. For they shall not depart.

Thus says the Lord: Do not be willing to deceive your own souls, saying: ‘The Chaldeans will certainly withdraw and go away from us.’ For they will not go away.

10 For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight against you, and there remained but wounded men among them, yea they would rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire.

But even if you were to strike down the entire army of the Chaldeans who are fighting against you, and if there were left behind from among them only a few wounded men, they would rise up, each one from his tent, and they would burn this city with fire.”

11 And it came to pass that, when the army of the Chaldeans was broken away from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh's army,

Therefore, when the army of the Chaldeans had withdrawn from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s army,

12 then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin to receive his portion there in the midst of the people.

Jeremiah went forth from Jerusalem, to go into the land of Benjamin, and to distribute a possession there, in the sight of the citizens.

13 And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah. And he laid hold on Jeremiah the prophet, saying, Thou are falling away to the Chaldeans.

And when he had arrived at the gate of Benjamin, the keeper of the gate, whose turn it was to be there, was named Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah. And he apprehended Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are fleeing to the Chaldeans.”

14 Then Jeremiah said, It is false. I am not falling away to the Chaldeans. But he did not hearken to him. So Irijah laid hold on Jeremiah, and brought him to the rulers.

And Jeremiah responded: “That is false. I am not fleeing to the Chaldeans.” But he did not listen to him. And so Irijah took Jeremiah, and he brought him to the leaders.

15 And the rulers were angry with Jeremiah, and smote him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe, for they had made that the prison.

Therefore, the leaders were angry with Jeremiah, and so they beat him and sent him to the prison that was in the house of Jonathan, the scribe. For he was the chief over the prison.

16 When Jeremiah came into the dungeon-house, and into the cells, and Jeremiah had remained there many days,

And so Jeremiah went into the house of the prison and into a dungeon. And Jeremiah sat there for many days.

17 then Zedekiah the king sent, and fetched him. And the king asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from Jehovah? And Jeremiah said, There is. He also said, Thou shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.

Then Zedekiah the king, sending, took him out and questioned him secretly in his house, and he said: “Do you think that there is any word from the Lord?” And Jeremiah said: “There is.” And he said: “You will be delivered into the hands of the king of Babylon.”

18 Moreover Jeremiah said to king Zedekiah, How have I sinned against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison?

And Jeremiah said to king Zedekiah: “How have I sinned against you, or your servants, or your people, such that you would cast me into a house of imprisonment?

19 Where now are your prophets who prophesied to you, saying, The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?

Where are your prophets, who were prophesying to you, and who were saying: ‘The king of Babylon will not overwhelm you and this land?’

20 And now hear, I pray thee, O my lord the king. Let my supplication, I pray thee, be presented before thee, that thou not cause me to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.

Now therefore, listen, I beg you, my lord the king. Let my petition prevail in your sight. And do not send me back into the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.”

21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded, and they committed Jeremiah into the court of the guard. And they gave him a loaf of bread daily out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city was spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

Then king Zedekiah instructed that Jeremiah be confined to the vestibule of the prison, and that they should give him a twist of bread daily, along with stew, until all the bread in the city had been consumed. And Jeremiah remained at the entrance of the prison.