Jeremiah 37

1 And Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, became king in place of Coniah, the son of Jehoiakim, whom Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, made king in the land of Judah.

And Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned as king in the place of Conyahu the son of Jehoyakim, whom Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah.

2 But he and his servants and the people of the land did not give ear to the words of the Lord which he said by Jeremiah the prophet.

But neither he, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, did hearken unto the words of the Lord, which he had spoken by means 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, Make prayer now to the Lord our God for us.

And king Zedekiah sent Jehuchal the son of Shelemyah and Zephanyahu the son of Ma'asseyah the priest unto Jeremiah the prophet, saying, Pray now in our behalf unto the Lord our God.

4 (Now Jeremiah was going about among the people, for they had not put him in prison.

Now Jeremiah came and went out among the people; and they put him not into the prison-house.

5 And Pharaoh's army had come out from Egypt: and the Chaldaeans, who were attacking Jerusalem, hearing news of them, went away from Jerusalem.)

But the army of Pharaoh was come forth out of Egypt: and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard the report of them, they withdrew from Jerusalem.

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

Then came the word of the Lord unto Jeremiah the prophet, saying,

7 The Lord, the God of Israel, has said: This is what you are to say to the king of Judah who sent you to get directions from me: See, Pharaoh's army, which has come out to your help, will go back to Egypt, to their land.

Thus hath said the Lord, the God of Israel, Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that hath sent you unto me to inquire of me, Behold, Pharaoh's army, which is come forth to help you, returneth into its own land to Egypt.

8 And the Chaldaeans will come back again and make war against this town and they will take it and put it on fire.

But the Chaldeans will come again, and fight against this city, and capture it, and burn it with fire.

9 The Lord has said, Have no false hopes, saying to yourselves, The Chaldaeans will go away from us: for they will not go away.

Thus hath said the Lord, Deceive not yourselves, saying, The Chaldeans will certainly go away from us; for they will not go away.

10 For even if you had overcome all the army of the Chaldaeans fighting against you, and there were only wounded men among them, still they would get up, every man in his tent, and put this town on fire.

For if even ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you, and there remained among them [only such] men as are pierced through: yet should they rise up, every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire.

11 And it came about that when the Chaldaean army outside Jerusalem had gone away for fear of Pharaoh's army,

And it came to pass, when the army of the Chaldeans had withdrawn from Jerusalem because of the army of Pharaoh,

12 Jeremiah went out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, with the purpose of taking up his heritage there among the people.

That Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to make his escape thence in the midst of the people.

13 But when he was at the Benjamin door, a captain of the watch named Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah, who was stationed there, put his hand on Jeremiah the prophet, saying, You are going to give yourself up to the Chaldaeans.

But as he was in the gate of Benjamin, there was there a captain of the guardsmen, whose name was Yiriyah, the son of Shelemyah, the son of Chananyah; and he seized hold of Jeremiah the prophet, saying, Thou runnest away to the Chaldeans.

14 Then Jeremiah said, That is not true; I am not going to the Chaldaeans. But he would not give ear to him: so Irijah made him prisoner and took him to the rulers.

But Jeremiah said, It is false; I am not running away to the Chaldeans. But he listened not to him; and Yiriyah seized hold of Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes.

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

Thereupon were the princes wroth with Jeremiah, and struck him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe; for that had they made into a prison-house.

16 So Jeremiah came into the hole of the prison, under the arches, and was there for a long time.

When Jeremiah had been placed in the dungeon, within the traders' shops, where Jeremiah remained many days:

17 Then King Zedekiah sent and got him out: and the king, questioning him secretly in his house, said, Is there any word from the Lord? And Jeremiah said, There is. Then he said, You will be given up into the hands of the king of Babylon.

King Zedekiah sent, and had him taken out, and the king asked him in his house in secret, and said, “Is there any word from the Lord?” And Jeremiah said, “There is:” and he said, Into the hand of the king of Babylon shalt thou be given up.

18 Then Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, What has been my sin against you or against your servants or against this people, that you have put me in prison?

And Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah, What have I sinned against thee, and against thy servants, and against this people, that ye have put me into the prison-house?

19 Where now are your prophets who said to you, The king of Babylon will not come against you and against this land?

And where are now your prophets who have prophesied unto you, saying, The king of Babylon will not come against you, and against this land?

20 And now be pleased to give ear, O my lord the king; let my prayer for help come before you, and do not make me go back to the house of Jonathan the scribe, for fear that I may come to my death there.

Yet now, do but hear, I pray thee, O my lord the king: let me offer my humble supplication, I pray thee, before thee, that thou wilt not make me return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.

21 Then by the order of Zedekiah the king, Jeremiah was put into the place of the armed watchmen, and they gave him every day a cake of bread from the street of the bread-makers, till all the bread in the town was used up. So Jeremiah was kept in the place of the armed watchmen.

Then commanded king Zedekiah that they should put Jeremiah in ward in the court of the prison, and that they should give him a loaf of bread for every day out of the bakers' street, until all the bread was spent out of the city. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.