Jeremiah 37

1 And King Zedekiah son of Josiah reigns instead of Coniah son of Jehoiakim whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had caused to reign in the land of Judah,

Now King Zedekiah, the son of Josiah, reigned instead of Coniah, the son of Jehoiakim, whom Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, made king in the land of Judah.

2 and he has not listened—he, and his servants, and the people of the land—to the words of YHWH that He spoke by the hand of Jeremiah the prophet.

But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land regarded the words of Jehovah, which he spake by the prophet Jeremiah.

3 And Zedekiah the king sends Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah son of Maaseiah the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “Pray, we implore you, for us to our God YHWH.”

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

4 And Jeremiah is coming in and going out in the midst of the people (and they have not put him in the prison-house),

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

5 and the force of Pharaoh has come out of Egypt, and the Chaldeans who are laying siege against Jerusalem hear their report, and go up from off Jerusalem.

And Pharaoh's army had come forth out of Egypt; and the Chaldaeans, who were besieging Jerusalem, having heard tidings of them, had departed from Jerusalem.

6 And there is a word of YHWH to Jeremiah the prophet, saying,

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

7 “Thus said YHWH, God of Israel: Thus you say to the king of Judah who is sending you to Me, to seek Me: Behold, the force of Pharaoh that is coming out to you for help has turned back to its land, to Egypt,

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

8 and the Chaldeans have turned back and fought against this city, and captured it, and burned it with fire.

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

9 Thus said YHWH: Do not lift up your souls, saying, The Chaldeans surely go from off us, for they do not go;

Thus saith Jehovah: Deceive not yourselves, saying, “The Chaldaeans shall surely depart from us”; for they shall not depart.

10 for though you had struck all the force of the Chaldeans who are fighting with you, and there were left of them wounded men—they rise, each in his tent, and have burned this city with fire.”

For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldaeans that fight against you, and there remained only wounded men among them, each one in his tent, yet should they rise up and burn this city with fire.

11 And it has come to pass, in the going up of the force of the Chaldeans from off Jerusalem, because of the force of Pharaoh,

And it came to pass, when the army of the Chaldaeans had marched away from Jerusalem because of the army of Pharaoh,

12 that Jeremiah goes out from Jerusalem to go [to] the land of Benjamin, to receive a portion there in the midst of the people.

that Jeremiah was going forth from Jerusalem, to go into the land of Benjamin, to receive thence his inheritance among the people.

13 And it comes to pass, he is at the Gate of Benjamin, and there [is] a master of the ward, and his name is Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah; and he catches Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are defecting to the Chaldeans!”

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 seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “Thou art going over to the Chaldaeans.”

14 And Jeremiah says, “Falsehood! I am not defecting to the Chaldeans”; and he has not listened to him, and Irijah lays hold on Jeremiah, and brings him to the heads,

And Jeremiah said, “It is false; I am not going over to the Chaldaeans.” But he hearkened not to him; so Irijah took Jeremiah and brought him to the princes.

15 and the heads are angry against Jeremiah, and have struck him, and put him in the prison-house—the house of Jonathan the scribe, for they had made it for a prison-house.

And the princes were enraged against Jeremiah, and smote him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe; for they had made that a prison.

16 When Jeremiah has entered into the house of the dungeon, and to the cells, then Jeremiah dwells there many days,

And when Jeremiah had gone into the dungeon, and into the cells, and had remained there a long time,

17 and King Zedekiah sends, and takes him, and the king asks him in his house in secret, and says, “Is there a word from YHWH?” And Jeremiah says, “There is,” and he says, “You are given into the hand of the king of Babylon.”

then Zedekiah the king sent and took him out; and the king asked him in his house privately, and said, “Hast thou any word from Jehovah?” And Jeremiah said, “I have.” And he said, “Into the hand of the king of Babylon shalt thou be delivered.”

18 And Jeremiah says to King Zedekiah, “What have I sinned against you, and against your servants, and against this people, that you have put me into a prison-house?

And Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, What offence have I committed against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison?

19 And where [are] your prophets who prophesied to you, saying, The king of Babylon does not come in against you, and against this land?

And where are your prophets, who prophesied to you, saying, “The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?”

20 And now, please listen, O my lord the king; please let my supplication fall before you, and do not cause me to return [to] the house of Jonathan the scribe, that I do not die there.”

But now hear, I pray thee, my lord the king! let my supplication, I pray thee, be accepted before thee, and cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there!

21 And King Zedekiah commands, and they commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, also to give a cake of bread to him daily from the bakers’ street, until the consumption of all the bread of the city, and Jeremiah dwells in the court of the prison.

Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city should be consumed. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.