Jeremiah 38

1 And Shephatiah son of Mattan, and Gedaliah son of Pashhur, and Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah, hear the words that Jeremiah is speaking to all the people, saying,

Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchijah heard that Jeremiah had been telling all the people:

2 “Thus said YHWH: He who is remaining in this city dies, by sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and he who is going forth to the Chaldeans lives, and his soul has been to him for a prey, and he lives.

“This is what the LORD says: Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live; he will retain his life like a spoil of war, and he will live.

3 Thus said YHWH: This city is certainly given into the hand of the force of the king of Babylon, and he has captured it.”

This is what the LORD says: This city will surely be delivered into the hands of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.”

4 And the heads say to the king, “Now let this man be put to death, because that he is making feeble the hands of the men of war who are left in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking to them according to these words, for this man is not seeking for the peace of this people, but for its calamity.”

Then the officials said to the king, “This man ought to die, for he is discouraging the warriors who remain in this city, as well as all the people, by speaking such words to them; this man is not seeking the well-being of these people, but their ruin.”

5 And King Zedekiah says, “Behold, he [is] in your hand: for the king is not able [to do] anything against you.”

“Here he is,” replied King Zedekiah. “He is in your hands, since the king can do nothing to stop you.”

6 And they take Jeremiah, and cast him into the pit of Malchiah son of the king, that [is] in the court of the prison, and they send Jeremiah down with cords; and there is no water in the pit, but mire, and Jeremiah sinks in the mire.

So they took Jeremiah and dropped him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guard. They lowered Jeremiah with ropes into the cistern, which had no water but only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud.

7 And Ebed-Melech the Cushite, a eunuch who [is] in the king’s house, hears that they have put Jeremiah into the pit; and the king is sitting at the Gate of Benjamin,

Now Ebed-melech the Cushite, a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put into the cistern. While the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin,

8 and Ebed-Melech goes forth from the king’s house, and speaks to the king, saying,

Ebed-melech went out from the king’s palace and said to the king,

9 “My lord, O king, these men have done evil [in] all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the pit, and he dies in his place because of the famine, for there is no more bread in the city.”

“My lord the king, these men have acted wickedly in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet. They have dropped him into the cistern, where he will starve to death, for there is no more bread in the city.”

10 And the king commands Ebed-Melech the Cushite, saying, “Take with you thirty men from here, and you have brought up Jeremiah the prophet from the pit, before he dies.”

So the king commanded Ebed-melech the Cushite, “Take thirty men from here with you and pull Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.”

11 And Ebed-Melech takes the men with him, and enters the house of the king, to the place of the treasury, and takes there worn-out shreds of cloth, and worn-out rags, and sends them by cords into the pit to Jeremiah.

Then Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the king’s palace, to a place below the storehouse. From there he took old rags and worn-out clothes and lowered them with ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern.

12 And Ebed-Melech the Cushite says to Jeremiah, “Now put the worn-out pieces of cloth and rags under your arms, at the place of the cords,” and Jeremiah does so,

Ebed-melech the Cushite cried out to Jeremiah, “Put these worn-out rags and clothes under your arms to pad the ropes.” Jeremiah did so,

13 and they draw Jeremiah out with cords, and bring him up out of the pit, and Jeremiah dwells in the court of the prison.

and they pulled him up with the ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard.

14 And King Zedekiah sends, and takes Jeremiah the prophet to him, to the third entrance that [is] in the house of YHWH, and the king says to Jeremiah, “I am asking you something, do not hide anything from me.”

Then King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and received him at the third entrance to the house of the LORD. “I am going to ask you something,” said the king to Jeremiah. “Do not hide anything from me.”

15 And Jeremiah says to Zedekiah, “When I declare [it] to you, do you not surely put me to death? And when I counsel you, you do not listen to me.”

“If I tell you,” Jeremiah replied, “you will surely put me to death. And even if I give you advice, you will not listen to me.”

16 And King Zedekiah swears to Jeremiah in secret, saying, “YHWH lives, He who made this soul for us, I do not put you to death, nor give you into the hand of these men who are seeking your soul.”

But King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you, nor will I deliver you into the hands of these men who are seeking your life.”

17 And Jeremiah says to Zedekiah, “Thus said YHWH, God of Hosts, God of Israel: If you certainly go forth to the heads of the king of Babylon, then your soul has lived, and this city is not burned with fire, indeed, you have lived, you and your house.

Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive.

18 And if you do not go forth to the heads of the king of Babylon, then this city has been given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they have burned it with fire, and you do not escape from their hand.”

But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’”

19 And King Zedekiah says to Jeremiah, “I am fearing the Jews who have fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they give me into their hand, and they have insulted me.”

But King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Jews who have deserted to the Chaldeans, for the Chaldeans may deliver me into their hands to abuse me.”

20 And Jeremiah says, “They do not give you up; please listen to the voice of YHWH, to that which I am speaking to you, and it is well for you, and your soul lives.

“They will not hand you over,” Jeremiah replied. “Obey the voice of the LORD in what I am telling you, that it may go well with you and you may live.

21 And if you are refusing to go forth, this [is] the thing that YHWH has shown me:

But if you refuse to surrender, this is the word that the LORD has shown me:

22 That, behold, all the women who have been left in the house of the king of Judah are brought forth to the heads of the king of Babylon, and behold, they are saying: Persuaded you, and prevailed against you, Have your allies, Your feet have sunk into mire, They have been turned backward.

All the women who remain in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon, and those women will say: ‘They misled you and overcame you— those trusted friends of yours. Your feet sank into the mire, and they deserted you.’

23 And all your wives and your sons are brought forth to the Chaldeans, and you do not escape from their hand, for you are caught by the hand of the king of Babylon, and this city is burned with fire.”

All your wives and children will be brought out to the Chaldeans. And you yourself will not escape their grasp, for you will be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned down.”

24 And Zedekiah says to Jeremiah, “Let no man know of these words, and you do not die;

Then Zedekiah warned Jeremiah, “Do not let anyone know about this conversation, or you will die.

25 and when the heads hear that I have spoken with you, and they have come to you, and have said to you, Now declare to us what you spoke to the king, do not hide [it] from us, and we do not put you to death, and what the king spoke to you,

If the officials hear that I have spoken with you, and they come and demand of you, ‘Tell us what you said to the king and what he said to you; do not hide it from us, or we will kill you,’

26 then you have said to them, I am causing my supplication to fall before the king, not to cause me to return to the house of Jonathan, to die there.”

then tell them, ‘I was presenting to the king my petition that he not return me to the house of Jonathan to die there.’”

27 And all the heads come to Jeremiah, and ask him, and he declares to them according to all these words that the king commanded, and they keep silent from him, for the matter was not heard;

When all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, he relayed to them the exact words the king had commanded him to say. So they said no more to him, for no one had overheard the conversation.

28 and Jeremiah dwells in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem has been captured, and he was [there] when Jerusalem was captured.

And Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard until the day Jerusalem was captured.