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Introduction to Incidents During the Reign of Zedekiah
37 Zedekiah son of Josiah succeeded Jeconiah[a] son of Jehoiakim as king. He was elevated to the throne of the land of Judah by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.[b] 2 Neither he nor the officials who served him nor the people of Judah paid any attention to what the Lord said through the prophet Jeremiah.[c]
The Lord Responds to Zedekiah’s Hope for Help
3 King Zedekiah sent[d] Jehucal[e] son of Shelemiah and the priest Zephaniah[f] son of Maaseiah to the prophet Jeremiah to say, “Please pray to the Lord our God on our behalf.” 4 (Now Jeremiah had not yet been put in prison.[g] So he was still free to come and go among the people as he pleased.[h] 5 At that time the Babylonian forces[i] had temporarily given up their siege against Jerusalem. They had had it under siege, but withdrew when they heard that the army of Pharaoh had set out from Egypt.[j]) 6 The Lord’s message came to the prophet Jeremiah, 7 “This is what the Lord God of Israel has said, ‘This is what you must say to the king of Judah who sent you to seek my help.[k] “Beware,[l] Pharaoh’s army that was on its way to help you is about to go back home to Egypt.[m] 8 Then the Babylonian forces[n] will return. They will attack the city and will capture it and burn it down. 9 Moreover, I, the Lord, warn you not to deceive yourselves into thinking that the Babylonian forces[o] will go away and leave you alone. For they will not go away.[p] 10 For even if you were to defeat all the Babylonian forces[q] fighting against you so badly that only wounded men were left lying in their tents, they would get up and burn this city down.”’”[r]
Jeremiah is Charged with Deserting, Arrested, and Imprisoned
11 The following events also occurred[s] while the Babylonian forces[t] had temporarily withdrawn from Jerusalem because the army of Pharaoh was coming. 12 Jeremiah started to leave Jerusalem to go to the territory of Benjamin. He wanted to make sure he got his share of the property that was being divided up among his family there.[u] 13 But he only got as far as the Benjamin Gate.[v] There an officer in charge of the guards named Irijah,[w] who was the son of Shelemiah and the grandson of Hananiah, stopped him. He seized Jeremiah and said,[x] “You are deserting to the Babylonians!”[y] 14 Jeremiah answered, “That’s a lie! I am not deserting to the Babylonians.”[z] But Irijah would not listen to him. Irijah put Jeremiah under arrest and took him to the officials. 15 The officials were very angry[aa] with Jeremiah. They had him flogged and put in prison in the house of Jonathan, the royal secretary, which they had converted into a place for confining prisoners.[ab]
16 So[ac] Jeremiah was put in prison in a cell in the dungeon in Jonathan’s house.[ad] He[ae] was kept there for a long time. 17 Then King Zedekiah had him brought to the palace. There he questioned him privately and asked him,[af] “Is there any message from the Lord?” Jeremiah answered, “Yes, there is.” Then he announced,[ag] “You will be handed over to the king of Babylon.”[ah] 18 Then Jeremiah asked King Zedekiah, “What crime have I committed against you, or the officials who serve you, or the people of Judah? What have I done to make you people throw me into prison?[ai] 19 Where now are the prophets who prophesied to you that[aj] the king of Babylon would not attack you or this land? 20 But now please listen, your royal Majesty,[ak] and grant my plea for mercy.[al] Do not send me back to the house of Jonathan, the royal secretary. If you do, I will die there.”[am] 21 Then King Zedekiah ordered that Jeremiah be committed to the courtyard of the guardhouse. He also ordered that a loaf of bread[an] be given to him every day from the bakers’ street until all the bread in the city was gone. So Jeremiah was kept[ao] in the courtyard of the guardhouse.
Jeremiah Is Charged with Treason and Put in a Cistern to Die
38 Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehucal[ap] son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur[aq] son of Malkijah had heard[ar] the things that Jeremiah had been telling the people. They had heard him say, 2 “The Lord says, ‘Those who stay in this city will die in battle or of starvation or disease.[as] Those who leave the city and surrender to the Babylonians[at] will live. They will escape with their lives.’”[au] 3 They had also heard him say,[av] “The Lord says, ‘This city will certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon. They will capture it.’”[aw] 4 So these officials said to the king, “This man must be put to death. For he is demoralizing[ax] the soldiers who are left in the city as well as all the other people there by these things he is saying.[ay] This[az] man is not seeking to help these people but is trying to harm them.”[ba] 5 King Zedekiah said to them, “Very well, you can do what you want with him.[bb] For I cannot do anything to stop you.”[bc] 6 So the officials[bd] took Jeremiah and put him in the cistern[be] of Malkijah, one of the royal princes,[bf] that was in the courtyard of the guardhouse. There was no water in the cistern, only mud. So when they lowered Jeremiah into the cistern with ropes he sank in the mud.[bg]
An Ethiopian Official Rescues Jeremiah from the Cistern
7 An Ethiopian, Ebed Melech,[bh] a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put[bi] in the cistern. While the king was holding court[bj] at the Benjamin Gate, 8 Ebed Melech departed the palace and went to speak to the king. He said to him, 9 “Your royal Majesty, those men have been very wicked in all that they have done to the prophet Jeremiah. They have thrown him into a cistern and he is sure to die of starvation there because there is no food left in the city.”[bk] 10 Then the king gave Ebed Melech the Ethiopian the following order: “Take thirty[bl] men with you from here and go pull the prophet Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.” 11 So Ebed Melech took the men with him and went to a room under the treasure room in the palace.[bm] He got some worn-out clothes and old rags[bn] from there and let them down by ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern. 12 Ebed Melech[bo] called down to Jeremiah, “Put these rags and worn-out clothes under your armpits to pad the ropes.”[bp] Jeremiah did as Ebed Melech instructed.[bq] 13 So they pulled Jeremiah up from the cistern with ropes. Jeremiah, however, still remained confined[br] to the courtyard of the guardhouse.
Jeremiah Responds to Zedekiah’s Request for Secret Advice
14 Some time later[bs] Zedekiah sent and had Jeremiah brought to him at the third entrance[bt] of the Lord’s temple. The king said to Jeremiah, “I would like to ask you a question. Do not hide anything from me when you answer.”[bu] 15 Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I answer you, you will certainly kill me.[bv] If I give you advice, you will not listen to me.” 16 So King Zedekiah made a secret promise to Jeremiah and sealed it with an oath. He promised,[bw] “As surely as the Lord lives who has given us life and breath,[bx] I promise you this: I will not kill you or hand you over to those men who want to kill you.”[by]
17 Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “The Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel,[bz] says, ‘You must surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon. If you do, your life will be spared[ca] and this city will not be burned down. Indeed, you and your whole family will be spared. 18 But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, this city will be handed over to the Babylonians[cb] and they will burn it down. You yourself will not escape from them.’”[cc] 19 Then King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Judeans who have deserted to the Babylonians.[cd] The Babylonians might hand me over to them and they will torture me.”[ce] 20 Then Jeremiah answered, “You will not be handed over to them. Please obey the Lord by doing what I have been telling you.[cf] Then all will go well with you and your life will be spared.[cg] 21 But if you refuse to surrender, the Lord has shown me a vision of what will happen. Here is what I saw: 22 All the women who are left in the royal palace of Judah will be led out to the officers of the king of Babylon. They will taunt you saying:[ch]
“‘Your trusted friends misled you;
they have gotten the best of you.
Now that your feet are stuck in the mud,
they have turned their backs on you.’[ci]
23 “All your wives and your children will be turned over to the Babylonians.[cj] You yourself will not escape from them but will be captured by the[ck] king of Babylon. This city will be burned down.”[cl]
24 Then Zedekiah told Jeremiah, “Do not let anyone know about the conversation we have had.[cm] If you do, you will die.[cn] 25 The officials may hear that I have talked with you. They may come to you and say, ‘Tell us what you said to the king and what the king said to you.[co] Do not hide anything from us. If you do, we will kill you.’[cp] 26 If they do this, tell[cq] them, ‘I was pleading with the king not to send me back to die in the dungeon of Jonathan’s house.’”[cr] 27 All the officials did indeed come and question Jeremiah.[cs] He told them exactly what the king had instructed him to say.[ct] They stopped questioning him any further because no one had actually heard their conversation.[cu] 28 So Jeremiah remained confined[cv] in the courtyard of the guardhouse until the day Jerusalem was captured.
The Fall of Jerusalem and Its Aftermath
The following events occurred when Jerusalem was captured.[cw]
6 Those who are under the yoke as slaves[a] must regard their own masters as deserving of full respect. This will prevent[b] the name of God and Christian teaching[c] from being discredited.[d] 2 But those who have believing masters must not show them less respect[e] because they are brothers. Instead they are to serve all the more, because those who benefit from their service are believers and dearly loved.[f]
Summary of Timothy’s Duties
Teach them and exhort them about these things.[g] 3 If someone spreads false teachings[h] and does not agree with sound words (that is, those of our Lord Jesus Christ) and with the teaching that accords with godliness, 4 he is conceited and understands nothing, but has an unhealthy interest in controversies and verbal disputes. This gives rise to envy, dissension, slanders, evil suspicions, 5 and constant bickering by people corrupted in their minds and deprived of the truth, who suppose that godliness[i] is a way of making a profit. 6 Now godliness combined with contentment brings great profit. 7 For we have brought nothing into this world and so[j] we cannot take a single thing out either. 8 But if we have food and shelter, we will be satisfied with that.[k] 9 Those who long to be rich, however, stumble into temptation and a trap and many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is the root[l] of all evils.[m] Some people in reaching for it have strayed from the faith and stabbed themselves with many pains.
11 But you, as a person dedicated to God,[n] keep away from all that.[o] Instead pursue righteousness, godliness, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12 Compete well[p] for the faith and lay hold of that eternal life you were called for and made your good confession[q] for[r] in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I charge you[s] before God who gives life to all things and Christ Jesus who made his good confession[t] before Pontius Pilate, 14 to obey[u] this command[v] without fault or failure until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ 15 —whose appearing[w] the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, will reveal at the right time. 16 He alone possesses immortality and lives in unapproachable light, whom no human has ever seen or is able to see. To him be honor and eternal power! Amen.
17 Command those who are rich in this world’s goods[x] not to be haughty or to set their hope on riches, which are uncertain,[y] but on God who richly provides us with all things for our enjoyment. 18 Tell them to do good,[z] to be rich in good deeds, to be generous givers, sharing with others.[aa] 19 In this way they will save up[ab] a treasure for themselves as a firm foundation[ac] for the future and so lay hold of[ad] what is truly life.
Conclusion
20 O Timothy, protect what has been entrusted to you. Avoid[ae] the profane chatter and absurdities[af] of so-called “knowledge.”[ag] 21 By professing it, some have strayed from the faith.[ah] Grace be with you all.[ai]
38 But you have spurned[a] and rejected him;
you are angry with your chosen king.[b]
39 You have repudiated[c] your covenant with your servant;[d]
you have thrown his crown to the ground.[e]
40 You have broken down all his[f] walls;
you have made his strongholds a heap of ruins.
41 All who pass by[g] have robbed him;
he has become an object of disdain to his neighbors.
42 You have allowed his adversaries to be victorious,[h]
and all his enemies to rejoice.
43 You turn back[i] his sword from the adversary,[j]
and have not sustained him in battle.[k]
44 You have brought to an end his splendor,[l]
and have knocked[m] his throne to the ground.
45 You have cut short his youth,[n]
and have covered him with shame. (Selah)
46 How long, O Lord, will this last?
Will you remain hidden forever?[o]
Will your anger continue to burn like fire?
47 Take note of my brief lifespan.[p]
Why do you make all people so mortal?[q]
48 No man can live on without experiencing death,
or deliver his life from the power of Sheol.[r] (Selah)
49 Where are your earlier faithful deeds,[s] O Lord,[t]
the ones performed in accordance with your reliable oath to David?[u]
50 Take note, O Lord,[v] of the way your servants are taunted,[w]
and of how I must bear so many insults from people.[x]
51 Your enemies, O Lord, hurl insults;
they insult your chosen king as they dog his footsteps.[y]
52 [z] The Lord deserves praise[aa] forevermore!
We agree! We agree![ab]
28 Like a city that is broken down and without a wall,
so is a person who cannot control his temper.[a]
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