Jeremiah Imprisoned

¹¹ Now when ^(A)the Chaldean army had withdrawn from Jerusalem at the approach of Pharaoh's army, ¹² Jeremiah set out from Jerusalem to go to ^(B)the land of Benjamin ^(C)to receive his portion there ^(D)among the people. ¹³ When he was at ^(E)the Benjamin Gate, a sentry there named Irijah the son of ^(F)Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, ^(G)“You are deserting to the Chaldeans.” ¹⁴ And Jeremiah said, “It is a lie; I am not deserting to the Chaldeans.” But Irijah would not listen to him, and seized Jeremiah and brought him to ^(H)the officials. ¹⁵ And the officials were enraged at Jeremiah, and they beat him ^(I)and imprisoned him in the house of Jonathan the secretary, for it had been made a prison.

^16 (J)When Jeremiah had come to the dungeon cells and remained there many days, ¹⁷ King Zedekiah sent for him and received him. The king questioned him ^(K)secretly in his house and said, “Is there any word from the Lord?” Jeremiah said, “There is.” Then he said, ^(L)“You shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.” ¹⁸ Jeremiah also said to King Zedekiah, “What wrong have I done to you or your servants or this people, ^(M)that you have put me in prison? ^19 (N)Where are your prophets who prophesied to you, saying, ‘The king of Babylon will not come against you and against this land’? ²⁰ Now hear, please, O my lord the king: ^(O)let my humble plea come before you and ^(P)do not send me back to the house of Jonathan the secretary, lest I die there.” ²¹ So King Zedekiah gave orders, and they committed Jeremiah to ^(Q)the court of the guard. And a loaf of bread was given him daily from the bakers' street, ^(R)until all the bread of the city was gone. So Jeremiah remained in ^(S)the court of the guard.

Jeremiah Cast into the Cistern

38 Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, ^(T)Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and ^(U)Pashhur the son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was saying to all the people: ² “Thus says the Lord: ^(V)He who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, ^(W)but he who goes out to the Chaldeans shall live. He shall have his life as a prize of war, and live. ³ Thus says the Lord: ^(X)This city shall surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon and be taken.” ⁴ Then the officials said to the king, ^(Y)“Let this man be put to death, ^(Z)for he is weakening the hands of the soldiers who are left in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man is not seeking ^(AA)the welfare of this people, but their harm.” ⁵ King Zedekiah said, “Behold, he is in your hands, ^(AB)for the king can do nothing against you.” ⁶ So they took Jeremiah ^(AC)and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king's son, which was in ^(AD)the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down ^(AE)by ropes. ^(AF)And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and ^(AG)Jeremiah sank in the mud.

Jeremiah Rescued from the Cistern

⁷ When ^(AH)Ebed-melech ^(AI)the Ethiopian, ^(AJ)a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting ^(AK)in the Benjamin Gate— ^8 (AL)Ebed-melech went from the king's house and said to the king, ⁹ “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of ^(AM)hunger, ^(AN)for there is no bread left in the city.” ¹⁰ Then the king commanded ^(AO)Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, “Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.” ¹¹ So ^(AP)Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern ^(AQ)by ropes. ¹² Then ^(AR)Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and ^(AS)the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. ¹³ Then they drew Jeremiah up with ^(AT)ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the ^(AU)court of the guard.

Jeremiah Warns Zedekiah Again

¹⁴ King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and received him at the third entrance of the temple of the Lord. The king said to Jeremiah, “I will ask you a question; hide nothing from me.” ¹⁵ Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I tell you, will you not surely put me to death? And if I give you counsel, you will not listen to me.” ¹⁶ Then King Zedekiah swore ^(AV)secretly to Jeremiah, ^(AW)“As the Lord lives, ^(AX)who made our souls, I will not put you to death or deliver you into the hand of ^(AY)these men who seek your life.”

¹⁷ Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: ^(AZ)If you will surrender to ^(BA)the officials of the king of Babylon, ^(BB)then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live. ¹⁸ But if you do not surrender to ^(BC)the officials of the king of Babylon, ^(BD)then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, ^(BE)and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand.” ¹⁹ King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Judeans ^(BF)who have deserted to the Chaldeans, lest I be handed over to them and they deal cruelly with me.” ²⁰ Jeremiah said, “You shall not be given to them. Obey now the voice of the Lord in what I say to you, ^(BG)and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared. ²¹ But if you refuse to ^(BH)surrender, this is the vision which the Lord has shown to me: ²² Behold, all the women left in the house of the king of Judah were being led out to the officials of the king of Babylon and were saying,

²³ All your wives and ^(BJ)your sons shall be led out to the Chaldeans, and you yourself shall not escape from their hand, but shall be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city shall be burned with fire.”

²⁴ Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Let no one know of these words, and you shall not die. ²⁵ If ^(BK)the officials hear that I have spoken with you and come to you and say to you, ‘Tell us what you said to the king and what the king said to you; hide nothing from us and we will not put you to death,’ ²⁶ then you shall say to them, ^(BL)‘I made a humble plea to the king that he would not send me back to the house of Jonathan to die there.’” ²⁷ Then all the officials came to Jeremiah and asked him, and he answered them as the king had instructed him. So they stopped speaking with him, for the conversation had not been overheard. ²⁸ And Jeremiah remained ^(BM)in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken.

Ezekiel in Babylon

1 ^(A)In the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I was among the exiles by ^(B)the Chebar canal, ^(C)the heavens were opened, and I saw ^(D)visions of God.^{[a] 2} On the fifth day of the month (it was ^(E)the fifth year of ^(F)the exile of King Jehoiachin), ³ the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel ^(G)the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by ^(H)the Chebar canal, and ^(I)the hand of the Lord was upon him there.

The Glory of the Lord

⁴ As I looked, behold, ^(J)a stormy wind came ^(K)out of the north, and a great cloud, with ^(L)brightness around it, and fire flashing forth continually, and in the midst of the fire, ^(M)as it were gleaming metal.^{[b] 5} And from the midst of it came the likeness of ^(N)four living creatures. ^(O)And this was their appearance: they had a human likeness, ^6 (P)but each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. ⁷ Their legs were straight, and the soles of their feet were like the sole of a calf's foot. And they sparkled ^(Q)like burnished bronze. ⁸ Under their wings ^(R)on their four sides ^(S)they had human hands. And the four had their faces and their wings thus: ⁹ their wings touched one another. ^(T)Each one of them went straight forward, ^(U)without turning as they went. ¹⁰ As for the likeness of their faces, ^(V)each had a human face. The four had the face of a lion on the right side, the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four had the face of an eagle. ¹¹ Such were their faces. And their wings were spread out above. Each creature had two wings, each of which touched the wing of another, while ^(W)two covered their bodies. ^12 (X)And each went straight forward. ^(Y)Wherever the spirit^[c] would go, they went, without turning as they went. ¹³ As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was ^(Z)like burning coals of fire, ^(AA)like the appearance of torches moving to and fro among the living creatures. ^(AB)And the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. ¹⁴ And the living creatures ^(AC)darted to and fro, ^(AD)like the appearance of a flash of lightning.

^15 (AE)Now as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them.^{[d] 16 (AF)}As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction: their appearance was like ^(AG)the gleaming of beryl. ^(AH)And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. ^17 (AI)When they went, they went ^(AJ)in any of their four directions^{[e] (AK)}without turning as they went. ¹⁸ And their rims were tall and awesome, ^(AL)and the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. ^19 (AM)And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; ^(AN)and when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. ^20 (AO)Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went, and the wheels rose along with them, ^(AP)for the spirit of the living creatures^[f] was in the wheels. ^21 (AQ)When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; ^(AR)and when those rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, ^(AS)for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

²² Over the heads of the living creatures there was ^(AT)the likeness of an expanse, shining like awe-inspiring ^(AU)crystal, spread out above their heads. ²³ And under the expanse their wings were ^(AV)stretched out straight, one toward another. ^(AW)And each creature had two wings covering its body. ²⁴ And when they went, I heard the sound of their wings ^(AX)like the sound of many waters, like ^(AY)the sound of the ^(AZ)Almighty, a sound of tumult ^(BA)like the sound of an army. When they stood still, they let down their wings. ²⁵ And there came a voice from above ^(BB)the expanse over their heads. When they stood still, they let down their wings.

²⁶ And above the expanse over their heads there was ^(BC)the likeness of a throne, ^(BD)in appearance ^(BE)like sapphire;^[g] and seated above the likeness of a throne was ^(BF)a likeness with a human appearance. ²⁷ And ^(BG)upward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were ^(BH)gleaming metal, like the appearance of fire enclosed all around. And downward from what had the appearance of his waist I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and ^(BI)there was brightness around him.^{[h] 28} Like the appearance of ^(BJ)the bow that is in the cloud on the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around.

Such was the appearance of the likeness of ^(BK)the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, ^(BL)I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking.

Ezekiel's Call

2 And he said to me, ^(BM)“Son of man,^{[i] (BN)}stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” ² And as he spoke to me, ^(BO)the Spirit entered into me and ^(BP)set me on my feet, and I heard him speaking to me. ³ And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to ^(BQ)nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. ^(BR)They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. ⁴ The descendants also are ^(BS)impudent and stubborn: I send you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ ⁵ And ^(BT)whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are ^(BU)a rebellious house) ^(BV)they will know that a prophet has been among them. ⁶ And you, son of man, ^(BW)be not afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, ^(BX)though briers and thorns are with you and you sit on ^(BY)scorpions.^[j] Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. ⁷ And you shall speak my words to them, ^(BZ)whether they hear or refuse to hear, for they are a rebellious house.

⁸ “But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. ^(CA)Be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and ^(CB)eat what I give you.” ⁹ And when I looked, behold, ^(CC)a hand was stretched out to me, and behold, ^(CD)a scroll of a book was in it. ¹⁰ And he spread it before me. And it had writing ^(CE)on the front and on the back, and there were written on it words of lamentation and mourning and woe.

3 And he said to me, ^(CF)“Son of man, eat whatever you find here. ^(CG)Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” ² So I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat. ³ And he said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it.” ^(CH)Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth ^(CI)as sweet as honey.

⁴ And he said to me, ^(CJ)“Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with my words to them. ⁵ For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel— ⁶ not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. ^(CK)Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you. ^7 (CL)But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel ^(CM)have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart. ^8 (CN)Behold, I have made your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads. ⁹ Like ^(CO)emery harder than flint have I made your forehead. ^(CP)Fear them not, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.” ¹⁰ Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, ^(CQ)all my words that I shall speak to you receive ^(CR)in your heart, and hear with your ears. ¹¹ And go to the exiles, ^(CS)to your people, and speak to them and say to them, ^(CT)‘Thus says the Lord God,’ ^(CU)whether they hear or refuse to hear.”

^12 (CV)Then the Spirit^[k] lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice^[l] of ^(CW)a great earthquake: “Blessed be the glory of the Lord from its place!” ¹³ It was the sound of the wings of ^(CX)the living creatures as they touched one another, and the sound of the wheels beside them, and the sound of ^(CY)a great earthquake. ^14 (CZ)The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the ^(DA)hand of the Lord being strong upon me. ^15 (DB)And I came to the exiles at Tel-abib, who were dwelling ^(DC)by the Chebar canal, and I sat where they were dwelling.^[m] And ^(DD)I sat there ^(DE)overwhelmed among them ^(DF)seven days.