Zedekiah to Die in Babylon

34 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when ^(A)Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army ^(B)and all the kingdoms of the earth under his dominion and all the peoples were fighting against Jerusalem and all of its cities: ² “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Go and speak to ^(C)Zedekiah king of Judah and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^(D)Behold, I am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire. ^3 (E)You shall not escape from his hand but shall surely be captured and delivered into his hand. ^(F)You shall see the king of Babylon eye to eye and speak with him face to face. And you shall go to Babylon.’ ⁴ Yet hear the word of the Lord, O Zedekiah king of Judah! ^(G)Thus says the Lord concerning you: ^(H)‘You shall not die by the sword. ⁵ You shall die in peace. ^(I)And as spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so people shall ^(J)burn spices for you ^(K)and lament for you, saying, “Alas, lord!”’ For I have spoken the word, declares the Lord.”

⁶ Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words to Zedekiah king of Judah, in Jerusalem, ⁷ when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the cities of Judah that were left, ^(L)Lachish and ^(M)Azekah, ^(N)for these were the only ^(O)fortified cities of Judah that remained.

⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after King Zedekiah ^(P)had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem ^(Q)to make a proclamation of liberty to them, ^9 (R)that everyone should set free his Hebrew slaves, male and female, ^(S)so that no one should enslave a Jew, his brother. ¹⁰ And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that everyone would set free his slave, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again. They obeyed and set them free. ¹¹ But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves ^(T)they had set free, and brought them into subjection as slaves. ¹² The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ¹³ “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I myself made a covenant with your fathers when ^(U)I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying, ^14 (V)‘At the end of seven years each of you must set free the fellow Hebrew who has been sold to you and has served you six years; ^(W)you must set him free from your service.’ But ^(X)your fathers did not listen to me or incline their ears to me. ¹⁵ You recently repented and did what was right in my eyes ^(Y)by proclaiming liberty, each to his neighbor, and ^(Z)you made a covenant before me in the ^(AA)house that is called by my name, ¹⁶ but then you turned around ^(AB)and profaned my name when each of you took back his male and female slaves, ^(AC)whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be your slaves.

¹⁷ “Therefore, thus says the Lord: You have not obeyed me ^(AD)by proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother and to his neighbor; ^(AE)behold, I proclaim to you liberty ^(AF)to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, declares the Lord. ^(AG)I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth. ¹⁸ And the men who transgressed my covenant and did not keep the terms of ^(AH)the covenant that they made before me, I will make them like^{[a] (AI)}the calf that they cut in two and passed between its parts— ¹⁹ the officials of Judah, the officials of Jerusalem, ^(AJ)the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf. ²⁰ And I will give them into the hand of their enemies ^(AK)and into the hand of those who seek their lives. ^(AL)Their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. ²¹ And ^(AM)Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives, into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon ^(AN)which has withdrawn from you. ²² Behold, ^(AO)I will command, declares the Lord, and will ^(AP)bring them back to this city. ^(AQ)And they will fight against it and take it and burn it with fire. ^(AR)I will make the cities of Judah a desolation ^(AS)without inhabitant.”

Jeremiah Warns Zedekiah

37 ^(A)Zedekiah the son of Josiah, ^(B)whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah, reigned instead of ^(C)Coniah the son of Jehoiakim. ^2 (D)But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land listened to the words of the Lord that he spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.

³ King Zedekiah sent ^(E)Jehucal the son of ^(F)Shelemiah, and ^(G)Zephaniah the priest, the son of ^(H)Maaseiah, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “Please ^(I)pray for us to the Lord our God.” ^4 (J)Now Jeremiah was still going in and out among the people, ^(K)for he had not yet been put in prison. ^5 (L)The army of Pharaoh had come out of Egypt. And when ^(M)the Chaldeans who were besieging Jerusalem heard news about them, ^(N)they withdrew from Jerusalem.

⁶ Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet: ⁷ “Thus says the Lord, God of Israel: Thus shall you say to the king of Judah who ^(O)sent you to me to inquire of me, ‘Behold, ^(P)Pharaoh's army that came to help you is about to ^(Q)return to Egypt, to its own land. ⁸ And ^(R)the Chaldeans shall come back and fight against this city. ^(S)They shall capture it and burn it with fire. ⁹ Thus says the Lord, Do not deceive yourselves, saying, “The Chaldeans will surely go away from us,” for they will not go away. ^10 (T)For even if you should defeat the whole army of Chaldeans who are fighting against you, and there remained of them only wounded men, every man in his tent, they would rise up and ^(U)burn this city with fire.’”

Jeremiah Imprisoned

¹¹ Now when ^(V)the Chaldean army had withdrawn from Jerusalem at the approach of Pharaoh's army, ¹² Jeremiah set out from Jerusalem to go to ^(W)the land of Benjamin ^(X)to receive his portion there ^(Y)among the people. ¹³ When he was at ^(Z)the Benjamin Gate, a sentry there named Irijah the son of ^(AA)Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, ^(AB)“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 ^(AC)the officials. ¹⁵ And the officials were enraged at Jeremiah, and they beat him ^(AD)and imprisoned him in the house of Jonathan the secretary, for it had been made a prison.

^16 (AE)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 ^(AF)secretly in his house and said, “Is there any word from the Lord?” Jeremiah said, “There is.” Then he said, ^(AG)“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, ^(AH)that you have put me in prison? ^19 (AI)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: ^(AJ)let my humble plea come before you and ^(AK)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 ^(AL)the court of the guard. And a loaf of bread was given him daily from the bakers' street, ^(AM)until all the bread of the city was gone. So Jeremiah remained in ^(AN)the court of the guard.

Jeremiah Cast into the Cistern

38 Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, ^(AO)Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and ^(AP)Pashhur the son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was saying to all the people: ² “Thus says the Lord: ^(AQ)He who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, ^(AR)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: ^(AS)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, ^(AT)“Let this man be put to death, ^(AU)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 ^(AV)the welfare of this people, but their harm.” ⁵ King Zedekiah said, “Behold, he is in your hands, ^(AW)for the king can do nothing against you.” ⁶ So they took Jeremiah ^(AX)and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king's son, which was in ^(AY)the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down ^(AZ)by ropes. ^(BA)And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and ^(BB)Jeremiah sank in the mud.

Jeremiah Rescued from the Cistern

⁷ When ^(BC)Ebed-melech ^(BD)the Ethiopian, ^(BE)a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting ^(BF)in the Benjamin Gate— ^8 (BG)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 ^(BH)hunger, ^(BI)for there is no bread left in the city.” ¹⁰ Then the king commanded ^(BJ)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 ^(BK)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 ^(BL)by ropes. ¹² Then ^(BM)Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and ^(BN)the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. ¹³ Then they drew Jeremiah up with ^(BO)ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the ^(BP)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 ^(BQ)secretly to Jeremiah, ^(BR)“As the Lord lives, ^(BS)who made our souls, I will not put you to death or deliver you into the hand of ^(BT)these men who seek your life.”

¹⁷ Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: ^(BU)If you will surrender to ^(BV)the officials of the king of Babylon, ^(BW)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 ^(BX)the officials of the king of Babylon, ^(BY)then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, ^(BZ)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 ^(CA)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, ^(CB)and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared. ²¹ But if you refuse to ^(CC)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 ^(CE)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 ^(CF)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, ^(CG)‘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 ^(CH)in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken.

False Prophets and Teachers

2 But ^(A)false prophets also arose among the people, ^(B)just as there will be false teachers among you, who will ^(C)secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master ^(D)who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction. ² And many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of truth ^(E)will be blasphemed. ³ And ^(F)in their greed they will exploit you ^(G)with false words. ^(H)Their condemnation from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.

⁴ For if God did not spare ^(I)angels when they sinned, but ^(J)cast them into hell^[a] and committed them to chains^[b] of gloomy darkness ^(K)to be kept until the judgment; ⁵ if he did not spare the ancient world, but ^(L)preserved Noah, a herald of righteousness, with seven others, when he brought ^(M)a flood upon the world of the ungodly; ⁶ if by ^(N)turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to ashes he condemned them to extinction, ^(O)making them an example of ^(P)what is going to happen to the ungodly;^{[c] 7} and ^(Q)if he rescued righteous Lot, greatly distressed by the sensual conduct of the wicked ⁸ (for as that righteous man lived among them day after day, ^(R)he was tormenting his righteous soul over their lawless deeds that he saw and heard); ⁹ then ^(S)the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from trials,^[d] and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, ¹⁰ and especially ^(T)those who indulge^[e] in the lust of defiling passion and ^(U)despise authority.

Bold and willful, they do not tremble ^(V)as they blaspheme the glorious ones, ^11 (W)whereas angels, though greater in might and power, do not pronounce a blasphemous judgment against them before the Lord. ^12 (X)But these, like irrational animals, ^(Y)creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction, ¹³ suffering wrong as ^(Z)the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure ^(AA)to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions,^[f] while ^(AB)they feast with you. ¹⁴ They have eyes full of adultery,^{[g] (AC)}insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts ^(AD)trained in greed. ^(AE)Accursed children! ¹⁵ Forsaking the right way, ^(AF)they have gone astray. They have followed ^(AG)the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved ^(AH)gain from wrongdoing, ¹⁶ but was rebuked for his own transgression; ^(AI)a speechless donkey spoke with human voice and restrained the prophet's madness.

^17 (AJ)These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm. ^(AK)For them the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved. ¹⁸ For, ^(AL)speaking loud boasts of folly, they entice by sensual passions of the flesh those who are barely ^(AM)escaping from those who live in error. ¹⁹ They promise them ^(AN)freedom, ^(AO)but they themselves are slaves^[h] of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. ²⁰ For if, ^(AP)after they have escaped the defilements of the world ^(AQ)through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, ^(AR)the last state has become worse for them than the first. ²¹ For ^(AS)it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from ^(AT)the holy commandment delivered to them. ²² What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The ^(AU)dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”