⁹ “My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon, and he is likely to die from hunger in the place where he is. For there is ^(A)no more bread in the city.”

⁶ By the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the famine had become so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land.

²¹ Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah ^(A)to the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread from the bakers’ street, ^(B)until all the bread in the city was gone. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.

Jeremiah in the Dungeon

38 Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, ^(C)Jucal^[a] the son of Shelemiah, and ^(D)Pashhur the son of Malchiah ^(E)heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken to all the people, saying, ² “Thus says the Lord: ^(F)‘He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes over to the Chaldeans shall live; his life shall be as a prize to him, and he shall live.’ ³ Thus says the Lord: ^(G)‘This city shall surely be ^(H)given into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army, which shall take it.’ ”

⁴ Therefore the princes said to the king, “Please, ^(I)let this man be put to death, for thus he ^[b]weakens the hands of the men of war who remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man does not seek the ^[c]welfare of this people, but their harm.”

⁵ Then Zedekiah the king said, “Look, he is in your hand. For the king can do nothing against you.” ^6 (J)So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah ^[d]the king’s son, which was in the court of the prison, and they let Jeremiah down with ropes. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire. So Jeremiah sank in the mire.

⁴ For we have been ^(A)sold, my people and I, to be destroyed, to be killed, and to be annihilated. Had we been sold as ^(B)male and female slaves, I would have held my tongue, although the enemy could never compensate for the king’s loss.”

⁵ So King Ahasuerus answered and said to Queen Esther, “Who is he, and where is he, who would dare presume in his heart to do such a thing?”

⁶ And Esther said, “The adversary and ^(C)enemy is this wicked Haman!”

So Haman was terrified before the king and queen.