Jeremiah 37
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Jerusalem’s Last Days
37 Zedekiah son of Josiah(A) reigned as king in the land of Judah(B) in place of Jehoiachin[a](C) son of Jehoiakim, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made him king. 2 He and his officers and the people of the land did not obey the words of the Lord(D) that He spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.
3 Nevertheless, King Zedekiah sent Jehucal(E) son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah(F) son of Maaseiah, the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, requesting, “Please pray to the Lord our God for us!” 4 Jeremiah was going about his daily tasks[b] among the people, for they had not yet put him into the prison.(G) 5 Pharaoh’s army had left Egypt,(H) and when the Chaldeans, who were besieging Jerusalem, heard the report, they withdrew from Jerusalem.
6 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet: 7 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: This is what you will say to Judah’s king,(I) who is sending you to inquire of Me: Watch: Pharaoh’s army, which has come out to help you,(J) is going to return to its own land of Egypt. 8 The Chaldeans will then return and fight against this city. They will capture it and burn it down.(K) 9 This is what the Lord says: Don’t deceive yourselves by saying, ‘The Chaldeans will leave us for good,’ for they will not leave. 10 Indeed, if you were to strike down the entire Chaldean army that is fighting with you,(L) and there remained among them only the badly wounded[c] men, each in his tent, they would get up and burn this city down.”
Jeremiah’s Imprisonment
11 When the Chaldean army withdrew from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s army, 12 Jeremiah started to leave Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin to claim his portion there(M) among the people. 13 But when he was at the Benjamin Gate,(N) an officer of the guard was there, whose name was Irijah son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, and he apprehended Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are deserting to the Chaldeans.”
14 “That’s a lie,” Jeremiah replied. “I am not deserting to the Chaldeans!” Irijah would not listen to him but apprehended Jeremiah and took him to the officials. 15 The officials were angry at Jeremiah and beat him and placed him in jail in the house of Jonathan(O) the scribe, for it had been made into a prison. 16 So Jeremiah went into a cell in the dungeon(P) and stayed there many days.
Jeremiah Summoned by Zedekiah
17 King Zedekiah later sent for him and received him, and in his house privately asked him, “Is there a word from the Lord?”(Q)
“There is,” Jeremiah responded, and he continued, “You will be handed over to the king of Babylon.”(R) 18 Then Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, “How have I sinned against you or your servants or these people that you have put me in prison? 19 Where are your prophets who prophesied to you, claiming, ‘The king of Babylon will not come against you and this land’?(S) 20 So now please listen, my lord the king. May my petition come before you.(T) Don’t send me back to the house of Jonathan the scribe, or I will die there.”
21 So King Zedekiah gave orders, and Jeremiah was placed in the guard’s courtyard.(U) He was given a loaf of bread each day from the baker’s street until all the bread was gone from the city. So Jeremiah remained in the guard’s courtyard.
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 37:1 = Coniah
- Jeremiah 37:4 Lit was coming in and going out
- Jeremiah 37:10 Lit the pierced
Jeremiah 37
New Living Translation
Zedekiah Calls for Jeremiah
37 Zedekiah son of Josiah succeeded Jehoiachin[a] son of Jehoiakim as the king of Judah. He was appointed by King Nebuchadnezzar[b] of Babylon. 2 But neither King Zedekiah nor his attendants nor the people who were left in the land listened to what the Lord said through Jeremiah.
3 Nevertheless, King Zedekiah sent Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the priest, son of Maaseiah, to ask Jeremiah, “Please pray to the Lord our God for us.” 4 Jeremiah had not yet been imprisoned, so he could come and go among the people as he pleased.
5 At this time the army of Pharaoh Hophra[c] of Egypt appeared at the southern border of Judah. When the Babylonian[d] army heard about it, they withdrew from their siege of Jerusalem.
6 Then the Lord gave this message to Jeremiah: 7 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: The king of Judah sent you to ask me what is going to happen. Tell him, ‘Pharaoh’s army is about to return to Egypt, though he came here to help you. 8 Then the Babylonians[e] will come back and capture this city and burn it to the ground.’
9 “This is what the Lord says: Do not fool yourselves into thinking that the Babylonians are gone for good. They aren’t! 10 Even if you were to destroy the entire Babylonian army, leaving only a handful of wounded survivors, they would still stagger from their tents and burn this city to the ground!”
Jeremiah Is Imprisoned
11 When the Babylonian army left Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s approaching army, 12 Jeremiah started to leave the city on his way to the territory of Benjamin, to claim his share of the property among his relatives there.[f] 13 But as he was walking through the Benjamin Gate, a sentry arrested him and said, “You are defecting to the Babylonians!” The sentry making the arrest was Irijah son of Shelemiah, grandson of Hananiah.
14 “That’s not true!” Jeremiah protested. “I had no intention of doing any such thing.” But Irijah wouldn’t listen, and he took Jeremiah before the officials. 15 They were furious with Jeremiah and had him flogged and imprisoned in the house of Jonathan the secretary. Jonathan’s house had been converted into a prison. 16 Jeremiah was put into a dungeon cell, where he remained for many days.
17 Later King Zedekiah secretly requested that Jeremiah come to the palace, where the king asked him, “Do you have any messages from the Lord?”
“Yes, I do!” said Jeremiah. “You will be defeated by the king of Babylon.”
18 Then Jeremiah asked the king, “What crime have I committed? What have I done against you, your attendants, or the people that I should be imprisoned like this? 19 Where are your prophets now who told you the king of Babylon would not attack you or this land? 20 Listen, my lord the king, I beg you. Don’t send me back to the dungeon in the house of Jonathan the secretary, for I will die there.”
21 So King Zedekiah commanded that Jeremiah not be returned to the dungeon. Instead, he was imprisoned in the courtyard of the guard in the royal palace. The king also commanded that Jeremiah be given a loaf of fresh bread every day as long as there was any left in the city. So Jeremiah was put in the palace prison.
Footnotes
- 37:1a Hebrew Coniah, a variant spelling of Jehoiachin.
- 37:1b Hebrew Nebuchadrezzar, a variant spelling of Nebuchadnezzar.
- 37:5a Hebrew army of Pharaoh; see 44:30.
- 37:5b Or Chaldean; also in 37:10, 11.
- 37:8 Or Chaldeans; also in 37:9, 13.
- 37:12 Hebrew to separate from there in the midst of the people.
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
