Jeremiah 38:1-13
1599 Geneva Bible
38 1 By the motion of the rulers Jeremiah is put into a dungeon. 14 At the request of Ebed-Melech the King commandeth Jeremiah to be brought forth of the dungeon. 17 Jeremiah showeth the King how he might escape death.
1 Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of [a]Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken unto all the people, saying,
2 Thus saith the Lord, He that remaineth in this city, shall die by the sword, by the famine and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans, shall live: for he shall have his life for [b]a prey, and shall live.
3 Thus saith the Lord, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babel’s army, which shall take it.
4 Therefore the Princes said unto the king, We beseech you, let this man be put to death: for thus he [c]weakeneth the hands of the men of war [d]that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them: for this man seeketh not the wealth of this people, but the hurt.
5 Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hands, for the king can deny [e]you nothing.
6 Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords: and in the dungeon there was no water but mire: so Jeremiah stuck fast in the mire.
7 Now when Ebed-Melech ye [f]black Moor, one of the Eunuchs which was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon, (then the king sat in the [g]gate of Benjamin)
8 And Ebed-Melech went out of the king’s house, and spake to the king, saying,
9 My lord the king, [h]these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the Prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon, and he dieth for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city.
10 Then the king commanded Ebed-Melech the black Moor, saying, Take from hence thirty men [i]with thee, and take Jeremiah the Prophet out of the dungeon before he die.
11 So Ebed-Melech took the men with him, and went to the house of the king under the treasury, and took there old rotten rags, and old worn clouts, and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah.
12 And Ebed-Melech the black Moor said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old rotten rags and worn, under thine arm holes, between the cords. And Jeremiah did so.
13 So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon, and Jeremiah remained in the [j]court of the prison.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Jeremiah 38:1 For Zedekiah had sent these to Jeremiah, to inquire at the Lord for the state of the country now when Nebuchadnezzar came, as Jer. 21:1.
- Jeremiah 38:2 Read Jer. 21:9 and 45:5.
- Jeremiah 38:4 Or, discourageth.
- Jeremiah 38:4 Thus we see how the wicked when they cannot abide to hear the truth of God’s word, seek to put the ministers to death, as transgressors of policies.
- Jeremiah 38:5 Wherein he grievously offended in that that not only he would not hear the truth spoken by the Prophet, but also gave him to the lusts of the wicked to be cruelly entreated.
- Jeremiah 38:7 Hebrew, Cushite, or Ethiopian.
- Jeremiah 38:7 To hear matters and give sentence.
- Jeremiah 38:9 Hereby is declared that the Prophet found more favor at this stranger’s hands, than he did by all them of his country, which was to their great condemnation.
- Jeremiah 38:10 Hebrew, under thine hand.
- Jeremiah 38:13 Where the king had set him before to be at more liberty, as Jer. 37:21.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
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