Jeremiah 38:1-13
English Standard Version
Jeremiah Cast into the Cistern
38 Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, (A)Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and (B)Pashhur the son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was saying to all the people: 2 “Thus says the Lord: (C)He who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, (D)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: (E)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, (F)“Let this man be put to death, (G)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 (H)the welfare of this people, but their harm.” 5 King Zedekiah said, “Behold, he is in your hands, (I)for the king can do nothing against you.” 6 So they took Jeremiah (J)and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king's son, which was in (K)the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down (L)by ropes. (M)And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and (N)Jeremiah sank in the mud.
Jeremiah Rescued from the Cistern
7 When (O)Ebed-melech (P)the Ethiopian, (Q)a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting (R)in the Benjamin Gate— 8 (S)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 (T)hunger, (U)for there is no bread left in the city.” 10 Then the king commanded (V)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 (W)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 (X)by ropes. 12 Then (Y)Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and (Z)the ropes.” Jeremiah did so. 13 Then they drew Jeremiah up with (AA)ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the (AB)court of the guard.
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Jeremiah 38:1-13
New Living Translation
Jeremiah in a Cistern
38 Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehucal[a] son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malkijah heard what Jeremiah had been telling the people. He had been saying, 2 “This is what the Lord says: ‘Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die from war, famine, or disease, but those who surrender to the Babylonians[b] will live. Their reward will be life. They will live!’ 3 The Lord also says: ‘The city of Jerusalem will certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon, who will capture it.’”
4 So these officials went to the king and said, “Sir, this man must die! That kind of talk will undermine the morale of the few fighting men we have left, as well as that of all the people. This man is a traitor!”
5 King Zedekiah agreed. “All right,” he said. “Do as you like. I can’t stop you.”
6 So the officials took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. It belonged to Malkijah, a member of the royal family. There was no water in the cistern, but there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it.
7 But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian,[c] an important court official, heard that Jeremiah was in the cistern. At that time the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate, 8 so Ebed-melech rushed from the palace to speak with him. 9 “My lord the king,” he said, “these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern. He will soon die of hunger, for almost all the bread in the city is gone.”
10 So the king told Ebed-melech, “Take thirty of my men with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.”
11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to a room in the palace beneath the treasury, where he found some old rags and discarded clothing. He carried these to the cistern and lowered them to Jeremiah on a rope. 12 Ebed-melech called down to Jeremiah, “Put these rags under your armpits to protect you from the ropes.” Then when Jeremiah was ready, 13 they pulled him out. So Jeremiah was returned to the courtyard of the guard—the palace prison—where he remained.
Read full chapterThe Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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.
