Jeremiah 38

Jeremiah Cast into the Cistern

1 Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, ¹Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and ²Pashhur the son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was saying to all the people,

2 "Thus says the LORD: ³He who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, ⁴but 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: ⁵This 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, ⁶"Let this man be put to death, ⁷for 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 ⁸the welfare of this people, but their harm."

5 King Zedekiah said, "Behold, he is in your hands, ⁹for the king can do nothing against you."

6 So they took Jeremiah ¹⁰and cast him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king's son, which was in ¹¹the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down ¹²by ropes. ¹³And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and ¹⁴Jeremiah sank in the mud.

Jeremiah Rescued from the Cistern

7 When ¹⁵Ebed-melech ¹⁶the Ethiopian, ¹⁷a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern--the king was sitting ¹⁸in the Benjamin Gate--

8 ¹⁹Ebed-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 ²⁰hunger, ²¹for there is no bread left in the city."

10 Then the king commanded ²²Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, "Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies."

11 So ²³Ebed-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 ²⁴by ropes.

12 Then ²⁵Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, "Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and ²⁶the ropes." Jeremiah did so.

13 Then they drew Jeremiah up with ²⁷ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the ²⁸court 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 ²⁹secretly to Jeremiah, ³⁰"As the LORD lives, ³¹who made our souls, I will not put you to death or deliver you into the hand of ³²these men who seek your life."

17 Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "Thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: ³³If you will surrender to ³⁴the officials of the king of Babylon, ³⁵then 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 ³⁶the officials of the king of Babylon, ³⁷then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, ³⁸and 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 ³⁹who 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, ⁴⁰and it shall be well with you, and your life shall be spared.

21 But if you refuse to ⁴¹surrender, 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, ⁴²"'Your trusted friends have deceived you and prevailed against you; now that your feet are sunk in the mud, they turn away from you.'

23 All your wives and ⁴³your 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 ⁴⁴the 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, ⁴⁵'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 ⁴⁶in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken.

Jeremiah 38 Commentary

Chapter 38

Jeremiah is cast into a dungeon, from whence he is delivered by an Ethiopian. (1-13) He advises the king to surrender to the Chaldeans. (14-28)

Verses 1-13 Jeremiah went on in his plain preaching. The princes went on in their malice. It is common for wicked people to look upon God's faithful ministers as enemies, because they show what enemies the wicked are to themselves while impenitent. Jeremiah was put into a dungeon. Many of God's faithful witnesses have been privately made away in prisons. Ebed-melech was an Ethiopian; yet he spoke to the king faithfully, These men have done ill in all they have done to Jeremiah. See how God can raise up friends for his people in distress. Orders were given for the prophet's release, and Ebed-melech saw him drawn up. Let this encourage us to appear boldly for God. Special notice is taken of his tenderness for Jeremiah. What do we behold in the different characters then, but the same we behold in the different characters now, that the Lord's children are conformed to his example, and the children of Satan to their master?

Verses 14-28 Jeremiah was not forward to repeat the warnings, which seemed only to endanger his own life, and to add to the king's guilt, but asked whether he feared to do the will of God. The less men fear God, the more they fear men; often they dare not act according to their own judgments and consciences.

Cross References

• 1. [Jeremiah 37:3]
• 2. See Jeremiah 20:1
• 3. Jeremiah 21:9; [ver. 17, 18]
• 4. Jeremiah 21:9; [ver. 17, 18]
• 5. See Jeremiah 32:3
• 6. Jeremiah 26:11
• 7. See Jeremiah 6:24
• 8. [Jeremiah 33:9]
• 9. See ver. 24-28
• 10. Jeremiah 37:16
• 11. See Jeremiah 32:2
• 12. ver. 11, 13
• 13. [Genesis 37:24; Zechariah 9:11]
• 14. [Psalms 69:14]
• 15. Jeremiah 39:16
• 16. [Acts 8:27]
• 17. Jeremiah 29:2; Isaiah 56:3, 4
• 18. See Jeremiah 37:13
• 19. [See ver. 7 above]
• 20. Jeremiah 11:22; [Jeremiah 14:16, 18; Jeremiah 19:9]
• 21. [Jeremiah 37:21]
• 22. [See ver. 7 above]
• 23. [See ver. 7 above]
• 24. ver. 6
• 25. [See ver. 7 above]
• 26. [See ver. 11 above]
• 27. [See ver. 11 above]
• 28. [See ver. 6 above]
• 29. Jeremiah 37:17
• 30. See Ruth 3:13
• 31. [Isaiah 57:16]
• 32. See ver. 1-9
• 33. ver. 2, 21; [Jeremiah 27:12, 13; 2 Kings 24:12]
• 34. Jeremiah 39:3
• 35. [Jeremiah 34:4, 5]
• 36. [See ver. 17 above]
• 37. See Jeremiah 21:10
• 38. See Jeremiah 21:10
• 39. See Jeremiah 37:13
• 40. Jeremiah 40:9
• 41. [See ver. 17 above]
• 42. See Jeremiah 20:10
• 43. Jeremiah 39:6; Jeremiah 41:10; Jeremiah 43:6
• 44. [ver. 5]
• 45. [Jeremiah 37:20]
• 46. See Jeremiah 32:2

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO JEREMIAH 38

This chapter is taken up in giving an account of Jeremiah's being cast into a dungeon; his deliverance from it; and private conversation with King Zedekiah. The occasion of the prophet's being cast into a dungeon was his discourse to the people, which four of the princes represented to the king as seditious, and moved to have him put to death; and, being delivered into their hands, was put into a miry dungeon, Jer 38:1-6. Ebedmelech, the Ethiopian, hearing of his miserable case, represented it to the king, and interceded for his release; which being granted, with the help of thirty men, and by means of old clouts and rotten rags, let down by cords, drew him up, and placed him in the court of the prison, Jer 38:7-13. King Zedekiah sends for Jeremiah, and has a private conference with him about the state of affairs; when the prophet faithfully told him how things would issue, and gave him his best advice, Jer 38:14-23; upon parting, the king desires the conference might be kept a secret from the princes, which was accordingly done, Jer 38:24-27; and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison till the taking of Jerusalem, Jer 38:28.