Jeremiah 37:20

20 Therefore hear now, I pray thee, O my lord the king: let my supplication, I pray thee, be accepted before thee; that thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe , lest I die there.

Jeremiah 37:20 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 37:20

Therefore hear now, one pray thee, O my lord the king
When the prophet spoke in the name of the Lord, and the words of the Lord, it was with great boldness and majesty; but when he spoke for himself, and on his own behalf, it was with great submission, as it became a subject to his king; and whom he owns as his sovereign lord, though a wicked prince, and whose destruction he knew was at hand: let my supplication be accepted before thee;
or, "fall before thee": see ( Jeremiah 36:7 ) ; which was as follows: that thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe;
but that he might be discharged from his confinement; or however be removed into another prison, not so uncomfortable and disagreeable as this man's house or prison was; and which perhaps was still the worse through his cruel and ill natured carriage to him; and which all together endangered his life: wherefore he adds, lest I die there;
for though he had continued there many days, yet the place was so exceedingly noisome, that he thought he could not long continue there, was he remanded back to it.

Jeremiah 37:20 In-Context

18 Moreover Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah, What have I offended against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison ?

19 Where are now your prophets which prophesied unto you, saying , The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?

20 Therefore hear now, I pray thee, O my lord the king: let my supplication, I pray thee, be accepted before thee; that thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe , lest I die there.

21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers ' street, until all the bread in the city were spent . Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.