Jeremiah 38:20

20 But Jeremiah said, "They will not give you over. Please 1obey * the LORD in what I am saying to you, that it may go 2well with you and 3you may live.

Jeremiah 38:20 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 38:20

But Jeremiah said, they shall not deliver [thee]
To take off the above excuse, or remove that objection, the prophet assures the king that the Chaldeans would never deliver him into the hands of the Jews; he might depend upon it, it would never be done: obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the Lord, which I speak unto thee;
the counsel he had given him, to surrender to the Chaldeans, was not from himself, but from the Lord: and though he had no express order to give it at that time, yet it was what was agreeable to the will of God, and what he had exhorted the people to in the beginning of this chapter; and therefore, since it came from the Lord, as it ought to be attended to, so he might be assured of the divine protection, should he act according to it: so it shall be well with thee, and thy soul shall live;
that is, it would not only be much better with him than he feared, but than it would be with him should he obstinately stand out to the last; he should have more respect and honour from the king of Babylon; and not only have his life spared, but enjoy more of the comforts of life; particularly the sight of his eyes, which he lost when taken.

Jeremiah 38:20 In-Context

18 'But if you will not go out to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given over to the hand of the Chaldeans; and they will burn it with fire, and you yourself will not escape from their hand.' "
19 Then King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, "I dread the Jews who have gone over to the Chaldeans, for they may give me over into their hand and they will abuse me."
20 But Jeremiah said, "They will not give you over. Please obey the LORD in what I am saying to you, that it may go well with you and you may live.
21 "But if you keep refusing to go out, this is the word which the LORD has shown me:
22 'Then behold, all of the women who have been left in the palace of the king of Judah are going to be brought out to the officers of the king of Babylon; and those women will say, "Your close friends Have misled and overpowered you; While your feet were sunk in the mire, They turned back."

Cross References 3

  • 1. 2 Chronicles 20:20; Jeremiah 11:4, 8; Jeremiah 26:13; Daniel 4:27; Acts 26:29
  • 2. Jeremiah 7:23
  • 3. Genesis 19:20; Isaiah 55:3

Footnotes 2

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