Jeremiah 32:4

4 Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape from the hands of the Chaldeans, ^[a] but he will surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.

Jeremiah 32:4 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 32:4

And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of
the Chaldeans
This is a continuation of the prophecy of Jeremiah, repeated by the king to him, and which concerns himself more especially; who, upon the taking of the city, would endeavour to make his escape, as he did; but should not be able, ( Jeremiah 52:8 ) ; but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon;
not only into the hands of his army, and of his generals, but into his own hand personally; since it follows: and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his
eyes;
converse together face to face, eye to eye; but no doubt with different tones and looks; the king of Babylon upbraiding the king of Judah with perjury and ingratitude, and looking upon him with indignation and contempt; the other speaking faintly, and looking down with grief, shame, and confusion; moreover, the eyes of the king of Babylon beheld the eyes of Zedekiah, and ordered them to be put out, as they were, ( 2 Kings 25:7 ) ( Jeremiah 39:7 ) ( 52:11 ) .

Jeremiah 32:4 In-Context

2 At that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was imprisoned in the courtyard of the guard, which was in the palace of the king of Judah.

3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him, saying: “Why are you prophesying like this? You claim that the LORD says, ‘Behold, I am about to deliver this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.

4 Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape from the hands of the Chaldeans, but he will surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and will speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye.

5 He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will stay until I attend to him, declares the LORD. If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not succeed.’”

6 Jeremiah replied, “The word of the LORD came to me, saying:

Footnotes

• [a]. That is, the Babylonians; also in verses 5, 24, 25, 28, 29, and 43