Jeremiah 32:4

4 and Zedekiah, the king of Judah, will not escape from the hand of the Chaldeans, but surely he will be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and {he will speak face to face with him} and {he will 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 Now at that time the army of the king of Babylon [was] laying siege to Jerusalem and Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the courtyard of the guard that [was in] the palace of the king of Judah,

3 where Zedekiah, the king of Judah, had confined him, {saying}, "Why [are] you prophesying, {saying}, 'Thus says Yahweh, "Look, I [am] going to give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it,

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

5 and [to] Babylon he will bring Zedekiah, and there he will be until my attending to him," {declares} Yahweh. "If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not be successful" '?"

6 And Jeremiah said, "The word of Yahweh came to me, {saying},

Footnotes

• [a] Literally "his mouth shall speak with his mouth"
• [b] Literally "his eyes shall see his eyes"