The Message

<div class="version vid97 iso6393eng" data-vid="97" data-iso6393="eng">
    <div class="book bkJER">
        <div class="chapter ch38" data-usfm="JER.38">
            <div class="label">38</div><div class="s1"><span class="heading">From the Dungeon to the Palace</span></div><div class="m"><span class="content">  </span><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="JER.38.1"><span class="label">1</span><span class="content">Shaphatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashur, Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashur son of Malkijah heard what Jeremiah was telling the people, namely:</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v1" data-usfm="JER.38.1"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JER.38.2"><span class="label">2</span><span class="content">&#8220;This is </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content">&#8217;s Message: &#8216;Whoever stays in this town will die&#8212;will be killed or starve to death or get sick and die. But those who go over to the Babylonians will save their necks and live.&#8217;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v2" data-usfm="JER.38.2"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="JER.38.3"><span class="label">3</span><span class="content">&#8220;And, </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content">&#8217;s sure Word: &#8216;This city is destined to fall to the army of the king of Babylon. He&#8217;s going to take it over.&#8217;&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v3" data-usfm="JER.38.3"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="JER.38.4"><span class="label">4</span><span class="content">These officials told the king, &#8220;Please, kill this man. He&#8217;s got to go! He&#8217;s ruining the resolve of the soldiers who are still left in the city, as well as the people themselves, by spreading these words. This man isn&#8217;t looking after the good of this people. He&#8217;s trying to ruin us!&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v4" data-usfm="JER.38.4"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="JER.38.5"><span class="label">5</span><span class="content">King Zedekiah caved in: &#8220;If you say so. Go ahead, handle it your way. You&#8217;re too much for me.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v5" data-usfm="JER.38.5"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="JER.38.6"><span class="label">6</span><span class="content">So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malkijah the king&#8217;s son that was in the courtyard of the palace guard. They lowered him down with ropes. There wasn&#8217;t any water in the cistern, only mud. Jeremiah sank into the mud.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v6" data-usfm="JER.38.6"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v7 v8 v9" data-usfm="JER.38.7+JER.38.8+JER.38.9"><span class="label">7-9</span><span class="content">Ebed-melek the Ethiopian, a court official assigned to the royal palace, heard that they had thrown Jeremiah into the cistern. While the king was holding court in the Benjamin Gate, Ebed-melek went immediately from the palace to the king and said, &#8220;My master, O king&#8212;these men are committing a great crime in what they&#8217;re doing, throwing Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern and leaving him there to starve. He&#8217;s as good as dead. There isn&#8217;t a scrap of bread left in the city.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v7 v8 v9" data-usfm="JER.38.7+JER.38.8+JER.38.9"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="JER.38.10"><span class="label">10</span><span class="content">So the king ordered Ebed-melek the Ethiopian, &#8220;Get three men and pull Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v10" data-usfm="JER.38.10"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v11 v12" data-usfm="JER.38.11+JER.38.12"><span class="label">11-12</span><span class="content">Ebed-melek got three men and went to the palace wardrobe and got some scraps of old clothing, which they tied together and lowered down with ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern. Ebed-melek the Ethiopian called down to Jeremiah, &#8220;Put these scraps of old clothing under your armpits and around the ropes.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v11 v12" data-usfm="JER.38.11+JER.38.12"><span class="content">Jeremiah did what he said.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v11 v12" data-usfm="JER.38.11+JER.38.12"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v13" data-usfm="JER.38.13"><span class="label">13</span><span class="content">And so they pulled Jeremiah up out of the cistern by the ropes. But he was still confined in the courtyard of the palace guard.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v13" data-usfm="JER.38.13"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JER.38.14"><span class="label">14</span><span class="content">Later, King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and had him brought to the third entrance of the Temple of </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content">. The king said to Jeremiah, &#8220;I&#8217;m going to ask you something. Don&#8217;t hold anything back from me.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v14" data-usfm="JER.38.14"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v15" data-usfm="JER.38.15"><span class="label">15</span><span class="content">Jeremiah said, &#8220;If I told you the whole truth, you&#8217;d kill me. And no matter what I said, you wouldn&#8217;t pay any attention anyway.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v15" data-usfm="JER.38.15"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v16" data-usfm="JER.38.16"><span class="label">16</span><span class="content">Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah right there, but in secret, &#8220;As sure as </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content"> lives, who gives </span><span class="it"><span class="content">us</span></span><span class="content"> life, I won&#8217;t kill you, nor will I turn you over to the men who are trying to kill you.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v16" data-usfm="JER.38.16"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v17 v18" data-usfm="JER.38.17+JER.38.18"><span class="label">17-18</span><span class="content">So Jeremiah told Zedekiah, &#8220;This is the Message from </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God, </span></span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content">-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: &#8216;If you will turn yourself over to the generals of the king of Babylon, you will live, this city won&#8217;t be burned down, and your family will live. But if you don&#8217;t turn yourself over to the generals of the king of Babylon, this city will go into the hands of the Chaldeans and they&#8217;ll burn it down. And don&#8217;t for a minute think there&#8217;s any escape for you.&#8217;&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v17 v18" data-usfm="JER.38.17+JER.38.18"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v19" data-usfm="JER.38.19"><span class="label">19</span><span class="content">King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, &#8220;But I&#8217;m afraid of the Judeans who have already deserted to the Chaldeans. If they get hold of me, they&#8217;ll rough me up good.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v19" data-usfm="JER.38.19"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v20 v21 v22" data-usfm="JER.38.20+JER.38.21+JER.38.22"><span class="label">20-22</span><span class="content">Jeremiah assured him, &#8220;They won&#8217;t get hold of you. Listen, please. Listen to </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content">&#8217;s voice. I&#8217;m telling you this for your own good so that you&#8217;ll live. But if you refuse to turn yourself over, this is what </span><span class="nd"><span class="content">God</span></span><span class="content"> has shown me will happen: Picture this in your mind&#8212;all the women still left in the palace of the king of Judah, led out to the officers of the king of Babylon, and as they&#8217;re led out they are saying:</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v20 v21 v22" data-usfm="JER.38.20+JER.38.21+JER.38.22"><span class="content">&#8220;&#8216;They lied to you and did you in,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v20 v21 v22" data-usfm="JER.38.20+JER.38.21+JER.38.22"><span class="content">those so-called friends of yours;</span></span></div><div class="q1"><span class="verse v20 v21 v22" data-usfm="JER.38.20+JER.38.21+JER.38.22"><span class="content">And now you&#8217;re stuck, about knee-deep in mud,</span></span></div><div class="q2"><span class="verse v20 v21 v22" data-usfm="JER.38.20+JER.38.21+JER.38.22"><span class="content">and your &#8220;friends,&#8221; where are they now?&#8217;</span></span></div><div class="b"></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v20 v21 v22" data-usfm="JER.38.20+JER.38.21+JER.38.22"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v23" data-usfm="JER.38.23"><span class="label">23</span><span class="content">&#8220;They&#8217;ll take all your wives and children and give them to the Chaldeans. And you, don&#8217;t think you&#8217;ll get out of this&#8212;the king of Babylon will seize you and then burn this city to the ground.&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v23" data-usfm="JER.38.23"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v24 v25 v26" data-usfm="JER.38.24+JER.38.25+JER.38.26"><span class="label">24-26</span><span class="content">Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, &#8220;Don&#8217;t let anyone know of this conversation, if you know what&#8217;s good for you. If the government officials get wind that I&#8217;ve been talking with you, they may come and say, &#8216;Tell us what went on between you and the king, what you said and what he said. Hold nothing back and we won&#8217;t kill you.&#8217; If this happens, tell them, &#8216;I presented my case to the king so that he wouldn&#8217;t send me back to the dungeon of Jonathan to die there.&#8217;&#8221;</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v24 v25 v26" data-usfm="JER.38.24+JER.38.25+JER.38.26"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v27" data-usfm="JER.38.27"><span class="label">27</span><span class="content">And sure enough, all the officials came to Jeremiah and asked him. He responded as the king had instructed. So they quit asking. No one had overheard the conversation.</span></span></div><div class="p"><span class="verse v27" data-usfm="JER.38.27"><span class="content">  </span></span><span class="verse v28" data-usfm="JER.38.28"><span class="label">28</span><span class="content">Jeremiah lived in the courtyard of the palace guards until the day that Jerusalem was captured.</span></span></div>
        </div>
    </div>
</div>

Shaphatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashur, Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashur son of Malkijah heard what Jeremiah was telling the people, namely:
“This is GOD’s Message: ‘Whoever stays in this town will die—will be killed or starve to death or get sick and die. But those who go over to the Babylonians will save their necks and live.’
“And, GOD’s sure Word: ‘This city is destined to fall to the army of the king of Babylon. He’s going to take it over.’”
These officials told the king, “Please, kill this man. He’s got to go! He’s ruining the resolve of the soldiers who are still left in the city, as well as the people themselves, by spreading these words. This man isn’t looking after the good of this people. He’s trying to ruin us!”
King Zedekiah caved in: “If you say so. Go ahead, handle it your way. You’re too much for me.”
So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malkijah the king’s son that was in the courtyard of the palace guard. They lowered him down with ropes. There wasn’t any water in the cistern, only mud. Jeremiah sank into the mud.
Ebed-melek the Ethiopian, a court official assigned to the royal palace, heard that they had thrown Jeremiah into the cistern. While the king was holding court in the Benjamin Gate, Ebed-melek went immediately from the palace to the king and said, “My master, O king—these men are committing a great crime in what they’re doing, throwing Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern and leaving him there to starve. He’s as good as dead. There isn’t a scrap of bread left in the city.”
So the king ordered Ebed-melek the Ethiopian, “Get three men and pull Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.”
Ebed-melek got three men and went to the palace wardrobe and got some scraps of old clothing, which they tied together and lowered down with ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern. Ebed-melek the Ethiopian called down to Jeremiah, “Put these scraps of old clothing under your armpits and around the ropes.”
Jeremiah did what he said.
And so they pulled Jeremiah up out of the cistern by the ropes. But he was still confined in the courtyard of the palace guard.
Later, King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet and had him brought to the third entrance of the Temple of GOD. The king said to Jeremiah, “I’m going to ask you something. Don’t hold anything back from me.”
Jeremiah said, “If I told you the whole truth, you’d kill me. And no matter what I said, you wouldn’t pay any attention anyway.”
Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah right there, but in secret, “As sure as GOD lives, who gives us life, I won’t kill you, nor will I turn you over to the men who are trying to kill you.”
So Jeremiah told Zedekiah, “This is the Message from GOD, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, the God of Israel: ‘If you will turn yourself over to the generals of the king of Babylon, you will live, this city won’t be burned down, and your family will live. But if you don’t turn yourself over to the generals of the king of Babylon, this city will go into the hands of the Chaldeans and they’ll burn it down. And don’t for a minute think there’s any escape for you.’”
King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “But I’m afraid of the Judeans who have already deserted to the Chaldeans. If they get hold of me, they’ll rough me up good.”
Jeremiah assured him, “They won’t get hold of you. Listen, please. Listen to GOD’s voice. I’m telling you this for your own good so that you’ll live. But if you refuse to turn yourself over, this is what GOD has shown me will happen: Picture this in your mind—all the women still left in the palace of the king of Judah, led out to the officers of the king of Babylon, and as they’re led out they are saying:

“‘They lied to you and did you in,
those so-called friends of yours;
And now you’re stuck, about knee-deep in mud,
and your “friends,” where are they now?’

“They’ll take all your wives and children and give them to the Chaldeans. And you, don’t think you’ll get out of this—the king of Babylon will seize you and then burn this city to the ground.”
Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Don’t let anyone know of this conversation, if you know what’s good for you. If the government officials get wind that I’ve been talking with you, they may come and say, ‘Tell us what went on between you and the king, what you said and what he said. Hold nothing back and we won’t kill you.’ If this happens, tell them, ‘I presented my case to the king so that he wouldn’t send me back to the dungeon of Jonathan to die there.’”
And sure enough, all the officials came to Jeremiah and asked him. He responded as the king had instructed. So they quit asking. No one had overheard the conversation.
Jeremiah lived in the courtyard of the palace guards until the day that Jerusalem was captured.

Listen to Jeremiah 38