Jeremiah:36-40
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And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah ,
that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD ,
saying ,
*
Take thee a roll of a book ,
and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel Yisra #
el #,
and against Judah ,
and against all the nations ,
from the day I spake unto thee ,
from the days of Josiah Yo #
shiyah #,
even unto this day .
*
It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them ;
that they may return every man from his evil way ;
that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin chatta #
ah #.
*
Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah :
and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD ,
which he had spoken unto him ,
upon a roll of a book .
*
And Jeremiah commanded Baruch ,
saying ,
I am shut up ;
I cannot go into the house of the LORD :
*
Therefore go thou ,
and read in the roll ,
which thou hast written from my mouth ,
the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORDS house upon the fasting day :
and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities .
*
It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD ,
and will return every one from his evil way :
for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD hath pronounced against this people .
*
And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him ,
reading in the book the words of the LORD in the LORDS house .
*
And it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah ,
in the ninth month ,
that they proclaimed a fast before the LORD to all the people in Jerusalem ,
and to all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem .
*
Then read Baruch in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD ,
in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe ,
in the higher court ,
at the entry of thew gate of the LORDS house ,
in the ears of all the people .
*
When Michaiah the son of Gemariah ,
the son of Shaphan ,
had heard out of the book all the words of the LORD ,
*
Then he went down into the kings house ,
into the scribes chamber :
and ,
lo ,
all the princes sat there ,
even Elishama the scribe ,
and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah Sh @
ma #
yah #,
and Elnathan the son of Achbor ,
and Gemariah the son of Shaphan ,
and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah ,
and all the princes .
*
Then Michaiah declared unto them all the words that he had heard ,
when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people .
*
Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah ,
the son of Shelemiah ,
the son of Cushi ,
unto Baruch ,
saying ,
Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people ,
and come .
So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand ,
and came unto them .
*
And they said unto him ,
Sit down now ,
and read it in our ears .
So Baruch read it in their ears .
*
Now it came to pass ,
when they had heard all the words ,
they were afraid both one and other ,
and said unto Baruch ,
We will surely tell the king of all these words .
*
And they asked Baruch ,
saying ,
Tell us now ,
How didst thou write all these words at his mouth ?
*
Then Baruch answered them ,
He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth ,
and I wrote them with ink in the book .
*
Then said the princes unto Baruch ,
Go ,
hide thee ,
thou and Jeremiah ;
and let no man know where ye be .
*
And they went in to the king into the court ,
but they laid up the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe ,
and told all the words in the ears of the king .
*
So the king sent Jehudi to fetch the roll :
and he took it out of Elishama the scribes chamber .
And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king ,
and in the ears of all the princes which stood beside the king .
*
Now the king sat in the winterhouse bayith #
in the ninth month :
and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him .
*
And it came to pass ,
that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves ,
he cut it with the penknife #
H5608 ,
and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth ,
until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth .
*
Yet they were not afraid ,
nor rent their garments ,
neither the king ,
nor any of his servants that heard all these words .
*
Nevertheless Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not burn the roll :
but he would not hear them .
*
But the king commanded Jerahmeel the son of Hammelech ,
and Seraiah the son of Azriel #
Azriy #
el #,
and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel #
Abd @#
el #,
to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet :
but the LORD hid them .
*
Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah ,
after that the king had burned the roll ,
and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah ,
saying ,
*
Take thee again another roll ,
and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll ,
which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned .
*
And thou shalt say to Jehoiakim king of Judah ,
Thus saith the LORD ;
Thou hast burned this roll ,
saying ,
Why hast thou written therein ,
saying ,
The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land ,
and shall cause to cease from thence man and beast ?
*
Therefore thus saith the LORD of Jehoiakim king of Judah ;
He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David :
and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat ,
and in the night to the frost .
*
And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity ;
and I will bring upon them ,
and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem ,
and upon the men of Judah ,
all the evil that I have pronounced against them ;
but they hearkened not .
*
Then took Jeremiah another roll ,
and gave it to Baruch the scribe ,
the son of Neriah ;
who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire :
and there were added besides unto them many like words .
*
And king Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim ,
whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah .
*
But neither he ,
nor his servants ,
nor the people of the land ,
did hearken unto the words of the LORD ,
which he spake by the prophet Jeremiah .
*
And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest to the prophet Jeremiah ,
saying ,
Pray now unto the LORD our God for us .
*
Now Jeremiah came in and went out among the people :
for they had not put him into prison bayith #.
*
Then Pharaohs army was come forth out of Egypt :
and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them ,
they departed from Jerusalem .
*
Then came the word of the LORD unto the prophet Jeremiah ,
saying ,
*
Thus saith the LORD ,
the God of Israel Yisra #
el #;
Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah ,
that sent you unto me to enquire of me ;
Behold ,
Pharaohs army ,
which is come forth to help you ,
shall return to Egypt into their own land .
*
And the Chaldeans shall come again ,
and fight against this city ,
and take it ,
and burn it with fire .
*
Thus saith the LORD ;
Deceive not yourselves ,
saying ,
The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us :
for they shall not depart .
*
For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you ,
and there remained but wounded men among them ,
yet should they rise up every man in his tent ,
and burn this city with fire .
*
And it came to pass ,
that when the army of the Chaldeans was broken up from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaohs army ,
*
Then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin ,
to separate himself thence in the midst of the people .
*
And when he was in the gate of Benjamin ,
a captain of the ward was there ,
whose name was Irijah Yir #
iyayh #,
the son of Shelemiah ,
the son of Hananiah ;
and he took Jeremiah the prophet ,
saying ,
Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans .
*
Then said Jeremiah ,
It is false ;
I fall not away to the Chaldeans .
But he hearkened not to him :
so Irijah took Jeremiah ,
and brought him to the princes .
*
Wherefore the princes were wroth with Jeremiah ,
and smote him ,
and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe :
for they had made that the prison .
*
When Jeremiah was entered into the dungeon bayith #,
and into the cabins ,
and Jeremiah had remained there many days ;
*
Then Zedekiah the king sent ,
and took him out :
and the king asked him secretly in his house ,
and said ,
Is there any word from the LORD ?
And Jeremiah said ,
There is :
for ,
said he ,
thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon .
*
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 bayith #?
*
Where are now your prophets which prophesied unto you ,
saying ,
The king of Babylon shall not come against you ,
nor against this land ?
*
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 .
*
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 .
*
Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan ,
and Gedaliah the son of Pashur ,
and Jucal the son of Shelemiah ,
and Pashur the son of Malchiah ,
heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken unto all the people ,
saying ,
*
Thus saith the LORD ,
He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword ,
by the famine ra #
ab #,
and by the pestilence :
but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live ;
for he shall have his life for a prey ,
and shall live (
8675 ).
*
Thus saith the LORD ,
This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylons army ,
which shall take it .
*
Therefore the princes said unto the king ,
We beseech thee ,
let this man be put to death :
for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city ,
and the hands of all the people ,
in speaking such words unto them :
for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people ,
but the hurt .
*
Then Zedekiah the king said ,
Behold ,
he is in your hand :
for the king is not he that can do any thing against you .
*
Then took they Jeremiah ,
and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech ,
that was in the court of the prison :
and they let down Jeremiah with cords .
And in the dungeon there was no water ,
but mire :
so Jeremiah sunk in the mire .
*
Now when Ebedmelech #
Ebedthe Ethiopian ,
one of the eunuchs which was in the kings house ,
heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon ;
the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin ;
*
Ebedmelech #
Ebedwent forth out of the kings house ,
and spake to the king ,
saying ,
*
My lord the king ,
these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet ,
whom they have cast into the dungeon ;
and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is :
for there is no more bread in the city .
*
Then the king commanded Ebedmelech #
Ebedthe Ethiopian ,
saying ,
Take from hence thirty men with thee ,
and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon ,
before he die .
*
So Ebedmelech #
Ebedtook the men with him ,
and went into the house of the king under the treasury ,
and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags ,
and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah .
*
And Ebedmelech #
Ebedthe Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah ,
Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes #
H3027under the cords .
And Jeremiah did so .
*
So they drew up Jeremiah with cords ,
and took him up out of the dungeon :
and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison .
*
Then Zedekiah the king sent ,
and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third entry that is in the house of the LORD :
and the king said unto Jeremiah ,
I will ask thee a thing ;
hide nothing from me .
*
Then Jeremiah said unto Zedekiah ,
If I declare it unto thee ,
wilt thou not surely put me to death ?
and if I give thee counsel ,
wilt thou not hearken unto me ?
*
So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah ,
saying ,
As the LORD liveth ,
that made us this soul ,
I will not put thee to death ,
neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life .
*
Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah ,
Thus saith the LORD ,
the God of hosts ,
the God of Israel Yisra #
el #;
If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylons princes ,
then thy soul shall live ,
and this city shall not be burned with fire ;
and thou shalt live ,
and thine house :
*
But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylons princes ,
then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans ,
and they shall burn it with fire ,
and thou shalt not escape out of their hand .
*
And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah ,
I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans ,
lest they deliver me into their hand ,
and they mock me .
*
But Jeremiah said ,
They shall not deliver thee .
Obey ,
I beseech thee ,
the voice of the LORD ,
which I speak unto thee :
so it shall be well unto thee ,
and thy soul shall live .
*
But if thou refuse to go forth ,
this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me :
*
And ,
behold ,
all the women that are left in the king of Judahs house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylons princes ,
and those women shall say ,
Thy friends #
H7965have set thee on ,
and have prevailed against thee :
thy feet are sunk in the mire ,
and they are turned away back .
*
So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans :
and thou shalt not escape out of their hand ,
but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon :
and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire .
*
Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah ,
Let no man know of these words ,
and thou shalt not die .
*
But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee ,
and they come unto thee ,
and say unto thee ,
Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the king ,
hide it not from us ,
and we will not put thee to death ;
also what the king said unto thee :
*
Then thou shalt say unto them ,
I presented my supplication before the king ,
that he would not cause me to return to Jonathans house ,
to die there .
*
Then came all the princes unto Jeremiah ,
and asked him :
and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded .
So they left off speaking with him ;
for the matter was not perceived .
*
So Jeremiah abode in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem was taken :
and he was there when Jerusalem was taken .
*
In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah ,
in the tenth month ,
came Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem ,
and they besieged it .
*
And in the eleventh #
H6240year of Zedekiah ,
in the fourth month ,
the ninth day of the month ,
the city was broken up .
*
And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in ,
and sat in the middle gate sha #
ar #,
even Nergalsharezer Nergal Shar #
etser #,
Samgarnebo Camgar ,
Sarsechim ,
Rabsaris Rab-Cariyc #,
Nergalsharezer Nergal Shar #
etser #,
Rabmag Rab-Mag #,
with all the residu #
H7611of the princes of the king of Babylon .
*
And it came to pass ,
that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them ,
and all the men of war ,
then they fled ,
and went forth out of the city by night ,
by the way of the kings garden ,
by the gate betwixt the two walls :
and he went out the way of the plain .
*
But the Chaldeans army pursued after them ,
and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho :
and when they had taken him ,
they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath ,
where he gave judgment upon him .
*
Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes :
also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah .
*
Moreover he put out Zedekiahs eyes ,
and bound him with chains ,
to carry him to Babylon .
*
And the Chaldeans burned the kings house ,
and the houses of the people ,
with fire ,
and brake down the walls of Jerusalem .
*
Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive into Babylon the remnant of the people that remained in the city ,
and those that fell away ,
that fell to him ,
with the rest of the people that remained .
*
But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poor of the people ,
which had nothing ,
in the land of Judah ,
and gave them vineyards and fields at the same time .
*
Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard ,
saying ,
*
Take him ,
and look well #
H7760 to him ,
and do him no harm m @
uwmah #;
but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee .
*
So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent ,
and Nebushasban ,
Rabsaris Rab-Cariyc #,
and Nergalsharezer Nergal Shar #
etser #,
Rabmag Rab-Mag #,
and all the king of Babylons princes ;
*
Even they sent ,
and took Jeremiah out of the court of the prison ,
and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan ,
that he should carry him home :
so he dwelt among the people .
*
Now the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah ,
while he was shut up in the court of the prison ,
saying ,
*
Go and speak to Ebedmelech #
Ebedthe Ethiopian ,
saying ,
Thus saith the LORD of hosts ,
the God of Israel Yisra #
el #;
Behold ,
I will bring my words upon this city for evil ,
and not for good ;
and they shall be accomplished in that day before thee .
*
But I will deliver thee in that day ,
saith the LORD :
and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid .
*
For I will surely deliver thee ,
and thou shalt not fall by the sword ,
but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee :
because thou hast put thy trust in me ,
saith the LORD .
*
The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD ,
after that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah ,
when he had taken him being bound in chains among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Judah ,
which were carried away captive unto Babylon .
*
And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah ,
and said unto him ,
The LORD thy God hath pronounced this evil upon this place .
*
Now the LORD hath brought it ,
and done according as he hath said :
because ye have sinned against the LORD ,
and have not obeyed his voice ,
therefore this thing is come upon you .
*
And now ,
behold ,
I loose thee this day from the chains which were upon thine hand .
If it seem good towb #
unto thee to come with me into Babylon ,
come ;
and I will look well unto thee :
but if it seem ill ra #
unto thee to come with me into Babylon ,
forbear :
behold ,
all the land is before thee :
whither it seemeth good and convenient yashar #
for thee to go ,
thither go .
*
Now while he was not yet gone back ,
he said ,
Go back also to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan ,
whom the king of Babylon hath made governor over the cities of Judah ,
and dwell with him among the people :
or go wheresoever it seemeth convenient yashar #
unto thee to go .
So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a reward mas #
eth #,
and let him go .
*
Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah ;
and dwelt with him among the people that were left in the land .
*
Now when all the captains of the forces which were in the fields ,
even they and their men ,
heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land ,
and had committed unto him men ,
and women ,
and children ,
and of the poor of the land ,
of them that were not carried away captive to Babylon ;
*
Then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah ,
even Ishmael Yishma #
e #
l #
the son of Nethaniah ,
and Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah ,
and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth ,
and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite ,
and Jezaniah the son of a Maachathite Ma #
akathiy #,
they and their men .
*
And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan sware unto them and to their men ,
saying ,
Fear not to serve the Chaldeans :
dwell in the land ,
and serve the king of Babylon ,
and it shall be well with you .
*
As for me ,
behold ,
I will dwell at Mizpah to serve #
the Chaldeans ,
which will come unto us :
but ye ,
gather ye wine ,
and summer fruits ,
and oil ,
and put them in your vessels ,
and dwell in your cities that ye have taken .
*
Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab Mow #
ab #,
and among the Ammonites ,
and in Edom ,
and that were in all the countries ,
heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah ,
and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan ;
*
Even all the Jews returned out of all places whither they were driven ,
and came to the land of Judah ,
to Gedaliah ,
unto Mizpah ,
and gathered wine and summer fruits very much .
*
Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah ,
and all the captains of the forces that were in the fields ,
came to Gedaliah to Mizpah ,
*
And said unto him ,
Dost thou certainly know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites ben #
hath sent Ishmael Yishma #
e #
l #
the son of Nethaniah to slay thee ?
But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed them not .
*
Then Johanan the son of Kareah spake to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly ,
saying ,
Let me go ,
I pray thee ,
and I will slay Ishmael Yishma #
e #
l #
the son of Nethaniah ,
and no man shall know it :
wherefore should he slay thee ,
that all the Jews which are gathered unto thee should be scattered ,
and the remnant in Judah perish ?
*
But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah ,
Thou shalt not do this thing :
for thou speakest falsely of Ishmael Yishma #
e #
l #.
*
Now it came to pass in the seventh month ,
that Ishmael Yishma #
e #
l #
the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama ,
of the seed royal ,
and the princes of the king ,
even ten men with him ,
came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah ;
and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah .