Jeremiah

JEREMIAH 38:28
So Jeremiah told them everything the king
had ordered him to say. Then they left Jeremiah
alone. No one had heard what Jeremiah
and the king had talked about.
28So Jeremiah stayed under guard in the
Temple yard until the day Jerusalem was
captured.
640
officers of the army of Babylon sent for Jeremiah.
14They had Jeremiah taken out of the
Temple* yard where he had been under the
guard of the king of Judah. They turned Jeremiah
over to Gedaliah a son of Ahikam, the
son of Shaphan. Gedaliah had orders to take
Jeremiah back home. So Jeremiah was taken
home, and he stayed among his own people.
The Fall of Jerusalem
39 1This is how Jerusalem was captured:
During the tenth month of the ninth
year that Zedekiah was king of Judah, King
Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon marched against
Jerusalem with his whole army. He surrounded
the city to defeat it. 2And on the
ninth day of the fourth month in Zedekiah’s
eleventh year, the wall of Jerusalem was broken
through. 3Then all the royal officials of
the king of Babylon came into the city of Jerusalem.
They came in and sat down at the Middle
Gate. These are the names of the officials:
Nergal-Sharezer, the governor of the district
of Samgar, a very high official; Nebo Sarsekim,
another very high official; and various other
important officials were there also.
4King Zedekiah of Judah saw the officials
from Babylon, so he and the soldiers with
him ran away. They left Jerusalem at night.
They went out through the king’s garden and
out through the gate that was between the
two walls. Then they went toward the desert.
5The Babylonian army chased Zedekiah and
the soldiers with him. They caught up with
Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They captured
Zedekiah and took him to King Nebuchadnezzar
of Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar was
at the town of Riblah in the land of Hamath.
At that place, Nebuchadnezzar decided what
to do to Zedekiah. 6There at the town of
Riblah, the king of Babylon killed Zedekiah’s
sons and he killed all the royal officials of
Judah while Zedekiah watched. 7Then Nebuchadnezzar
tore out Zedekiah’s eyes. He put
bronze chains on Zedekiah and took him to
Babylon.
8The army of Babylon set fire to the king’s
palace and the houses of the people of Jerusalem.
And they broke down the walls of Jerusalem.
9Nebuzaradan was the commander
of the king of Babylon’s special guards. He
took all the people who had surrendered to
him and all the people still in Jerusalem and
made them captives.* He carried them away
to Babylon. 10But
The Lord’s Message to Ebed Melech
15While the guards were watching Jeremiah
in the Temple* yard, a message from
the Lord came to him. This was the message:
16“Jeremiah, go and tell Ebed Melech
commander Nebuzaradan
left behind some of the poor people of Judah
who owned nothing. Nebuzaradan gave them
vineyards* and farmland in Judah.
11Nebuchadnezzar also gave an order
about Jeremiah to commander Nebuzaradan:
12“Find Jeremiah and take care of him. Don’t
hurt him. Give him whatever he asks for.”
13So Nebuzaradan, the commander of
the king’s special guards, Nebushazban, a
chief officer in the army of Babylon, Nergal-
Sharezer, a high official, and all the other
b the
Ethiopian this message: ‘This is what the Lord
All-Powerful, the God of the people of Israel,
says: Very soon I will make my messages
about this city of Jerusalem come true. My
messages will come true through disaster, not
through something good. You will see everything
come true with your own eyes. 17But I
will save you on that day, Ebed Melech.’ This
is the message from the Lord. ‘You will not
be given to the people you are afraid of. 18I
will save you, Ebed Melech. You will not die
from a sword, but you will escape and live.
That will happen because you have trusted in
me.’” This message is from the Lord.
Jeremiah Is Set Free
40 1The message from the Lord came to
Jeremiah after he was set free at the
city of Ramah. Nebuzaradan, the commander
of the king of Babylon’s special guards, found
Jeremiah in Ramah. Jeremiah was bound
with chains. He was with all the captives*
from Jerusalem and Judah. They were being
taken away in captivity to Babylon. 2When
commander Nebuzaradan found Jeremiah, he
spoke to him. He said, “Jeremiah, the Lord,
your God, announced that this disaster would
come to this place. 3And now the Lord has
done everything just as he said he would do.
This disaster happened because you people
of Judah sinned against the Lord. You didn’t
obey the Lord. 4But now, Jeremiah, I will
set you free. I am taking the chains off your
wrists. If you want to, come with me to Babylon,
and I will take good care of you. But if
you don’t want to come with me, then don’t
come. Look, the whole country is open to
you. Go anywhere you want. 5Or go back to
Gedaliahc son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan.
The king of Babylon has chosen Gedaliah to
be governor over the towns of Judah. Go and
live with Gedaliah among the people. Or you
can go anywhere you want.”
Then Nebuzaradan gave Jeremiah some food
and a present and let him go. 6So Jeremiah
a 39:14 Gedaliah Gedaliah was the man who
Nebuchadnezzar appointed as his governor for the
land of Judah.
b 39:16 Ebed Melech See Jer. 38:7‑13.
c 40:5 Or … Gedaliah Or “Before Gedaliah goes
back, return to him ….”