Page 1097 - The MacArthur Daily Bible

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prison. Then Pharaoh’s army came up from 21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded that
Egypt; and when the Chaldeans who were they should commit Jeremiah to the court of
besieging Jerusalem heard news of them, they the prison, and that they should give him daily
departed from Jerusalem. a piece of bread from the bakers’ street, until
Then the word of the LORD came to the all the bread in the city was gone. Thus
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prophet Jeremiah, saying, “Thus says the Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
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LORD, the God of Israel, ‘Thus you shall say to Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan,
the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to 38 Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jucal the
inquire of Me: “Behold, Pharaoh’s army which son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of
has come up to help you will return to Egypt, Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah had
to their own land. And the Chaldeans shall spoken to all the people, saying, “Thus says
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come back and fight against this city, and take the LORD: ‘He who remains in this city shall die
it and burn it with fire.” ’ Thus says the LORD: by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but
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‘Do not deceive yourselves, saying, “The he who goes over to the Chaldeans shall live;
Chaldeans will surely depart from us,” for they his life shall be as a prize to him, and he shall
will not depart. For though you had defeated live.’ Thus says the LORD: ‘This city shall sure-
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the whole army of the Chaldeans who fight ly be given into the hand of the king of
against you, and there remained only wounded Babylon’s army, which shall take it.’ ”
men among them, they would rise up, every 4 Therefore the princes said to the king,
man in his tent, and burn the city with fire.’ ” “Please, let this man be put to death, for thus
And it happened, when the army of the he weakens the hands of the men of war who
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Chaldeans left the siege of Jerusalem for fear of remain in this city, and the hands of all the
Pharaoh’s army, that Jeremiah went out of Je- people, by speaking such words to them. For
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rusalem to go into the land of Benjamin to claim this man does not seek the welfare of this
his property there among the people. And people, but their harm.”
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when he was in the Gate of Benjamin, a captain 5 Then Zedekiah the king said, “Look, he is in
of the guard was there whose name was Irijah your hand. For the king can do nothing against
the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and you.” So they took Jeremiah and cast him into
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he seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You the dungeon of Malchiah the king’s son, which
are defecting to the Chaldeans!” was in the court of the prison, and they let
Then Jeremiah said, “False! I am not Jeremiah down with ropes. And in the dungeon
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defecting to the Chaldeans.” But he did not lis- there was no water, but mire. So Jeremiah sank
ten to him. in the mire.
So Irijah seized Jeremiah and brought him
to the princes. Therefore the princes were
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angry with Jeremiah, and they struck him and
put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the 38:6 no water, but mire. The murderous
scribe. For they had made that the prison. princes (v.4) would let God’s spokesman die of
When Jeremiah entered the dungeon and thirst,hunger,hypothermia,or suffocation if he
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the cells, and Jeremiah had remained there sank too deeply into the bottom of the cistern.
many days, then Zedekiah the king sent and
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took him out. The king asked him secretly in
his house, and said, “Is there any word from 7 Now Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, one of
the LORD?” the eunuchs, who was in the king’s house,
And Jeremiah said, “There is.” Then he heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dun-
said, “You shall be delivered into the hand of geon. When the king was sitting at the Gate of
the king of Babylon!” Benjamin, Ebed-Melech went out of the
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Moreover Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, king’s house and spoke to the king, saying:
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“What offense have I committed against you, 9 “My lord the king, these men have done evil
against your servants, or against this people, in all that they have done to Jeremiah the
that you have put me in prison? Where now prophet, whom they have cast into the dun-
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are your prophets who prophesied to you, say- geon, and he is likely to die from hunger in the
ing, ‘The king of Babylon will not come place where he is. For there is no more bread
against you or against this land’? Therefore in the city.” Then the king commanded Ebed-
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please hear now, O my lord the king. Please, Melech the Ethiopian, saying, “Take from
let my petition be accepted before you, and do here thirty men with you, and lift Jeremiah the
not make me return to the house of Jonathan prophet out of the dungeon before he dies.”
the scribe, lest I die there.” 11 So Ebed-Melech took the men with him and
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