Jeremiah Cast into the Cistern
And Shephatiah son of Mattan and Gedaliah son of Pashhur and Jucal son of Shelemiah and Pashhur son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was speaking to all the people, saying:
Thus says the LORD: The one who stays in this city will die by the sword, by the famine and by the pestilence; and the one who goes out to the Chaldeans will live, and his soul will be to him as spoil, and he will live.
Thus says the LORD: This city will surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.
And the princes said to the king: Let this man be put to death, for in this way he is weakening the hands of the men of war who remain in this city and the hands of all the people, by speaking such words to them; for this man is not seeking the welfare of this people, but the evil.
And King Zedekiah said: See, he is in your hand; for the king can do nothing against you.
And they took Jeremiah and threw him into the pit of Malchiah the king’s son, which was in the court of the guard; and they let Jeremiah down with ropes. And in the pit there was no water, only mud; and Jeremiah sank in the mud.
And Ebed-melech the Cushite, a eunuch, who was in the house of the king, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the pit — and the king was sitting in the Gate of Benjamin.
And Ebed-melech went out from the house of the king and spoke 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 threw into the pit; and he will die where he is because of the famine, for there is no more bread in the city.
And the king commanded Ebed-melech the Cushite, saying: Take with you from here thirty men, and bring up Jeremiah the prophet from the pit before he dies.
And Ebed-melech took the men with him and came to the house of the king, to the place under the treasury, and took from there worn-out rags and worn-out clothes, and let them down to Jeremiah in the pit by ropes.
And Ebed-melech the Cushite said to Jeremiah: Put now the worn-out rags and clothes under the joints of your arms, under the ropes. And Jeremiah did so.
And they drew Jeremiah up with the ropes and brought him up from the pit; and Jeremiah stayed in the court of the guard.
And King Zedekiah sent and took Jeremiah the prophet to himself, to the third entrance that is in the house of the LORD; and the king said to Jeremiah: I am asking you a word; do not hide a thing from me.
And Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: If I tell you, will you not surely put me to death? And if I counsel you, you will not listen to me.
And King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in secret, saying: As the LORD lives, who made for us this soul, I will not put you to death, and I will not give you into the hand of these men who seek your soul.
And Jeremiah said to Zedekiah: Thus says the LORD, God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you indeed go out to the princes of the king of Babylon, then your soul will live and this city will not be burned with fire, and you will live, you and your house.
But if you do not go out to the princes of the king of Babylon, then this city will be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they will burn it with fire; and you will not escape from their hand.
And King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah: I am anxious about the Judeans who have fallen away to the Chaldeans, lest they give me into their hand and they abuse me.
And Jeremiah said: They will not give you. Obey now the voice of the LORD in what I am speaking to you, and it will be good for you, and your soul will live.
But if you refuse to go out, this is the word that the LORD has shown me:
See, all the women who remain in the house of the king of Judah are being brought out to the princes of the king of Babylon, and they are saying: They incited you and prevailed against you, the men of your peace; your feet are sunk in the mire — they have turned back.
And all your wives and your sons they are bringing out to the Chaldeans; and you will not escape from their hand, for by the hand of the king of Babylon you will be seized; and this city you will burn with fire.
And Zedekiah said to Jeremiah: Let no man know of these words, and you will not die.
And if the princes hear that I spoke with you, and they come to you and say to you: Tell us now what you said to the king; do not hide it from us and we will not put you to death — and what did the king say to you? —
then you will say to them: I was making my plea fall before the king, that he not send me back to the house of Jonathan to die there.
And all the princes came to Jeremiah and asked him, and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded; and they were silent toward him, for the matter was not heard.
And Jeremiah stayed in the court of the guard until the day Jerusalem was captured. And it was when Jerusalem was captured —