Jeremiah 38-40; Psalms 74; Psalms 79 - Prayer Tents

Jeremiah in a Cistern

38Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jehucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malkijah heard what Jeremiah had been telling the people. He had been saying,H8203H1121H4977H1436H1121H6583H3116H1121H8018H6583H1121H4441H8085H1697H3414H1696H5971H559 2“This is what the Lord says: ‘Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die from war, famine, or disease, but those who surrender to the Babylonians will live. Their reward will be life. They will live!’H559H3068H3427H5892H4191H2719H7458H1698H3318H3778H2421H5315H7998H2421H2425 3The Lord also says: ‘The city of Jerusalem will certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon, who will capture it.’”H559H3068H5892H5414H5414H3027H4428H894H2428H3920 4So these officials went to the king and said, “Sir, this man must die! That kind of talk will undermine the morale of the few fighting men we have left, as well as that of all the people. This man is a traitor!”H8269H559H4428H376H4191H3651H7503H3027H582H4421H7604H5892H3027H5971H1696H1697H376H1875H7965H5971H7451 5King Zedekiah agreed. “All right,” he said. “Do as you like. I can’t stop you.”H6667H4428H559H3027H4428H3201H1697 6So the officials took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. It belonged to Malkijah, a member of the royal family. There was no water in the cistern, but there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it.H3947H3414H7993H953H4441H1121H4428H2691H4307H7971H3414H2256H953H4325H2916H3414H2883H2916 7But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, an important court official, heard that Jeremiah was in the cistern. At that time the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate,H5663H3569H376H5631H4428H1004H8085H5414H3414H953H4428H3427H8179H1144 8so Ebed-melech rushed from the palace to speak with him.H5663H3318H4428H1004H1696H4428H559 9“My lord the king,” he said, “these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern. He will soon die of hunger, for almost all the bread in the city is gone.”H113H4428H582H7489H6213H3414H5030H7993H953H4191H6440H7458H8478H3899H5892 10So the king told Ebed-melech, “Take thirty of my men with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.”H4428H6680H5663H3569H559H3947H7970H582H3027H5927H3414H5030H953H4191 11So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to a room in the palace beneath the treasury, where he found some old rags and discarded clothing. He carried these to the cistern and lowered them to Jeremiah on a rope.H5663H3947H582H3027H935H1004H4428H214H3947H1094H5499H1094H4418H7971H2256H953H3414 12Ebed-melech called down to Jeremiah, “Put these rags under your armpits to protect you from the ropes.” Then when Jeremiah was ready,H5663H3569H559H3414H7760H1094H5499H4418H679H3027H2256H3414H6213 13they pulled him out. So Jeremiah was returned to the courtyard of the guard—the palace prison—where he remained.H4900H3414H2256H5927H953H3414H3427H2691H4307

Zedekiah Questions Jeremiah

14One day King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah and had him brought to the third entrance of the Lord’s Temple. “I want to ask you something,” the king said. “And don’t try to hide the truth.”H6667H4428H7971H3947H3414H5030H7992H3996H1004H3068H4428H559H3414H7592H1697H3582 15Jeremiah said, “If I tell you the truth, you will kill me. And if I give you advice, you won’t listen to me anyway.”H3414H559H6667H5046H4191H4191H3289H8085 16So King Zedekiah secretly promised him, “As surely as the Lord our Creator lives, I will not kill you or hand you over to the men who want you dead.”H6667H4428H7650H5643H3414H559H3068H2416H6213H5315H4191H5414H3027H582H1245H5315 17Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you surrender to the Babylonian officers, you and your family will live, and the city will not be burned down.H559H3414H6667H559H3068H430H6635H430H3478H3318H3318H4428H894H8269H5315H2421H5892H8313H784H2421H1004 18But if you refuse to surrender, you will not escape! This city will be handed over to the Babylonians, and they will burn it to the ground.’”H3318H4428H894H8269H5892H5414H3027H3778H8313H784H4422H3027 19“But I am afraid to surrender,” the king said, “for the Babylonians may hand me over to the Judeans who have defected to them. And who knows what they will do to me!”H6667H4428H559H3414H1672H3064H5307H3778H5414H3027H5953 20Jeremiah replied, “You won’t be handed over to them if you choose to obey the Lord. Your life will be spared, and all will go well for you.H3414H559H5414H8085H6963H3068H1696H3190H5315H2421 21But if you refuse to surrender, this is what the Lord has revealed to me:H3986H3318H1697H3068H7200 22All the women left in your palace will be brought out and given to the officers of the Babylonian army. Then the women will taunt you, saying, ‘What fine friends you have! They have betrayed and misled you. When your feet sank in the mud, they left you to your fate!’H802H7604H4428H3063H1004H3318H4428H894H8269H559H582H7965H5496H3201H7272H2883H1206H5472H268 23All your wives and children will be led out to the Babylonians, and you will not escape. You will be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned down.”H3318H802H1121H3778H4422H3027H8610H3027H4428H894H5892H8313H784 24Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Don’t tell anyone you told me this, or you will die!H559H6667H3414H376H3045H1697H4191 25My officials may hear that I spoke to you, and they may say, ‘Tell us what you and the king were talking about. If you don’t tell us, we will kill you.’H8269H8085H1696H935H559H5046H1696H4428H3582H4191H4428H1696 26If this happens, just tell them you begged me not to send you back to Jonathan’s dungeon, for fear you would die there.”H559H5307H8467H6440H4428H7725H3083H1004H4191 27Sure enough, it wasn’t long before the king’s officials came to Jeremiah and asked him why the king had called for him. But Jeremiah followed the king’s instructions, and they left without finding out the truth. No one had overheard the conversation between Jeremiah and the king.H935H8269H3414H7592H5046H1697H4428H6680H2790H1697H8085 28And Jeremiah remained a prisoner in the courtyard of the guard until the day Jerusalem was captured.H3414H3427H2691H4307H3117H3389H3920H3389H3920

The Fall of Jerusalem

39In January of the ninth year of King Zedekiah’s reign, King Nebuchadnezzar came with his army to besiege Jerusalem.H8671H8141H6667H4428H3063H6224H2320H935H5019H4428H894H2428H3389H6696 2Two and a half years later, on July 18 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign, the Babylonians broke through the wall, and the city fell.H6249H6240H8141H6667H7243H2320H8672H2320H5892H1234 3All the officers of the Babylonian army came in and sat in triumph at the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, and Nebo-sarsekim, a chief officer, and Nergal-sharezer, the king’s adviser, and all the other officers.H8269H4428H894H935H3427H8432H8179H5371H5562H8310H7249H5371H7248H7611H8269H4428H894 4When King Zedekiah and all the soldiers saw that the Babylonians had broken into the city, they fled. They waited for nightfall and then slipped through the gate between the two walls behind the king’s garden and headed toward the Jordan Valley.H6667H4428H3063H7200H582H4421H1272H3318H5892H3915H1870H4428H1588H8179H2346H3318H1870H6160 5But the Babylonian troops chased the king and caught him on the plains of Jericho. They took him to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who was at Riblah in the land of Hamath. There the king of Babylon pronounced judgment upon Zedekiah.H3778H2428H7291H310H5381H6667H6160H3405H3947H5927H5019H4428H894H7247H776H2574H1696H4941 6He made Zedekiah watch as they slaughtered his sons and all the nobles of Judah.H4428H894H7819H1121H6667H7247H5869H4428H894H7819H2715H3063 7Then they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon.H5786H6667H5869H631H5178H935H894 8Meanwhile, the Babylonians burned Jerusalem, including the palace, and tore down the walls of the city.H3778H8313H4428H1004H1004H5971H784H5422H2346H3389 9Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, sent to Babylon the rest of the people who remained in the city as well as those who had defected to him.H5018H7227H2876H1540H894H3499H5971H7604H5892H5307H5307H3499H5971H7604 10But Nebuzaradan left a few of the poorest people in Judah, and he assigned them vineyards and fields to care for.H5018H7227H2876H7604H1800H5971H3972H776H3063H5414H3754H3010H3117

Jeremiah Remains in Judah

11King Nebuchadnezzar had told Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, to find Jeremiah.H5019H4428H894H6680H3414H3027H5018H7227H2876H559 12“See that he isn’t hurt,” he said. “Look after him well, and give him anything he wants.”H3947H5869H7760H6213H3972H7451H6213H1696 13So Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard; Nebushazban, a chief officer; Nergal-sharezer, the king’s adviser; and the other officers of Babylon’s kingH5018H7227H2876H7971H5021H7249H5371H7248H4428H894H7227 14sent messengers to bring Jeremiah out of the prison. They put him under the care of Gedaliah son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, who took him back to his home. So Jeremiah stayed in Judah among his own people.H7971H3947H3414H2691H4307H5414H1436H1121H296H1121H8227H3318H1004H3427H8432H5971 15The Lord had given the following message to Jeremiah while he was still in prison:H1697H3068H3414H6113H2691H4307H559 16“Say to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, ‘This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: I will do to this city everything I have threatened. I will send disaster, not prosperity. You will see its destruction,H1980H559H5663H3569H559H559H3068H6635H430H3478H935H1697H5892H7451H2896H3117H6440 17but I will rescue you from those you fear so much.H5337H3117H5002H3068H5414H3027H582H6440H3016 18Because you trusted me, I will give you your life as a reward. I will rescue you and keep you safe. I, the Lord, have spoken!’”H4422H4422H5307H2719H5315H7998H982H5002H3068

40The Lord gave a message to Jeremiah after Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, had released him at Ramah. He had found Jeremiah bound in chains among all the other captives of Jerusalem and Judah who were being sent to exile in Babylon.H1697H3414H3068H310H5018H7227H2876H7971H7414H3947H631H246H8432H1546H3389H3063H1540H894 2The captain of the guard called for Jeremiah and said, “The Lord your God has brought this disaster on this land,H7227H2876H3947H3414H559H3068H430H1696H7451H4725 3just as he said he would. For these people have sinned against the Lord and disobeyed him. That is why it happened.H3068H935H6213H1696H2398H3068H8085H6963H1697 4But I am going to take off your chains and let you go. If you want to come with me to Babylon, you are welcome. I will see that you are well cared for. But if you don’t want to come, you may stay here. The whole land is before you—go wherever you like.H6605H3117H246H3027H2896H5869H935H894H935H7760H5869H7489H5869H935H894H2308H7200H776H6440H413H2896H3477H5869H3212H3212 5If you decide to stay, then return to Gedaliah son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan. He has been appointed governor of Judah by the king of Babylon. Stay there with the people he rules. But it’s up to you; go wherever you like.” Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, gave Jeremiah some food and money and let him go.H7725H7725H1436H1121H296H1121H8227H4428H894H6485H5892H3063H3427H8432H5971H3212H3477H5869H3212H7227H2876H5414H737H4864H7971 6So Jeremiah returned to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah, and he lived in Judah with the few who were still left in the land.H935H3414H1436H1121H296H4708H3427H8432H5971H7604H776

Gedaliah Governs in Judah

7The leaders of the Judean guerrilla bands in the countryside heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam as governor over the poor people who were left behind in Judah—the men, women, and children who hadn’t been exiled to Babylon.H8269H2428H7704H582H8085H4428H894H1436H1121H296H6485H776H6485H582H802H2945H1803H776H1540H894 8So they went to see Gedaliah at Mizpah. These included: Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan and Jonathan sons of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth, the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, Jezaniah son of the Maacathite, and all their men.H935H1436H4708H3458H1121H5418H3110H3129H1121H7143H8304H1121H8576H1121H5778H5200H3153H1121H4602H582 9Gedaliah vowed to them that the Babylonians meant them no harm. “Don’t be afraid to serve them. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and all will go well for you,” he promised.H1436H1121H296H1121H8227H7650H582H559H3372H5647H3778H3427H776H5647H4428H894H3190 10“As for me, I will stay at Mizpah to represent you before the Babylonians who come to meet with us. Settle in the towns you have taken, and live off the land. Harvest the grapes and summer fruits and olives, and store them away.”H3427H4709H5975H6440H3778H935H622H3196H7019H8081H7760H3627H3427H5892H8610 11When the Judeans in Moab, Ammon, Edom, and the other nearby countries heard that the king of Babylon had left a few people in Judah and that Gedaliah was the governor,H3064H4124H5983H123H776H8085H4428H894H5414H7611H3063H6485H1436H1121H296H1121H8227 12they began to return to Judah from the places to which they had fled. They stopped at Mizpah to meet with Gedaliah and then went into the Judean countryside to gather a great harvest of grapes and other crops.H3064H7725H4725H5080H935H776H3063H1436H4708H622H3196H7019H3966H7235

A Plot against Gedaliah

13Soon after this, Johanan son of Kareah and the other guerrilla leaders came to Gedaliah at Mizpah.H3110H1121H7143H8269H2428H7704H935H1436H4708 14They said to him, “Did you know that Baalis, king of Ammon, has sent Ishmael son of Nethaniah to assassinate you?” But Gedaliah refused to believe them.H559H3045H3045H1185H4428H1121H5983H7971H3458H1121H5418H5221H5315H1436H1121H296H539 15Later Johanan had a private conference with Gedaliah and volunteered to kill Ishmael secretly. “Why should we let him come and murder you?” Johanan asked. “What will happen then to the Judeans who have returned? Why should the few of us who are still left be scattered and lost?”H3110H1121H7143H559H1436H4709H5643H559H3212H5221H3458H1121H5418H376H3045H5221H5315H3064H6908H6327H7611H3063H6 16But Gedaliah said to Johanan, “I forbid you to do any such thing, for you are lying about Ishmael.”H1436H1121H296H559H3110H1121H7143H6213H1697H1696H8267H3458

74[A psalm of Asaph.] O God, why have you rejected us so long? Why is your anger so intense against the sheep of your own pasture?H4905H623H430H2186H5331H639H6225H6629H4830 2Remember that we are the people you chose long ago, the tribe you redeemed as your own special possession! And remember Jerusalem, your home here on earth.H2142H5712H7069H6924H7626H5159H1350H2022H6726H7931 3Walk through the awful ruins of the city; see how the enemy has destroyed your sanctuary.H7311H6471H5331H4876H341H7489H6944 4There your enemies shouted their victorious battle cries; there they set up their battle standards.H6887H7580H7130H4150H7760H226H226 5They swung their axes like woodcutters in a forest.H3045H935H4605H7134H5442H6086 6With axes and picks, they smashed the carved paneling.H1986H6603H3162H3781H3597 7They burned your sanctuary to the ground. They defiled the place that bears your name.H7971H784H4720H2490H4908H8034H776 8Then they thought, “Let’s destroy everything!” So they burned down all the places where God was worshiped.H559H3820H3238H3162H8313H4150H410H776 9We no longer see your miraculous signs. All the prophets are gone, and no one can tell us when it will end.H7200H226H5030H3045H5704 10How long, O God, will you allow our enemies to insult you? Will you let them dishonor your name forever?H430H6862H2778H341H5006H8034H5331 11Why do you hold back your strong right hand? Unleash your powerful fist and destroy them.H7725H3027H3225H3615H7130H2436H2436 12You, O God, are my king from ages past, bringing salvation to the earth.H430H4428H6924H6466H3444H7130H776 13You split the sea by your strength and smashed the heads of the sea monsters.H6565H3220H5797H7665H7218H8577H4325 14You crushed the heads of Leviathan① and let the desert animals eat him./ ①The identification of Leviathan is disputed, ranging from an earthly creature to a mythical sea monster in ancient literatureH7533H7218H3882H5414H3978H5971H6728 15You caused the springs and streams to gush forth, and you dried up rivers that never run dry.H1234H4599H5158H3001H386H5104 16Both day and night belong to you; you made the starlight and the sun.H3117H3915H3559H3974H8121 17You set the boundaries of the earth, and you made both summer and winter.H5324H1367H776H3335H7019H2779 18See how these enemies insult you, Lord. A foolish nation has dishonored your name.H2142H341H2778H3068H5036H5971H5006H8034 19Don’t let these wild beasts destroy your turtledoves. Don’t forget your suffering people forever.H5414H5315H8449H2416H7911H2416H6041H5331 20Remember your covenant promises, for the land is full of darkness and violence!H5027H1285H4285H776H4390H4999H2555 21Don’t let the downtrodden be humiliated again. Instead, let the poor and needy praise your name.H1790H7725H3637H6041H34H1984H8034 22Arise, O God, and defend your cause. Remember how these fools insult you all day long.H6965H430H7378H7379H2142H5036H2781H3117 23Don’t overlook what your enemies have said or their growing uproar.H7911H6963H6887H7588H6965H5927H8548

79[A psalm of Asaph.] O God, pagan nations have conquered your land, your special possession. They have defiled your holy Temple and made Jerusalem a heap of ruins.H4210H623H430H1471H935H5159H6944H1964H2930H7760H3389H5856 2They have left the bodies of your servants as food for the birds of heaven. The flesh of your godly ones has become food for the wild animals.H5038H5650H5414H3978H5775H8064H1320H2623H2416H776 3Blood has flowed like water all around Jerusalem; no one is left to bury the dead.H1818H8210H4325H5439H3389H6912 4We are mocked by our neighbors, an object of scorn and derision to those around us.H2781H7934H3933H7047H5439 5O Lord, how long will you be angry with us? Forever? How long will your jealousy burn like fire?H3068H599H5331H7068H1197H784 6Pour out your wrath on the nations that refuse to acknowledge you—on kingdoms that do not call upon your name.H8210H2534H1471H3045H4467H7121H8034 7For they have devoured your people Israel, making the land a desolate wilderness.H398H3290H8074H5116 8Do not hold us guilty for the sins of our ancestors! Let your compassion quickly meet our needs, for we are on the brink of despair.H2142H7223H5771H7356H4118H6923H1809H3966H1809 9Help us, O God of our salvation! Help us for the glory of your name. Save us and forgive our sins for the honor of your name.H5826H430H3468H1697H3519H8034H5337H3722H2403H8034 10Why should pagan nations be allowed to scoff, asking, “Where is their God?” Show us your vengeance against the nations, for they have spilled the blood of your servants.H1471H559H430H3045H1471H5869H5360H1818H5650H8210 11Listen to the moaning of the prisoners. Demonstrate your great power by saving those condemned to die.H603H615H935H6440H1433H2220H3498H1121H8546 12O Lord, pay back our neighbors seven times for the scorn they have hurled at you.H7725H7934H7659H2436H2781H2778H136 13Then we your people, the sheep of your pasture, will thank you forever and ever, praising your greatness from generation to generation.H5971H6629H4830H3034H5769H5608H8416H1755H1755