1Now Shephatiah son of Mattan, Gedaliah son of Pashhur, Jucal son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah was speaking to all the people, saying:
2“Thus says Yahweh: ‘Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but whoever goes out to the Chaldeans will live—his life will be his as spoil, and he will live.’
3Thus says Yahweh: ‘This city will surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will capture it.’”
4Then the officials said to the king, “Let this man be put to death, for in this way he is weakening the hands of the soldiers 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 rather harm.”
5And King Zedekiah said, “Here, he is in your hand; for the king can do nothing against you.”
6So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malchiah the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guard, lowering Jeremiah down by ropes. In the cistern there was no water, only mud, and Jeremiah sank into the mud.
7Now Ebed-melech the Cushite, a man who was a eunuch, being in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was then sitting at the Benjamin Gate.
8Ebed-melech went out from the king’s house and spoke to the king, saying:
9“My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they threw into the cistern; he will die where he is because of the famine, for there is no more bread in the city.”
10Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Cushite, saying, “Take with you thirty men from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet up out of the cistern before he dies.”
11So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went into the king’s house, to a place beneath the storehouse, and took from there worn-out rags and worn-out clothes, and let them down by ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern.
12And Ebed-melech the Cushite said to Jeremiah, “Put these worn-out rags and clothes under your armpits, under the ropes.” And Jeremiah did so.
13Then they pulled Jeremiah up by the ropes and lifted him out of the cistern; and Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard.
14Then King Zedekiah sent and had Jeremiah the prophet brought to him at the third entrance that is in the house of Yahweh. And the king said to Jeremiah, “I am going to ask you a thing; do not hide anything from me.”
15Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “If I tell you, will you not surely put me to death? And if I give you counsel, you will not listen to me.”
16So King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, “As Yahweh lives, who made this life for us, I will not put you to death, nor will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life.”
17Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Thus says Yahweh, God of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘If you will indeed go out to the officers of the king of Babylon, then your life will be spared, and this city will not be burned with fire, and you and your household will live.
18But if you will not go out to the officers 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 yourself will not escape from their hand.’”
19And King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “I am afraid of the Judeans who have deserted to the Chaldeans, lest they give me into their hand and they abuse me.”
20But Jeremiah said, “They will not give you over. Obey, please, the voice of Yahweh in what I am speaking to you, that it may go well with you and your life may be spared.
21But if you refuse to go out, this is the word that Yahweh has shown me:
22Behold, all the women who are left in the house of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officers of the king of Babylon, and they will say: ‘Your trusted friends have misled you and prevailed over you; your feet are sunk in the mire; they have turned back.’
23All your wives and your children will be brought out to the Chaldeans, and you yourself will not escape from their hand, but you will be seized by the hand of the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned with fire.”
24Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, “Let no one know of these words, and you will not die.
25And if the officials hear that I have spoken with you, and they come to you and say to you, ‘Tell us, please, what you said to the king; do not hide it from us, and we will not put you to death,’ and also, ‘what did the king say to you?’—
26then you shall say to them, ‘I was presenting my plea before the king, that he not send me back to the house of Jonathan to die there.’”
27Then all the officials came to Jeremiah and questioned him, and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they stopped speaking with him, for the conversation had not been overheard.
28So Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was captured. And so it was when Jerusalem was captured.
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