Jeremiah 39

The Fall of Jerusalemⓘ

Jerusalem falls¹In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army and laid siege to the city. ²And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiahʼs eleventh year, the city was breached.

³Then all the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim^a the Rabsaris,^b Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag,^c and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.

⁴When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled. They left the city at night by way of the kingʼs garden, through the gate between the two walls, and they went out along the route to the Arabah.^{d 5}But the army of the Chaldeans^e pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment on him.

⁶There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the nobles of Judah. ⁷Then he put out Zedekiahʼs eyes and bound him with bronze chains to take him to Babylon.

⁸The Chaldeans set fire to the palace of the king and to the houses of the people, and they broke down the walls of Jerusalem.

⁹Then Nebuzaradan captain of the guard carried away to Babylon the remnant of the people who had remained in the city, along with the deserters who had defected to him. ¹⁰But Nebuzaradan left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who had no property, and at that time he gave them vineyards and fields.

Jeremiah Deliveredⓘ

Jeremiah is protected¹¹Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had given orders about Jeremiah through Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, saying, ¹²“Take him, look after him, and do not let any harm come to him; do for him whatever he says.”

¹³So Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, Nebushazban^f the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the captains of the king of Babylon ¹⁴had Jeremiah brought from the courtyard of the guard, and they turned him over to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to take him home. So Jeremiah remained among his own people.

God's promise to Ebed-melech¹⁵And while Jeremiah had been confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the Lord had come to him: ¹⁶“Go and tell Ebed-melech the Cushite that this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘I am about to fulfill My words against this city for harm and not for good, and on that day they will be fulfilled before your eyes. ¹⁷But I will deliver you on that day, declares the Lord, and you will not be delivered into the hands of the men whom you fear. ¹⁸For I will surely rescue you so that you do not fall by the sword. Because you have trusted in Me, you will escape with your life like a spoil of war, declares the Lord.’”