Jeremiah Warns Against Trust in Pharaoh

1Now Zedekiah the son of Josiah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had made king in the land of Judah, reigned as king in place of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim. 2But neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land listened to the words of Yahweh which He spoke through Jeremiah the prophet.

3Yet King Zedekiah sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, to Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “Please pray to Yahweh our God on our behalf.” 4Now Jeremiah was still coming in and going out among the people; they had not yet put him in the prison. 5Meanwhile, Pharaoh’s military force had come out from Egypt; and the Chaldeans who had been besieging Jerusalem heard the report about them. So they withdrew from Jerusalem.

6Then the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah the prophet, saying, 7“Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘Thus you are to say to the king of Judah, who sent you to Me to inquire of Me: “Behold, the military force of Pharaoh which has come out for your assistance is going to return to its own land of Egypt. 8The Chaldeans will also return and fight against this city, and they will capture it and burn it with fire.”’ 9Thus says Yahweh, ‘Do not deceive yourselves, saying, “The Chaldeans will surely go away from us,” for they will not go. 10For even if you had struck down the entire military force of the Chaldeans who were fighting against you, and there were only wounded men remaining among them, each man in his tent, they would rise up and burn this city with fire.’”

Jeremiah Imprisoned

11Now it happened when the military force of the Chaldeans had withdrawn from Jerusalem because of the military force of Pharaoh, 12that Jeremiah went out from Jerusalem to go to the land of Benjamin in order to obtain his portion of some property there among the people. 13Now it happened that while he was at the Gate of Benjamin, the master of the guard whose name was Irijah the son of Shelemiah the son of Hananiah was there; and he seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are [†]going over to the Chaldeans!” 14But Jeremiah said, “A lie! I am not [†]going over to the Chaldeans”; yet he would not listen to him. So Irijah seized Jeremiah and brought him to the officials. 15Then the officials were angry at Jeremiah and struck him, and they put him in jail in the house of Jonathan the scribe because they had made that house into the prison. 16For Jeremiah had come into the [†]pit, that is, the vaulted cell; and Jeremiah stayed there many days.

17Then King Zedekiah sent and took him out; and in his palace the king secretly asked him and said, “Is there a word from Yahweh?” And Jeremiah said, “There is!” Then he said, “You will be given into the hand of the king of Babylon!” 18Moreover, Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, “In what way have I sinned against you or against your servants or against this people, that you have put me in prison? 19Where then are your prophets who prophesied to you, saying, ‘The king of Babylon will not come against you or against this land’? 20But now, please listen, O my lord the king; please let my supplication [†]come before you, and do not make me return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, that I may not die there.” 21Then King Zedekiah gave commandment, and they committed Jeremiah to the court of the guard and gave him a loaf of bread daily from the bakers’ street, until all the bread in the city had come to an end. So Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.