¹Shephatiah the son of Mattan , Gedaliah the son of Pashhur , Jucal the son of Shelemiah , and Pashhur the son of Malchijah heard the words that Jeremiah spoke to all the people , saying ,

²“The LORD says , ‘He who remains in this city will die by the sword , by the famine , and by the pestilence , but he who goes out to the Chaldeans will live . He will escape with his life and he will live .’

³The LORD says , ‘This city will surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he will take it .’”

⁴Then the princes said to the king , “Please let this man be put to death , because he weakens the hands of the men of war who remain in this city , and the hands of all the people , in speaking such words to them ; for this man doesn’t seek the welfare of this people , but harm .”

⁵Zedekiah the king said , “Behold , he is in your hand ; for the king can ’t do anything to oppose you .”

⁶Then they took Jeremiah and threw him into the dungeon of Malchijah the king’s son , that was in the court of the guard . They let down Jeremiah with cords . In the dungeon there was no water , but mire ; and Jeremiah sank in the mire .

⁷Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian , a eunuch , who was in the king ’s house , heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon (the king was then sitting in Benjamin ’s gate ),

⁸Ebedmelech went out of 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 have cast into the dungeon. He is likely to die in the place where he is , because of the famine ; for there is no more bread in the city .”

¹⁰Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian , saying, “Take from here thirty men with you , and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he dies .”

¹¹So Ebedmelech took the men with him , and went into the house of the king under the treasury , and took from there rags and worn-out garments, and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah .

¹²Ebedmelech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah , “Now put these rags and worn-out garments under your armpits under the cords .”

Jeremiah did so .

¹³So they lifted Jeremiah up with the cords , and took him up out of the dungeon; and Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard .

¹⁴Then Zedekiah the king sent and took Jeremiah the prophet to himself into the third entry that is in the LORD ’s house . Then the king said to Jeremiah , “I will ask you something . Hide nothing from me .”

¹⁵Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah , “If I declare it to you , will you not surely put me to death ? If I give you counsel , you will not listen to me .”

¹⁶So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah , saying, “As the LORD lives , who made our souls , I will not put you to death , neither will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life .”

¹⁷Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah , “The LORD , the God of Armies , the God of Israel , says : ‘If you will go out to the king of Babylon’s princes , then your soul will live , and this city will not be burnt with fire. You will live , along with your house .

¹⁸But if you will not go out to the king of Babylon’s princes , then this city will be given into the hand of the Chaldeans , and they will burn it with fire, and you won’t escape out of their hand .’”

¹⁹Zedekiah the king said to Jeremiah , “I am afraid of the Jews who have defected to the Chaldeans , lest they deliver me into their hand , and they mock me .”

²⁰But Jeremiah said , “They won’t deliver you . Obey , I beg you , the LORD ’s voice , in that which I speak to you ; so it will be well with you , and your soul will live .

²¹But if you refuse to go out , this is the word that the LORD has shown me :

²²‘Behold , all the women who are left in the king of Judah ’s house will be brought out to the king of Babylon’s princes , and those women will say,

“Your familiar friends have turned on you ,

and have prevailed over you .

Your feet are sunk in the mire ,

they have turned away from you .”

²³They will bring out all your wives and your children to the Chaldeans . You won’t escape out of their hand , but will be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon. You will cause this city to be burnt with fire.’”

²⁴Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah , “Let no man know of these words , and you won’t die .

²⁵But if the princes hear that I have talked with you , and they come to you , and tell you , ‘Declare to us now what you have said to the king ; don’t hide it from us , and we will not put you to death ; also tell us what the king said to you ;’

²⁶then you shall tell them , ‘I presented my supplication before the king , that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan ’s house , to die there .’”

²⁷Then all the princes came to Jeremiah , and asked him ; and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded . So they stopped speaking with him , for the matter was not perceived .

²⁸So Jeremiah stayed in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken .