Jeremiah 39
OGCREVIEW OF CHAPTER SIXTEEN
I. Facts to Master
The man Nebuchadnezzar put on the throne as the last king of Judah (Jeremiah 37:1).
The names of the two messengers who Zedekiah sent to Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:3).
Jeremiah’s personal condition at this time (Jeremiah 37:4).
The time of the request (Jeremiah 37:5).
Jeremiah’s prediction regarding the Egyptian army (Jeremiah 37:7).
Name of the arresting officer and the accusation he made against Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:13).
That which the princes did to Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:15).
The nature of the area in which Jeremiah was imprisoned (Jeremiah 37:16).
The results of a secret interview between Jeremiah and Zedekiah (Jeremiah 37:17-21).
The place where Jeremiah was put when he continued to openly advocate surrender (Jeremiah 38:1-6).
The name and nationality of the person who rescued Jeremiah (Jeremiah 38:7).
The place where Jeremiah remained until the Chaldeans conquered the city (Jeremiah 38:13; Jeremiah 38:28).
Two important dates in the reign of Zedekiah (Jeremiah 39:1-2).
The place where Zedekiah was captured (Jeremiah 39:5).
Nebuchadnezzar’s military headquarters (Jeremiah 39:5).
The last sight seen by Zedekiah before his eyes were put out (Jeremiah 39:6).
The Chaldean general who was in charge at the destruction of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 39:9).
Those who were left in the land (Jeremiah 39:10).
Person to whom Jeremiah was committed (Jeremiah 39:14).
Jeremiah’s prophecy concerning Ebed-melech (Jeremiah 39:15-18).
II. Questions to Ponder
For what reason did Jeremiah desire to leave Jerusalem during the lull in the siege? (Jeremiah 37:11-12).
What are two possible interpretations of the phrase in the midst of the people? (Jeremiah 37:12).
During the reign of Jehoiakim the princes were favorable to Jeremiah. How can you account for the change in attitude on the part of the princes in the reign of Zedekiah?
Why have a jail in the home of a scribe? (Jeremiah 37:15).
Evaluate the attitude of king Zedekiah toward Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:2 ff.; Jeremiah 37:17; Jeremiah 38:5; Jeremiah 38:14; Jeremiah 38:19; Jeremiah 38:24).
What excuses did Zedekiah give for not surrendering to the Chaldeans? (Jeremiah 38:19).
Why did not Zedekiah wish the princes to know he had spoken to Jeremiah? (Jeremiah 38:25). Did Jeremiah lie when questioned by the princes? (Jeremiah 38:26-27).
Jeremiah 39:1-3
III. THE PROPHET CONFIRMED Jeremiah 39:1-18
For years Jeremiah had been preaching that Jerusalem would fall to the enemy from the north, the Chaldeans. Only through national submission to Nebuchadnezzar the servant of the Lord was there any hope of deliverance. Because of this message Jeremiah had suffered. He had been ridiculed, condemned as a false prophet, tortured, accused of treason, buffeted, harassed, imprisoned. On more than one occasion he nearly lost his life. Yet he never ceased to preach. He never compromised his message. Chapter 39 relates the confirmation of Jeremiah as a prophet. All of which he had warned and threatened came to pass. No longer could there be any doubt in the mind of anyone. Jeremiah was a man of God speaking forth the revelations he had received from the one true God.
The fall of Jerusalem to the Chaldeans was one of the monumental events of Old Testament history. The account here in chapter 39 is one of four accounts of the events surrounding the fall of the city, the others being found in Jeremiah 52, 2, Kings 25 and 2Chronicles 36. Naturally all these accounts should be studied together for the complete picture. The narrative in chapter 39 may be divided into four paragraphs: the collapse of the city (Jeremiah 39:1-3); the capture of the king (Jeremiah 39:4-7); the captivity of the people (Jeremiah 39:8-10); and the command of Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 39:11-14).
It should, perhaps, be noted that the genuineness of the greater part of chapter 39 has been called into question. Jeremiah 39:4-13 are omitted in the Septuagint (Greek) version of Jeremiah. But the Septuagint of Jeremiah has all the appearance of being a translation of an abridged version of the book. Perhaps in that abridged version this section was omitted because the same material is repeated in more detail in chapter 52. In this case the absence of this passage from the Septuagint is not a very weighty argument against its genuineness. The same can be said for the alleged contradictions found in this passage. These will be treated in the comments which follow.
A. The Collapse of the City Jeremiah 39:1-3
TRANSLATION
(1) In the tenth month of the ninth year of Zedekiah, king of Judah, came Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and all of his army against Jerusalem to besiege it. (2) On the ninth day of the fourth month of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the city was breached (3) and all the princes of the king of Babylon came and sat in the middle gate, even Nergal-sharezer, Samgar, Nebosarsechim the Rab-saris, Nergalsharezer the Rab-mag, and all the rest of the princes of the king of Babylon.
COMMENTS
The siege of Jerusalem had begun in the ninth year of the reign of Zedekiah, i.e., in January 588 B.C. (Jeremiah 39:1). The siege was brought to a successful conclusion in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, i.e., July 587 B.C. What a fateful day that was when the city was broken up, i.e., a breach was made in the walls (Jeremiah 39:2). It was a day commemorated by fasting for nearly seventy years (Zechariah 7:3; Zechariah 8:19). After eighteen long, weary months during much of which time the people in Jerusalem were at the point of starvation, the city had fallen. All that was left for the Chaldeans to do was to storm the upper part of Jerusalem where the remnant of the Judean army was holding out. Nebuchadnezzar himself was not present when the city fell. After defeating Pharaoh Hophra a few months earlier the great king had gone about 200 miles north of Jerusalem to the Syrian town of Riblah where he made his military headquarters. The final conquest of Jerusalem and the other military operations in the area were left in the hands of his subordinates.
As soon as the outer areas of Jerusalem had fallen the Chaldeans established a military government for the city. The administrative headquarters was set up at the middle gate, perhaps a gate in the wall that separated the upper and lower parts of the city. Three or possibly four Chaldean officers of that provisional government are named in Jeremiah 39:3. First is Nergal-sharezer whose name means may Nergal protect the king. The next name which appears in the King James Version is Samgar-nebo. There is quite some difference of opinion about this name. The present writer concurs with most modern scholars in connecting the nebo element with the next name. But what is to be done with Samgar? It has been taken to be (1) the name of a second official, (2) the name of the town from which Nergal-sharezer hailed, or (3) the official title of Nergal-sharezer. At the present time it is best to be non-committal on the meaning of the word Samgar and await further information from the ancient Near East, Nebo-sarsechim is the third officer named. He occupied the office of Rab-saris. The final officer is another Nergal-sharezer who occupied the office of Rabmag. From archaeological evidence it is now known that Rab-saris and Rab-mag were titles of high ranking military or diplomatic officials but their exact functions are unknown.[333] One of the Nergal-sharezers[334] mentioned in this verse is probably the same fellow by that name who succeeded the son of Nebuchadnezzar on the throne of Babylon in 560 B.C. He is more commonly known by his Greek name, Neriglissar. These three or four officials administered martial law upon the city until the arrival of Nebuzaradan, the captain of the garrison force, who came about a month after the breach was made in the walls (Jeremiah 52:12).
[333] The literal translation of the titles, chief of eunuchs and chief soothsayer does not do justice to the importance of these men. [334] Bright, (op. cit., p. 243) contends that the two Nergalsharezers mentioned here are the same person.
Jeremiah 39:4-10
B. The Capture of the King Jeremiah 39:4-10
TRANSLATION
(4) And it came to pass when Zedekiah, king of Judah, and all the men of war saw them, they fled by going out at night from the city by way of the king’s garden through the gate between the walls. And they went out toward the way of the Arabah. (5) And the Chaldean army pursued after them, and they caught up with Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho, took him captive, and brought him to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, in the land of Hamath. There he passed sentence upon him. (6) And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes at Riblah. The king of Babylon also slew all the nobles of Judah. (7) Then he put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him with chains to take him away to Babylon.
COMMENTS
When the lower city fell to the Chaldeans, Zedekiah knew that within a matter of hours he would be captive in the hands of his enemies. Under cover of night he and what was left of the army made a desperate dash for safety. The king fled through the gate between the two walls, i.e., where the inner and outer walls came together. The king’s garden was on the southeastern slope of the city near the junction of the Hinnom and Kidron Valleys. It must have been his intention to cross the Jordan river (Jeremiah 39:4). But in the plains around Jericho the Chaldean army overtook him. The king and his staff were taken in chains to the headquarters of Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah[335] some two hundred miles to the north. There Zedekiah was forced to stand in the judgment of the king against whom he had violated a sacred oath of allegiance (Jeremiah 39:5).
[335] This is probably the same Riblah mentioned in Numbers 34:11 as on the eastern boundary of the promised land. Some years earlier Pharaoh Necho had made Riblah his military headquarters. There he had summoned Judean king Jehoahaz who was then deported to Egypt in chains (2 Kings 23:33). Riblah was a strategic military point being at one of the major crossroads of western Asia.
Many vassal oaths from the ancient Near East have come to light in recent years. In swearing fidelity to his overlord the vassal would call upon the gods of both nations to punish him if he proved unfaithful to the terms of the agreement. Generally such vassal treaties contained a section of maledictions which the vassal pronounced against himself, his family, and his nation should he violate any part of the treaty. Such treaties were regarded as the most solemn possible obligation. The overload would punish in the most severe way the vassal who disregarded the treaty and rebelled. Though the exact wording of the vassal treaty between Zedekiah and Nebuchadnezzar is unknown, perhaps the words can be reconstructed in the light of what happened at Riblah. If this particular vassal treaty followed the terminology which was more or less standard in such documents, Zedekiah may well have said something like the following: May my sons and my officials be slain before my eyes and my eyes be blinded if I am unfaithful to any of the terms of this treaty. May I be carried to Babylon in fetters of bronze and languish in prison until my death if I violate this agreement. If Zedekiah said something to this effect when he was placed on the throne of Judah as the vassal of Nebuchadnezzar then no wonder he tried so desperately to escape the wrath of the great king. Those self-maledictions, uttered as part of a formal vassal treaty, were literally fulfilled at Riblah. The last sight which Zedekiah saw was the slaying of his own sons. Then his own eyes were blinded and he was carried away to Babylon (Jeremiah 39:6-7).
The tragedy of Riblah is that all of this could have been avoided had Zedekiah only heeded the word of God spoken through the prophet Jeremiah. Again and again Jeremiah had warned Zedekiah that disobedience to his vassal oath would result in face to face confrontation with the king of Babylon and eventual deportation to Babylon (Jeremiah 32:4-5; Jeremiah 34:3). The prophet Ezekiel in far away Babylon also accurately predicted the course of events though his words must have seemed vague and contradictory at the time he uttered them. I will bring him (Zedekiah) to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not SEE it, though he shall die there (Ezekiel 12:13). As I live (oracle of the Lord God), surely in the place where the king dwells that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die (Ezekiel 17:16).
Jeremiah 39:8-10
C. The Captivity of the People Jeremiah 39:8-10
TRANSLATION
(8) The Chaldeans burned the house of the king and the houses of the people and tore down the walls of Jerusalem. (9) The rest of the people who remained in the city, and those who had deserted to him, and the rest of the people who remained, Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guard, took captive to Babylon. (10) Only some of the poor people who had nothing did Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guard, leave in the land of Judah, giving to them vineyards and fields at that time.
COMMENTS
The capture of the upper city of Jerusalem and other pockets of resistance must have taken three or four weeks. According to Jeremiah 52:12, Nebuzaradan, the captain of the king’s body guard, did not arrive on the scene in Jerusalem until a month after the city fell. When he arrived he put the city to the torch and broke down the walls which had for so many months thwarted the Chaldean might (Jeremiah 39:8). The Judeans who had already defected to the Chaldeans and those who were captured when the city fell were prepared for deportation to Babylon (Jeremiah 39:9). Only the very poor of the land were left. The parallel accounts (Jeremiah 52:16; 2 Kings 25:12) say that they were left as vinedressers and husbandmen. The text here indicates further that these poor were given the vineyards and fields (Jeremiah 39:10).
Jeremiah 39:11-14
D. The Command of Nebuchadnezzar Jeremiah 39:11-14
TRANSLATION
(11) Now Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had commanded Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard concerning Jeremiah, saying, (12) Take him and keep your eye on him and do not do any harm to him, but do with him as he tells you. (13) And Nebuzaradan the commander of the guard, and Nebushasban the Rab-saris, and Nergalsharezer the Rab-mag, and all the officials of the king of Babylon (14) sent and took Jeremiah from the court of the guard and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, that he might escort him home; and he dwelled in the midst of the people.
COMMENTS
Nebuchadnezzar had given specific orders to the captain of his guard with regard to the welfare of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 39:11). No doubt Nebuchadnezzar had learned of the preaching of Jeremiah through some of those who had defected during the siege. He must have regarded Jeremiah as a friend and ally and so consequently ordered that he be given this special treatment. Upon arriving in Jerusalem Nebuzaradan consulted with the Chaldean officials on the scene[336] in order to prevent any possible harm to Jeremiah by conflicting orders or ignorance of the royal decree (Jeremiah 39:13). Thereafter Jeremiah was removed from the court of the guard (Jeremiah 38:28) and committed into the care of Gedaliah who had been appointed or would shortly be appointed as governor of the land (Jeremiah 40:5). Gedaliah was instructed to carry him home[337] (Jeremiah 39:14). This phrase suggests that Jeremiah was physically infirm at the time of his release from confinement. His age coupled with the deprivation and hardship which he had suffered during those last few months had left the venerable man of God frail and emaciated. And so Jeremiah dwelt among the people. The prophet was free at last.
[336] Nebushasban seems to have replaced Sarsechim in the position of Rabsaris by the time that Nebuzaradan arrived (cf. Jeremiah 39:3)
[337] This has been taken to be (1) Gedaliah’s house; (2) the (chief) house, i.e., the king’s palace; (3) Jeremiah’s own house. The last is probably the best interpretation.
Jeremiah 39:15-18
IV. APPENDIX: A MESSAGE FOR EBED-MELECH Jeremiah 39:15-18
(15) Now the word of the LORD had come to Jeremiah while he was still confined in the court of the guard, saying, Go and say to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am about to bring My words concerning this city to pass for evil and not for good. And they shall be fulfilled before your eyes on that day. (17) But I will deliver you in that day (oracle of the LORD) and you shall not be given into the hands of the men of whom you are terrified. (18) For I will certainly cause you to escape and you shall not fall by the sword; but you shall have your life as spoils because you trusted in Me (oracle of the LORD).
COMMENTS
Attached to the end of this present section of the book is a brief appendix containing a word of comfort for the slave Ebed-melech. Chronologically these four verses would stand after Jeremiah 38:13. They are postponed till now in order that there might be no break in the narrative of Jeremiah’s imprisonment and the capture of the city. In their present position these verses provide a bright conclusion to the dark story of the fall and destruction of Jerusalem. The passage suggests that God takes care of His own and rewards men of faith who have the courage to act decisively.
While still in the court of the guard (Jeremiah 39:15) Jeremiah was given a message for Ebed-melech. Doubtlessly in the course of this servant’s daily work he would have had occasion to be in or near the court of the guard. Perhaps it was his task to feed the prisoners there. Jeremiah was instructed to go to this eunuch with a message of hope. Ebed-melech would see the city of Jerusalem captured and destroyed just as the Lord had spoken through His prophet (Jeremiah 39:16). Perhaps this is an oblique way of saying that Ebed-melech need not fear reprisals at the hands of the wicked princes who hated him for rescuing Jeremiah. Ebed-melech must have been harassed with fear as to his personal future when Jerusalem was captured. As a royal servant he knew that he would most likely be killed by the Chaldeans. Jeremiah assures him that this will not be the case. you shall not be delivered into the hands of the men of whom you are afraid (Jeremiah 39:17). Though his life would be endangered in that day, God would deliver him. His life would be given to him for a prey i.e., a prize of war. God will be gracious to this humble servant because he had put his trust in the Lord. What a contrast between this royal servant and the king he served. The servant trusted God and risked his life to take a stand for right, His master tried to save his life by refusing to heed the word of God. The Ethiopian found life among death; the king died a thousand deaths as he languished in blindness in a Chaldean dungeon.