Jeremiah 38:23

Jeremiah 38:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans: and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon: and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.
• New International Version (NIV)“All your wives and children will be brought out to the Babylonians. You yourself will not escape from their hands but will be captured by the king of Babylon; and this city will be burned down.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)All your wives and your sons shall be led out to the Chaldeans, and you yourself shall not escape from their hand, but shall be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city shall be burned with fire."
• New King James Version (NKJV)‘So they shall surrender all your wives and children to the Chaldeans. You shall not escape from their hand, but shall be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon. And you shall cause this city to be burned with fire.’ ”

Context of Jeremiah 38:23

21But if you refuse to put yourself under the power of the enemy, a terrible thing will happen to you. The Lord has shown me this in a vision. 22The enemy's soldiers will bring out all the women in the palace of Judah's king. They will give those women to the king of Babylon's officers. The women will say to you, “Your friends that you trusted to help you have deceived you. They have won against you. Your feet are now deep in the mud and you cannot move. So your friends have gone away and left you.” Babylon's soldiers will take all your wives and your children for themselves. You yourself will not escape from them. The king of Babylon will take hold of you as his prisoner. His soldiers will burn down this city.’ 24Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah, ‘Do not tell anyone what we have talked about. If you do tell anyone, you will surely die. 25My officers may know that we have talked together. They may come to you and ask you, “Tell us what you talked about with the king. Tell us everything that you said. If not, we will kill you.”

Jeremiah 38:23 word by word

וְאֶת־כָּל־נָשֶׁ֣יךָ וְאֶת־בָּנֶ֗יךָ מֽוֹצִאִים֙ אֶל־הַכַּשְׂדִּ֔ים וְאַתָּ֖ה לֹא־תִמָּלֵ֣ט מִיָּדָ֑ם כִּ֣י בְיַ֤ד מֶֽלֶךְ־בָּבֶל֙ תִּתָּפֵ֔שׂ וְאֶת־הָעִ֥יר הַזֹּ֖את תִּשְׂרֹ֥ף בָּאֵֽשׁ׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• So they shall bring outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: sendH3318
• all thy wivesאִשָּׁה'ishshâh nâshîym · woman: wifeH802
• and thy childrenבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
• to the Chaldeansכַּשְׂדִּיםkaώdîy kaώdîymâh · ChaldeaH3778
• and thou shalt not escape outמָלַטmâlaţ · to escapeH4422
• of their handיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
• but shalt be takenתָּפַשׂtâphaώ · to captureH8610
• of the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of Babylonבָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶלbâbel · BabylonH894
• and thou shalt cause this cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• to be burnedשָׂרַףώâraph · to burnH8313
• with fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784

Cross-references for Jeremiah 38:23

• Jeremiah 38:18But if you do not agree to be under their power, they will take this city for themselves. They will burn it down. You yourself will become their prisoner.” ’
• Jeremiah 39:6He decided how he would punish Zedekiah. He told his soldiers to kill all Zedekiah's sons, while Zedekiah watched. Nebuchadnezzar also punished all the important men of Judah with death.
• Jeremiah 41:10Then Ishmael took hold of all the other people in Mizpah who were still alive. He made them his prisoners. These people included the king's daughters, as well as all the other people who remained in Mizpah. Captain Nebuzaradan had said that Ahikam's son Gedaliah would have authority over those people. But Ishmael took them away as his prisoners. He started to take them towards the land of Ammon.
• Jeremiah 52:8But the soldiers of Babylon's army chased after King Zedekiah. They caught him on the flat land near Jericho. All King Zedekiah's soldiers ran away from him in many directions.
• 2 Kings 25:7They killed all Zedekiah's sons as their punishment, while Zedekiah watched. Then they cut out Zedekiah's eyes to make him blind. They tied him with chains and they took him to Babylon.
• 2 Chronicles 36:20Nebuchadnezzar took away to Babylon all the people in Jerusalem who were still alive. They worked as slaves for him and for his sons until the kingdom of Persia became powerful.
• Jeremiah 27:12I gave the same message to King Zedekiah of Judah. I told him, ‘Put the yoke of the king of Babylon around your neck. Agree to work for him and for his people. Then you will continue to live.
• Ezekiel 14:9I will also punish the prophet himself if he gives a false message. I, the Lord, have deceived him to show that he is a fool. And I will punish him. I will remove him from among my people, Israel's people.
• Ezekiel 43:3I had seen a vision like this when I was beside the Kebar River. I had also seen a vision like this when God came to destroy Jerusalem. I bent down low with my face on the ground.

Commentaries on Jeremiah 38:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23They shall bring out all thy wives and thy children - These were the women of the first rank, by whom the king had children. These had no temptation to go out to the Chaldeans, nor would they have been made welcome; but the others being young, and without children, would be well received by the Chaldean princes.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 23So - And. In addition to the ridicule there shall be the miseries of the capture. Thou shalt cause this city to be burned - literally, as margin. It shall be thy own act as completely as if done with thine own hand.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-28Verses 14-28 Jeremiah was not forward to repeat the warnings, which seemed only to endanger his own life, and to add to the king's guilt, but asked whether he feared to do the will of God. The less men fear God, the more they fear men; often they dare not act according to their own judgments and consciences.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-28The focus now returns to Zedekiah, who became king of Judah after his nephew Jehoiachin. These chapters describe meetings between Zedekiah and Jeremiah, highlighting Zedekiah’s struggle to fully commit to God's word (compare Deuteronomy 10:12–13). Zedekiah is a classic example of a person with divided loyalty (James 1:6–8).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. children--(Jr 39:6; 41:10). "wives ... children ... thou"; an ascending climax.Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 38:23

• Prisoners
• Zedekiah

In the dictionaries

• Babylon
• Babylon, Babylonia, Babylonian
• Foreknowledge of God
• Jeremiah (2)
• Zedekiah (2)
• Zedekiah

Commentaries on Jeremiah 38

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings