New English Translation
Jeremiah 38:7
7An Ethiopian, Ebed Melech, a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put in the cistern. While the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate,
Jeremiah 38:7 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Now when Ebed–melech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin;
- New International Version (NIV)But Ebed-Melek, a Cushite, an official in the royal palace, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern. While the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate,
- English Standard Version (ESV)When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate—
- New King James Version (NKJV)Now Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs, who was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon. When the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin,
Context of Jeremiah 38:7
5King Zedekiah said to them, “Very well, you can do what you want with him. For I cannot do anything to stop you.” 6So the officials took Jeremiah and put him in the cistern of Malkijah, one of the royal princes, that was in the courtyard of the guardhouse. There was no water in the cistern, only mud. So when they lowered Jeremiah into the cistern with ropes he sank in the mud. An Ethiopian, Ebed Melech, a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put in the cistern. While the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate, 8Ebed Melech departed the palace and went to speak to the king. He said to him, 9“Your royal Majesty, those men have been very wicked in all that they have done to the prophet Jeremiah. They have thrown him into a cistern and he is sure to die of starvation there because there is no food left in the city.
Read all of Jeremiah 38Jeremiah 38:7 word by word
וַיִּשְׁמַ֡ע עֶֽבֶד־מֶ֨לֶךְ הַכּוּשִׁ֜י אִ֣ישׁ סָרִ֗יס וְהוּא֙ בְּבֵ֣ית הַמֶּ֔לֶךְ כִּֽי־נָתְנ֥וּ אֶֽת־יִרְמְיָ֖הוּ אֶל־הַבּ֑וֹר וְהַמֶּ֥לֶךְ יוֹשֵׁ֖ב בְּשַׁ֥עַר בִּנְיָמִֽן׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Now when Ebed–melechעֶ֫בֶד מֶ֫לֶךְ‛ebed melek · Ebed-melechH5663
- the Ethiopianכּוּשִׁיkûshîy · EthiopianH3569
- oneאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- of the eunuchsסָרִיסsârîys sâris · eunuchH5631
- which was in the king’sמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: palaceH1004
- heardשָׁמַעshâma‛ · to hear: hearH8085
- that they had putנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
- Jeremiahיִרְמְיָ֫הוּyirmeyâh yirmeyâhû · JeremiahH3414
- in the dungeonבּוֹרbôr · pitH953
- then sittingיָשַׁבyâshab · to dwellH3427
- in the gateשַׁ֫עַרsha‛ar · gateH8179
- of Benjaminבִּנְיָמִיןbinyâmîyn · Benjamin (Gate)H1144
Cross-references for Jeremiah 38:7
- Jeremiah 39:16“Go and tell Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, ‘The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, “I will carry out against this city what I promised. It will mean disaster and not good fortune for it. When that disaster happens, you will be there to see it.
- Jeremiah 13:23But there is little hope for you ever doing good, you who are so accustomed to doing evil. Can an Ethiopian change the color of his skin? Can a leopard remove its spots?
- Psalms 68:31They come with red cloth from Egypt, Ethiopia voluntarily offers tribute to God.
- Matthew 8:11I tell you, many will come from the east and west to share the banquet with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,
- Matthew 20:16So the last will be first, and the first last.”
- Luke 10:30Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him up, and went off, leaving him half dead.
- Luke 13:29Then people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and take their places at the banquet table in the kingdom of God.
- Acts 8:27So he got up and went. There he met an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship,
- Jeremiah 29:2He sent it after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the palace officials, the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had been exiled from Jerusalem.
- Jeremiah 34:19I will punish the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the court officials, the priests, and all the other people of the land who passed between the pieces of the calf.
- 2 Kings 24:15He deported Jehoiachin from Jerusalem to Babylon, along with the king’s mother and wives, his eunuchs, and the high-ranking officials of the land.
- Jeremiah 37:13But he only got as far as the Benjamin Gate. There an officer in charge of the guards named Irijah, who was the son of Shelemiah and the grandson of Hananiah, stopped him. He seized Jeremiah and said, “You are deserting to the Babylonians!”
- Deuteronomy 21:19his father and mother must seize him and bring him to the elders at the gate of his city.
- Job 29:7When I went out to the city gate and secured my seat in the public square,
- Amos 5:10The Israelites hate anyone who arbitrates at the city gate; they despise anyone who speaks honestly.
Commentaries on Jeremiah 38:7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7Ebed-melech - The servant of the king one of the eunuchs who belonged to the palace. Perhaps it should be read, "Now, a servant of the king, a Cushite, one of the eunuchs," etc. The king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin - To give audience, and to administer justice. We have often seen that the gates of cities were the places of public judicature.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7Ebed-melech - i. e., the king‘s slave. By “Ethiopian” or Cushite is meant the Cushite of Africa, or negro. It seems (compare 2 Kings 23:11) as if such eunuchs (or, chamberlains) took their names from the king, while the royal family and the princes generally bore names compounded with the appellations of the Deity.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-8The Ethiopian (compare Luke 17:18; Acts 28:28): Jeremiah’s rescuer was not from Judah. He was a foreigner who bravely opposed the other officials. He ran to the Benjamin Gate, where they first arrested Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:11–13), and entered the king’s presence without ceremony.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. Ebed-melech--The Hebrew designation given this Ethiopian, meaning "king's servant." Already, even at this early time, God wished to show what good reason there was for calling the Gentiles to salvation. An Ethiopian stranger saves the prophet whom his own countrymen, the Jews, tried to destroy. So the Gentiles believed in Christ whom the Jews crucified, and Ethiopians were among the earliest converts (Ac 2:10, 41; 8:27-39). Ebed-melech probably was…Read the comment
Topics related to Jeremiah 38:7
In the dictionaries
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
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