Jeremiah 38:17

Jeremiah 38:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon’s princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house:
• New International Version (NIV)Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Lord God Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, your life will be spared and this city will not be burned down; you and your family will live.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If you will surrender to the officials of the king of Babylon, then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: ‘If you surely surrender to the king of Babylon’s princes, then your soul shall live; this city shall not be burned with fire, and you and your house shall live.

Context of Jeremiah 38:17

15Jeremiah said, “If I tell you the truth, you will kill me. And if I give you advice, you won’t listen to me anyway.” 16So King Zedekiah secretly promised him, “As surely as the Lord our Creator lives, I will not kill you or hand you over to the men who want you dead.” Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you surrender to the Babylonian officers, you and your family will live, and the city will not be burned down. 18But if you refuse to surrender, you will not escape! This city will be handed over to the Babylonians, and they will burn it to the ground.’” 19“But I am afraid to surrender,” the king said, “for the Babylonians may hand me over to the Judeans who have defected to them. And who knows what they will do to me!”

Jeremiah 38:17 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר יִרְמְיָ֣הוּ אֶל־צִדְקִיָּ֡הוּ כֹּֽה־אָמַ֣ר יְהוָה֩ אֱלֹהֵ֨י צְבָא֜וֹת אֱלֹהֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל אִם־יָצֹ֨א תֵצֵ֜א אֶל־שָׂרֵ֤י מֶֽלֶךְ־בָּבֶל֙ וְחָיְתָ֣ה נַפְשֶׁ֔ךָ וְהָעִ֣יר הַזֹּ֔את לֹ֥א תִשָּׂרֵ֖ף בָּאֵ֑שׁ וְחָיִ֖תָה אַתָּ֥ה וּבֵיתֶֽךָ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Then saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Jeremiahיִרְמְיָ֫הוּyirmeyâh yirmeyâhû · JeremiahH3414
• unto Zedekiahצִדְקִיָּ֫הוּtsidqîyâh tsidqîyâhû · ZedekiahH6667
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• the Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• of hostsצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · HostsH6635
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
• If thou wilt assuredlyיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: surrenderH3318
• unto the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• of Babylon’sבָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶלbâbel · BabylonH894
• princesשַׂרώar · rulerH8269
• then thy soulנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: lifeH5315
• shall liveחָיָהchâyâh · to liveH2421
• and this cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• shall not be burnedשָׂרַףώâraph · to burnH8313
• with fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
• and thine houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004

Cross-references for Jeremiah 38:17

• Psalms 80:7Turn us again to yourself, O God of Heaven’s Armies. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.
• Amos 5:27So I will send you into exile, to a land east of Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of Heaven’s Armies.
• 1 Chronicles 17:24And may your name be established and honored forever so that everyone will say, ‘The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, is Israel’s God!’ And may the house of your servant David continue before you forever.
• Ezra 9:4Then all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel came and sat with me because of this outrage committed by the returned exiles. And I sat there utterly appalled until the time of the evening sacrifice.
• Jeremiah 38:2“This is what the Lord says: ‘Everyone who stays in Jerusalem will die from war, famine, or disease, but those who surrender to the Babylonians will live. Their reward will be life. They will live!’
• Jeremiah 7:6only if you stop exploiting foreigners, orphans, and widows; only if you stop your murdering; and only if you stop harming yourselves by worshiping idols.
• Jeremiah 21:8“Tell all the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: Take your choice of life or death!
• Jeremiah 27:12Then I repeated this same message to King Zedekiah of Judah. “If you want to live, submit to the yoke of the king of Babylon and his people.
• Jeremiah 39:3All the officers of the Babylonian army came in and sat in triumph at the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, and Nebo-sarsekim, a chief officer, and Nergal-sharezer, the king’s adviser, and all the other officers of the king of Babylon.
• Job 23:13But once he has made his decision, who can change his mind? Whatever he wants to do, he does.

Commentaries on Jeremiah 38:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Wilt assuredly go - On the king's obedience to the advice of the prophet the safety of the city depended. Unto the king of Babylon's princes - The generals of the army then returning to the siege from the defeat of the Egyptians; for Nebuchadnezzar himself was then at Riblah, in Syria, Jeremiah 39:5, Jeremiah 39:6.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. 17-18Jeremiah explained the Lord's command. Zedekiah could save the city by surrendering, or he could see it destroyed by the invaders.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. princes--(Jr 39:3). He does not say "to the king himself," for he was at Riblah, in Hamath (Jr 39:5; 2Ki 25:6). "If thou go forth" (namely, to surrender; 2Ki 24:12; Is 36:16), God foreknows future conditional contingencies, and ordains not only the end, but also the means to the end.Read the comment

Topics related to Jeremiah 38:17

• Babylon
• Prisoners
• Zedekiah

In the dictionaries

• God
• Israel
• Jeremiah
• Zedekiah
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Foreknowledge of God
• Jeremiah (2)
• Zedekiah (2)

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