Jeremiah 38:13

38:13 So they pulled Jeremiah up from the cistern with ropes. Jeremiah, however, still remained confined ¹  to the courtyard of the guardhouse.

Jeremiah 38:28

38:28 So Jeremiah remained confined ²  in the courtyard of the guardhouse until the day Jerusalem ³  was captured.

The Fall of Jerusalem and Its Aftermath

The following events occurred when Jerusalem ⁴  was captured. ⁵ 

Jeremiah 39:14-15

39:14 sent and had Jeremiah brought from the courtyard of the guardhouse. They turned him over to Gedaliah, ⁶  the son of Ahikam and the grandson of Shaphan, to take him home with him. ⁷  But Jeremiah stayed among the people. ⁸ 

Ebed Melech Is Promised Deliverance because of His Faith

39:15 ⁹ Now the Lord had spoken to Jeremiah while he was still confined in the courtyard of the guardhouse, ¹⁰ 

Acts 12:5

12:5 So Peter was kept in prison, but those in the church were earnestly ¹¹  praying to God for him. ¹² 

Acts 24:27

24:27 After two years ¹³  had passed, Porcius Festus ¹⁴  succeeded Felix, ¹⁵  and because he wanted to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison. ¹⁶ 

Acts 28:16

28:16 When we entered Rome, Paul was allowed to live ¹⁷  by himself, with the soldier who was guarding him.

Acts 28:30

28:30 Paul ¹⁸  lived ¹⁹  there two whole years in his own rented quarters ²⁰  and welcomed ²¹  all who came to him,

Ephesians 4:1

Live in Unity

4:1 I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, ²²  urge you to live ²³  worthily of the calling with which you have been called, ²⁴ 

Ephesians 6:20

6:20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may be able to speak boldly as I ought to speak.

Ephesians 6:2

6:2 “Honor your father and mother,” ²⁵  which is the first commandment accompanied by a promise, namely,

Ephesians 1:8

1:8 that he lavished on us in all wisdom and insight.

Ephesians 1:2

1:2 Grace and peace to you ²⁶  from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Ephesians 2:9

2:9 it is not from ²⁷  works, so that no one can boast. ²⁸ 

[38:13]  ¹ tn Heb “Jeremiah remained/stayed in the courtyard of the guardhouse.” The translation is meant to better reflect the situation; i.e., Jeremiah was released from the cistern but still had to stay in the courtyard of the guardhouse.

[38:28]  ² tn Heb “And Jeremiah stayed/remained in the courtyard of the guardhouse…” The translation once again intends to reflect the situation. Jeremiah had a secret meeting with the king at the third entrance to the temple (v. 14). He was returned to the courtyard of the guardhouse (cf. v. 13) after the conversation with the king where the officials came to question him (v. 27). He was not sent back to the dungeon in Jonathan’s house as he feared, but was left confined in the courtyard of the guardhouse.

[38:28]  ³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[38:28]  ⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[38:28]  ⁵ tc The precise meaning of this line and its relation to the context are somewhat uncertain. This line is missing from the Greek and Syriac versions and from a few Hebrew mss. Some English versions and commentaries omit it as a double writing of the final words of the preceding line (see, e.g., REB; W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah [Hermeneia], 2:268). Others see it as misplaced from the beginning of 39:3 (see, e.g., NRSV, TEV, J. Bright, Jeremiah [AB], 245). The clause probably does belong syntactically with 39:3 (i.e., כַּאֲשֶׁר [ka’asher] introduces a temporal clause which is resumed by the vav consecutive on וַיָּבֹאוּ (vayyavo’u; see BDB 455 s.v. כַּאֲשֶׁר 3), but it should not be moved there because there is no textual evidence for doing so. The intervening verses are to be interpreted as parenthetical, giving the background for the events that follow (see, e.g., the translation in D. Barthélemy, ed., Preliminary and Interim Report on the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project, 4:280). The chapter is not so much concerned with describing how Jerusalem fell as it is with contrasting the fate of Zedekiah who disregarded the word of the Lord with the fate of Jeremiah and that of Jeremiah’s benefactor Ebed Melech. The best way to treat the line without actually moving it before 39:3a is to treat it as a heading as has been done here.

[39:14]  ⁶ sn Gedaliah. This is the first reference to this individual whom Nebuchadnezzar appointed governor over the people who were left to live in Judah (cf. 40:5; 2 Kgs 25:22). His father was the man who spoke up for Jeremiah when he was accused of being a false prophet by some of the priests and prophets (26:24). His grandfather was the royal secretary under Josiah who brought the discovery of the book of the law to Josiah’s attention, read it to him, and was involved in helping Josiah institute his reforms (2 Kgs 22:8-10).

[39:14]  ⁷ tn The meaning of the last phrase is uncertain. An alternate translation is “to take him home with him.” The text reads literally “to bring him into the house.” However, it is unclear whether “the house” refers to Jeremiah’s house or to Gedaliah’s. The fact that Nebuzaradan later offers Jeremiah the option of going back to Gedaliah (40:5) suggests that the house is here Gedaliah’s where Jeremiah would be looked out for in accord with Nebuchadnezzar’s command (v. 12).

[39:14]  ⁸ tn Many translate this last clause as a conclusion or summary remark, “So Jeremiah stayed…” However, it is better to translate it as an adversative because it probably refers to the fact that rather than staying with Gedaliah in the governor’s residence Jeremiah stayed among the people. That is how he wound up being led off as a prisoner to Ramah. See further the study note on 40:1. According to IBHS 550 §33.2.1d the vav (ו) consecutive can have either of these values (see examples 11 and 12 for the adversative or contrastive nuance).

[39:15]  ⁹ sn Jer 39:15-18. This incident is out of chronological order (see Jer 38:7-13). It is placed here either due to a desire not to interrupt the sequential ordering of events centering on Jeremiah’s imprisonment and his release (38:14–39:14) or to contrast God’s care and concern for the faithful (Ebed-Melech who, though a foreigner, trusted in God) with his harsh treatment of the faithless (Zedekiah who, though informed of God’s will, was too weak-willed in the face of opposition by his courtiers to carry it out).

[39:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “Now the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah while he…saying.” The form of this clause is disjunctive showing that it does not follow the preceding events in either chronological or logical sequence. For a discussion of the form and function of such disjunctive clauses see IBHS 650-52 §39.2.3. This example most closely fits the description and function of example 12, Ruth 4:18, 21-22 on p. 652.

[12:5]  ¹¹ tn Or “constantly.” This term also appears in Luke 22:14 and Acts 26:7.

[12:5]  ¹² tn Grk “but earnest prayer was being made by the church to God for him.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged to follow English style, and the somewhat awkward passive “prayer was being made” has been changed to the simpler active verb “were praying.” Luke portrays what follows as an answer to prayer.

[24:27]  ¹³ tn Grk “After a two-year period.”

[24:27]  ¹⁴ sn Porcius Festus was the procurator of Palestine who succeeded Felix; neither the beginning nor the end of his rule (at his death) can be determined with certainty, although he appears to have died in office after about two years. Nero recalled Felix in a.d. 57 or 58, and Festus was appointed to his vacant office in a.d. 57, 58, or 59. According to Josephus (Ant. 20.8.9-10 [20.182-188]; J. W. 2.14.1 [2.271-272]), his administration was better than that of his predecessor Felix or his successor Albinus, but Luke in Acts portrays him in a less favorable light: He was willing to sacrifice Paul to court Jewish favor by taking him to Jerusalem for trial (v. 9), regardless of Paul’s guilt or innocence. The one characteristic for which Festus was noted is that he dealt harshly with those who disturbed the peace.

[24:27]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “Felix received as successor Porcius Festus.”

[24:27]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “left Paul imprisoned.”

[28:16]  ¹⁷ tn Or “to stay.”

[28:30]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[28:30]  ¹⁹ tn Or “stayed.”

[28:30]  ²⁰ tn Or perhaps, “two whole years at his own expense.” BDAG 654 s.v. μίσθωμα states, “the customary act. mng. ‘contract price, rent’…is not found in our lit. (Ac) and the pass. what is rented, a rented house is a mng. not found outside it (even Ammonius Gramm. [100 ad] p. 93 Valck. knows nothing of it. Hence the transl. at his own expense [NRSV] merits attention) ἐν ἰδίῳ μισθώματι in his own rented lodgings Ac 28:30 (for the idea cp. Jos., Ant. 18, 235).”

[28:30]  ²¹ tn Or “and received.”

[4:1]  ²² tn Grk “prisoner in the Lord.”

[4:1]  ²³ tn Grk “walk.” The verb “walk” in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.

[4:1]  ²⁴ sn With which you have been called. The calling refers to the Holy Spirit’s prompting that caused them to believe. The author is thus urging his readers to live a life that conforms to their saved status before God.

[6:2]  ²⁵ sn A quotation from Exod 20:12 and Deut 5:16.

[1:2]  ²⁶ tn Grk “Grace to you and peace.”

[2:9]  ²⁷ tn Or “not as a result of.”

[2:9]  ²⁸ tn Grk “lest anyone should boast.”