Jeremiah 38:20

38:20 Then Jeremiah answered, “You will not be handed over to them. Please obey the Lord by doing what I have been telling you. ¹  Then all will go well with you and your life will be spared. ² 

Jeremiah 40:9

40:9 Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. ³  “Do not be afraid to submit to the Babylonians. ⁴  Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you.

[38:20]  ¹ tn Heb “Please listen to the voice of the Lord with regard to what I have been telling you.” For the idiom “listen to the voice” = “obey” see BDB 1034 s.v. שָׁמַע 1.m. Obedience here is expressed by following the advice in the qualifying clause, i.e., what I have been telling you.

[38:20]  ² tn Heb “your life [or you yourself] will live.” Compare v. 17 and the translator’s note there for the idiom.

[40:9]  ³ tn The words “so as to give them some assurance of safety” are not in the text but are generally understood by all commentators. This would be a case of substitution of cause for effect, the oath, put for the effect, the assurance of safety (NJPS translates directly “reassured them”).

[40:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.