Jeremiah 39#Verse 3

The original text was written in Hebrew. This chapter is divided into 18 verses.

The order of chapters and verses of the Book of Jeremiah in the English Bibles, Masoretic Text (Hebrew), and Vulgate (Latin), in some places differs from that in the Septuagint (LXX, the Greek Bible used in the Eastern Orthodox Church and others) according to Rahlfs or Brenton. The following table is taken with minor adjustments from Brenton's Septuagint, page 971.[http://www.ccel.org/bible/brenton/Jeremiah/appendix.html CCEL - Brenton Jeremiah Appendix].

The order of Computer Assisted Tools for Septuagint/Scriptural Study (CATSS) based on Alfred Rahlfs' Septuaginta (1935), differs in some details from Joseph Ziegler's critical edition (1957) in Göttingen LXX. Swete's Introduction mostly agrees with Rahlfs' edition (=CATSS).

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter in Hebrew are of the Masoretic Text tradition, which includes the Codex Cairensis (895), the Petersburg Codex of the Prophets (916), Aleppo Codex (10th century), Codex Leningradensis (1008).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=35-37}}

There is also a translation into Koine Greek known as the Septuagint (with a different chapter and verse numbering), made in the last few centuries BCE. Extant ancient manuscripts of the Septuagint version include Codex Vaticanus (B; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^B; 4th century), Codex Sinaiticus (S; BHK: $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^S; 4th century), Codex Alexandrinus (A; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^A; 5th century) and Codex Marchalianus (Q; $\backslash mathfrak\{G\}$^Q; 6th century).{{sfn|Würthwein|1995|pp=73-74}} The Septuagint version does not contain the part what is generally known to be verses 4–13 in Christian Bibles.

The parashah sections listed here are based on the Aleppo Codex.As reflected in the [http://mechon-mamre.org/e/et/et0.htm Jewish Publication Society's 1917 edition of the Hebrew Bible in English]. Jeremiah 39 is a part of the "Fifteenth prophecy (Jeremiah 36-39)" in the section of Prophecies interwoven with narratives about the prophet's life (Jeremiah 26-45). {P}: open parashah; {S}: closed parashah.

: [{S} 38:28b] 39:1-14 והיה כאשר {S} 39:15-18 {P}

• Jeremiah 39:1–10: {{bibleverse|2 Kings|25:1–12|9}}; {{bibleverse|Jeremiah|52:4–16|9}}{{sfn|Huey|1993|p=343}}[https://biblehub.com/bsb/jeremiah/39.htm Jeremiah 39], Berean Study Bible

Chronologically and thematically this chapter is a continuation of the previous one, describing Babylon's invasion of Jerusalem and its consequences, particularly for Zedekiah ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:1–10|9|verses 1–10}}) and Jeremiah ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:11–18|9|verses 11–18}}).{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=519}} The narrative places the invasion as background to larger issues (cf. {{bibleverse|Jeremiah|52:4–16|9}} and {{bibleverse|2 Kings|25:1–12|9}}), as the focus is more on the Zedekiah's cowardly behavior, escape, and capture (verses 4–5) under the fulfillment of the prophecy, with the ending of the king being blinded, physically as already spiritually.{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=519}} On the other hand, Jeremiah simultaneously obtains release and protection from Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, at the command of Nebuchadrezzar ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:11–13|9|verses 11–13}}) and then under the protection of Gedaliah, the governor appointed by Babylon, and son of Ahikam (cf. Jeremiah 26:24).{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|pp=519–520}} This signifies the fulfillment of another prophecy that by submitting to Babylon, people could save their lives as the prize of war and returned home ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:11–14|9|verses 11–14}}).{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=520}} The episode with Ebed-melech, the Ethiopian rescuer of Jeremiah ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:15–18|9|verses 15–18}}), further emphasizes the fulfillment of the divine message (Jeremiah 38:7-13) about his life as a prize of war because he trusted in YHWH ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:18|9|verse 18}}).{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=520}}

{{see also|Siege of Jerusalem (587 BC)}}

Verses 1–3 detail the events of the Babylonian invasion to Jerusalem from the ninth to the eleventh year of Zedekiah when finally the city was captured, occupied and destroyed by the Babylonian army. {{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:4-5|9|Verses 4–5}} focus on Zedekiah's failed effort to escape and the fulfillment of the prophecy that Zedekiah's offspring were killed in front of him before he himself was blinded and taken to captivity. The houses of Jerusalem were burned and people were exiled, except the poor ones who remained and given their land back by Nebuzaradan, the Babylonian captain of the guard ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:8-10|9|verses 8-10}}).{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=519}}

: In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem, and besieged it.{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:1|NKJV}} NKJV

Cross reference: {{bibleverse|2 Kings|25:1|KJV}}; {{bibleverse|Jeremiah|52:1-4|KJV}}; {{bibleverse|Ezekiel|24:1-2|KJV}}

"The ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month" refers to January 587 BCE.{{sfn|Coogan|2007|p=1140 Hebrew Bible}} {{bibleverse|2 Kings|25:1|KJV}}, Jeremiah 52:4 and {{bibleverse|Ezekiel|24:1|KJV}} provide the date as "the tenth day of the month".{{sfn|Huey|1993|p=341}}

: And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, the city was broken up.{{bibleverse|Jeremiah|39:2|KJV}} KJV

Cross reference: {{bibleverse|2 Kings|25:2-4|KJV}}; {{bibleverse|Jeremiah|52:5-7|KJV}}

• "The city was broken up" (KJV); "the city was penetrated" (NKJV): An alternative translation would be "... the city wall was breached".Footnote on Jeremiah 39:2 in the NKJV "The eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month" refers to July 586 BCE: the wall of Jerusalem "was broken through" after 18 months of siege,{{sfn|Coogan|2007|p=1140 Hebrew Bible}}{{sfn|Huey|1993|p=341}} and the city fell after completely devoid of food. Cannibalism became prevalent ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|52:4-6|KJV}}; {{bibleverse|Lamentations|4:10|KJV}}).{{sfn|Huey|1993|p=341}}

:All the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat at the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer, Samgar, Nebusarsechim the Rab-saris, Nergal-sharezer the Rab-mag, and all the rest of the officials of Babylon’s king.{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:3|HCSB}} HCSB

The Jerusalem Bible merges the last part of Jeremiah 38:28 with verse 3:

Now when Jerusalem was captured … all the officers of the King of Babylon marched in...Jerusalem Bible (1966), Jeremiah 38:28 and 39:3

The medieval Jewish commentator Rashi considered the statement "All the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat at the Middle Gate" as the fulfillment of the prophecy, "They shall come and each one set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem" in Jeremiah 1:15.Rashi's Commentary on Jeremiah 39:3

Various language versions have rendered the list of names differently:[https://biblehub.com/multi/jeremiah/39-3.htm Jeremiah 39:3] - multilingual at Biblehub.com. Accessed May 1, 2019.

• "Nebusarsechim Rab-saris" (Hebrew: נבו שר־סכים רב־סריס): David Vanderhooft reported, "A certain Nabû-šarrūssu-ukīn held the office of rēš šarri under Amel-Marduk in 561 B.C.E."Vanderhooft, David, The Neo-Babylonian Empire and Babylon in the Latter Prophets. HSS 59; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1999. p 151. A tablet was unearthed in the ancient city of Sippar in the 1870s and acquired by the British Museum in 1920, but only being discovered by Michael Jursa of University of Vienna in 2000s, to contain both the name and the title Nabu-sharrussu-ukin rab ša-rēši closely matched of this person.Translation (by Michael Jursa?) found in Reynolds, Nigel. (2007). "Tiny Tablet provides proof for Old Testament." Telegraph.co.uk. [https://web.archive.org/web/20070914043526/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2007%2F07%2F11%2Fntablet111.xml Archived]. As the tablet is dated just eight years before the events described here, Jursa wrote that the rarity of the Babylonian name, the high rank of the rab ša-rēši and the close proximity in time make it almost certain that the person mentioned on the tablet is identical with the biblical figure.Jursa, M., "Nabû-šarrūssu-ukīn, rab ša-rēši, und ,,Nebusarsekim“ (Jer 39:3)" Nouvelles Assyriologiques Brèves et Utilitaires 2008-1 pp. 9-10 ([http://sepoa.fr/?page_id=261 link])
• "Samgar" or "Simmagir"; "Rab-saris"; and "Rab-mag" are "titles of Babylonian officials" according to the New Oxford Annotated Bible.{{sfn|Coogan|2007|p=1140 Hebrew Bible}}

:So it was, when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, that they fled and went out of the city by night, by way of the king's garden, by the gate between the two walls. And he went out by way of the plain.{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:4|NKJV}} NKJV

• Cross references: 2 Kings 25:4; Jeremiah 52:7; Ezekiel 12:12
• "The king’s garden": mentioned in Nehemiah 3:15 in conjunction with the pool of Siloam and 'the stairs that go down from the City of David', which point to the southern part of the city near the Tyropoeon Valley. The location supports the reference to the "two walls," which were likely 'the walls on the eastern and western hills'.Note [a] on Jeremiah 39:4 in NET Bible
• "The plain": or "Arabah; the Jordan valley",Note [a] on Jeremiah 39:4 in NKJV which is the 'rift valley' (עֲרָבָה, ʿaravah) extending from Galilee along the Jordan River then descending to the Gulf of Aqaba. The king and his men might try to escape across the Jordan river to Moab or Ammon, because from {{bibleverse|Jeremiah|40:14|9}} and {{bibleverse-nb|Jeremiah|41:15|9}} it is known that the Ammonites were harboring fugitives from the Babylonians.Note [b] on Jeremiah 39:4 in NET Bible

:But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. And when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, at Riblah, in the land of Hamath; and he passed sentence on him.{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:5|ESV}} ESV

• Cross reference: Jeremiah 52:8
• "Plains": from the plural form of Hebrew word {{lang|he|עֲרָבָה}}, ʿaravah, "rift valley"; here refers to 'the sloping plains of the rift valley basin north of the Dead Sea' west of the Jordan River in the vicinity of the Jericho (cf. Numbers 21:1).Note [b] on Jeremiah 39:5 in NET Bible
• "Riblah: was a city on the Orontes River in Syria, strategically located at a crossing of the major roads between Egypt and Mesopotamia. About 22 years before (609 BCE), Pharaoh Necho had brought Jehoahaz there, putting him in chains (2 Kings 23:33) prior to taking him captive to Egypt. Now Nebuchadnezzar made it his base camp for his campaigns against the Palestinian states and his seat of judgment on prisoners brought to him there,Note [d] on Jeremiah 39:5 in NET Bible

:Moreover he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, and bound him with bronze fetters to carry him off to Babylon.{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:7|NKJV}} NKJV

Cross references: 2 Kings 25:7; Jeremiah 52:11

• Huey notes the fulfillment of two prophecies in this verse:{{sfn|Huey|1993|p=343}}
• # Zedekiah would see the king of Babylon and then be taken to Babylon (the prophecy recorded in Jeremiah 32:4-5; Jeremiah 34:3)
• # Zedekiah would die in Babylon without being able to see that country (the prophecy recorded in Ezekiel 12:13)

Jeremiah survived because of his trust to YHWH and together with other people who were left behind by the Babylonians, he could go to his own home ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|29:11–14|9|verses 11–14}}), under the protection of Gedaliah.{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|pp=519–520}} Ebed-melech, the Ethiopian who had rescued Jeremiah also survived ({{bibleverse|Jeremiah|29:15–18|9|verses 15–18}}), because he trusted in YHWH.{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=520}} The many topics of these narratives converge to a single persuasion effort that the exiles should submit to Babylon as the only way of life forward.{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|p=520}}

:So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent Nebushasban, Rabsaris, Nergal-Sharezer, Rabmag, and all the king of Babylon’s chief officers;{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:13|NKJV}} NKJV

"Rabsaris"; and "Rabmag" are "titles of Babylonian officials" according to the New Oxford Annotated Bible.{{sfn|Coogan|2007|p=1140 Hebrew Bible}}

:then they sent someone to take Jeremiah from the court of the prison, and committed him to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, that he should take him home. So he dwelt among the people.{{bibleref2|Jeremiah|39:14|NKJV}} NKJV

According to Jeremiah 40:1 the court of the prison was located in Ramah, from where Jeremiah was released into the protection of Gedaliah (cf. Jeremiah 26:24).{{sfn|O'Connor|2007|pp=519–520}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=22em|

• Babylon
• Chaldean
• Ebed-Melech
• Ethiopia
• Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Saphan
• Jericho
• Jerusalem
• Judah
• Nebuchadnezzar
• Nebusarsechim

• Nebuzaradan
• Nergal-Sharezer
• Rabmag
• Rabsaris
• Riblah
• Zedekiah}}
• Related Bible parts: 2 Kings 25, Jeremiah 21, Jeremiah 32, Jeremiah 34, Jeremiah 38, Jeremiah 40, Jeremiah 52, Lamentations 4, Ezekiel 12, Ezekiel 24

{{Reflist|30em}}

• {{cite book

|last= Coogan

|first = Michael David

|title = The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books: New Revised Standard Version, Issue 48

|editor-last1=Coogan

|editor-first1=Michael David

|editor-first2=Marc Zvi

|editor-last2= Brettler

|editor-first3=Carol Ann

|editor-last3= Newsom

|editor-first4= Pheme

|editor-last4= Perkins

|edition=Augmented 3rd

|publisher = Oxford University Press

|year =2007

|isbn = 9780195288810

|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=HmpMPgAACAAJ }}

• {{cite book | last = Huey | first = F. B. | title = The New American Commentary - Jeremiah, Lamentations: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture, NIV Text | publisher = B&H Publishing Group | year = 1993 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=HBguYZCdAM4C | isbn = 9780805401165}}
• {{cite book|last=O'Connor | first= Kathleen M. | chapter = 23. Jeremiah | title=The Oxford Bible Commentary | editor-first1=John| editor-last1=Barton | editor-first2=John| editor-last2= Muddiman | publisher = Oxford University Press |edition= first (paperback) | date = 2007 | pages = 487–533 | isbn = 978-0199277186 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZJdVkgEACAAJ| access-date=February 6, 2019}}
• {{cite book

| title = The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Paperback

| first = Herbert Edward

| last = Ryle

| publisher = BiblioBazaar

| year = 2009

| isbn = 9781117708690 }}

• {{cite book | last = Würthwein | first = Ernst | author-link = Ernst Würthwein | title = The Text of the Old Testament | publisher = Wm. B. Eerdmans |location = Grand Rapids, MI | year= 1995 | translator-first1 = Erroll F.| translator-last1 = Rhodes |isbn = 0-8028-0788-7 | url= https://books.google.com/books?id=FSNKSBObCYwC | access-date= January 26, 2019}}

• [http://www.mechon-mamre.org/p/pt/pt1139.htm Jeremiah 39 Hebrew with Parallel English]

• [http://www.latinvulgate.com/lv/verse.aspx?t=0&b=28&c=39 Jeremiah 39 English Translation with Parallel Latin Vulgate]

{{Book of Jeremiah}}

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