Skip to reading
Atomic Bible
Jeremiah

Chapter 39

The Fall of Jerusalem and Jeremiah Delivered

Jeremiah 39 records the long-announced collapse of Jerusalem and the personal consequences that follow. The city is breached, Zedekiah is captured, sentenced, blinded, and taken to Babylon, the city is burned, and the people are either exiled or left impoverished in the land; at the same time Jeremiah is preserved by Babylonian command, and Ebed-melech receives assurance that his trust in the LORD will spare him when judgment falls.

This chapter is the historical vindication of Jeremiah's entire warning ministry. What had been prophecy becomes event, showing that resistance to the word only hastened the very outcome it denied, while the preservation of Jeremiah and Ebed-melech shows that even in the midst of national collapse the LORD still distinguishes and delivers those who trust Him.

2 sections·511 words·~2 min read

Begin reading Zoom into first section
Reader

Jeremiah 39

A continuous BSB reading flow. Turn on the guide when you want authored orientation; leave it off when you simply want the text.

vv. 1-10

The Fall of Jerusalem

Open section

I1n the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon marched against Jerusalem with his entire army and laid siege to the city. 2And on the ninth day of the fourth month of Zedekiah’s eleventh year, the city was breached. 3Then all the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.

4When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled. They left the city at night by way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls, and they went out along the route to the Arabah. 5But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. They seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment on him. 6There at Riblah the king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and he also killed all the nobles of Judah. 7Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him with bronze chains to take him to Babylon. 8The Chaldeans set fire to the palace of the king and to the houses of the people, and they broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 9Then Nebuzaradan captain of the guard carried away to Babylon the remnant of the people who had remained in the city, along with the deserters who had defected to him. 10But Nebuzaradan left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who had no property, and at that time he gave them vineyards and fields.

vv. 11-18

Jeremiah Delivered

Open section

N11ow Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had given orders about Jeremiah through Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, saying, 12“Take him, look after him, and do not let any harm come to him; do for him whatever he says.” 13So Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, Nebushazban the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the captains of the king of Babylon 14had Jeremiah brought from the courtyard of the guard, and they turned him over to Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to take him home. So Jeremiah remained among his own people.

15And while Jeremiah had been confined in the courtyard of the guard, the word of the LORD had come to him: 16“Go and tell Ebed-melech the Cushite that this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘I am about to fulfill My words against this city for harm and not for good, and on that day they will be fulfilled before your eyes. 17But I will deliver you on that day, declares the LORD, and you will not be delivered into the hands of the men whom you fear. 18For I will surely rescue you so that you do not fall by the sword. Because you have trusted in Me, you will escape with your life like a spoil of war, declares the LORD.’”

Section map

Open the closer view when you want it.

Each section keeps the passage focused, adds summaries and cross references, and gives verse-level links.

  1. 01vv. 1-10The Fall of JerusalemJerusalem falls to Babylon after the siege reaches its end, and the Babylonian commanders take their place in the conquered city. Zedekiah and his soldiers flee but are captured; he is judged before Nebuchadnezzar, sees his sons killed, is blinded, and is taken in chains to Babylon, while the city is burned, the walls broken, and the people either deported or left as the poorest remnant in the land.
  2. 02vv. 11-18Jeremiah DeliveredNebuchadnezzar had already given orders through Nebuzaradan that Jeremiah be treated well and entrusted to Gedaliah so that he could live safely among the people. Before Jerusalem's fall, the LORD had also spoken to Jeremiah concerning Ebed-melech the Cushite, promising that because he trusted in the LORD he would be delivered and not fall by the sword when the city was judged.
Previous Chapter 38All 52 chapters in JeremiahNextChapter 40