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Jeremias 37

BLIVRE · Chapter 37/52

1E o rei Zedequias, filho de Josias, reinou em lugar de Conias filho de Jeoaquim, ao qual Nabucodonosor, rei da Babilônia, tinha constituído por rei na terra de Judá.

2Porém nem ele, nem seus servos, nem o povo da terra, deram ouvidos às palavras do SENHOR, que falou por meio do profeta Jeremias.

3Porém o rei Zedequias mandou a Jucal filho de Selemias, e a Sofonias filho de Maaseias sacerdote, para que dissessem ao profeta Jeremias: Roga agora por nós ao SENHOR nosso Deus.

4E Jeremias [tinha liberdade de] entrar e sair entre o povo, pois não o tinham posto na casa do cárcere.

5E o exército de Faraó havia saído do Egito. E os caldeus que tinham cercado a Jerusalém, ao ouvirem esta notícia, foram embora de Jerusalém.

6Então veio palavra do SENHOR a Jeremias, o profeta, dizendo:

7Assim diz o SENHOR Deus de Israel: Assim direis ao rei de Judá, que vos enviou a mim para me perguntar: Eis que o exército de Faraó que saiu para vosso socorro voltará a sua terra, ao Egito.

8E os caldeus voltarão, e lutarão contra esta cidade; e a tomarão, e a queimarão a fogo.

9Assim diz o SENHOR: Não enganeis vossas almas, dizendo: Sem dúvida os caldeus irão embora de nós; pois não irão.

10Porque mesmo se ferísseis todo o exército dos caldeus que lutam contra vós, e restassem deles [apenas] homens feridos, ainda assim cada um se levantaria em sua tenda, e queimaria esta cidade a fogo.

11E aconteceu que, quando o exército dos caldeus havia saído de Jerusalém por causa do exército de Faraó,

12Jeremias saiu de Jerusalém para ir à terra de Benjamim, para ali receber sua parte no meio do povo.

13Porém quando ele chegou à porta de Benjamim, estava ali um capitão dos da guarda, cujo nome era Jerias, filho de Selemias, filho de Hananias; o qual prendeu ao profeta Jeremias, dizendo: Estás te rendendo aos caldeus.

14E disse Jeremias diz: Não é verdade; eu não estou me rendendo aos caldeus. Porém ele não lhe deu ouvidos; em vez disso, Jerias prendeu a Jeremias, e o levou aos príncipes.

15E os príncipes se iraram muito contra Jeremias, e o feriram; e o puseram na prisão, na casa do escriba Jônatas, pois a tinham tornado em cárcere.

16Jeremias entrou na casa da masmorra, e nas celas; e havendo Jeremias estado ali por muitos dias,

17O rei Zedequias enviou, e mandou trazê-lo; e o rei lhe perguntou em sua casa em segredo, e disse: Há [alguma] palavra do SENHOR? E Jeremias disse: Há. E ele disse: Na mão do rei da Babilônia serás entregue.

18Disse mais Jeremias ao rei Zedequias: Em que pequei contra ti, contra teus servos, e contra este povo, para que me pusésseis no cárcere?

19E onde estão vossos profetas que vos profetizavam, dizendo: Não virá o rei da Babilônia contra vós, nem contra esta terra?

20Agora pois, ouve, por favor, ó rei, meu senhor: chegue, por favor, minha súplica diante de ti, e não me deixes voltar à casa do escriba Jônatas, para que eu não morra ali.

21Então o rei Zedequias mandou que pusessem a Jeremias no pátio da guarda, e que lhe dessem uma porção de pão por dia, da rua dos padeiros, até todo o pão da cidade ter se acabado. Assim Jeremias ficou no pátio da guarda.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

During a brief respite in the Babylonian siege (caused by the advancing Egyptian army), Jeremiah tries to leave Jerusalem and is arrested on a false charge of desertion, then thrown into a dungeon.

Explanation

The temporary withdrawal of the Babylonian army, prompted by the approach of Egyptian troops, created a false sense of relief in Jerusalem — but Jeremiah warned plainly that the Babylonians would return and finish the destruction, refusing to feed false hopes. His attempt to travel to attend to personal business in Anathoth was misread as desertion to the enemy, showing how his reputation for preaching surrender already made him an automatic suspect in the eyes of the authorities. Even while unjustly imprisoned, he continued to be consulted in secret by King Zedekiah, who seemed torn between respecting the prophetic word and fearing the political consequences of following it.

Fun facts

  • The pharaoh mentioned as advancing against the Babylonians was probably Hophra (Apries), who reigned over Egypt during this period and is mentioned again in chapter 44.
  • The 'house of Jonathan the scribe,' used as a prison, was originally a private residence converted for that purpose — a common practice whenever there were not enough formal facilities available.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Jeremias 37:1Marks the change of king: Zedekiah (uncle of Jehoiachin, also called Jeconiah or Coniah, the king exiled in 597 BC) was placed on the throne by Nebuchadnezzar himself, as a vassal ruler -- he did not come to power through normal succession.
  2. Jeremias 37:2Sums up the pattern of Zedekiah’s entire reign: neither he, nor the court, nor the people paid any attention to Jeremiah -- the same rejection that had already come from earlier kings.
  3. Jeremias 37:3Even without taking the message seriously, Zedekiah sends word asking Jeremiah to pray for him and for the people -- a contradictory gesture from someone who rejects the prophet but still hopes for his spiritual help.
  4. Jeremias 37:4An important detail: at this point Jeremiah still had freedom to come and go among the people; he had not yet been arrested -- a situation that changes right after this.
  5. Jeremias 37:5A decisive military development: the Egyptian army, under Pharaoh Hophra, advanced to relieve Jerusalem, forcing the Babylonians to lift the siege temporarily -- a break that many mistook for final deliverance.
  6. Jeremias 37:6A transition formula: God’s answer arrives at the very moment of hope created by the Babylonian withdrawal.
  7. Jeremias 37:7Jeremiah is told to deny the court’s hope outright: the Egyptian army will go back to Egypt without really helping -- the relief from the siege will not last.
  8. Jeremias 37:8Confirms that the Babylonians will return, resume the siege, and this time capture and burn the city -- the military pause was only that, a pause.
  9. Jeremias 37:9A direct warning against self-deception: believing the Chaldeans had given up for good was a fatal mistake, because they were not really going away.
  10. Jeremias 37:10An exaggerated image to drive home the certainty of the fall: even if only wounded soldiers were left in the Babylonian camp, they would still rise up to burn Jerusalem -- the outcome is already decided.
  11. Jeremias 37:11When the Egyptian army forces the Babylonians to withdraw temporarily from the siege, Jeremiah tries to go to Anathoth, most likely to settle personal business, such as registering the field from chapter 32, but he is mistaken for a deserter trying to flee to the enemy and is arrested.
  12. Jeremias 37:12Taking advantage of the temporary lifting of the siege, Jeremiah tries to leave the city to go to Anathoth, his hometown, probably to attend to the field he had bought in chapter 32.
  13. Jeremias 37:13At the city gate, a captain named Irijah recognizes Jeremiah and accuses him of desertion, thinking he was trying to flee and surrender to the Babylonians.
  14. Jeremias 37:14Jeremiah denies the accusation, but no one listens -- he is arrested on the spot and taken by force to the officials of the court.
  15. Jeremias 37:15The officials react in anger, beat Jeremiah, and throw him into a makeshift prison in the house of a scribe named Jonathan -- harsh treatment for a man who was only trying to leave the city.
  16. Jeremias 37:16Jeremiah is locked in underground cells in that house for a long stretch of time, a condition far worse than the relative freedom he had before.
  17. Jeremias 37:17Zedekiah secretly sends for him for a private conversation, asking whether there was any word from God -- and receives the same answer as always: he will be handed over to the king of Babylon.
  18. Jeremias 37:18Jeremiah takes the moment to protest his own unjust treatment: he asks what crime he committed to deserve prison, since he was only announcing what God had commanded.
  19. Jeremias 37:19He counterattacks by asking about the false prophets who guaranteed that Babylon would never attack -- demanding an accounting that no one was making them give.
  20. Jeremias 37:20He asks the king a personal favor: not to be sent back to the prison in Jonathan’s house, fearing he would die there in its miserable conditions.
  21. Jeremias 37:21Receiving one loaf of bread a day from the bakers’ street, for as long as the city’s supply lasted, shows the severe rationing already under way during the siege. And the note that this ration lasted only until the city’s bread ran out foreshadows the total famine that comes in the following chapters.

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