Bible Glide

Jeremiah 39

Jeremiah 39 Summary, Context, and Full Chapter

Jeremiah 39 records the collapse of Jerusalem under Babylonian attack and the fate of King Zedekiah. It also shows a striking contrast: while the city falls, Jeremiah is spared, and God gives Ebed-melech a personal promise of rescue for trusting Him.

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What happens in Jeremiah 39?

Babylon's siege ends with Jerusalem breached and occupied. Zedekiah tries to flee, but he is caught near Jericho and taken to Riblah, where his sons and Judah's leaders are killed, then he is blinded and chained for exile. Babylon burns the royal and common houses, tears down the walls, and carries most of the people away, leaving only some of the poor with land. In the middle of this ruin, Nebuchadnezzar orders Jeremiah to be treated well and returned to his people. The chapter ends with God's word to Ebed-melech, promising deliverance because he trusted in the LORD.

This chapter follows Jeremiah's warnings and the long pressure of Babylon's siege. It marks the fulfillment of the judgment Jeremiah had announced against Judah and Jerusalem. It also begins to show the shift from the end of the city to the story of the remnant and the people who remain in the land.

Themes to notice

  • Judgment FulfilledJerusalem falls because the warnings given through Jeremiah come to pass.
  • Human CollapseZedekiah's flight, capture, and blindness show the cost of rebellion and fear.
  • God's Care for the FaithfulJeremiah and Ebed-melech are both singled out for protection because of the LORD's purpose.

Questions for Jeremiah 39

  • What does this chapter show about the outcome of ignoring God's warnings?
  • Why is Jeremiah treated differently from the rest of the city?
  • What does God's promise to Ebed-melech reveal about trust and deliverance?

Read the full text of Jeremiah 39 below, then open it in the reader to highlight, take notes, or ask follow-up Bible questions. No account is required to read.

Jeremiah 39

The Fall of Jerusalem

1In 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.

Jeremiah Delivered

11Now 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 Babylon14had 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.’”

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