“Here he is,” replied King Zedekiah. “He is in your hands, since the king can do nothing to stop you.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Zedekiah the king said, “Behold, he is in your hand; for the king can’t do anything to oppose you.”
- KJV Then Zedekiah the king said, Behold, he is in your hand: for the king is not he that can do any thing against you.
- NKJV Then Zedekiah the king said, “Look, he is in your hand. For the king can do nothing against you.”
- NASB And King Zedekiah said, “Behold, he is in your hands; for the king can do nothing against you.”
- NLT King Zedekiah agreed. “All right,” he said. “Do as you like. I can’t stop you.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The weak king Zedekiah abandons Jeremiah to the officials, admitting he cannot oppose them.
Overview
Zedekiah surrenders the prophet to his enemies, confessing his own powerlessness. His cowardice and fear of men reveal a ruler ruled by others rather than by God. This tragic weakness illustrates the ruin of leadership that fears people more than it fears the Lord.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- John 19:12–16From then on, Pilate tried to release Him, but the Jews kept shouting, “If you release this man, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who declares himself a king is defying Caesar.”
- 2 Sam 3:39And I am weak this day, though anointed as king, and these men, the sons of Zeruiah, are too fierce for me. May the LORD repay the evildoer according to his evil!”
- 1 Sam 29:9Achish replied, “I know that you are as pleasing in my sight as an angel of God. But the commanders of the Philistines have said, ‘He must not go into battle with us.’
- 2 Sam 19:22And David replied, “Sons of Zeruiah, what have I to do with you, that you should be my adversaries today? Should any man be put to death in Israel today? Am I not indeed aware that today I am king over Israel?”
- Prov 29:25The fear of man is a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is set securely on high.
- 1 Sam 15:24Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned; I have transgressed the LORD’s commandment and your instructions, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Against the failure of false shepherds Jeremiah promises the Righteous Branch, 'The LORD our righteousness,' and the new covenant written on the heart and sealed in the blood of Christ.
How Jeremiah 38:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.