So they took Jeremiah and dropped him into the cistern of Malchiah, the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guard. They lowered Jeremiah with ropes into the cistern, which had no water but only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud.
Parallel translations
- WEB Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchijah the king’s son, that was in the court of the guard. They let down Jeremiah with cords. In the dungeon there was no water, but mire; and Jeremiah sank in the mire.
- KJV Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.
- NKJV So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the king’s son, which was in the court of the prison, and they let Jeremiah down with ropes. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire. So Jeremiah sank in the mire.
- NASB So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malchijah the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guardhouse; and they let Jeremiah down with ropes. Now in the cistern there was no water but only mud, and Jeremiah sank into the mud.
- NLT So the officials took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. It belonged to Malkijah, a member of the royal family. There was no water in the cistern, but there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it.
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 officials lower Jeremiah into a muddy cistern, where he sinks into the mire to die.
Overview
Jeremiah is cast into a waterless but miry pit, left to perish slowly. His descent into the mire pictures the depths of suffering endured by God's faithful servant. The righteous one sinking in the pit yet awaiting deliverance foreshadows the sufferings and ultimate vindication seen fully in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Jer 37:21So King Zedekiah gave orders for Jeremiah to be placed in the courtyard of the guard and given a loaf of bread daily from the street of the bakers, until all the bread in the city was gone. So Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard.
- Jer 37:16So Jeremiah went into a cell in the dungeon and remained there a long time.
- Ps 69:14–15Rescue me from the mire and do not let me sink; deliver me from my foes and out of the deep waters.
- Ps 69:2I have sunk into the miry depths, where there is no footing; I have drifted into deep waters, where the flood engulfs me.
- Jer 38:22All the women who remain in the palace of the king of Judah will be brought out to the officials of the king of Babylon, and those women will say: ‘They misled you and overcame you—those trusted friends of yours. Your feet sank into the mire, and they deserted you.’
- Ps 40:2He lifted me up from the pit of despair, out of the miry clay; He set my feet upon a rock, and made my footsteps firm.
- Ps 109:5They repay me evil for good, and hatred for my love.
- Zech 9:11As for you, because of the blood of My covenant, I will release your prisoners from the waterless pit.
- Lam 3:52–55Without cause my enemies hunted me like a bird.
- Acts 16:24On receiving this order, he placed them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.
- Gen 37:24and they took him and threw him into the pit. Now the pit was empty, with no water in it.
- Luke 3:19–20But when he rebuked Herod the tetrarch regarding his brother’s wife Herodias and all the evils he had done,
- 2 Cor 4:8–9We are hard pressed on all sides, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;
- Heb 10:36You need to persevere, so that after you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.
- Jer 38:11–12Then Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the king’s palace, to a place below the storehouse. From there he took old rags and worn-out clothes and lowered them with ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern.
- Jer 36:26Instead, the king commanded Jerahmeel, a son of the king, as well as Seraiah son of Azriel and Shelemiah son of Abdeel, to seize Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet. But the LORD had hidden them.
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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 38:6 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
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