Jeremiah 38
| Jeremiah 38 | |
|---|---|
 Book of Jeremiah in Hebrew Bible, MS. Sassoon 1053, images 283-315. | |
| Book | Book of Jeremiah |
| Bible part | Old Testament |
| Order in the Bible part | 24 |
| Category | Nevi'im |
Jeremiah 38 is the thirty-eighth chapter of the Book of Jeremiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. It is numbered as Jeremiah 45 in Septuagint. This book contains the prophecies spoken by the prophet Jeremiah, and is a part of the Books of the Prophets.[1] This chapter records the petition from the royal officials to punish Jeremiah, Jeremiah 38:1-6; the confinement and rescue of Jeremiah from the cistern, Jeremiah 38:7-13; the conversation of Jeremiah and Zedekiah, Jeremiah 37:14-26; the inquiry of Jeremiah by the officials, Jeremiah 38:27-28.[2] A part of a narrative section consisting of Jeremiah chapters 37-44.[3]
Text
- The original text is written in Hebrew.
- This chapter is divided into 28 verses.
Textual versions
Some most ancient manuscripts containing this chapter in Hebrew language:
- Masoretic Text
- Codex Cairensis (895 CE)
- Aleppo Codex (10th century)
- Leningrad Codex (1008-1009)
Ancient translations in Koine Greek:
- Septuagint (different verse numbering)
- Theodotion version
Structure
NKJV groups this chapter into:
- Jeremiah 38:1-13 = Jeremiah in the Dungeon
- Jeremiah 38:14-28 = Zedekiah’s Fears and Jeremiah’s Advice
Verse 1
- Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken to all the people, saying (NKJV)[4]
- "Jucal the son of Shelemiah": same as "Jehucal the son of Shelemiah" in Jeremiah 37:3.[5] During the excavations in the ruins of the City of David conducted by the Ir David Foundation in 2005 a bulla was discovered with the inscription "belonging to Jehucal son of Shelemiah (Shelemyahu) son of Shovi" which is thought to point to the person mentioned here.[6][7]
- "Gedaliah the son of Pashhur": A bulla seal bearing the same name in Paleo-Hebrew alphabet was discovered by Eilat Mazar of Hebrew University, Jerusalem, during an excavation in the ruins of the City of David conducted by the Ir David Foundation in 2008, in the same strata, just a few yards away, from the seal of Jehucal the son of Shelemiah.[8][9][10]
- "Pashhur the son of Malchiah": also named in Jeremiah 21:1.[11]
Verse 2
- “Thus says the Lord: ‘He who remains in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but he who goes over to the Chaldeans shall live; his life shall be as a prize to him, and he shall live.’” (NKJV)[12]
- Huey and others noted the close similarities of the wording in this verse with Jeremiah 21:9,[13] but concluded that the warning could have been repeated many times.[14]
Verse 4
- Therefore the princes said to the king, “Please, let this man be put to death, for thus he weakens the hands of the men of war who remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, by speaking such words to them. For this man does not seek the welfare of this people, but their harm.” (NKJV)[15]
- According to the New Oxford Annotated Bible, the phraseology in this verse is found to be similar to one in "a letter written 18 months earlier, found in the excavations at Lachish"[16] (Ostracon VI of Lachish letters).[17][18]
Verse numbering
The order of chapters and verses of the Book of Jeremiah in the English Bibles, Masoretic Text (Hebrew), and Vulgate (Latin), in some places differs from that in Septuagint (LXX, the Greek Bible used in the Eastern Orthodox Church and others) according to Rahlfs or Brenton. The following table is taken with minor adjustments from Brenton's Septuagint, page 971.[19]
The order of CATSS based on Alfred Rahlfs' Septuaginta (1935), differs in some details from Joseph Ziegler's critical edition (1957) in Göttingen LXX. Swete's Introduction mostly agrees with Rahlfs edition (=CATSS).[19]
| Hebrew, Vulgate, English | Rahlfs'LXX (CATSS) | Brenton's LXX |
|---|---|---|
| 38:1-28 | 45:1-28 | |
| 31:1-40 | 38:1-34,36,37,35,38-40 | 38:1-40 |
See also
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- Related Bible part: 2 Kings 24, Jeremiah 21, Jeremiah 36, Jeremiah 37, Jeremiah 39
Notes and references
- ↑ Theodore Hiebert, et al. 1996. The New Interpreter's Bible: Volume VI. Nashville: Abingdon.
- ↑ Huey 1993, p. 332-339.
- ↑ The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Augmented Third Edition, New Revised Standard Version, Indexed. Michael D. Coogan, Marc Brettler, Carol A. Newsom, Editors. Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 2007. pp. 1137 Hebrew Bible. ISBN 978-0195288810
- ↑ Jeremiah 38:1
- ↑ Notes [a] in New King James Version on Jeremiah 38:1.
- ↑ Rossner, Rena (January 26, 2006). "The once and future city". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved November 15, 2009.
- ↑ "Unique biblical discovery at City of David excavation site". Israel Ministry of Foreign affairs. 18 Aug 2008. Retrieved 2009-11-16.
- ↑ Proof of Jeremiah Unearthed in Jerusalem, by Hana Levi Julian, Arutz Sheva, March 08, 2008.
- ↑ “Strata: Seals of Jeremiah’s Captors Who Urged Imprisonment,” BAR, September/October 2015.
- ↑ Jewish Historical Connection to Jerusalem - State of Israel, Minister of Foreign Affair. Accessed 13 July 2017.
- ↑ Ryle 2009.
- ↑ Jeremiah 38:2
- ↑ Notes [b] in New King James Version on Jeremiah 38:2.
- ↑ Huey 1993, p. 333.
- ↑ Jeremiah 38:4
- ↑ The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Augmented Third Edition, New Revised Standard Version, Indexed. Michael D. Coogan, Marc Brettler, Carol A. Newsom, Editors. Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 2007. pp. 1138 Hebrew Bible. ISBN 978-0195288810
- ↑ ANET, 322
- ↑ Huey 1993, p. 334.
- 1 2 CCEL - Brenton Jeremiah Appendix.
Bibliography
- Ryle, Herbert Edward (2009). The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Paperback. BiblioBazaar. ISBN 9781117708690.
- Huey, F. B. (1993). The New American Commentary - Jeremiah, Lamentations: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture, NIV Text. B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 9780805401165.