When Zedekiah was king over the Lord’s people in Judah, both he and the people didn’t listen to the Lord God.

 

And when the king from Babylon came to hurt the city and take the people and their stuff away, king Zedekiah sent to Egypt to get help

 

 

 

instead of just asking the Lord God.

So the Lord God sent Jeremiah with words for the king. He said, Don’t be tricked by the bad ones. That army you sent to help you will turn around and go back home and not help you.

 

After Jeremiah told the king the words he tried to leave the city but soldiers stopped him and put him in jail.

 

The princes were mad at Jeremiah because they didn’t want to hear the words from the Lord so they hit him a lot and hurt him.

 

Then the king sent in secret for Jeremiah and took him to his house and asked, Has God said anything to you?

 

 

Jeremiah told him, Yes! He says that you and this city are given to the king of Babylon.

 

 

Then Jeremiah asked, What did I do that you put me in jail? Didn’t the stuff I told you so far come true?

 

 

 

Please don’t let them take me back there or I will die in that place.

 

So the king sent Jeremiah to a jail in the courtyard and had food sent to him everyday until there was no food left in the city.

 

Then the princes wanted the king to kill Jeremiah because of the words that he told them from the Lord

 

 

saying the ones who go out to the enemy army will be saved and the ones who stay in the city will die.

 

 

He is making the people weak so they won’t fight the bad army.

 

So the king gave Jeremiah to the men and they put him in a pit in a dungeon full of muck and he sunk down in the muck.

But a man from Ethiopia, named Ebedmelech, went and told the king what the men did, so the king sent Ebedmelech to take a troop of 30 men and go rescue Jeremiah.

 

 

Then the king sent for Jeremiah secretly to ask him again about the words from the Lord.

 

 

 

Jeremiah told him, If you tell you, you will just kill me.

 

 

The king promised, I won’t, I promise. And I won’t let the princes do anything to you anymore.

So Jeremiah told king Zedekiah the words from the Lord, the same words as before, This city will be given to the king of Babylon and he will burn it with fire.

 

If you go out to the king of Babylon, you will live and if you stay here and fight against them, you will die. You can’t escape what I have said.

The king told Jeremiah, But I’m scared that our men who have already gone over to be with the king of Babylon will hurt me and kill me.

 

 

Jeremiah told him from the Lord, No they won’t hurt you. Please, I beg you, go out to him.

 

Then the king said, Don’t let the princes know that I called for you to ask you these things. Just tell them you were asking that I not kill you.

So that’s what Jeremiah said when the princes asked him. And Jeremiah stayed in that jail in the courtyard until the enemy broke through the walls and captured the city.