Jeremiah 38:16
New International Version
But King Zedekiah swore this oath secretly to Jeremiah: “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us breath, I will neither kill you nor hand you over to those who want to kill you.”

New Living Translation
So King Zedekiah secretly promised him, “As surely as the LORD our Creator lives, I will not kill you or hand you over to the men who want you dead.”

English Standard Version
Then King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As the LORD lives, who made our souls, I will not put you to death or deliver you into the hand of these men who seek your life.”

Berean Standard Bible
But King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you, nor will I deliver you into the hands of these men who are seeking your life.”

King James Bible
So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.

New King James Version
So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, “As the LORD lives, who made our very souls, I will not put you to death, nor will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life.”

New American Standard Bible
But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in secret, saying, “As the LORD lives, who made this life for us, I certainly will not put you to death, nor will I hand you over to these men who are seeking your life.”

NASB 1995
But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in secret saying, “As the LORD lives, who made this life for us, surely I will not put you to death nor will I give you over to the hand of these men who are seeking your life.”

NASB 1977
But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in secret saying, “As the LORD lives, who made this life for us, surely I will not put you to death nor will I give you over to the hand of these men who are seeking your life.”

Legacy Standard Bible
But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in secret saying, “As Yahweh lives, who made this life for us, surely I will not put you to death, nor will I give you over to the hand of these men who are seeking your life.”

Amplified Bible
But King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As the LORD lives, who made our lives, be assured that I will not put you to death or put you into the hand of these men who are seeking your life.”

Christian Standard Bible
King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in private, “As the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you or hand you over to these men who intend to take your life.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah in private, “As the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you or hand you over to these men who want to take your life.”

American Standard Version
So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As Jehovah liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And King Tsedeqia swore to Jeremiah in the house secretly, and said: “Living is LORD JEHOVAH who made a soul in us, that I shall not kill you, and I shall not hand you over into the hand of those men who seek your life!”

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And the king swore to him, saying, As the Lord lives who gave us this soul, I will not slay thee, neither will I give thee into the hands of these men.

Contemporary English Version
He said, "I swear in the name of the living LORD our Creator that I won't have you killed. No one else can hear what we say, and I won't let anyone kill you."

Douay-Rheims Bible
Then king Sedecias swore to Jeremias, in private, saying: As the Lord liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, nor will I deliver thee into the hands of these men that seek thy life.

English Revised Version
So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So King Zedekiah secretly swore an oath to Jeremiah, "The LORD gave us life. As the LORD lives, I will not kill you or hand you over to these men who want to kill you."

Good News Translation
So King Zedekiah promised me in secret, "I swear by the living God, the God who gave us life, that I will not put you to death or hand you over to the men who want to kill you."

International Standard Version
Then King Zedekiah, in secret, swore an oath to Jeremiah: "As surely as the LORD lives, who gave us this life to live, I won't have you put to death, nor will I hand you over to these men who are seeking to kill you."

JPS Tanakh 1917
So Zedekiah the king swore secretly unto Jeremiah, saying: 'As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.'

Literal Standard Version
And King Zedekiah swears to Jeremiah in secret, saying, “YHWH lives, He who made this soul for us, I do not put you to death, nor give you into the hand of these men who are seeking your soul.”

Majority Standard Bible
But King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you, nor will I deliver you into the hands of these men who are seeking your life.”

New American Bible
But King Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah secretly: “As the LORD lives who gave us our lives, I will not kill you, nor will I hand you over to those men who seek your life.”

NET Bible
So King Zedekiah made a secret promise to Jeremiah and sealed it with an oath. He promised, "As surely as the LORD lives who has given us life and breath, I promise you this: I will not kill you or hand you over to those men who want to kill you."

New Revised Standard Version
So King Zedekiah swore an oath in secret to Jeremiah, “As the LORD lives, who gave us our lives, I will not put you to death or hand you over to these men who seek your life.”

New Heart English Bible
So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, "As the LORD lives, who made us this soul, I will not put you to death, neither will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life."

Webster's Bible Translation
So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.

World English Bible
So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, “As Yahweh lives, who made our souls, I will not put you to death, neither will I give you into the hand of these men who seek your life.”

Young's Literal Translation
And the king Zedekiah sweareth unto Jeremiah in secret, saying, 'Jehovah liveth, He who made for us this soul, I do not put thee to death, nor give thee unto the hand of these men who are seeking thy soul.'

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Jeremiah Rescued
15“If I tell you,” Jeremiah replied, “you will surely put me to death. And even if I give you advice, you will not listen to me.” 16But King Zedekiah swore secretly to Jeremiah, “As surely as the LORD lives, who has given us this life, I will not kill you, nor will I deliver you into the hands of these men who are seeking your life.” 17Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, “This is what the LORD God of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you indeed surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then you will live, this city will not be burned down, and you and your household will survive.…

Cross References
John 3:2
He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with him."

Acts 17:25
Nor is He served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else.

Acts 17:28
For in Him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are His offspring.'

Numbers 16:22
But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and said, "O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, when one man sins, will You be angry with the whole congregation?"

Numbers 27:16
"May the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation

Isaiah 42:5
This is what God the LORD says--He who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and its offspring, who gives breath to the people on it and life to those who walk in it:

Isaiah 57:16
For I will not accuse you forever, nor will I always be angry; for then the spirit of man would grow weak before Me, with the breath of those I have made.


Treasury of Scripture

So Zedekiah the king swore secretly to Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD lives, that made us this soul, I will not put you to death, neither will I give you into the hand of these men that seek your life.

sware.

Jeremiah 37:17
Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took him out: and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said, Is there any word from the LORD? And Jeremiah said, There is: for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.

John 3:2
The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

that made.

Numbers 16:22
And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation?

Numbers 27:16
Let the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set a man over the congregation,

Ecclesiastes 12:7
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

of these.

Jeremiah 38:1-6
Then Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken unto all the people, saying, …

Jeremiah 34:20
I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth.

Jump to Previous
Death Hand Jeremiah Life Oath Secret Secretly Seek Seeking Soul Souls Surely Sware Swore Zedekiah Zedeki'ah
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Death Hand Jeremiah Life Oath Secret Secretly Seek Seeking Soul Souls Surely Sware Swore Zedekiah Zedeki'ah
Jeremiah 38
1. Jeremiah, by a false suggestion, is put into the dungeon of Malchiah.
7. Ebed-Melech, by suit, gets him some enlargement.
14. Upon secret conference, he counsels the king by yielding to save his life.
24. By the king's instructions he conceals the conference from the princes.














(16) As the Lord liveth, that made us this soul.--The formula of the oath was obviously intended to be one of unusual solemnity; more so even than the simpler form of "The Lord liveth" (Jeremiah 16:14-15). The king swears by Jehovah as the living God, author and giver of his own life. The two-fold promise shows that the king felt the implied reproof of Jeremiah's question. He separates himself from those who sought the prophet's life, and declares that for the future he will not give them even the sanction of acquiescence. It is characteristic of his weakness that even now the oath is given secretly.

Verse 16. - That made us this soul. A very unusual formula (comp. Isaiah 57:16).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
But King
הַמֶּ֧לֶךְ (ham·me·leḵ)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4428: A king

Zedekiah
צִדְקִיָּ֛הוּ (ṣiḏ·qî·yā·hū)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 6667: Zedekiah -- 'Yah is righteousness', six Israelites

swore
וַיִּשָּׁבַ֞ע (way·yiš·šā·ḇa‘)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Nifal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 7650: To seven oneself, swear

to
אֶֽל־ (’el-)
Preposition
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

Jeremiah
יִרְמְיָ֖הוּ (yir·mə·yā·hū)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3414: Jeremiah -- 'Yah loosens', the name of a number of Israelites

secretly,
בַּסֵּ֣תֶר (bas·sê·ṯer)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5643: A covering, hiding place, secrecy

“As surely as the LORD
יְהוָ֞ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

lives,
חַי־ (ḥay-)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 2416: Alive, raw, fresh, strong, life

who
אֲשֶׁר֩ (’ă·šer)
Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

has given
עָשָׂה־ (‘ā·śāh-)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6213: To do, make

us this
הַזֹּאת֙ (haz·zōṯ)
Article | Pronoun - feminine singular
Strong's 2063: Hereby in it, likewise, the one other, same, she, so much, such deed, that,

life,
הַנֶּ֤פֶשׁ (han·ne·p̄eš)
Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 5315: A soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, passion, appetite, emotion

I will not
אִם־ (’im-)
Conjunction
Strong's 518: Lo!, whether?, if, although, Oh that!, when, not

kill you
אֲמִיתֶ֔ךָ (’ă·mî·ṯe·ḵā)
Verb - Hifil - Imperfect - first person common singular | second person masculine singular
Strong's 4191: To die, to kill

or hand you over to
אֶתֶּנְךָ֗ (’et·ten·ḵā)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular | second person masculine singular
Strong's 5414: To give, put, set

these
הָאֵ֔לֶּה (hā·’êl·leh)
Article | Pronoun - common plural
Strong's 428: These, those

men
הָאֲנָשִׁ֣ים (hā·’ă·nā·šîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 376: A man as an individual, a male person

who
אֲשֶׁ֥ר (’ă·šer)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

are seeking
מְבַקְשִׁ֖ים (mə·ḇaq·šîm)
Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine plural
Strong's 1245: To search out, to strive after

your life.�
נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃ (nap̄·še·ḵā)
Noun - feminine singular construct | second person masculine singular
Strong's 5315: A soul, living being, life, self, person, desire, passion, appetite, emotion


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OT Prophets: Jeremiah 38:16 So Zedekiah the king swore secretly (Jer.)
Jeremiah 38:15
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