During the siege of Jerusalem, Jeremiah kept saying what God told him to say, and the city’s leaders decided he had to die. They let him down on cords into a dungeon with no water in it, only mud, and he sank.
The man who got him out was not a prince, a priest or a prophet. He was a foreigner serving in the king’s house, and he is the only one in the chapter who said out loud that what had been done to Jeremiah was evil.
The Story of Ebed-melech Rescues Jeremiah
Four of the princes – Shephatiah, Gedaliah, Jucal and Pashur – heard what Jeremiah had been telling the people: He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live. And, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army.
The princes went to the king and said, We beseech thee, let this man be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war. King Zedekiah answered, Behold, he is in your hand: for the king is not he that can do any thing against you.
So they took 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.
Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king’s house, heard what they had done. The king was sitting in the gate of Benjamin, and Ebed-melech went out and spoke to him there: My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet. He warned that Jeremiah was like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city.
The king changed course. He commanded, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die. Ebed-melech took the men and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags, and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah.
Ebed-melech said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so. So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon: and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
Later, while Jeremiah was still shut up in the court of the prison, God sent him with a message for Ebed-melech. Jerusalem would fall, but I will deliver thee in that day, saith the LORD. Thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me.
Key Verses
“In the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire” Jeremiah 38:6
“These men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet” Jeremiah 38:9
“Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die” Jeremiah 38:10
“Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so” Jeremiah 38:12
“Thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the LORD” Jeremiah 39:18
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), a public-domain translation.
What the Story of Ebed-melech Rescues Jeremiah Teaches Us
The princes had power, and the king said he could do nothing against them. Ebed-melech had no such standing, yet he was the one who went to the king and said, these men have done evil. Doing right sometimes means speaking up when everyone with more power has stayed quiet.
His help was practical and careful. He did not just ask for Jeremiah to be released; he gathered old cast clouts and rotten rags and had Jeremiah put them under his armholes under the cords. Kindness paid attention to the man in the mud, not only to the order from the king.
God saw it. In Jeremiah 39 the LORD sent a personal promise to Ebed-melech, and the reason he gave was not the rescue itself but what was behind it: because thou hast put thy trust in me. The man who pulled God’s prophet out of the pit was himself promised deliverance when the city fell.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Ebed-melech?
Ebed-melech was an Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king’s house during the reign of Zedekiah (Jeremiah 38:7). He went to the king and won permission to rescue Jeremiah from the dungeon.
Why was Jeremiah thrown into the dungeon?
The princes said his message – that those who stayed in Jerusalem would die and those who went out to the Chaldeans would live – weakeneth the hands of the men of war, and they asked the king to put him to death (Jeremiah 38:1-4).
What was in the dungeon where Jeremiah was put?
Jeremiah 38:6 says there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.
How many men helped Ebed-melech pull Jeremiah out?
King Zedekiah told him, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die (Jeremiah 38:10).
Why did Ebed-melech use old rags?
He told Jeremiah to put the old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords before they drew him up with cords (Jeremiah 38:11-13).
What did God promise Ebed-melech?
In Jeremiah 39:15-18 God promised to deliver him when Jerusalem fell, so that he would not fall by the sword, because thou hast put thy trust in me.