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Jeremiah 39:3

in Jeremiah 39

Then all the officials of the king of Babylon entered and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-sharezer of Samgar, Nebo-sarsekim the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

that all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, to wit, Nergal-sharezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim, Rab-saris, Nergal-sharezer, Rab-mag, with all the rest of the princes of the king of Babylon.

KJV

And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, even Nergal–sharezer, Samgar–nebo, Sarsechim, Rab–saris, Nergal–sharezer, Rab–mag, with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon.

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This verse in Jeremiah 39

Commentary

7 notes on this verse
These princes were four: (1) Nergal, Sharezer, i. e., Nirgal-sar-usur (May Nergal protect the king); (2) Samgar-Nebo (Be gracious, O Nebo); (3) Sarsechim. No explanation is given at present of this name. He was Rab-saris, i. e., chief of the eunuchs (2Ki 18:17 note). (4) another Nergal-sharezer, who was Rab-mag, i. e., chief of the Magians. He is known in history as Neriglissar, the son-in-law of Nebuchadnezzar, and probably his vicegerent during his seven years of madness.

This site's exposition

came Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army

on Jeremiah 39:1-3

The chapter opens with the dates that close the siege the book has tracked for two years, the ninth year, tenth month for the siege's beginning and the eleventh year, fourth month, ninth day for its end, the city was broken up, a precision the bench notes matches 2 Kings 25 and Ezekiel's own dated oracles nearly to the letter. Babylon's princes sit in the middle gate as the city's new authority, named one by one, Nergal-sharezer among them a title the commentators identify with the Greek historians' Neriglissar, the empire's own record entering Scripture's narrative at the moment of judgment.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)

The middle gate - The city was encompassed with two walls, before they came to the wall of the temple; the gate in the inner wall is supposed to have been that which is called the middle gate.

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

Sarsechim was Rab-saris, that is, captain of the guard; and Nergal-sharezer, to distinguish him from the other of the same name that is put first, is called Ram-mag--camp-master, either muster-master or quarter-master: these and the other great generals sat in the gate. And now was fulfilled what Jeremiah prophesied long since ( ch. i.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in,....

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

sat--expressing military occupation or encampment. middle gate--the gate from the upper city (comprehending Mount Zion) to the lower city (north of the former and much lower); it was into the latter (the north side) that the Chaldeans forced an entry and took up their position opposite the gate of the "middle" wall, between the lower and upper city.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Sat in the middle gate - The city of Jerusalem stood upon two hills, Sion to the south, and Acra to the north, with a deep valley between them. The gate of the center, as the term seems plainly to import, was a gate of communication in the middle of the valley, between the two parts of the city, sometimes called the higher and the lower city. The Chaldeans entered the city on the north side by a breach in the walls, and rushing forward and posting themselves in this gate, in the very heart or center of the city, became thereby masters at will of the whole. Zedekiah with his troop, perceiving this, fled out of the opposite gate on the south side. See Blayney. This is likely; but we know nothing positively on this subject. Nergal-sharezer - These were the principal commanders; but Dr. Blayney thinks that instead of six persons, we have in reality but three, as the name that follows each is a title of office. Thus, Nergal-sharezer, who was Samgar; Nebusarsechim, who was Rab-saris; and Nergal-sharezer, who was Rab-mag. As Nergal-sharezer occurs twice here, and we know that Nebuzaradan was general-in-chief, the first Nergal-sharezer is probably a mistake for Nebuzar-adan, or some other of the commanders. But these things are as uncertain as they are unimportant.

The words behind it

27 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • וַיָּבֹ֗אוּand they came

    vaiyavouH935 →2568 times

  • כֹּ֚לall

    kolH3605 →5413 times

  • שָׂרֵ֣י[the] officials of

    sareiH8269 →421 times

  • מֶֽלֶךְ־[the] king of

    melekh-H4428 →2525 times

  • בָּבֶ֔לBabylon

    bavelH894 →262 times

  • וַיֵּשְׁב֖וּand they sat

    vaiyeshevuH3427 →1079 times

  • בְּשַׁ֣עַרin [the] gate of

    beshaarH8179 →374 times

  • הַתָּ֑וֶךְthe middle

    hatavekhH8432 →418 times

  • נֵרְגַ֣לNergal-

    neregalH5371 →9 times

  • שַׂר־Shar-

    sar-H5371 →9 times

  • אֶ֠צֶרezer

    ʾetzerH5371 →9 times

  • סַֽמְגַּר־Samgar

    samgar-H5562 →

  • נְב֞וּNebu

    nevuH5562 →

  • שַׂר־Sar-

    sar-H8310 →

  • סְכִ֣ים-sekim

    sekhimH8310 →

  • רַב־[the] Rab-

    rav-H7249 →6 times

  • סָרִ֗יסsaris

    sarisH7249 →6 times

  • נֵרְגַ֤לNergal-

    neregalH5371 →9 times

  • שַׂר־Shar-

    sar-H5371 →9 times

  • אֶ֙צֶר֙ezer

    ʾetzerH5371 →9 times

  • רַב־[the] Rab-

    rav-H7248 →4 times

  • מָ֔גmag

    magH7248 →4 times

  • וְכָל־and all

    vekholH3605 →5413 times

  • שְׁאֵרִ֔ית[the] rest of

    sheeritH7611 →66 times

  • שָׂרֵ֖י[the] officials of

    sareiH8269 →421 times

  • מֶ֥לֶךְ[the] king of

    melekhH4428 →2525 times

  • בָּבֶֽל׃Babylon

    bavelH894 →262 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

8 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Jeremiah 38:17Then 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.5 worksJeremiah 21:4this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will turn against you the weapons of war in your hands, with which you are fighting the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who besiege you outside the wall, and I will assemble their forces in the center of this city.4 worksJeremiah 1:15For I am about to summon all the clans and kingdoms of the north,” declares the LORD. “Their kings will come and set up their thrones at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem. They will attack all her surrounding walls and all the other cities of Judah.3 worksJeremiah 39:13So Nebuzaradan captain of the guard, Nebushazban the Rabsaris, Nergal-sharezer the Rabmag, and all the captains of the king of Babylon3 worksJeremiah 38:18But if you do not surrender to the officers of the king of Babylon, then this city will be delivered into the hands of the Chaldeans. They will burn it down, and you yourself will not escape their grasp.’”3 works2 Kings 17:30The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima,2 works
The other 2 cross-references, with their words ▾
Daniel 2:49And at Daniel’s request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to manage the province of Babylon, while Daniel remained in the king’s court.2 worksJeremiah 12:10Many shepherds have destroyed My vineyard; they have trampled My plot of ground. They have turned My pleasant field into a desolate wasteland.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Jeremiah 38:17

    Then 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,…

    it leads to

    • Jeremiah 27:12

      And to Zedekiah king of Judah I spoke the same message: “Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon; serve him and his people, and live!

    • Jeremiah 27:17

      Do not listen to them. Serve the king of Babylon and live! Why should this city become a ruin?

    • Jeremiah 38:2

      “This is what the LORD says: Whoever stays in this city will die by sword and famine and plague, but whoever surrenders to the Chaldeans will live; he will retain his life like a…

    • Jeremiah 21:8–10

      Furthermore, you are to tell this people that this is what the LORD says: ‘Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.

  • Through

    Jeremiah 21:4

    this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I will turn against you the weapons of war in your hands, with which you are fighting the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans…

    it leads to

    • Jeremiah 32:5

      He will take Zedekiah to Babylon, where he will stay until I attend to him, declares the LORD. If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not succeed.’”

    • Isaiah 13:4

      Listen, a tumult on the mountains, like that of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations gathered together! The LORD of Hosts is mobilizing an army for war.

    • Isaiah 5:5

      Now I will tell you what I am about to do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be consumed; I will tear down its wall, and it will…

    • Jeremiah 33:5

      The Chaldeans are coming to fight and to fill those places with the corpses of the men I will strike down in My anger and in My wrath. I have hidden My face from…

What the record shows

2 entries
  • Nebo-sarsekim — attested in contemporary inscriptionundisputed

    Babylonian tablet BM 114789 (Nebo-Sarsekim tablet)

    Biblical figure (Official of Nebuchadnezzar II, early 6th c. BC) identified in extra-biblical epigraphy.

  • Nergal-sharezer — attested in contemporary inscriptionundisputed

    Nebuchadnezzar II Prism (Istanbul)

    Biblical figure (Officer of Nebuchadnezzar II, early 6th c. BC) identified in extra-biblical epigraphy.

    Counterpoint: Translators do not agree on how to divide the string of names and titles in Jeremiah 39:3 — the same Hebrew has been read as anywhere from three to six officials, and "Samgar-nebo" is often taken as a garbled form of the Babylonian court title simmagir rather than a name. Nergal-sharezer's match with the officer on Nebuchadnezzar's prism (and with the later king Neriglissar) depends on which division you accept.

About Jeremiah

The Prophet Jeremiah, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
The Prophet Jeremiah, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Jeremiah: the study guide →Read Jeremiah 39 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Jeremiah 39 →