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Jeremiah 38:10

in Jeremiah 38

So the king commanded Ebed-melech the Cushite, “Take thirty men from here with you and pull Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die.

KJV

Then the king commanded Ebed–melech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die.

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This verse in Jeremiah 38

Commentary

7 notes on this verse

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

with thee--Hebrew, "in thine hand," that is, at "thy disposal" (1Sa 16:2). "From hence," that is, from the gate of Benjamin where the king was sitting (Jer 38:7). thirty men--not merely to draw up Jeremiah, but to guard Ebed-melech against any opposition on the part of the princes (Jer 38:1-4), in executing the king's command.

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

This site's exposition

heard that Jeremiah had been put into the cistern

on Jeremiah 38:7-13

Ebed-melech, a Cushite, goes to the king and says, “these men have acted wickedly in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet.” Ebed-melech lowers “old rags and worn-out clothes” to pad the ropes. The foreigner who rescues the prophet receives his own promise of deliverance in 39:15-18.

This site's exposition

Take thirty men from here with you

Thirty men is a large party to pull one man out of a cistern. Albert Barnes and Adam Clarke both take them as a guard in case the officials resisted the king's command. Barnes says some read three men here.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

Ebed-melech gained his point, and soon brought Jeremiah the good news; and it is observable how particularly the manner of his drawing him out of the dungeon is related (for God is not unrighteous to forget any work or labour of love which is shown to his people or ministers, no, nor any circumstance of it, Heb. vi.

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

Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian,.... Being affected with the case of the prophet; and repenting of the leave he had given the princes to do with him as they pleased, gave orders as follows: saying, take from hence thirty men with thee; from the place where the king was, the gate of Benjamin; where very probably at this time was a garrison of soldiers, thirty of which were ordered to be taken; or these were to be taken out of the king's bodyguard, he had here with him.

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Take from hence thirty men - The king was determined that he should be rescued by force, if the princes opposed.
Thirty men - So large a number suggests that Zedekiah expected some resistance. (Some read “three” men.)

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

thirty men Since they were weakened by the famine, all of them were required.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Jeremiah 38:10:1, via Sefaria, The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg

This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.

Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 6 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.

The words behind it

20 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.

  • וַיְצַוֶּ֣הand he commanded

    vaytzavehH6680 →494 times

  • הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king

    hamelekhH4428 →2525 times

  • אֵ֛ת<obj.>

    ʾetH853 →10935 times

  • עֶֽבֶד־Ebed

    ʾeved-H5663 →12 times

  • מֶ֥לֶךְMelech

    melekhH5663 →12 times

  • הַכּוּשִׁ֖יthe Cushite

    hakushiH3569 →26 times

  • לֵאמֹ֑ר<to> saying

    lemorH559 →5305 times

  • קַ֣חtake

    kachH3947 →966 times

  • בְּיָדְךָ֤in hand your

    beyadekhaH3027 →1618 times

  • מִזֶּה֙from here

    mizehH2088 →1180 times

  • שְׁלֹשִׁ֣יםthirty

    sheloshimH7970 →172 times

  • אֲנָשִׁ֔יםmen

    ʾanashimH582 →566 times

  • וְֽהַעֲלִ֜יתָand you will bring up

    vehaalitaH5927 →890 times

  • אֶֽת־<obj.>

    ʾet-H853 →10935 times

  • יִרְמְיָ֧הוּJeremiah

    yirmeyahuH3414 →147 times

  • הַנָּבִ֛יאthe prophet

    hanavi'H5030 →314 times

  • מִן־from

    min-H4480 →1188 times

  • הַבּ֖וֹרthe cistern

    haborH953 →66 times

  • בְּטֶ֥רֶם<in> before

    beteremH2962 →56 times

  • יָמֽוּת׃he will die

    yamutH4191 →839 times

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

Related verses

4 in all, six open

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

    Proverbs 21:1

    The king’s heart is a waterway in the hand of the LORD; He directs it where He pleases.

    it leads to

    • Acts 7:10

      and rescued him from all his troubles. He granted Joseph favor and wisdom in the sight of Pharaoh king of Egypt, who appointed him ruler over Egypt and all his household.

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Proverbs 16:9

      A man’s heart plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.

    • Ezra 6:22

      For seven days they kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread with joy, because the LORD had made them joyful and turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them to strengthen their hands…

    • Proverbs 20:24

      A man’s steps are from the LORD, so how can anyone understand his own way?

    • Proverbs 16:1

      The plans of the heart belong to man, but the reply of the tongue is from the LORD.

  • Through

    Esther 5:2

    As soon as the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, she found favor in his sight. The king extended the gold scepter in his hand toward Esther, and she approached and touched…

    it leads to

    • Esther 8:4

      The king extended the gold scepter toward Esther, and she arose and stood before the king.

  • Through

    Psalms 75:10

    “All the horns of the wicked I will cut off, but the horns of the righteous will be exalted.”

    it leads to

    • Psalms 89:17

      For You are the glory of their strength, and by Your favor our horn is exalted.

    • Psalms 92:10

      But You have exalted my horn like that of a wild ox; with fine oil I have been anointed.

Where this verse is studied

On this page

Studies1

About Jeremiah

Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem, Rembrandt, 1630. Public domain.
Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem, Rembrandt, 1630. Public domain.
Jeremiah: the study guide →Read Jeremiah 38 →

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

Read on in Jeremiah 38 →