Skip to content
mannafest.faith
Read

Jeremiah 39:4

in Jeremiah 39

When Zedekiah king of Judah and all the soldiers saw them, they fled. They left the city at night by way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls, and they went out along the route to the Arabah.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And it came to pass that, when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, then they fled, and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king’s garden, through the gate betwixt the two walls; and he went out toward the Arabah.

KJV

And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them, and all the men of war, then they fled, and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king’s garden, by the gate betwixt the two walls: and he went out the way of the plain.

⋯

This verse in Jeremiah 39

Commentary

5 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

Went forth out of the city by night - Probably there was a private passage under ground, leading without the walls, by which Zedekiah and his followers might escape unperceived, till they had got some way from the city. The way of the plain - There were two roads from Jerusalem to Jericho. One passed over the mount of Olives; but, as this might have retarded his flight, he chose the way of the plain, and was overtaken near Jericho, perhaps about sixteen or eighteen miles from Jerusalem.

This site's exposition

they fled

on Jeremiah 39:4-7

Zedekiah flees “at night by way of the king’s garden,” and he is overtaken “in the plains of Jericho.” At Riblah the king of Babylon kills his sons “before his eyes,” then puts out his eyes. Ezekiel 12:13 had said he would be brought to Babylon yet not see it.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

), which soon failed him, for he was discovered, pursued, and overtaken. Though he made the best of his way, he could make nothing of it, could not get forward, but in the plains of Jericho fell into the hands of the pursuers,

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

And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them, and all the men of war,....

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Compare the marginal reference. The differences between the two accounts are slight.

The words behind it

23 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.

  • וַיְהִ֡יand it was

    vayhiH1961 →3559 times

  • כַּאֲשֶׁ֣רjust when

    kaasherH834 →5497 times

  • רָ֠אָםhe saw them

    raomH7200 →1300 times

  • צִדְקִיָּ֨הוּZedekiah

    tzidkiyahuH6667 →63 times

  • מֶֽלֶךְ־[the] king of

    melekh-H4428 →2525 times

  • יְהוּדָ֜הJudah

    yehudahH3063 →819 times

  • וְכֹ֣ל׀and all

    vekholH3605 →5413 times

  • אַנְשֵׁ֣י[the] men of

    ʾansheiH582 →566 times

  • הַמִּלְחָמָ֗ה<the> war

    hamilchamahH4421 →320 times

  • וַֽ֠יִּבְרְחוּand they fled

    vaiyivrechuH1272 →63 times

  • וַיֵּצְא֨וּand they went out

    vaiyetzeuH3318 →1067 times

  • לַ֤יְלָהnight

    laylahH3915 →233 times

  • מִן־from

    min-H4480 →1188 times

  • הָעִיר֙the city

    hairH5892 →1090 times

  • דֶּ֚רֶךְ[the] way of

    derekhH1870 →707 times

  • גַּ֣ן[the] garden of

    ganH1588 →42 times

  • הַמֶּ֔לֶךְthe king

    hamelekhH4428 →2525 times

  • בְּשַׁ֖עַרin a gate

    beshaarH8179 →374 times

  • בֵּ֣יןbetween

    beinH996 →407 times

  • הַחֹמֹתָ֑יִםthe two walls

    hachomotayimH2346 →133 times

  • וַיֵּצֵ֖אand he went out

    vaiyetze'H3318 →1067 times

  • דֶּ֥רֶךְ[the] way of

    derekhH1870 →707 times

  • הָעֲרָבָֽה׃the Arabah

    haaravahH6160 →61 times

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

Related verses

16 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.

Ezekiel 12:4Bring out your baggage for exile by day, as they watch. Then in the evening, as they watch, go out like those who go into exile.5 worksEzekiel 12:12And at dusk the prince among them will lift his bags to his shoulder and go out. They will dig through the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face so he cannot see the land.5 works2 Chronicles 32:5Then Hezekiah worked resolutely to rebuild all the broken sections of the wall and to raise up towers on it. He also built an outer wall and reinforced the supporting terraces of the City of David, and he produced an abundance of weapons and shields.3 worksAmos 2:14Escape will fail the swift, the strong will not prevail by his strength, and the mighty will not save his life.3 worksJeremiah 52:7–11Then the city was breached; and though the Chaldeans had surrounded the city, all the men of war fled the city by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden. They headed toward the Arabah,2 worksLeviticus 26:17And I will set My face against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when no one pursues you.2 works
The other 10 cross-references, with their words ▾
Jeremiah 38:18–20But 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.’”2 works2 Kings 25:4–7Then the city was breached; and though the Chaldeans had surrounded the city, all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden. They headed toward the Arabah,2 worksIsaiah 30:15–16For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said: “By repentance and rest you would be saved; your strength would lie in quiet confidence—but you were not willing.”2 worksLeviticus 26:36As for those of you who survive, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies, so that even the sound of a windblown leaf will put them to flight. And they will flee as one flees the sword, and fall when no one pursues them.2 worksDeuteronomy 32:24–30They will be wasted from hunger and ravaged by pestilence and bitter plague; I will send the fangs of wild beasts against them, with the venom of vipers that slither in the dust.2 worksDeuteronomy 28:25The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.2 worksJeremiah 40:7When all the commanders and men of the armies in the field heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam over the land and that he had put him in charge of the men, women, and children who were the poorest of the land and had not been exiled to Babylon,2 worksIsaiah 22:11You built a reservoir between the walls for the waters of the ancient pool, but you did not look to the One who made it, or consider Him who planned it long ago.2 worksIsaiah 24:10The city of chaos is shattered; every house is closed to entry.2 worksEcclesiastes 2:5I made gardens and parks for myself, where I planted all kinds of fruit trees.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

    Ezekiel 12:12

    And at dusk the prince among them will lift his bags to his shoulder and go out. They will dig through the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face so he…

    it leads to

    • 2 Kings 25:4

      Then the city was breached; and though the Chaldeans had surrounded the city, all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls near the king’s garden.…

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

  • Through

    Leviticus 26:17

    And I will set My face against you, so that you will be defeated by your enemies. Those who hate you will rule over you, and you will flee when no one pursues you.

    it leads to

    • Leviticus 17:10

      If anyone from the house of Israel or a foreigner living among them eats any blood, I will set My face against that person and cut him off from among his people.

    • Proverbs 28:1

      The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.

    • Psalms 53:5

      There they are, overwhelmed with dread, where there was nothing to fear. For God has scattered the bones of those who besieged you. You put them to shame, for God has despised them.

    • Deuteronomy 28:25

      The LORD will cause you to be defeated before your enemies. You will march out against them in one direction but flee from them in seven. You will be an object of horror to…

    • Leviticus 26:36–37

      As for those of you who survive, I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies, so that even the sound of a windblown leaf will put them to…

  • Through

    Amos 2:14

    Escape will fail the swift, the strong will not prevail by his strength, and the mighty will not save his life.

    it leads to

    • Jeremiah 9:23

      This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, nor the strong man in his strength, nor the wealthy man in his riches.

  • Through

    2 Chronicles 32:5

    Then Hezekiah worked resolutely to rebuild all the broken sections of the wall and to raise up towers on it. He also built an outer wall and reinforced the supporting terraces of the City…

    it leads to

    • 2 Chronicles 25:23

      There at Beth-shemesh, Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz. Then Jehoash brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from…

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 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); Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Jeremiah 39 →