Jeremiah 37:13

And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he took Jeremiah the prophet, saying, Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans. A CAPTAIN OF THE WARD - i:e., a captain of the guard or watch. THE SON OF SHELEMIAH, THE SON OF HANANIAH - whose death Jeremiah predicted (): the grandson in revenge takes Jeremiah into custody on the charge of deserting ("thou fallest away," ; ; ) to the enemy. His prophecies gave colour to the charge ...

But he then adds, that he was intercepted by the _prefect of the ward in the gate of Benjamin _That gate had its name from its situation, for a part of Jerusalem belonged to the tribe of Benjamin; and hence it was not strange that the gate which led to the heritage of the tribe of Benjamin was so called. There then was Jeremiah intercepted by Irijah, the prefect of the ward, and not without a grievous charge, that he was escaping to the Chaldeans. The Prophet attempted to clear himself, but with no effect; for an opinion had prevailed, that he was already in league with the enemies. He thus gained nothing by defending himself, but was taken to the princes, the king’s counsellors. This passage teaches us that God’s servants cannot escape without being exposed to many calumnies and false suspicions. Jeremiah might at the beginning have evaded this, and according to the perception of the fl...

11-21 There are times when it is the wisdom of good men to retire, to enter into their chambers, and to shut the doors, Isaiah 26:20. Jeremiah was seized as a deserter, and committed to prison. But it is no new thing for the best friends of the church to be belied, as in the interests of her worst enemies. When thus falsely accused, we may deny the charge, and commit our cause to Him who judges righteously. Jeremiah obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful, and would not, to obtain mercy of man, be unfaithful to God or to his prince; he tells the king the whole truth. When Jeremiah delivered God's message, he spake with boldness; but when he made his own request, he spake submissively. A lion in God's cause must be a lamb in his own. And God gave Jeremiah favour in the eyes of the king. The Lord God can make even the cells of a prison become pastures to his people, and will raise up fr...

Verse Jeremiah 37:13. _THOU FALLEST AWAY TO THE CHALDEANS._] Thou art a deserter, and a traitor to thy country. As he had always declared that the Chaldeans should take the city, c., his enemies took occasion from this to say he was in the interest of the Chaldeans, and that he wished now to go to them, and betray the place....

A CAPTAIN OF THE WARD - Captain of the watch, whose business was to examine all who went in and out. THE GATE OF BENJAMIN - The northern gate, also called the gate of Ephraim. THOU FALLEST AWAY ... - His well-known views made Jeremiah a suspected person, though the charge was groundless....

EXPOSITION Nothing worthy of relation appears to have happened to Jeremiah till the latter period of the reign of Zedekiah. The first two verses of this chapter form the transition. The embassy to Jeremiah mentioned in verse 3 took place after the temporary withdrawal of the Chaldeans from Jerusalem. JEREMIAH 37:1 CONIAH; _i.e._ Jehoiachin (see on Jeremiah 22:24). WHOM NEBUCHADREZZAR … MADE KING. Zedekiah, not Jehoiachin, is referred to (see 2 Kings 24:17). JEREMIAH 37:3 AND ZEDEKIAH THE KING SENT. Th

AND WHEN HE WAS IN THE GATE OF BENJAMIN,.... One of the gates of the city so called, either because it stood in the tribe of Benjamin, as part of Jerusalem did; or because it led to the land of Benjamin, whither the prophet was going: and just as he had got to that gate, and was going through it, he was stopped by A CAPTAIN OF THE WARD THERE; who was placed at this gate, that none should go out to the Chaldeans, according to Kimchi; but rather he was the keeper of the gate, not at this time only, but always; Josephus i calls him one of the rulers: WHOSE NAME [WAS] IRIJAH, THE SON OF SHELEMIAH, THE SON OF HANANIAH: the grandson as some think, of that Hananiah the false prophet, of whose death Jeremiah the prophet prophesied, Jeremiah 28:16; and the Jews have a tradition that Hananiah ordered his son Shelemiah, that if he ever had an opportunity to b

JEREMIAH AND ZEDEKIAH AND THE FALL OF JERUSALEM (37-39) CHAPTER 37 _ 1. Jeremiah's warning (Jeremiah 37:1) _ 2. Jeremiah's arrest (Jeremiah 37:11) Jeremiah 37:1. To understand more fully these Chapter s it must be remembered that the besieging army before the gates of Jerusalem was temporarily withdrawn, because an Egyptian army had appeared against it. This was no doubt an occasion for the false prophets to preach their false hope, so that the people were deceived. Once more Zedekiah sent to the prophet a deputation (Jeremiah 21:1) after Nebuchadnezzar had made him king. The occasion was on

Jeremiah, during the interval in the siege, is leaving the city by a northern gate on private business (perhaps connected with the earlier incident of Jeremiah 32:6 ff.), when he is arrested by the officer on duty under charge of desertion (plausible in view of Jeremiah 21:9; _cf._ Jeremiah 38:19). His denial is disregarded, and he is beaten and imprisoned by the princes (those friendly to him, _cf._ Jeremiah 26:16; Jeremiah 36:19, were now probably exiles). After a lengthy imprisonment, the king sends for him secretly ...

THE GATE OF BENJAMIN: i.e. the northern gate, called also "the gate of Ephraim" (2 Kings 14:13.Nehemiah 8:16; Nehemiah 8:16), leading to Anathoth. HANANIAH. Perhaps the false prophet mentioned in Jeremiah 28:1....