Jeremiah 38 Saphatiah the sonne of Mathau, Godoliah the sonne of Phashur, Iucal the sonne of Selemiah, & Phashur the sonne of Melchiah perceyued the wordes, that Ieremy had spoken vnto all the people, namely on this maner:

Matthew⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ Saphatiah the sonne of Mathau, Godoliah the sonne of Phashur, Iucal the sonne of Selemiah, & Phashur the sonne of Melchiah perceyued the wordes, that Ieremy had spoken vnto all the people, namely on this maner: ² Thus sayeth the Lorde: Who so remayneth in this citie, shall perishe, eyther with the sweard, with honger or with the pestilence. But who so falleth vnto the Caldees shal escape, winninge his soule for a praye, and shall lyue. ³ For thus sayeth the Lord: this cytie (no doute) must be deliuered into the power of the kinge of Babilon, and he also shal winne it. ⁴ Then sayd the princes vnto the king: Syr, we beseche you, let this man to be put to death: For thus he discoraged the handes of the soudyars that be in this cytie, & the handes of al the people, when he speaketh such wordes vnto them. This man verely laboureth not for peace of the people, but mischefe. ⁵ Zedekiah the kinge answered & sayde: lo he is in youre handes, for the king may denye you nothing. ⁶ Then toke they Ieremie, and cast him into the dongeon of Melchiah the sonne of Hamelech, that dwelt in the fore entre of the preson. And they let doune Ieremye wyth coardes into a dongeon, where there was no water, but myre. ⁷ So Ieremy stack fast in the myre. Now when Abedmelech the Morian beinge a chamberlayne in the kinges courte, vnderstode, that they had cast Ieremy into the dongeon: ⁸ he went out of the kinges house, & spake to the king (which then sat vnder the porte of Beniamin) these wordes: ⁹ My Lorde the king where as these men medle with Ieremye the prophet, they do him wrong. Namely, in that they haue put him in preson, there to dye of honger, for there is nomore bread in the city. ¹⁰ Then the kynge commaundeth Abedmelech the Morian and sayde: Take from hence .xxx. men whom thou wilt, & drawe vp Ieremy the prophet oute of the dongeon, before he dye. ¹¹ So Abedmelech toke the men with him, & went to the house of Amalech, and there vnder an almery he gat olde ragges & worne cloutes, and let them doune by a coarde, into the dongeon to Ieremy. ¹² And Abedmelech the Morian sayde vnto the prophet Ieremy: O put these ragges and cloutes vnder thine arme holes, betwyxte them and the coardes, & Ieremy dyd so. ¹³ So they drew vp Ieremy wyth coardes and toke him out of the dongeon, & he remayned in the fore entry of the preson. ¹⁴ Then Zedekiah the king sent & caused Ieremy the Prophete be called vnto him, into the thirde entrye, that was by the house of the Lorde. And the kinge sayde vnto Ieremy: I wyll aske the some what, but hyde nothinge from me. ¹⁵ Then Ieremye answerde Zedekiah: Yf I be playne vnto the thou wilt cause me suffre death: yf I geue the councel, thou wylt not folow me. ¹⁶ So the king swore an oth secretly vnto Ieremye, sayinge: As truely as the Lorde lyueth, that made vs these soules, I wil not slay the, nor geue the into the handes of them that seke after thy lyfe. ¹⁷ Then sayde Ieremye vnto Zedekiah: Thus sayeth the Lord of Hostes the God of Israel: Yf case be, that thou wylt go forth vnto the kynge of Babilons Princes, thou shalt saue thy lyfe, and thys cyty shall not be brent, yea both thou and thy housholde shal escape wyth youre lyues. ¹⁸ But yf thou wylt not go forth to the kynge of Babylons prynces, then shall this cytye be delyuered into the handes of the Caldees whiche shal set fyre vpon it, & thou shalt not be able to escape them. ¹⁹ And Zedekiah sayde vnto Ieremy: I am afrayde for the Iewes, that are fled vnto the Caldees, lest I come in their handes, & so they to haue me in derysyon. ²⁰ But Ieremye answerde: No, they shall not betraye the. O herken vnto the voyce of the Lord (I beseche the) whyche I speake vnto the, so shalt thou be wel, and saue thy lyfe. ²¹ But yf thou wylt not go forth, the Lord hath told me this planely. ²² Beholde al the wemen that are left in the kynge of Iudaes house, shall go out to the kyng of Babylons princes. For they thincke, that thou art disceyued: and that men in whome thou diddest put thy truste, haue gotten the vnder, & set thy fete fast in the mire, and gone their waye from the. ²³ Therefore al thy wyues with their children shall fle vnto the Caldees, and thou shalte not escape their handes, but shalt be the kinge of Babylons presoner, and this cytie shalbe brente. ²⁴ Then sayd Zedekiah vnto Ieremy: loke that no body knowe of these wordes, & thou shalt not dye. ²⁵ But yf the princes perceyue, that I haue talked with the, & come vnto the, saying: O speake, what saide the kinge to the? hyde it not from vs, and we wil not put the to death. Tel vs (we pray the) what saide the kinge to the? ²⁶ Se thou geue them this answere: I haue humbly besought the kinge, that he will let me lye no more in Iehonathans house, that I dye not there? ²⁷ Then came all the princes vnto Ieremy, and asked him. And he tolde them, after the maner as the kinge bad him. Then they helde their peace, for they perceiued nothinge. ²⁸ So Ieremye abode still in the fore entrie of the preson, vntil the daye that Ierusalem was wonne.