Ebed-melech to the Rescue
- A group of officials hear Jeremiah telling the people that they'll be able to save their lives if they surrender to the Babylonians.
- They consider this treason, plus it's lowering everyone's morale, so they take him and throw him in a pit belonging to the king's son, Malchiah. Jeremiah sinks down into the mire, muddy but alive.
- An Ethiopian named Ebed-melech goes to the king and tells him about what the officials did to Jeremiah. Zedekiah tells him to get three men and pull Jeremiah out before he dies.
- They manage to rig up a way of retrieving Jeremiah with some rope and old rags and successfully get him out of the pit, but he stays in prison.
Royal Wimp
- Zedekiah goes to Jeremiah for advice. But first, Jeremiah makes Zedekiah swear that he won't put him to death or hand him over to the officials who want to kill him. We think that's reasonable, right?
- Jeremiah tells Zedekiah that he needs to surrender to the Babylonians. Otherwise they'll burn the city down and kill everyone. Even Zedekiah himself will be captured.
- Zedekiah's worried he'll be handed over to the Judeans who deserted and that they'll torture him. Jeremiah says not to worry. Just surrender. Resistance is futile.
- Jeremiah says that he can see the women and children in the palace all being paraded out by the Babylonians if Zedekiah can't bring himself to surrender.
- But Zedekiah's scared, and tells Jeremiah not to tell anyone about the conversation they just had.
- Jeremiah keeps his word. When the officials quiz him about it, he says he was just asking the king to free him and throwing around some ideas for an online Bible study course.
- Jeremiah continues to be imprisoned in the court of the guard.