Jeremiah 39:5

39:5 But the Babylonian 1  army chased after them. They caught up with Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho 2  and captured him. 3  They took him to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon at Riblah 4  in the territory of Hamath and Nebuchadnezzar passed sentence on him there.

Jeremiah 48:44

48:44 Anyone who flees at the sound of terror

will fall into a pit.

Anyone who climbs out of the pit

will be caught in a trap. 5 

For the time is coming

when I will punish the people of Moab. 6 

I, the Lord, affirm it! 7 

1 tn Heb “The Chaldeans.” See the study note on 21:4 for explanation.

2 map For location see Map5-B2; Map6-E1; Map7-E1; Map8-E3; Map10-A2; Map11-A1.

3 sn 2 Kgs 25:5 and Jer 52:8 mention that the soldiers all scattered from him. That is why the text focuses on Zedekiah here.

4 sn Riblah was a strategic town on the Orontes River in Syria. It was at a crossing of the major roads between Egypt and Mesopotamia. Pharaoh Necho had earlier received Jehoahaz there and put him in chains (2 Kgs 23:33) prior to taking him captive to Egypt. Nebuchadnezzar had set up his base camp for conducting his campaigns against the Palestinian states there and was now sitting in judgment on prisoners brought to him.

5 sn Jer 48:43-44a are in the main the same as Isa 24:17-18 which shows that the judgment was somewhat proverbial. For a very similar kind of argumentation see Amos 5:19; judgment is unavoidable.

6 tn Heb “For I will bring upon her, even upon Moab, the year of her punishment.”

7 tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”