Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers’ street, until all the bread in the city were spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
21. court of the guard ] See on Jer 32:2.
a loaf of bread ] a flat round cake, not unlike a flat stone in shape and appearance (Mat 7:9, cp. Jer 4:3), about nine inches in diameter and an inch thick. One of these cakes was considered a charity dole (1Sa 2:36, R.V. “loaf”).
the bakers’ street ] Hos 7:4; Hos 7:6 shews that baking was a trade. We here see that, like other trades in the East, the bakers occupied a definite place in the bazaar.
until all the bread in the city was spent ] Cp. ch. Jer 52:6.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The prison – the watch (marginal reference).
Piece – literally, a circle, i. e., a round cake.
The bakers street – It is usual in oriental towns for each trade to have a special place set apart for it. Compare Act 10:6.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 21. Then Zedekiah – the court of the prison] Was contiguous to the king’s house, where the prisoners could readily see their friends.
Give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers’ street] From the public stores; which he received till all the provisions were spent.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison; so as he was a prisoner still, but in a freer air, where he did not suffer those inconveniences which he endured in the hole or dungeon. It is of no great moment to know whether the portion of bread allowed the prophet by the king were a loaf, (as some think,) or a piece of a loaf; it was such a proportion as could be allowed according to the proportion which others had, and the straits which the city was in, and so much as served to keep him alive. Jeremiah remained here till, upon the suggestion of the princes, he was removed to a worse place, as we shall read in the sixth verse of the next chapter; where he staid not long, but was again removed to the court of the prison, as we shall read there, Jer 38:13, where (as it followeth there, Jer 38:28) he continued until the city was taken.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
21. court of the prison(Jer 32:2; Jer 38:13;Jer 38:28).
bakers’ streetPersonsin the same business in cities in the East commonly reside in thesame street.
all the bread . . .spentJeremiah had bread supplied to him until he was throwninto the dungeon of Malchiah, at which time the bread in the city wasspent. Compare this verse with Jer38:9; that time must have been very shortly before the capture ofthe city (Jer 52:6). God saithof His children, “In the days of famine they shall be satisfied”(Psa 37:19; Isa 33:16).Honest reproof (Jer 37:17), inthe end often gains more favor than flattery (Pr28:23).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison,…. He did not think fit to discharge him entirely, lest it should give offence to the princes, who had committed him; but he ordered him to be put in a court belonging to the prison, where he might breathe in a freer air, and have liberty of walking to and fro, where his friends might be admitted to come and see him:
and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers’ street; it seems there was a street in Jerusalem so called, where the bakers lived; and perhaps the king’s bakers; who had orders to deliver to the prophet every day a piece or loaf of bread, as much as was sufficient for a man; or, however, as much as the scarcity of provisions in a siege would allow. Kimchi makes mention of a Midrash, which interprets this of bread made of bran, which was sold without the palace; as if it was coarser bread than what was eaten at court:
until all the bread in the city was spent; that is, as long as there was any. These were the king’s orders:
thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison: until the city was taken; unless a small time that he was in the dungeon of Malchiah, out of which he was taken again, and restored to the court of the prison, and there continued; see Jer 38:6.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The Prophet tells us, that God regarded the miseries to which he had been unjustly exposed: and the king no doubt became humane towards Jeremiah, because God turned his heart towards what was just and right. We said, indeed, yesterday, that the king was not in disposition cruel or sanguinary; yet he would not have been so easily eritreated by the Prophet, had he not been influenced by the hidden working of God’s Spirit. We hence see how God favors his servants and has regard for their infirmity when necessary. We yet see also that the Prophet was not so kindly dealt with as to be allowed to return free to his own house, but that he was removed to another prison, where his condition was more tolerable. He was then in the court of the prison
He says, that a crust of bread was given to him daily, or every day. The word ככר , kekar, is by some rendered “mass,” or lump, and means sometimes a large loaf; but it is probable, that during so much scarcity the Prophet had but a scanty living. He had then a crust or piece of bread every day We see how mean was his food; but God often tries his servants in this way, withholding from them all the delicacies of this world. It is added, from the street of the bakers; by these words is meant, I think, that it was coarse bread, not made of fine flour, such as rich men did eat, for their mouths could not endure what was rough and course. Then God’s holy Prophet was content with the common bread. The king and his counsellors had their own bakers; but it is said that bread was brought to the Prophet from a common place, the street of the bakers And the bread then sold during such a scarcity was no doubt black bread. We hence see what kind of bread it was, because it was sold for the common use of the people.
Thus the Prophet shews, that though some relaxation was allowed him, he was still confined in prison, and also that no meat nor any delicacies were given him, but a crust of bread only. He however commemorates the favor of God, inasmuch as in so great a scarcity he was not without bread. He had, then, his daily bread until all provisions failed.
And hence we learn, that God often so provides for his servants, that he appears to have forsaken them; and yet he then especially takes care of them and supplies them with what is needful for their support. Had Jeremiah been at home, he might have been at any time stoned by the people; for there were not wanting those disposed to stir up famished men against him. He might then have been every moment in danger of his life at home. But now in prison, he was safe, and no one could do him any harm. Besides, had he been at home, many might have robbed him, so as to leave him nothing to preserve life; but in prison he had his daily allowance. Thus, then, God often conducts his servants in a manner that is wonderful and beyond what we can conceive, and in the meantime acts as the head of a family, in supplying their wants. In short, the Prophet here intimates that he was cared for by God, so that during the famine and scarcity among the whole people, his bread was yet given to him, when he could not have begged it. When he could not have procured bread for himself either by labor, or by industry, or by begging, or by money, he shews that God took care of him so as to feed him during that distress.
He however adds, that he was in the court of the prison, in order to shew that God tried his patience, for a prison was a place of degradation. The Prophet was exposed to the reproaches of all; and then the princes might have often threatened him with danger, and might have also transferred him to another place, as we shall hereafter see. Therefore, in a measure only did God bring aid to his Prophet, for it was not his pleasure wholly to deliver him, and yet he suffered him not to be reduced to extremities. Now follows —
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(21) Into the court of the prison . . .This was obviously a concession to Jeremiahs request, and here he remained (see Jer. 32:2; Jer. 33:1), with one brief exception (Jer. 38:6), till the capture of the city. It was in the kings house, above ground, with free access for light and air, and it was therefore in his power to see that the prophet was treated with respect, and not left to starve.
A piece of bread out of the bakers street.The locality is not mentioned elsewhere, but Jerusalem, like other Eastern cities, seems to have had distinct localities assigned as bazaars to special trades. Thus, one of the broad streets running through the city was known, in New Testament times, as the valley of Tyropceon (= cheesemakers). Merchants and goldsmiths appear in Neh. 3:32 as having their separate quarters, and apothecaries in Neh. 3:8. The street of the bakers was probably connected with the tower of the furnaces in Neh. 3:11. The order given by the king indicates that the city was already blockaded, and that the supply of provisions was falling short.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Jer 37:21. A piece of bread out of the bakers’ street Though among the easterns an oven was designed only to serve a single family, and to bake for them no more than the bread of one day, in ancient times;a circumstance which ought to be recollected in order to enter into the force of Lev 26:26 and which is a usage still continued in some places of the east;yet it should seem that there were anciently, as there now are, some public bake-houses. Thus we read of the bakers’ street in the passage before us; which might possibly be only a temporary regulation, to supply the wants of the soldiers, assembled from other places to defend Jerusalem, who might receive daily a proper quantity of bread from the royal bake-houses, as is the case at Algiers at this time, according to Dr. Shaw: besides some money, their soldiers, who are unmarried, receive each of them such a number of loaves every day: and if so, nothing could be more natural than for the king to order thence for Jeremiah a piece or a cake of bread every day, after the same manner. But be this as it may, Pitts informs us, that they have public bake-houses at Algiers for the people in common, the women only preparing the dough at home, and other persons making it their business to bake it, who send their boys for that purpose about the streets to give notice of being ready to receive the people’s bread, and to carry it to the bake-houses; “Upon which the women within come and knock on the inside of the door; which the boy hearing, makes towards the house; then the women open the door a very little way, and, hiding their faces, deliver the cakes to him: which when baked he brings to the door again, and the women receive them in the same manner as they gave them.” He adds, that they bake their cakes thus every day, or every other day, and give the boy who brings the bread, a piece or little cake, for the baking, which the baker sells. According to this account then, small as the eastern loaves are, they break them it seems, and give a piece only to the baker, as a gratification for his trouble. This will illustrate Ezekiel’s account of the false prophetesses receiving as gratuities pieces of bread; Eze 13:19. These are compensations still in use in the east, but compensations of the meanest kind, and for services of the lowest sort. See the Observations, p. 145.
REFLECTIONS.1st, When Nebuchadnezzar had slain Jehoiakim, and taken away Coniah his son, that shadow of royalty, he placed on the throne of Zedekiah a younger son of Josiah.
1. His ill conduct is remarked. He copied too closely after his evil predecessors; and, though he saw in them the fatal consequence of slighting the word of God, he took not warning; neither he nor his courtiers paying any regard to the calls and admonitions delivered by Jeremiah.
2. Though he neglected the prophet in his prosperity, when his distresses came upon him, he made application to him, earnestly intreating his prayers; for at that time the prophet enjoyed his liberty, and was not, as afterwards, shut up in prison. The Chaldeans, according to his prediction, had already begun the siege of Jerusalem; but, on hearing that an army of Egyptians were advancing to assist the Jews, though their king returned no more after his first defeat, 2Ki 24:7. Nebuchadnezzar marched to give them battle. Zedekiah, therefore, begs the prophet to interest himself in their behalf, and pray the Lord to defeat the Chaldean army and prevent their return to Jerusalem. Note; (1.) Many, who despise God’s ministers when in health and at their ease, are glad to fly to them and beg their prayers in the day of their calamity. (2.) Many also, like Zedekiah, are very earnest to be delivered from their sufferings, who have no heart to part with their sins.
3. Jeremiah answers not like a courtier; but, as a prophet, he tells them plainly, the Egyptians shall retreat or be defeated, the Chaldeans return to the siege, and never cease their attacks till they have taken the city and burnt it to the ground. Therefore the hopes which they entertained were groundless: they deceived themselves, when they thought that the Chaldeans would no more return, or not be able to succeed in their attempt; for, since God had decreed the fall of Jerusalem, though the Chaldeans had been smitten by them or their confederates, and none remained of their army but wounded men, such vigour would God put into them, that even they should rise up in their tents, whither they had been carried to be dressed, scale the walls, and burn the city with fire. Note; (1.) Sinners usually flatter themselves to their ruin, and easily believe the lie which their corrupted hearts wish to be true. (2.) All human help is vain when God is against us. (3.) When God hath work to do, he can make the weakest and most unlikely instruments effectual to accomplish his purposes.
2nd, Shortly after the message that he had delivered, foreseeing the impending evils, Jeremiah began to consult his own safety; and to this end,
1. He attempted to retire from Jerusalem into Benjamin, perhaps to Anathoth, or some place of safety, to separate himself from a people doomed to destruction, or to slip away thence in the midst of the people, which probably he thought he might now do unperceived, when multitudes, who had flocked to Jerusalem on the invasion of the Chaldeans, were ready to take the opportunity of their departure, to return again into the country. Note; When we have no call from God to stay, it is prudent to hide ourselves from the evils that we foresee.
2. He is arrested as a deserter, and imprisoned. A captain, who kept ward at the gate of Benjamin, a descendant of Hananiah, probably the false prophet whose death Jeremiah had foretold, and who seems to have waited to do the prophet a mischief, seized him as he was passing through, and charged him with falling away to the Chaldeans; an accusation false and malicious, and which Jeremiah, with all the confidence of conscious innocence, denied; but in vain; he would not let him go, but drew him before the magistrates, too ready to receive any accusation against a man whom they hated: they condemn him in a passion, without hearing his defence, and, after beating him, committed him to prison, thrusting him into the dungeon, the worst and most dismal cell of that dark and melancholy abode, where he continued many days. Note; (1.) The purest characters are often blackened with the vilest aspersions; and the best friends of the state reviled and secured as the enemies and betrayers of the nation. (2.) When prejudice and passion sit in the chair of magistracy, no justice can be hoped for. (3.) Every lie, however improbable, is easily believed against a man obnoxious to their hatred for his piety and reproofs. (4.) It has been the lot of the best of men to suffer for conscience’ sake. We need not be ashamed of a prison, when such as Jeremiah and Paul have gone thither before us.
3. When the Chaldean army returned, Zedekiah’s fears drove him once more to seek the prophet’s assistance: but being ashamed to have it known, he sent for him secretly from the miserable dungeon where he lay, and asked him if there was any word from the Lord? any new revelation made to him, or hope that the Chaldeans would raise the siege? And the prophet, not intimidated by all the rigours of a prison, nor fearing what might be the consequence of his fidelity, plainly tells him, there is not a word of comfort, but of despair; for, said he, thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon. And, seizing the moment when the king seemed affected with his message, he expostulates with him on the cruelty and injustice of the treatment which he had suffered merely for delivering the word that he received from God, which the event had now verified; and upbraids him with the sin and folly of believing those false prophets who had flattered him and the people that the Chaldeans would no more return; when lo, their lies were now manifest to all men; and yet they were honoured and respected, while he was persecuted and perishing in a prison. Note; (1.) They who will not hearken to the voice of God’s prophets, calling them to repentance, may in vain expect to hear from them messages of peace. (2.) They deserve to be upbraided with their folly who wilfully shut their eyes to their danger, and choose their own delusions. (3.) No danger will discourage those who know the value of God’s regard; their life is no longer dear to them, when it must be exposed for their fidelity to him.
4. He prefers an earnest request to the king for his enlargement, who could not but be sensible of the injustice of his imprisonment: and such treatment as he had met with, must shortly, if continued, be his death. He begs therefore, with great humility, that at least he may not be remanded to Jonathan’s house. Note; Though we must be ready to part with our lives when God calls, we are bound to use all prudent means for our preservation.
5. The king grants his request, yea, exceeds it. He dared not discharge him, through fear of the princes; but he brings him into the court of the prison, where he was more at liberty, and enjoyed the air; and gave orders, notwithstanding the scarcity of provisions, that every day, while any bread remained, he should have a loaf for his subsistence. Thus his imprisonment really became his mercy; and he was protected both from the famine and the sword, to which those who were at large in the city were exposed. Note; God can make the events which appeared most afflictive turn out to us the most substantial blessings.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
REFLECTIONS
READER! I pass by several other weighty things, which might be proposed, from the view of the events recorded in this Chapter, to call your attention, while I wish to exercise my own, on the situation of the poor, despised, and mournful Prophet, Jeremiah. Behold his faithfulness in the midst of danger; no change in his preaching could be wrought by all their threats, or his sufferings; whether cast into prison, or whether brought forth for death. It should seem, that for many days, he lay in the dungeon unregarded and unpitied, and without food. But yet, when brought from it to deliver the word of the Lord, he had no soothing message for the king. Reader! it is the happiness of God’s people, in the present hour, that they are not called forth to such trying times and exercises: nevertheless, faithfulness in every age, though not exposing to bodily punishment, must and will expose to painful reproaches from the ungodly. It is very blessed to eye Jesus upon all these occasions; and to rest in the assurance that Jesus eyes his servants. Jeremiah was in the prison: John the beloved Apostle at Patmos, and Paul and Silas in the stocks: but Jesus was there also. Men may persecute, when he permits, as Shimei did David; but the day of retribution will come. And oh! what a tremendous day to those that offend one of Christ’s little ones! Precious Lord! let thy grace support all thy people, during the dark and trying hour, until the bright and glorious morning come, when those their enemies, that now seem to triumph, they shall see their faces no more forever.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Jer 37:21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the bakers’ street, until all the bread in the city were spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
Ver. 21. Then Zedekiah the king commanded. ] For this courtesy of his to the prophet, God granted him a natural death, and an honourable burial in Babylon.
That they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison.
And that they should give him daily a piece of bread.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
prison = guard-house. Not the same word as in Jer 37:15.
piece = a cake. Compare Jer 52:6. Three were reckoned as a meal (Luk 11:5); a soldier’s ration at that time.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
into the: Jer 32:2, Jer 32:8, Jer 38:13, Jer 38:28
and that: 1Ki 17:4-6, Job 5:20, Psa 33:18, Psa 33:19, Psa 34:9, Psa 34:10, Psa 37:3, Psa 37:19, Pro 16:7, Pro 21:1, Isa 33:16, Mat 6:33
until: Jer 38:9, Jer 52:6, Deu 28:52-57, 2Ki 25:3, Lam 2:11, Lam 2:12, Lam 2:19, Lam 2:20, Lam 4:4, Lam 4:5, Lam 4:9, Lam 4:10, Lam 5:10
Thus: Jer 38:13, Jer 38:28, Jer 39:14, Jer 39:15, Act 12:5, Act 24:27, Act 28:16, Act 28:30, Eph 4:1, Eph 6:20, 2Ti 1:8, 2Ti 2:9
Reciprocal: Exo 23:2 – to decline 1Ki 17:6 – the ravens Neh 3:25 – by the court Pro 30:8 – convenient for me Isa 3:1 – the stay Jer 33:1 – he Jer 38:6 – took
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 37:21. Jeremiah’s request was granted and he was placed in the court which was the yard around the prison and which was enclosed with a fence or other barrier. (See the comments at ch. 32: 2.) He was also favored by the icings command that he he given daily rations of bread as long as the supply lasted.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
37:21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded that they should commit Jeremiah into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of bread out of the baker’s street, until all the {i} bread in the city should be consumed. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.
(i) That is, so long as there was any bread in the city: thus God provides for his, that he will cause their enemies to preserve them to that end to which he has appointed them.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Zedekiah conceded and sent him to a better place of confinement, the court of the guard (cf. Jer 32:2; Neh 3:25). It was in this place that his cousin Hanamel visited Jeremiah (Jer 34:1-15). The king also ordered that the prophet receive bread regularly as long as there was bread in the city (cf. Rom 8:28). This is the only place in Scripture where the name of a street in Jerusalem appears: Baker Street. Had Zedekiah not feared his nobles, this vacillating king might have given Jeremiah his freedom (cf., e.g., some other vacillators: Pharaoh with Moses; Herod with John the Baptist; Pilate and Herod with Jesus; Felix, Festus, and Agrippa with Paul).
"In many ways, Zedekiah is a tragic figure. It seems that he is attracted to Jeremiah and his message like iron filings to a magnet, yet he is never able to summon enough resolve to act in response to that message. While such conclusions are speculative, it is possible that Zedekiah presents a paradigm of persons whose rejection of the purposes of God through their weakness of character is every bit as damaging and damning as the aggressive rebellion of Jehoiakim." [Note: Keown, p. 218.]