Jeremiah 39:17

Jer 39:17 But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the LORD: and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou [art] afraid.

Ver. 17. But I will deliver thee in that day.] From the sword, the famine, and the pestilence. "A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand, but it shall not come nigh thee; only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked"; {Psa 91:7-8} and that the Lord is sure, though slow, tarditatem supplicii gravitate compensans. {a}

And thou shalt not be delivered into the hands of those men.] Zedekiah’s courtiers, who do bear thee an aching tooth for thy kindness to my prophet, and have vowed revenge.

{a} Val. Max.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

the men of whom thou art afraid-- (Jer 38:1, Jer 38:4-6). The courtiers and princes hostile to thee for having delivered Jeremiah shall have no power to hurt. Heretofore intrepid, he was now afraid; this prophecy was therefore the more welcome to him.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

He then adds, But I will deliver thee in that day, and thou shalt not be given up into the hand of the men whose face thou fearest Here God promises that Ebedmelech would be saved through a special privilege; and the Prophet shews that this prophecy had not been without reason announced. For though Ebedmelech had, with an intrepid mind, undertaken the cause of Jeremiah, and boldly and perseveringly fronted all reproaches, he yet was not divested of all the feelings of nature, but he had his fears, especially when he saw the cause of fear set before him. Hence the Prophet says, that he feared the face of enemies: and this might, at the same time, avail to rouse him to receive with more alacrity, the promise offered to him; for we know that the blessings of God are, in a manner, deemed of no value by us, when we do not know how necessary to us they are. The prophecies and the promises, by which God comforts us and animates us to patience, are for the most part viewed as of no worth, until God really shews to us how miserable we must be, except he thus succors us. Then the Prophet wished to remind Ebedmelech of this, when he said that he feared. Thou fearest, he says. For if Ebedmelech had no fear, he might have disregarded this prophecy as being superfluous. But being reminded of his fear and anxiety, he became more ready to receive what God promised to him.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

17. the men of whom thou art afraid] meaning perhaps the princes, who were hostile to Jeremiah and so would punish Ebed-melech for helping him out of the dungeon, or, as Jer_39:18 suggests, the victorious army, in which case cp. Jer_22:25.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the Lord,.... As from the famine and pestilence, so from the sword of the Chaldeans, and from all the evil that shall come upon the city in the day of its destruction:

and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the man of whom thou art afraid; for though he was a bold and intrepid man, as appears by his charging the princes and prime ministers of state with having done evil to the prophet, and that in the presence of the king; yet at times he was not without his fears, which is the case of the best of men; and whereas he knew the courtiers owed him a grudge, for the freedom he took with their characters before the king, and for his friendship to Jeremiah, he might fear they would seek to do him a mischief, and contrive his ruin, in some way or another; but here he is assured he should not be given into their hands; or rather, as Jarchi, into the hands of the Chaldeans; for, as he believed in the Lord and his prophet, so he knew that all that was predicted would certainly come to pass; and that the city, with the king, his nobles, and the inhabitants of it, would fall into the hands of the Chaldeans; he might tremble at the righteous judgments of God, and fear that he himself would become a prey unto them; but here he is assured of the contrary.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Of whom thou art afraid - The Chaldaeans. Ebed-melech apparently looked forward with much alarm to the b oodshed sure to take place at the storming of the city.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

But promiseth Ebed-melech he should be delivered in that evil day; and, whether he feared the Chaldeans, that he should lose his life by them when they should break up the city, or the princes, whom he had angered by complaining to the king of their hard usage of the prophet, he should come into none of their power.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

17. The men of whom thou art afraid — The Chaldeans. But some think the courtiers and princes, against whom Ebed-melech had set himself in delivering Jeremiah.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

General Information:

Yahweh continues speaking to Jeremiah.

that day

This refers to the day the Babylonians break through the walls of Jerusalem to destroy the city.

this is Yahweh's declaration

Yahweh speaks of himself by name to express the certainty of what he is declaring. See how you translated this in Jeremiah 1:8. AT: "this is what Yahweh has declared" or "this is what I, Yahweh, have declared" (See: First, Second, or Third Person)

you will not be given into the hand of the men whom you fear

Here "hand" refers to power or control. This can be translated in active form. AT: "the men you fear will not harm you" or "I will not allow anyone to put you under the control of the people whom you fear" (See: Metonymy and Active or Passive)

You will not fall by the sword

The sword is a metonym for dying in war. AT: "No one will kill you with their sword" or "You will not die in war" (See: Euphemism and Metonymy)

with your life

"alive"

translationWords

declare

hand

sword

life

trust

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

into the hand[s] of the men into the hand[s] of the Chaldeans.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.