Yeremia 37:16

37:16 So ¹  Jeremiah was put in prison in a cell in the dungeon in Jonathan’s house. ²  He ³  was kept there for a long time.

Yeremia 38:6

38:6 So the officials ⁴  took Jeremiah and put him in the cistern ⁵  of Malkijah, one of the royal princes, ⁶  that was in the courtyard of the guardhouse. There was no water in the cistern, only mud. So when they lowered Jeremiah into the cistern with ropes he sank in the mud. ⁷ 

[37:16]  ¹ tn The particle כִּי (ki) here is probably temporal, introducing the protasis to the main clause in v. 17 (cf. BDB 473 s.v. כִּי 2.a). However, that would make the translation too long, so the present translation does what several modern English versions do here, though there are no parallels listed for this nuance in the lexicons.

[37:16]  ² tn Heb “Jeremiah came into the house of the pit [= “dungeon,” BDB 92 s.v. בּוֹר 4 and compare usage in Gen 40:15; 41:14] and into the cells [this word occurs only here; it is defined on the basis of the cognate languages (cf. BDB 333 s.v. חָנוּת)].” The sentence has been restructured and some words supplied in the translation to better relate it to the preceding context.

[37:16]  ³ tn Heb “Jeremiah.” But the proper name is somewhat redundant and unnecessary in a modern translation.

[38:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “they.”

[38:6]  ⁵ sn A cistern was a pear-shaped pit with a narrow opening. Cisterns were cut or dug in the limestone rock and lined with plaster to prevent seepage. They were used to collect and store rain water or water carried up from a spring.

[38:6]  ⁶ tn Heb “the son of the king.” See the translator’s note on Jer 36:26 for the rendering here.

[38:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “And they let Jeremiah down with ropes and in the cistern there was no water, only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.” The clauses have been reordered and restructured to create a more natural and smoother order in English.