Jer 38:4 | NET2full | STEP | So these officials said to the king , “ This man must be put to death . For he is demoralizing the soldiers who are left in the city as well as all the other people there by these things he is saying . This man is not seeking to help these people but is trying to harm them.”

‏ Jeremiah 38:4

4 So these officials said to the king, “This man must be put to death. For he is demoralizing ^{▼▼tn Heb “weakening the hands of.” For this idiom see BDB 951 s.v. רָפָה Pi. and compare the usage in Isa 13:7 and Ezek 21:7 (21:12 HT).} the soldiers who are left in the city as well as all the other people there by these things he is saying. ^{▼▼tn Heb “by saying these things.”} This ^{▼▼tn The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) has not been rendered here because it is introducing a causal clause parallel to the preceding one. The rendering “For” might be misunderstood as a grounds for the preceding statement. To render “And” or “Moreover” sounds a little odd here. If the particle must be represented, “Moreover” is perhaps the best translation.} man is not seeking to help these people but is trying to harm them.” ^{▼▼tn Or “is not looking out for these people’s best interests but is really trying to do them harm”; Heb “is not seeking the welfare [or “well-being”; Hebrew shalom] of this people but [their] harm [more literally, evil].”}