Jeremiah 52:24

24 The king's deputy took a number of special prisoners: Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the associate priest, three wardens,

Jeremiah 52:24 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 52:24

And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest,
&c.] That is, out of the temple, where he was ministering, or fled for safety; this is supposed to be the father of Ezra, ( 1 Chronicles 6:14 ) ( Ezra 7:1 ) ; and Zephaniah the second priest:
or deputy priest: the "sagan" of the priests, as the Targum calls him, who was deputed to minister for the high priest, in case anything happened which hindered him from officiating; such an one there always was in later times on the day of atonement, as appears from the Misna F6; this man is thought to be the same with Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, ( Jeremiah 21:1 ) ( 29:25 ) ; and the three keepers of the door;
that is, of the temple. The Targum calls them three "amarcalin"; who had, as Jarchi says, the keys of the court committed to them. The number seems better to agree with the "gizbarim" or treasurers; of whom, it is said, they never appoint less than three treasurers, and seven "amarcalin" F7.


FOOTNOTES:

F6 Yoma, c. 1. sect. 1.
F7 Misn. Shekalim, c. 5. sect. 2.

Jeremiah 52:24 In-Context

22 Each pillar was topped with an ornate capital of bronze pomegranates and filigree, which added another seven and a half feet to its height.
23 There were ninety-six pomegranates evenly spaced - in all, a hundred pomegranates worked into the filigree.
24 The king's deputy took a number of special prisoners: Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the associate priest, three wardens,
25 the chief remaining army officer, seven of the king's counselors who happened to be in the city, the chief recruiting officer for the army, and sixty men of standing from among the people who were still there.
26 Nebuzaradan the king's deputy marched them all off to the king of Babylon at Riblah.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.