Yeremia 25:24

25:24 all the kings of Arabia who ¹  live in the desert;

Yeremia 38:5

38:5 King Zedekiah said to them, “Very well, you can do what you want with him. ²  For I cannot do anything to stop you.” ³ 

Yeremia 38:8

38:8 Ebed Melech departed the palace and went to speak to the king. He said to him,

[25:24]  ¹ tc Or “and all the kings of people of mixed origin who.” The Greek version gives evidence of having read the term only once; it refers to the “people of mixed origin” without reference to the kings of Arabia. While the term translated “people of mixed origin” seems appropriate in the context of a group of foreigners within a larger entity (e.g. Israel in Exod 12:38; Neh 13:3; Egypt in Jer 50:37), it seems odd to speak of them as a separate entity under their own kings. The presence of the phrase in the Hebrew text and the other versions dependent upon it can be explained as a case of dittography.

[25:24]  sn See further Jer 49:28-33 for judgment against some of these Arabian peoples.

[38:5]  ² tn Heb “Behold, he is in your hands [= power/control].”

[38:5]  ³ tn Heb “For the king cannot do a thing with/against you.” The personal pronoun “I” is substituted in the English translation due to differences in style; Hebrew style often uses the third person or the title in speaking of oneself but English rarely if ever does. Compare the common paraphrasis of “your servant” for “I” in Hebrew (cf. BDB 714 s.v. עֶבֶד 6 and usage in 1 Sam 20:7, 8) and compare the usage in Pss 63:11 (63:12 HT); 61:6 (61:7 HT) where the king is praying for himself. For the meaning of יָכֹל (yakhol) as “to be able to do anything,” see BDB 407 s.v. יָכֹל 1.g.