John Calvin Commentary Jeremiah 38:12

"And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now these rags and worn-out garments under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so." — Jeremiah 38:12 (ASV)

We find the same words here as before: Put now the old tatters, dragged or torn and rotten, under the pits of your hands underneath the cords. This phrasing is improper in Latin, but not in Hebrew. It means, “Put them under your armpits underneath the cords.” This was to be done so that the Prophet would not receive any hurt, for he was to be drawn up by the cords, and he was fixed in the mud. This could not have been done without lacerating his skin and injuring his armpits, as we know that part is tender. Then Ebedmelech ordered the Prophet to take these old tatters and to put them under the cords, so that he might be drawn up by the men with the least injury. This was the advice of Ebedmelech, and Jeremiah did as he was instructed.

God thus delivered his Prophet in a wonderful manner from death. But from this we see how miserable his condition was, for the Prophet could not have escaped otherwise than by using these worn-out and rotten tatters and by being drawn up by cords.

There is no doubt that he had thought of the difficulty, for he had been there for some time. He was not so strong that he could trust his own arms, and he knew that his hands were not strong enough to hold fast the cords. But he doubtless cast all his cares on God and his providence.

Although he only briefly tells us that he did as he was instructed, he still leaves us to consider how much confidence he had. He immediately obeyed and did not shrink from what he might have justly feared, knowing he was feeble and weak; nor did he know whether his hands were strong enough to hold the cords, nor how the cords were to be applied to his shoulders. He therefore did what Ebedmelech had told him, for he knew that the advice came from God.