Jeremiah 39:4

“And it came to pass, [that] when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them, and all the men of war, etc.] That is, when Zedekiah and his soldiers saw the princes and generals of the Chaldean army enter the city through a breach made in the wall, and take possession of the middle gate; which they might see from some high tower where they were for safety, and to make their observation of the enemy: then they fled; finding they were not able to keep their posts and resist the enemy: and went forth out of the city by night; it being the middle of the night, as before observed out of Josephus, that the city was taken; and they took the advantage of the darkness of the night to make their escape: this…”

“the king's garden--The "gate" to it from the upper, city above was appropriated to the kings alone; stairs" led down from Mount Zion and the palace to the king's garden below (Neh 3:15). two walls--Zedekiah might have held the upper city longer, but want of provisions drove him to flee by the double wall south of Zion, towards the plains of Jericho (Jer 39:5), in order to escape beyond Jordan to Arabia-Deserta. He broke an opening in the wall to get out (Eze 12:12).”

“Compare the marginal reference. The differences between the two accounts are slight. return to 'Top of Page'”

“39:4 The steep slopes of the Kidron Valley on the east side and the Ben-Hinnom Valley on the west and south sides of Jerusalem forced the Babylonian army to concentrate their men to the north. This made it possible for Zedekiah, his family, and his officials to slip out of the south end of the city, cross the Kidron Valley, and travel up and over the Mount of Olives. Although they made this move after nightfall, the noise of their departure alerted Babylonian sentries, and soldiers were soon chasing them.”

“when: Jer 38:18-20; Lev 26:17, Lev 26:36; Deu 28:25, Deu 32:24-30; Kg2 25:4-7; Isa 30:15, Isa 30:16; Eze 12:12; Amo 2:14 betwixt: Jer 52:7-11; Ch2 32:5 Jeremiah 39:5”