Jeremiah 38:26
Then thou shalt say unto them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan’s house, to die there. Then thou shalt say unto them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan’s house, to die there.
The events belong late in Jeremiah's experiences in Judah, during the two years before Jerusalem fell. From Jeremiah 20 onward the chapters are not in chronological order, having been left improperly arranged or disarranged by accident when the manuscript was placed together in book form, though Jeremiah himself gives data that makes the chronological order clear. That order runs 27, 28, 21, 34, 37, 32, 33, 38, placing chapter 38 after chapters 32 and 33.
The verse belongs to the account of Jeremiah's secret consultations and interview with Zedekiah during Jerusalem's siege. The king would meet with the prophet privately and promised not to hand him over. In the meeting Jeremiah urged the king to obey God's warning to surrender to Babylon.
Fear of the people and false hopes kept the king from following the counsel to yield. Zedekiah's continuing fear of people is shown in the episode, and Jeremiah was left burdened afterward. The chapter as a whole shows Jeremiah as a faithful prophet suffering imprisonment for delivering the Lord's message rather than speaking as wicked rulers wished. It illustrates rejection of the Lord's word in reproof, counsel, and warning.
The verse records the cover answer the king instructed Jeremiah to give the officials if questioned, to conceal the substance of their meeting. He was to say that he had presented his supplication before the king not to be sent back to Jonathan's house to die there. He had asked the king not to send him back to Jonathan's house, where he would die.