Chapter is not what we’ve come to expect from Jeremiah
It is a short piece of autobiography,
a personal episode in the life of the prophet
Background
King Zedekiah was the end of the line for the kings of Israel and Judah
And he was in the last full year of his reign
Jerusalem, the capital city of Judah, was under siege
the army of Babylon was at their gates
Meanwhile, Jeremiah was behind bars "in the court of the guard that was in the palace of the king"
King Zedekiah placed him there after interrogating him
“Why do you prophesy our defeat? Why did you say I would be handed over to the King of Babylon?"