Jeremiah 41

REVIEW OF CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

I. Facts to Master

The choice which the Chaldeans gave to Jeremiah at Riblah (Jeremiah 40:4).

The man the Chaldeans appointed governor (Jeremiah 40:9).

The headquarters of Gedaliah and the new home of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 40:6; Jeremiah 40:10).

Names of the king of Ammon and the Jewish officer who plotted against Gedaliah (Jeremiah 40:14).

The various ones slain by Ishmael (Jeremiah 41:2-5).

Place where Ishmael buried those he had slain (Jeremiah 41:9).

Place to which Ishmael was attempting to flee after the assassination of Gedaliah (Jeremiah 41:10).

The captain who rescued the hostages (Jeremiah 41:11).

Place at which the rescue took place (Jeremiah 41:12).

Fate of Ishmael (Jeremiah 41:15).

The request which the captains made of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 42:1-3).

Amount of time which elapsed before the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah (Jeremiah 42:7).

Substance of Jeremiah’s advice to the remnant (Jeremiah 42:8-22).

The one the captains blamed for the oracle of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 43:3).

Place in Egypt to which the remnant came (Jeremiah 43:7).

That which Jeremiah was commanded to do in Egypt (Jeremiah 43:9).

Substance of the threat which followed the above act (Jeremiah 43:10-13).

Locations in Egypt where Jews had settled (Jeremiah 44:1).

The accusation Jeremiah made against the remnant in Egypt (Jeremiah 44:7-8).

The threat against the remnant in Egypt (Jeremiah 44:12; Jeremiah 44:14).

The goddess being worshiped by the remnant (Jeremiah 44:17).

The oath which God had taken regarding the remnant in Egypt (Jeremiah 44:26).

The name of the Egyptian pharaoh who would be given into the hands of his enemy as a sign (Jeremiah 44:30).

The person to whom Jeremiah directed a personal word (Jeremiah 45:1).

The time and occasion of the oracle in chapter 45.

II. Questions to Ponder

Why were the Chaldeans so kind to Jeremiah? (Jeremiah 39:11-14; Jeremiah 40:4-5).

What were Jews doing in foreign countries? Why did they come back after the destruction of Jerusalem? (Jeremiah 40:11-12)

Why did Gedaliah refuse the warnings of his faithful officers concerning the plot against his life? (Jeremiah 40:13-16)

Where were the eighty going to worship? Why the signs of mourning? Why no sacrificial animals? (Jeremiah 41:5)

Why did Ishmael slay these pilgrims? (Jeremiah 41:7) Why take the rest of the people in Mizpah captive? (Jeremiah 41:10)

Why does the narrator go into so much detail concerning the administration of assassination of Gedaliah?

Were the captains sincere in asking Jeremiah to seek divine guidance for the remnant? (Jeremiah 42:1-6; Jeremiah 43:2)

What is the meaning of Beth-shemesh? To what Egyptian city is Jeremiah likely referring? (Jeremiah 43:13)

Why so much emphasis on the destruction of Egyptian temples? (Jeremiah 43:12-13)

Summarize the argument for idolatry which the remnant offered in response to Jeremiah’s denunciation. (Jeremiah 44:17-19)

Summarize the rebuttal which Jeremiah gave to the women in Egypt (Jeremiah 44:20-23)

Would all the remnant in Egypt perish in war? (See 43:14; Jeremiah 44:28)

In what way would the death of Pharaoh Hophra be a sign to the Jews? What were the circumstances of his death?

Why did Baruch feel self-pity? (Jeremiah 45:3)

How does God deal with the self-pity of this disciple? (Jeremiah 45:4)

What is the meaning of the words I will give you your life for a prey?

What other great men of God experienced self-pity? How did God deal with them?

Jeremiah 41:1-3

2. The plot executed (Jeremiah 41:1-3)

TRANSLATION

(1) And it came to pass in the seventh month that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal descent, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam accompanied by ten men who were also royal princes. And they ate bread there together in Mizpah. (2) And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him rose up and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword and killed him whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land. (3) Ishmael also smote all the Jews who were with Gedaliah in Mizpah, the Chaldeans who were found there, and all the soldiers.

COMMENTS

It was in the seventh month that Ishmael began to set his plan in motion. Unfortunately the narrator has failed to mention the year in which the assassination took place. Does he mean that Gedaliah was assassinated in the same year in which Jerusalem was captured and burned? If so then Gedaliah’s governorship lasted only about three months. It is perhaps better (though certainly not necessary) to think here in terms of a governorship which lasted a few years. The Chaldean armies which were to avenge the death of governor Gedaliah arrived in Judah in 582 B.C. (Jeremiah 52:30). If Gedaliah died in the seventh month of 587 B.C., the year of Jerusalem’s destruction, it would be difficult to explain why it took the Chaldean armies six years to respond to the new rebellion in Judah.

When Ishmael and his crew of ten cutthroats arrived in Mizpah Gedaliah still suspected nothing. He invited these men of the nobility to dine with him (Jeremiah 41:1). During the course of the meal, in flagrant violation of the rules of oriental hospitality, the assassins suddenly rose up and slew Gedaliah (Jeremiah 41:2). In the ensuing panic these dedicated extremists Were also successful in slaying all the Jews present in the banquet hall and even the Chaldean bodyguard (Jeremiah 41:3). what a dastardly deed! In the ancient Near East when a man accepted an invitation to dine with another the host was honor-bound to protect his guests from all harm and the guests were expected to reciprocate in good faith.[346] Given these circumstances Gedaliah was actually defenseless. Josephus[347] adds the tradition that Gedaliah was intoxicated at the time he was murdered. Throughout the period of the exile the Jews observed the third day of the seventh month as a fast day to commemorate the assassination of Gedaliah (Zechariah 7:5; Zechariah 8:19).

[346] Bright, op. cit., p. 254.

[347] Antiquities X. 9.

Jeremiah 41:4-9

3. The massacre of the pilgrims (Jeremiah 41:4-9)

TRANSLATION

(4) And it came to pass on the day after the murder of Gedaliah, while no man yet knew of it, (5) eighty men from Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria who had shaved their beards, torn their garments, and cut themselves, came with offerings and incense in their hand to present at the house of the LORD. (6) And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them weeping as he went. (7) And when he reached them he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. (7) And when they came into the midst of the city Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them and cast them into the cistern, he and the men who were with him. (8) However, ten men among them said unto Ishmael, Do not kill us for we have provisions of wheat, barley, oil, and honey in the field. So he stopped and did not kill them along with their brethren. (9) Now the cistern into which Ishmael threw all the bodies of the men he had slain in addition to Gedaliah is the one which king Asa made as a defense measure against Baasha king of Israel. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those who had been slain.

COMMENTS

For two days Ishmael and his brigands controlled the town of Mizpah. No one was allowed to leave the town and therefore no one outside Mizpah knew that the crime had been committed (Jeremiah 41:4). The women, children and old men left in Mizpah were no match for the armed soldiers of Ishmael though they were few in number. Apparently Ishmael delayed his return to Ammon in order that he might increase his booty at the expense of some unsuspecting group of travelers who might be passing through Mizpah. This opportunity came on the second day after the murder of Gedaliah. A group of eighty pilgrims approached the town of Mizpah on their way to offer sacrifices at the ruins of the Temple in Jerusalem. These men were pious Israelites living in the former territory of the Northern Kingdom. Though the Temple had been destroyed and Jerusalem was in ruins these faithful few continued to observe the appointed festivals of the law of Moses. However, the festivals were no longer occasions for joy but for lamentation. The shaved beards, torn clothes and cut bodies are signs of the most intense mourning (Jeremiah 41:5).

Cunning Ishmael, shedding crocodile tears as though he too were sharing in the lamentation of the hour, went out to meet the pilgrims. He lured them into the town of Mizpah with the appeal that they should salute Gedaliah the governor of the land while they were in the vicinity (Jeremiah 41:6). As the unsuspecting pilgrims entered the town, Ishmael’s gang pounced upon them and murdered seventy of these harmless and helpless people. The corpses of the unfortunate victims were thrown into an old cistern constructed three hundred years earlier by King Asa when he fortified Mizpah against the possible attack of King Baasha of the Northern Kingdom of Israel (Jeremiah 41:9).[348] Some fifty such cisterns have been found at the ancient site of Mizpah. It is impossible, of course, to identify the one which was made by Asa.

[348] Cf. 1 Kings 15:22; 2 Chronicles 16:6. Apparently Gedaliah’s body was also in this cistern for verse nine states that their bodies were by the side of Gedaliah (ASV). The KJV wrongly translates here because of Gedaliah and creates the false impression that the pilgrims died because of some connection to Gedaliah.

During the massacre ten of the eighty men were spared because they offered to show Ishmael the whereabouts of stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey (Jeremiah 41:8). Probably these goods were stored away in underground cisterns on their fields. The bribe was sufficient and Ishmael spared the lives of these men. Perhaps this reveals Ishmael’s motive in the massacre. He is seeking supplies and booty for his band of robbers and for the king of Ammon, who had sponsored the enterprise.

Jeremiah 41:10-16

4. The deliverance of the hostages (Jeremiah 41:10-16)

TRANSLATION

(10) Then Ishmael took captive the rest of the people who were in Mizpah, the daughters of the king, and all the rest of the people who were in Mizpah whom Nebuzaradan, the commander of the guard, had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah took them captive and set out with the intention of crossing over unto the Ammonites. (11) And Johanan the son of Kareah and all the officers of the forces which were with him heard all the terrible things that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done. (12) And he took all the men and set out with the intention of fighting with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah; and they caught up with him at the great pool which was in Gibeon. (13) And when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the officers of the forces which were with him, they rejoiced. (14) And all the people which Ishmael had taken captive from Mizpah turned and went back to Jo hanan the son of Kareah. (15) But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan the son of Kareah with eight men and went to the Ammorites. (16) Then Johanan the son of Kareah and all the officers of the forces which were with him took all the remnant of the people whom he had rescued from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikammen, soldiers, women children and eunuchs which he brought from Gibeon.

COMMENTS

After the slaughter of the Israelite pilgrims Ishmael and his men took captive the entire population of Mizpah. Among the captives were the daughters of the king, i.e., princesses of the royal house whom Nebuchadnezzar had permitted to remain in Judah. Ishmael’s motives here are not entirely clear. Did he intend to sell these captives on a foreign slave market? Did he intend to use these people as hostages to guarantee his safe return across the Jordan to Ammon? In view of the detail in which the escapades of Ishmael are recounted, One cannot help but wonder if Jeremiah and Baruch were among the Mizpah captives. This, of course, must remain a matter of speculation.

It was not long before the Mizpah massacre was discovered. When Johanan and the other captives heard what had happened they took decisive action (Jeremiah 41:11). They immediately gathered together their fighting men and set out in pursuit of the brigands. The force of Johanan caught Up with Ishmael at the great waters near Gibeon[349] three miles southwest of Mizpah (Jeremiah 41:12). When the frightened captives saw the forces of Johanan approaching they took new heart, broke ranks and ran in the direction of their deliverers (Jeremiah 41:13-14). Ishmael and eight of his men were successful in escaping from Johanan, but two of the murderers apparently were caught and slain (Jeremiah 41:15).

[349] The pool is mentioned in 2 Samuel 2:13 as the place of the battle between Abner and Joab.

D. The Plight of the Remnant Jeremiah 41:17 to Jeremiah 43:7

Following the death of Gedaliah the tiny remnant in Judah was thrown into confusion. Gedaliah was dead; Ishmael had escaped. It would only be a matter of time before Nebuchadnezzar would appear to avenge the death of his governor. The preceding narrative has skillfully portrayed the dire plight of the people who remained in the land following the destruction of Jerusalem. But they had one consolationGod was still with them and the prophet of God was still available to deliver His word to them. This section of the book moves rapidly through four stages: (1) the reasoning of the people (Jeremiah 41:17-18); (2) the request to the prophet (Jeremiah 42:1-6); (3) the response of the Lord (Jeremiah 42:7-22); and (4) the rashness of the leaders (Jeremiah 43:1-7).

Jeremiah 41:17-18

1. The reasoning of the people (Jeremiah 41:17-18)

TRANSLATION

(17) And setting out they lodged at Gerut-Chimham near Bethlehem with the purpose of going on to Egypt. (18) They feared because of the Chaldeans since Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land.

COMMENTS

The remnant was completely dismayed and unnerved by the events of the past few days. They feared the wrath of king Nebuchadnezzar. After all, the governor whom he had appointed was dead and several Chaldean officers had been slain. No doubt Nebuchadnezzar would construe this as an act of overt rebellion against his authority. Since the real assassins had escaped, surely the Chaldeans would pour out their wrath on the Jews who remained in the land. They must leave the land before the soldiers of Nebuchadnezzar appeared on the scene. Without even pausing to return to Mizpah to gather their belongings the Jews headed south in panic-stricken flight. They stopped for the night near Bethlehem at the habitation (or inn) of Chimham.[350] The Hebrew word translated habitation (geruth) occurs only here. Along major thoroughfares in antiquity benevolent souls would erect rude and simple shelters for the benefit of travelers.[351] It was at one of these rest stops (called khans) that the tired remnant stopped for the night. Their intention was to seek safety in Egypt. As long as Gedaliah was alive the tiny community and prospered. The utter confusion and helplessness of the remnant after the governor’s death only serves to underscore the marvelous leadership of Gedaliah.

[350] Chimham was a son of Barzillai (2 Samuel 19:37) the kindly old gentleman who befriended David when he was in flight from his son Absalom. It may be that David had made a land grant to Chimham in gratitude for what his father had done.

[351] Streane, op. cit., p. 269.