Now in the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal offspring and one of the chief officers of the king, and ten men with him, came to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they ate bread together in Mizpah.
Parallel Translations
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Now in the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal offspring and one of the chief officers of the king, and ten men with him, came to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they ate bread together in Mizpah.
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Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and the princes of the king, even ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah.
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Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and one of the chief officers of the king, and ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah.
Cross-references (20)
Passages linked to Jeremiah 41:1 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Jeremiah 40:8 then Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men came to Gedaliah to Mizpah.
- Psalms 41:9 Yes, my own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, who ate bread with me, has lifted up his heel against me.
- Jeremiah 40:6 Then Jeremiah went to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah, and lived with him among the people who were left in the land.
- 2 Samuel 3:27 When Abner was returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the middle of the gate to speak with him quietly, and struck him there in the body, so that he died, for the blood of Asahel his brother.
- 2 Samuel 20:9-10 Joab said to Amasa, “Is it well with you, my brother?” Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him. But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab’s hand. So he struck him with it in the body, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and didn’t strike him again; and he died. Joab and Abishai his brother pursued Sheba the son of Bichri.
- 2 Kings 11:1 Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal offspring.
- 2 Kings 25:25 But in the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal offspring came, and ten men with him, and struck Gedaliah, so that he died, with the Jews and the Chaldeans that were with him at Mizpah.
- 2 Chronicles 22:10 Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal offspring of the house of Judah.
- Psalms 109:5 They have rewarded me evil for good, and hatred for my love.
- Proverbs 13:10 Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is with people who take advice.
- Proverbs 26:23-26 Like silver dross on an earthen vessel are the lips of a fervent one with an evil heart. A malicious man disguises himself with his lips, but he harbors evil in his heart. When his speech is charming, don’t believe him, for there are seven abominations in his heart. His malice may be concealed by deception, but his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
- Proverbs 27:4 Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who is able to stand before jealousy?
- Jeremiah 36:12 he went down into the king’s house, into the scribe’s room: and behold, all the princes were sitting there, Elishama the scribe, Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, Elnathan the son of Achbor, Gemariah the son of Shaphan, Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes.
- Jeremiah 36:20 They went in to the king into the court; but they had laid up the scroll in the room of Elishama the scribe. Then they told all the words in the hearing of the king.
- Jeremiah 40:14-16 and said to him, “Do you know that Baalis the king of the children of Ammon has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take your life?” But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam didn’t believe them. Then Johanan the son of Kareah spoke to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying, “Please let me go, and I will kill Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man will know it. Why should he take your life, that all the Jews who are gathered to you should be scattered, and the remnant of Judah perish?” But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said to Johanan the son of Kareah, “You shall not do this thing; for you speak falsely of Ishmael.”
- Ezekiel 17:13 He took some of the royal offspring, and made a covenant with him. He also brought him under an oath, and took away the mighty of the land;
- Daniel 11:26-27 Yes, those who eat of his dainties will destroy him, and his army will be swept away. Many will fall down slain. As for both these kings, their hearts will be to do mischief, and they will speak lies at one table; but it won’t prosper, for the end will still be at the appointed time.
- Luke 22:47-48 While he was still speaking, behold, a multitude, and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He came near to Jesus to kiss him. But Jesus said to him, “Judas, do you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?”
- John 13:18 I don’t speak concerning all of you. I know whom I have chosen. But that the Scripture may be fulfilled, ‘He who eats bread with me has lifted up his heel against me.’
- James 4:1-3 Where do wars and fightings among you come from? Don’t they come from your pleasures that war in your members? You lust, and don’t have. You murder and covet, and can’t obtain. You fight and make war. You don’t have, because you don’t ask. You ask, and don’t receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain It was a detestable cruelty and barbarity in Ishmael…
It was a detestable cruelty and barbarity in Ishmael to kill Gedaliah who entertained him, and whom he found to possess a paternal regard towards him. Heathens have ever deemed hospitality sacred; and to violate it has been counted by them as the greatest atrocity; and hospitable Jupiter ever possessed among them the right of taking vengeance, if any one broke an oath given when at table. Now Ishmael had sworn, as we have seen, that he would be faithful to Gedaliah. He was again received by him, and was treated hospitably; and from his table he rose up to slay the innocent man, who was his friend, and had acted towards him, as it has been stated, the part of a father. And hence he became not only a parricide, but also the traitor of his own country; for he knew that it could not be but that Nebuchadnezzar would become more and more incensed against that miserable people, whom he had spared: but he made no account of his own fidelity, nor shewed any regard for his own brethren, whom he knew he exposed to slaughter and ruin.
But the cause of this madness is here indirectly intimated; the Prophet says, that he was of the royal seed. The royal seed was then, indeed, in the greatest disgrace; the king’s children had been slain; he himself had been taken away bound to Babylon after Nebuchadnezzar had made him blind. But we see, that those who had been once in any dignity, can hardly relinquish those high notions by which they are inflated. So that when those of the royal seed are reduced to extreme poverty and want, they still aim at something royal, and never submit to the power of God. The fountain then of this madness the Prophet points out here, as by the finger, when he says, that Ishmael was of the royal seed: for he thought that it was by no means an honor to him, that Gedaliah was set over the Jews. He, no doubt, imagined that the kingdom was to be perpetual, since God had so often promised, that the throne of David would stand as long as the moon continued in the heavens. (Psalm 89:37) But mere ambition and pride led him to commit this abominable murder: and thus it was, that he suffered himself to be persuaded by the king of Ammon.
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He then came together with the princes of the king, even those who were in the first rank when Zedekiah reigned. Then the Prophet adds, that they did eat bread. This phrase intimates that they were received hospitably, and were admitted to the table of Gedaliah. And this kindness and benevolence ought to have induced Ishmael and his associates to spare their host. But it follows, that they rose up. This circumstance, as to the time, enhanced their crime; for it was at the time they were eating that Ishmael slew Gedaliah; and thus he polluted his hands with innocent blood at the sacred table, having paid no regard to the rights of hospitality. Now the Prophet shews that this was fatal to the miserable remnant, who were permitted to dwell in the land. For, first, it could not have been done without exciting the highest indignation of the king of Babylon, for he had set Gedaliah over the land; and it was not expressed without reason, but emphatically, that this slaughter roused the displeasure of the king of Babylon, because the murder of Gedaliah was a manifest contempt of his authority. And then there was another cause of displeasure, for the Chal-deans in Mizpah, who had been given as protectors, were killed. For the Prophet tells us, that they were men of war, that no one might think that Chaldeans were sent there to occupy the place of the Jews, as it is sometimes the case when colonists or some such men settle in a land: they were military men, who had been chosen as a guard and protection to Gedaliah. Thus then was the wrath of the king of Babylon provoked to. vent his rage on the remnant to whom he had shewed mercy. It now follows, —
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain They did eat together as familiar friends.
They did eat together as familiar friends.
The city was destroyed in the fourth month: and in the seventh month, which contained part of September, and part of October, was the governor Gedaliah slain.
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Meaning, Zedekiah.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Jer 41:1 Now it came to pass in the…
Jer 41:1 Now it came to pass in the seventh month, [that] Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and the princes of the king, even ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah.
Ver. 1. Now it came to pass in the seventh month.] Within two or three months after the destruction of Jerusalem. So soon did this wicked wretch, so spurred on by ambition, which ever rideth without reins, renew the miserable fate of his forlorn country. And the like did Barcocab and his seditious complices after the last devastation, thereby bringing upon themselves again the Roman forces, who thereupon, under Adrian the emperor, utterly took away both their place and their nation.
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That Ishmael of the seed royal.] And therefore affecting the kingdom, or at least the ruledom; and envying that Gedaliah - a new man, or mushroom rather, - should be preferred before him.
And the princes of the king.] Who had been princes and grandees, as the Hebrew hath it, in Zedekiah’s days, with whom likely they fled and escaped, stealing away by night, though he could not. {2Ki 25:4}
Even ten men with him.] Whom Ishmael had promised probably to restore their principalities when he should be king, or viceroy at least under Baalis King of Ammon, the great engineer of all the ensuing mischief wrought by Ishmael and these ten desperadoes together with their retinue.
Came unto Gedaliah.] To whom before they had done homage, and now came pretending to give him a friendly visit.
“ Tuta frequensque via est per amici fallere nomen:
Tuta frequensque licet sit via, crimen habet. ”
And there they did eat bread,] i.e., They feasted. Much treachery and cruelty hath been exercised at feasts. Absalom slew Amnon at a feast; so did Zimri King Elah; so did Alexander Philotas; so doth the Great Turk many of his bashaws; the black gown is cast upon them as they sit with him at supper, and then they are strangled. {a}
{a} Turkish History.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain In the seventh month; that is, three months after…
In the seventh month; that is, three months after the city was taken, Jer 39:2.
Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal; the same Ishmael that came to Gedaliah, Jer 40:8,9, to whom he sware protection; only here we are told that he was of the royal blood, which might both raise his spirits, as having a more legal pretence to the government, and rendered him a fitter instrument for Baalis, the king or queen of the Ammonites, to make use of.
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And the princes of the king, even ten men with him; some of the princes, who had escaped the army of the king of Babylon; they and their retinue came in pretended compliment to Gedaliah, who treated them kindly, they dined or supped with him.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain It is hard to say which is more astonishing,…
It is hard to say which is more astonishing, God's permitting or men's perpetrating such villanies as here we find committed. Such base, barbarous, bloody work is here done by men who by their birth should have been men of honour, by their religion just men, and this done upon those of their own nature, their own nation, their own religion, and now their brethren in affliction, when they were all brought under the power of the victorious Chaldeans, and smarting under the judgments of God, upon no provocation, nor with any prospect of advantage - all done, not only in cold blood, but with art and management. We have scarcely such an instance of perfidious cruelty in all the scripture; so that with John, when he saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, we may well wonder with great admiration. But God permitted it for the completing of the ruin of an unhumbled people, and the filling up of the measure of their judgments, who had filled up the measure of their iniquities. Let it inspire us with an indignation at the wickedness of men and an awe of God's righteousness.
I. Ishmael and his party treacherously killed Gedaliah himself in the first place. Though the king of Babylon had made him a great man, had given him a commission to be governor of the land which he had conquered, though God had made him a good man and a great blessing to his country, and his agency for its welfare was as life from the dead, yet neither could secure him. Ishmael was of the seed royal (Jer 41:1) and therefore jealous of Gedaliah's growing greatness, and enraged that he should merit and accept a commission under the king of Babylon. He had ten men with him that were princes of the king too, guided by the same peevish resentments that he was; these had been with Gedaliah before, to put themselves under his protection (Jer 40:8), and now came again to make him a visit; and they did eat bread together in Mizpah. he entertained them generously, and entertained no jealousy of them, notwithstanding the information given him by Johanan. They pretended friendship to him, and gave him no warning to stand on his guard; he was in sincerity friendly to them, and did all he could to oblige them. But those that did eat bread with him lifted up the heel against him. They did not pick a quarrel with him, but watched an opportunity, when they had him alone, and assassinated him, Jer 41:2.
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II. They likewise put all to the sword that they found in arms there, both Jews and Chaldeans, all that were employed under Gedaliah or were in any capacity to revenge his death, Jer 41:3. As if enough of the blood of Israelites had not been shed by the Chaldeans, their own princes here mingle it with the blood of the Chaldeans. The vine-dressers and the husbandmen were busy in the fields, and knew nothing of this bloody massacre; so artfully was it carried on and concealed.
III. Some good honest men, that were going all in tears to lament the desolations of Jerusalem, were drawn in by Ishmael, and murdered with the rest. Observe, 1. Whence they came (Jer 41:5) - from Shechem, Samaria, and Shiloh, places that had been famous, but wee now reduced; they belonged to the ten tribes, but there were some in those countries that retained an affection for the worship of the God of Israel. 2. Whither they were going - to the house of the Lord, the temple at Jerusalem, which, no doubt, they had heard of the destruction of, and were going to pay their respects to its ashes, to see its ruins, that their eye might affect their heart with sorrow for them. They favour the dust thereof, Psa 102:14. They took offerings and incense in their hand, that if they should find any altar there, though it were but an altar of earth, and any priest ready to officiate, they might not be without something to offer; if not, yet they showed their good-will, as Abraham, when he came to the place of the altar, though the altar was gone. The people of God used to go rejoicing to the house of the Lord, but these went in the habit of mourners, with their clothes rent and their heads shaven; for the providence of God loudly called to weeping and mourning, because it was not with the faithful worshippers of God as in months past. 3. How they were decoyed into a fatal snare by Ishmael's malice. Hearing of their approach, he resolved to be the death of them too, so bloodthirsty was he. He seemed as if he hated every one that had the name of an Israelite or the face of an honest man. These pilgrims towards Jerusalem he had a spite to, for the sake of their errand. Ishmael went out to meet them with crocodiles' tears, pretending to bewail the desolations of Jerusalem as much as they; and, to try how they stood affected to Gedaliah and his government, he courted them into the town and found them to have a respect for him, which confirmed him in his resolution to murder them. He said, Come to Gedaliah, pretending he would have them come and live with him, when really he intended that they should come and die with him, Jer 41:6. They had heard such a character of Gedaliah that they were willing enough to be acquainted with him; but Ishmael, when he had them in the midst of the town, fell upon them and slew them (Jer 41:7), and no doubt took the offerings they had and converted them to his own use; for he that would not stick at such a murder would not stick at sacrilege. Notice is taken of his disposing of the dead bodies of these and the rest that he had slain; he tumbled them all into a great pit (Jer 41:7), the same pit that Asa king of Judah had digged long before, either in the city or adjoining to it, when he built or fortified Mizpah (Kg1 15:22), to be a frontier-garrison against Baasha king of Israel and for fear of him, Jer 41:9. Note, Those that dig pits with a good intention know not what bad use they may be put to, one time or other. He slew so many that he could not afford them each a grave, or would not do them so much honour, but threw them all promiscuously into one pit. Among these last that were doomed to the slaughter there were ten that obtained a pardon, by working, not on the compassion, but the covetousness, of those that had them at their mercy, Jer 41:8. They said to Ishmael, when he was about to suck their blood, like an insatiable horseleech, after that of the companions, Slay us not, for we have treasurers in the field, country treasures, large stocks upon the ground, abundance of such commodities as the country affords, wheat and barley, and oil and honey, intimating that they would discover it to him and put him in possession of it all, if he would spare them. Skin for skin, and all that a man has, will he give for his life. This bait prevailed. Ishmael saved them, not for the love of mercy, but for the love of money. Here were riches kept for the owners thereof, not to their hurt (Ecc 5:13) and to cause them to lose their lives (Job 31:39), but to their good and the preserving of their lives. Solomon observes that sometimes the ransom of a man's life is his riches. But those who think thus to bribe death, when it comes with commission, and plead with it, saying, Slay us not, for we have treasures in the field, will find death inexorable and themselves wretchedly deceived.
IV. He carried off the people prisoners. The king's daughters (whom the Chaldeans cared not for troubling themselves with when they had the king's sons) and the poor of the land, the vine-dressers and husband-men, that were committed to Gedaliah's charge, were all led away prisoners towards the country of the Ammonites (Jer 41:10), Ishmael probably intending to make a present of them, as the trophies of his barbarous victory, to the king of that country, that set him on. This melancholy story is a warning to us never to be secure in this world. Worse may be yet to come when we think the worst is over; and that end of one trouble, which we fancy to be the end of all trouble, may prove to be the beginning of another, of a greater. These prisoners thought, Surely the bitterness of death, and of captivity, is past; and yet some died by the sword and others went into captivity. When we think ourselves safe, and begin to be easy, destruction may come that way that we little expect it. There is many a ship wrecked in the harbour. We can never be sure of peace on this side heaven.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Now it came to pass in the seventh month,....…
Now it came to pass in the seventh month,.... The month Tisri, which answers to part of our September, and part of October; according to the Jewish (b) chronicle, it was on the third day of this month, fifty two days after the destruction of the temple, that Gedaliah was slain; on which day a fast was kept by the Jews, after their return from captivity, on this occasion, called the fast of the seventh month, Zac 7:5; though, according to Kimchi and Ben Melech, this event happened on the first day of the month, the beginning of the new year; but the fast was kept the day following, because the first day was a festival. Josephus (c) says it was thirty days after Johanan had departed from Gedaliah, having given him information of the conspiracy against him:
that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal: not the son of King Zedekiah, but one of the remoter branches of the family; whether Elishama his father was the same with Elishama the scribe is not certain, Jer 36:12; the Jews have a tradition that he descended from Jerahmeel, whose wife, Atarah, was the daughter of a Heathen king, and was a proselyte, which Kimchi on the place relates; see Ch1 2:26; this circumstance, of his being akin to the royal family, is mentioned, to show that he envied the governor, and bore him a grudge for the honour he had, thinking that he had a better title to it, as being of the seed royal:
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and the princes of the king, even ten men with him; some of the nobles of Zedekiah, who fled with him from Jerusalem, and deserted him when he was pursued and taken, and ever since had remained in the land; even ten of these joined with Ishmael in the conspiracy against Gedaliah, whom they bore an ill will to, for going over to the Chaldeans, and envying the power he was now possessed of. Some think these were ten ruffians, besides the princes of the king, since it may be rendered, "and the princes of the king, and ten men with him"; whom Ishmael and the princes took with them, as fit persons to assassinate the governor; and, besides, it is thought that eleven men were not sufficient to slay the Jews and the Chaldeans, as afterwards related; though it may be observed, that Ishmael, and these ten princes, did not come alone, as it can hardly be imagined they should, but with a number of servants and soldiers with them: these
came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah: they had been with him before, to whom he had swore, and given them assurance of security; and they departed from him to their respective cities, seemingly satisfied; and now return, to pay him a friendly visit, as they pretended:
and there they did eat bread together at Mizpah; had a feast, and kept holiday together, it being a new moon, the first day of the month, and the beginning of the new year too; so that it was a high festival: and perhaps this season was fixed upon the rather, to cover their design, and to perpetrate it; pretending they came to keep the festival with him, and who, no doubt, liberally provided for them; for bread here is put for all provisions and accommodations.
(b) Seder Olam Rabba, c. 26. p. 76. (c) Antiqu. l. 10. c. 9. sect. 4.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Ishmael, under a colour of friendship kills Gedaliah and…
Ishmael, under a colour of friendship kills Gedaliah and others, both Jews and Chaldeans, ver. 1-9. He purposes to carry the residue captive to the Ammonites, but they are rescued from him by Johanan, who intends to flee into Egypt, ver. 10-18.
Now - Three months after the city was taken. Ishmael - The same Ishmael that came to Gedaliah, ver. 8, 9, to whom he swear protection; only here we are told he was of the royal blood, which might both raise his spirits, as having a more legal pretense to the government, and rendered him a fitter instrument, for Baalis the king or queen of the Ammonites to make use of. The princes - Some of the princes, who had escaped the army of the king of Babylon.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Ishmael executes his conspiracy against Gedaliah the governor
CHAPTER XLI
Ishmael executes his conspiracy against Gedaliah the governor
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and his companions, and attempts to carry away the Jews who
were with him captives to the Ammonites, 1-10;
but Johanan recovers them, and purposes to flee into Egypt,
11-18.
NOTES ON CHAP XLI
Verse 1. Now-in the seventh month] Answering to the first new moon in our month of October.
There they did eat bread together] This was the same as making a solemn covenant; for he who ate bread with another was ever reputed a friend.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Jer 41:1. Now, in the seventh month — Answering…
Jer 41:1. Now, in the seventh month — Answering partly to our September, and partly to October; two months after the taking of Jerusalem. The murder of Gedaliah gave occasion to the fasts of the seventh month, which the Jews observed after their return from captivity, Zec 7:5; Zec 8:19. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah — The same Ishmael that came to Gedaliah, Jer 40:8-9, and to whom he sware protection; of the seed royal — Being of the family of David, he supposed he had a greater right to the government than Gedaliah, and therefore seems to have borne him a grudge: on which account he was the fitter instrument for the king of the Ammonites to make use of; and the princes of the king, even ten men with him — Some of the chief officers of state belonging to Zedekiah. These, undoubtedly, brought a great number of others with them in their retinue, or else they could not have made such a destruction as they did.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain The seventh month - Gedaliah’s government lasted less than…
The seventh month - Gedaliah’s government lasted less than two months.
Even - Rather, and. Ishmael was descended probably from Elishama the son of David 2Sa 5:16. Ten grandees each with his retinue would have aroused suspicion, but the smallness of Ishmael’s following put Gedaliah completely off his guard.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Month; Tisri, the third of which is still observed…
Month; Tisri, the third of which is still observed as a fast by the Jews. (Calmet) --- Godolias had given a supper to the traitors, and had drunk plentifully. They set upon him while he and the people were retired to rest. (Josephus, Antiquities x. 11.) --- This happened two months after the burning of Jerusalem, chap. xxix. 2. Nabuchodonosor soon after punished this perfidy of the Ammonites. (Calmet) --- Bread: feasted. (Haydock) --- Such tragedies are usually performed with the show of friendship. (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain Chap. 41
5. THE MURDER OF GEDALIAH AND ITS CONSEQUENCES
Chap. 41
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1Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and the princes of the king, even ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did 2eat bread together in Mizpah. Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword, and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made 3governor over the land. Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there, the men of war.
4And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man 5knew it, that there came certain [men] from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore [eighty] men, having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves [their bodies], with offerings and incense in their 6hand, to bring them to the house of the Lord [Jehovah]. And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went: And it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah the Song of Solomon 7 of Ahikam. And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them and cast them into the midst of the pit 8[slew them into the cistern],1 he, and the men that were with him. But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael. Slay us not: for we have treasures in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey. So he forbare, and 9slew them not among their brethren. Now the pit [cistern] wherein Ishmael had cast all the dead bodies of the men, whom he had slain because [by the hand] of2 Gedaliah, was it [that] which Asa the king had made for fear3of Baasha king of Israel: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with them that were [the] slain.
10Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard [halberdiers] had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the Ammonites.
11But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, 12then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, 13and found him by the waters that are in Gibeon. Now it came to pass, that when all the people which were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all 14the captains of the forces that were with him, then they were glad. So all the people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned, 15and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah. But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites
16Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, even mighty men of war,4 and the women, and the children, and the 17eunuchs, whom he had brought again from Gibeon: and they departed, and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham,5 which is by Beth-lehem, to go to enter into Egypt, 18because of the Chaldeans: for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor in the land.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
The suspicion against Ishmael was only too well-founded. He really murders Gedaliah and his retinue, consisting of Jews and Chaldeans (Jer_41:1-3) also seventy Israelites who were bringing offerings to the destroyed sanctuary (Jer_41:4-9). The rest of the people he leads away captive from Mizpah, but is overtaken by Johanan and the other band-leaders. The captives immediately leave him, and he escapes with eight men to the Ammonites (Jer_41:10-15). Thereupon the leaders assemble the whole people in the neighborhood of Bethlehem, to prepare for removal to Egypt, for in consequence of the murder of Gedaliah they think that they will be liable to the extreme vengeance of the Chaldeans if they remain longer in the country.
Jer_41:1-3. Now it came to pass … men of war. There is a brief extract from these verses in 2Ki_25:25. The event took place in the seventh month, therefore three months after the capture of the city (Jer_39:2), and two after the destruction and deportation by Nebuzar-adan (Jer_52:12; 2Ki_25:8). Ishmael was of the royal, therefore David’s seed. Neither he nor his father Nethaniah (1Ch_26:2; 1Ch_26:12; 2Ch_17:8, Levites are thus named) are mentioned elsewhere. Nethaniah is called the son of Elishama. Whether this person is identical with the “scribe” mentioned in Jer_36:12; Jer_36:20-21, or the Elishama named in 2Sa_5:16; 1Ch_3:6 (8); Jer_14:7 as a son of David is meant, is not apparent. Both cases are possible. In the latter Elishama would be the ancestor of the family, “son” being used according to a well known idiom, in the wider sense. Ishmael would then belong to a collateral branch of the royal family.—Princes of the king. It is clear that the king of Judah is meant. Not so clear the grammatical connection. It may be referred to “royal seed.” Hitzig in opposition to this correctly remarks that the “princes” did not form an hereditary caste. It is therefore, according to some, governed by “of.” Is it not however a matter of course that Ishmael as a prince belonged to the רַבּים, especially as this word by no means designates a definite category of greatness? Further, is it probable that Ishmael with ten men could overpower the entire Jewish retinue of Gedaliah, together with the Chaldean soldiers (Jer_41:3), eighty men (Jer_41:7), who if not provided with arms were with legs, and then lead away captive against their will the whole population of Mizpah (Jer_41:14)? We are thus recommended to take רַבּי as a nominative = and great men of the king. It would then be declared that Ishmael and other Jewish nobles (doubtless each with his own retinue), and ten men who formed the personal retinue of the former, accomplished the deed. The passage Jer_52:10 would not contradict this. For since even the Chaldeans could not kill any one whom they did not have, that passage states only that the Chaldeans took the life of all the princes who fell into their power. Now besides here רַב never occurs in Jeremiah of the great men of the Hebrews, but only of the Chaldean grandees in general (Jer_39:18), and of the principal court-officers in particular. Comp. Rab-Mag., etc., Jer_39:3; Jer_39:13, etc.—It is then natural to suppose that the words “and the princes of the king” are a gloss, occasioned by the difficulty of crediting such deeds to a little band of eleven men.
Slew him. These words expressly set forth that though several smote Gedaliah with their swords, Ishmael was the real murderer, upon whom rested the immense responsibility of having killed the Chaldean king’s chief officer in the country. I therefore do not think that, as Hitzig and Graf propose, we must read “smote” also in the singular (וַיכו). That by “all the Jews that were with Gedaliah at Mizpah” we are not to understand the whole population of the city, is apparent from Jer_41:10. It is rather the armed men, who were at the disposal of Gedaliah as governor, who are intended and who, whether permanently or temporarily, were strengthened by Chaldean soldiers.
Jer_41:4-9. And it came to pass … with the slain. Ishmael knew how to guard against the murder of Gedaliah being known immediately outside the city. He evidently intended to use Mizpah as a trap. So it happened that on the second day the approach of a troop of men was announced, who from a distance presented the appearance of a peaceful caravan, and from the burdens they bore one promising booty. They came from Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria. The LXX. read Σαλήμ, and Hitzig, as well as Graf, is disposed to give this reading the preference, since thus a more correct order (according to geographical position we should have Shiloh, Shechem, Samaria) and vicinage of the cities is obtained. Salem would then be the place mentioned in Gen_33:18-19 as near Shechem (comp. Herzog, R.-Enc., XIII. S. 326). But the authority of the LXX. is, as is well known, unreliable. Shiloh also lies so near the road that travellers proceeding from it might meet with those coming from Samaria and Shechem. As to the order, as this in itself was a matter of indifference, a more external circumstance may well have suggested it: the word of one syllable is placed first, then that of two syllables, and of these again that of five consonants after that of three.
From 2Ch_34:9 it is apparent, that at the time of Josiah there was still in the cities of the ten tribes a “remnant of Israel,” which contributed to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, which appears as a resumption and continuance of the co-operation, which even in the reign of Hezekiah the pious Israelites had afforded in establishing the worship of Jehovah in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 30, 31) These men came as mourners over the destruction of the sanctuary (comp. on Jer_16:6; Jer_47:5; Jer_48:37) with gifts of meat and incense offerings, as the beasts necessary for burnt offerings could not well be brought from so great a distance. Doubtless the feast of Tabernacles, occurring in the Seventh month (Lev_23:34; Num_29:12; Deu_16:13) was the occasion of their coming. Although they could not hope to find altar and priests in the holy place, they would still deposit their gifts there in order at least to manifest their devotion. Grotius calls attention here to the expression of Papinian (Instit. de rerum divisione, § Sacræ): “Locus, in quo ædes sacræ sunt ædificatæ etiam diruto ædificio sacer adhuc manet.”
What was the motive of Ishmael’s act? It is supposed by some that he feared to be betrayed, and therefore killed those strangers whom he could not drag away with him. But he only needed then not to admit them into Mizpah. Graf sees in the deed an act of revenge which Ishmael took on these Israelites for the murder of his relatives and associates in rank (Jer_52:10), because these, living with heathens, had for a long time been Assyrian and Chaldean subjects. But these Israelites, coming with all the tokens of deepest sorrow, had shown themselves to be well-disposed towards the Jews, and it is inconceivable how Ishmael could have chosen them for the objects of his vengeance. I think he had simple robbery in view. For after this Ishmael, who was evidently a rough and wild man, had from personal jealousy, to the disadvantage of his people and in the political interest of his Ammonitish protection, assassinated the noble Gedaliah, he must either attempt to maintain himself in the latter’s position or flee. When he quickly, before the matter has become known, murders a peaceful caravan of temple pilgrims, and spares only a few of them, who offer him treasures, and at last drags with him as captives the whole turba imbellis from Mizpah into slavery, he shows himself to be simply a robber.
Jer_41:6. Weeping all along as he went [lit.: in going and weeping]. LXX.: αὐτοὶ ἐπορεύοντο καὶ ἔκλαιον. They then refer the words to the eighty. Hitzig and Graf find this reference quite in order. Why should Ishmael weep ? We might suppose it to be perfectly clear that Ishmael wept to deceive those people, in order to present the appearance of a person who from internal grief was not thinking of worldly things at all, much less of robbery and murder. Hitzig and Graf however deny that Ishmael wept at all, because he had no ostensible reason for doing so. Hitzig says he would not weep for the fate of the temple, since he did not in them meet again old friends for the first time since its destruction, he did not go to meet them in ceremony as notorious temple-pilgrims, nor was he himself on the way to Jerusalem. Graf says if he had wept like the pilgrims over Jerusalem, this would have been unnatural behaviour for one who was sojourning in the vicinity of the city. But are these reasons? It is scarcely credible that they can be intended seriously. If in those days of the most tremendous national calamity a train of Jewish pilgrims, bearing themselves all the signs of grief, meet another Jew weeping, about what will they suppose that he is weeping? Will they not most naturally suppose that he accords with the general mourning of the country? There can be no doubt this was the supposition which Ishmael wished to produce in the pilgrims’ minds. There may have been one and another among them who regarded the weeping comer as not a partaker in the general grief, it sufficed for Ishmael that he was generally regarded as such. Murder and robbery are not expected from such a person. Ishmael tried in this way to deceive them. If they had mistrusted him his project must have failed or he must have tried other expedients. Hitzig and Graf fail to convince us that they would have more readily believed a person who was not mourning, but who invited them to Gedaliah in a tone usual at other times. Graf also urges that it was not necessary for Ishmael to shed tears the whole way, even though it was a short one, which however is implied in the grammatical construction (comp. on this point Naegelsb. Gr., § 93, b, Anm.) To this it may be replied that Ishmael could not know how sharp sighted any one of the eighty might be, so that he would rather begin to weep too early than too late, and consequently traversed the greatest part of the distance, perhaps the whole way from the gate, weeping.
Come to Gedaliah. Why Gedaliah invites them he does not say. Many reasons might be imagined: Gedaliah might wish to show them hospitality, or to accompany them, or to impart some injunction or warning in his gubernatorial capacity. At any rate he was a powerful man, whose requisition was not to be ignored. They therefore followed. But in the midst of the city, at any rate in a place where eleven men sufficed to close up both their advance and their retreat, in some narrow lane, Ishmael fell upon them. Ten of them evidently perceived at once why this was done. They saw that it was robbery on which he was intent. They therefore promise him מַטמנִים, i.e., promtuaria subterranea (from טָמַןabscondidit), such being used from the earliest times in many countries of Asia and Africa for the concealment and preservation of the fruits of the earth. Comp. Rosenmuellerad. l., and GeseniusThesaurus, s. v.;Winer, R.- W.-B., s. v. Ernte.—By the hand of Gedaliah. The words are difficult. The explanations: by the fault of Gedaliah, on Gedaliah’s account, i.e., as friends of Gedaliah); coram Gedalja, i.e., together with Gedaliah, una cum Gedalja, in potestate Gedalja (i.e., as imperio G. subjectos) are all ungrammatical. The normal significance of the words seems to me to afford an appropriate meaning, Ishmael had made use of Gedaliah’s name, to allure them to destruction. He had called to them: Come to Gedaliah (Jer_41:6), and on the authority of this name they had followed him. Thus we may well say that Ishmael killed them by means of Gedaliah. Of course the person of Gedaliah was not the instrument of execution, but his name was the means by which their wills were determined in the intended direction.—Was that which Asa,etc. We read in 1Ki_15:22 that king Asa, with the material of which Baasha had fortified Ramah built Geba-Benjamin and Mizpah. This pit appears to have been part of these works of fortification, but as to its destination we are not informed. Was it a cistern, a ditch, or a mere pit, which might defend a narrow approach, and in ordinary times was bridged over? Hitzig assumes the latter. But as Graf remarks, the pit appears according to Jer_41:7 to have been situated in the interior of the city. It cannot have been a ditch, such never being called בּוֹר. It was then probably a large and deep cistern (Comp. Rosenmueller on Jer_41:7), which was built to afford water to the fort, and which accordingly might be reckoned among the means of defence, with which Asa provided the city for fear of Baasha. Whether the pit, which is here spoken of, is identical with the great bore that is in Sechu, 1Sa_19:21, and with the φρέαρ μἐγα1 Macc. Jer_7:19, must be left undecided.
Jer_41:10-15. Then Ishmael … to the Ammonites. The intimidated, and probably in addition unarmed people, among them the king’s daughters (probably in the wider sense of princesses, as “king’s son,” Jer_36:26; Jer_38:6), Ishmael carried away captive, either to use them as slaves or to sell them. Meanwhile however the Jewish band-captains had received intelligence of the events in Mizpah. They hasten thither with their people, and encounter Ishmael by the “great water” near Gibeon. Gibeon is only half a league distant from Mizpah in a northeasterly direction. Till Ishmael had done with the eighty pilgrims and the gathering of the rest. of the population prior to their departure, so much time might pass that the captains could hurry up and almost reach him in Mizpah. The “great waters” of Gibeon are a pond. Comp. 2Sa_2:13. Robinson (II. 351, 2) recognizes Gibeon in the village El-Jib. [Comp. Thomson, The Land and the Book, II., p. 546.—S. R. A.] At the east of the village he found a beautiful fountain and the remains of a large water-tank. All Ishmael’s prisoners left him at once to attach themselves to Johanan. Ishmael escaped with eight men. It seems then that there was a fight, in which he lost two of his ten men.
Jer_41:16-18. Then took Johanan … in the land. It cannot be denied that there is some, difficulty in the relative sentence from whom he had recovered to son of Ahikam. Especially troublesome is from Mizpah. Also the singular הֵשִׁיב as well as the sentence after he had slain, etc. (we should expect: after they had driven Ishmael off) are striking: so too the relative sentences whom he had recovered from Ishmael and whom he had brought again from Gibeon, as they both state the same fact. Hitzig supposes that “whom Ishmael carried away captive” should be read after Jer_41:14. Certainly the connection thus becomes clear and intelligible. And as the sentence whom he had recovered from Ishmael stands directly between whom Ishmael carried away captive from Mizpah, Jer_41:14, and whom he had brought again from Gibeon, fin. Jer_41:16, it is quite conceivable that an exchange may have taken place.—Mighty men of war. It is evident from these words that the great mass of the Jewish people still left were assembled in Mizpah, comp. Jer_40:7-11—It is the more strange that Ishmael could take all these captive with ten men. Were they unarmed? Were they surprised? Did Ishmael terrify them with threats, by making a false show of Ammonitish help at hand?—However this may be, Johanan betakes himself with all these to a more southern rendezvous on the road to Egypt. This according to the Keri is called the “habitation (hospice, caravanserai) of Chimham [Kimham],” who according to 2Sa_19:37-40 was the son of the Barzillai who purveyed so well for David and his army on their flight. Why did an inn or caravanserai in the vicinity of Bethlehem bear the name of Chimham? We do not know.—This point was to serve as a meeting-place. There were still single bands or individuals scattered through the country. Preparations had also to be made for the march through the desert. The vengeance of the Chaldeans, in spite of the surely provable innocence of the Jews, appeared however so certain, and the fear of it was so great, that the resolution to flee to Egypt was already fixed, before they asked the prophet’s advice. Hence this act was a mere farce.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. On Jer_40:1-3. “Although the calamity, which has come upon Jerusalem, is great and terrible, God does not allow such evil to befal it that good will not result from it, as the Chaldean captain not obscurely intimates, that he has made a fair beginning in the knowledge of the true God. For he confesses, first, that the God of the prophet is a lord; secondly, that He knows future things; thirdly, that He causes His servants to proclaim these beforehand; fourthly, that God has conducted the war and done everything; fifthly, that He was displeased with the sinful manners of the people (among which idolatry was the worst); sixthly, that He has punished their disobedience to His word.” Cramer.
2. On Jer_40:4. “The friendliness, shown to the prophet, appears to proceed from men, but it comes from God. For God’s works are all made so that they are hidden among the creatures; for as He conceals His wisdom in the creation of heaven and earth, as He hides His kindness in the fruits of the earth, so also He disguises His help in the king of Babylon. For God executes. His works now by rational and anon by irrational creatures. As when He fed Elijah by the widow and by the ravens and by the angels (1Ki_17:3 sqq.; 14 sqq. and Jer_19:5). For all are His instruments.” Cramer.
3. On Jer_40:2-3. “Nebusaradan attestatione sua comprobat et confirmat veritatem ac certitudinem prædictionum prophetæ. Unde haud inscite colligi conjicique potest, quod Satrapa ille Babylonicus præditus fuerit agnitione veri Dei eâque salvatus. Et sic Deus subinde aliquos ex Magnatibus ad sui agnitionem et æternam salutem traducit (Psalms 68). Potest istud exemplum ἐλεγκτικῶς obverti absoluto Calvinianorum decreto.” Förster.
4. On Jer_40:5. “In this, that Jeremiah preferred remaining in the country to going to Babylon, it strikes me further—that a discreet man, who knows the world and his heart and the true interest of God’s cause—is as much as possible contented, and does not think to better himself by going further. He is willing to remain at court unknown, and at any rate he would rather be taken away than go away.—The advice, which Solomon gives, is verified, ‘Stand not in the place of great men.’ We are a generation of the cross, and our symbol is ‘an evil name and little understood.’ ” Zinzendorf.
5. On Jer_40:5. In Babylonia honor and a comfortable life invited the prophet, in Judea danger, dishonor and need in the desolated country. In Babylonia a respectable field of labor was opened to him among the great mass of his people, in Judea he had only rabble and condottieri about him. Jeremiah, however, was not a bad patriot, as many accused him of being. By remaining in Judea he showed that the import of his prophecies, apparently friendly to the Chaldeans and hostile to the Jews, had proceeded from the purest love to his people and his fatherland. Thus he imitated Moses, of whom it is written in Heb_11:25, that he chose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. The holy ground of the fatherland bound him to it, and in addition—if he went, who was to take spiritual oversight of the poor forsaken remnant, to proclaim the word of God and bestow on them consolation and admonition? Those who were in Babylon had Ezekiel. And could not the Lord raise up other prophets for them? So he remained with the sheep, who had no shepherd. Jeremiah had not sought his own through his whole life, nor did he here.
6. On Jer_40:7 sqq. “Human reason, and indeed nature shows, that in worldly government men cannot be without a head. For as the been cannot be without a queen, or the sheep without a shepherd, so no large number of people can exist without a head and government. God has wisely ordered it, and we should be thankful for the authorities.” Cramer.
7. On Jer_40:11 sqq. We may well perceive in this “remnant of Judah” a fulfilment of the prophecy in Isa_6:11 sqq.: “Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate, and Jehovah have removed men far away, and great is the forsaking in the midst of the land. And if a tenth remains in it, this again must be removed. Yet as the terebinth and the oak, in which when they are felled, a ground-stock still remains, so is its stock a holy scion.”
8. On Jer_40:13 sqq. Gedaliah, in whom not only Nebuchadnezzar, but also his people, had confidence, must have been a noble man, to whom it was difficult to think evil of his neighbor. “Those who are of a pious disposition, cannot believe so much evil, as is told of people. But we must not trust too much, for the world is full of falseness (Wisd. 37:3). He who believes too easily, will be often deceived, and he who believes no one is also deceived. Therefore is he indeed a happy man, who can preserve the golden mean.” Cramer.
9. On Jer_40:13 sqq. “Misfortune is like the waves of the sea; when one is broken another follows, and the end of one trouble is the beginning of others.” Cramer.
10. On Jer_41:1-3. “Judas’s kiss and Jacob’s brethren are very common in the world and take after their grandfather Cain, who spake kindly to Abel and yet had blood-thirsty thoughts (Gen_4:8). Yea, they take after their father, the devil, who is a murderous spirit (Joh_8:44), and disguises himself as an angel of light (2Co_11:14).” Cramer.
11. On Jer_41:1 sqq. “Similia perfidiæ exempla (simulatæ fraternitatis): 2Sa_13:24; 2Sa_20:9 sq. Quadrat etiam huc historia nuptiarum Parisiensium celebratum 1572 mense Augusto.” Förster.
12. On Jer_41:4 sqq.
“Murder and avarice love to go with each other,
And one crime is often a prolific mother.”—Cramer.
13. On Jer_41:16 sqq. It is very remarkable that even this last centre and rendezvous of the unfortunate people must be destroyed. It might be supposed that with the destruction of the city and deportation of the people the judgments would have terminated. It seems as if the deed of Ishmael and the removal of the remnant to Egypt transcended the measure of punishment fixed by Jehovah, for the Lord did not send Ishmael, and the removal to Egypt He directly forbade. And yet it seems that only by Ishmael’s act and the flight to Egypt could the land obtain its Sabbath rest, which is spoken of in Lev_26:34-35.
14. On Jer_42:1-6. “Had not Johanan and his people asked for advice, but gone directly to Egypt, their sin would not have been so great. They feigned, however, submission to the will of God, while they yet adhered to their own will. It is a common fault for people to ask advice while they are firmly resolved what they will do. For they inquire not to learn what is right, but only to receive encouragement to do what they wish. If we advise them according to their inclination they take our advice, if not, they reject it.—We must be on our guard when we appeal to God’s decision, that we do not previously decide for ourselves. For thus we fall into hypocrisy, which is the most fatal intoxication and blindness.” Heim and Hoffman, The Major Prophets. [“Those will justly lose their comfort in real fears, that excuse themselves in sin with pretended fears.” Henry.—S. R. A.]
15. On Jer_42:7. After the murder of Gedaliah the anger of Nebuchadnezzar seemed inevitable. But the Lord, to whom nothing is impossible (Jer_32:17), promises to perform a miracle, and restore Israel to new prosperity in their land if they will give Him the honor and trust in Him. Nebuchadnezzar’s heart is indeed in His hand. If this is not acknowledged and Nebuchadnezzar more feared than the Lord, their sin is then against the first commandment.
16. On Jer_42:13 sqq. “God reminds His people of the favor with which He adopted them as His people, which was the most sacred obligation to obedience; that Egypt was to them a land of destruction, a forbidden land, as indeed all confidence in human aid is forbidden to those who would live by faith, which was known to them from the history of their fathers and all the prophets. It is a great sin to deem one’s self safer under the protection of man than under that of God. It is incomprehensible, how blind unbelief makes people, so that the Jews have not yet learned the truth in the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple of God.” Heim and Hoffman. “Fides futurorum certa est ex præcedentibus.” Tertull. “Venient hæc quoque sicut ista venerunt.” Augustin.—Förster.
17. On Jer_43:2 sqq. “Hypocrites forsooth do not wish to be regarded as rejecting and setting themselves in opposition to God’s word, or accusing God of falsehood. For then is all the world pious, and no one refuses to be submissive to the dear Lord. God is truly God and remains so. It is only against this parson Jeremiah that they must act he lies, he is not sent, his ruling and preaching cannot be endured.” Cramer.
18. On Jer_43:3. “Observe the old diabolical trick: when preachers practice God’s word and their office with zeal, the world understands how to baptize it with another name and call it personal interest, as even here Baruch must bear the blame, as if he only wished to vent his anger on them and be contrary,” Cramer.
19. On Jer_43:6. The ancients here examine the question why Jeremiah accompanied the people to Egypt and take occasion to discuss the 1 Comm. de fuga ministrorum with reference to Augustin. Epist. 150 ad Honorar. With respect to Jeremiah, it is clear that he did all in his power to avert the journey to Egypt. After the whole people, however, were once on their way it was impossible for him and Baruch to remain alone in the deserted country. They were obliged to go with their flock. The more these were wandering, the more need they had of the shepherds. Thus, even if they were not compelled, they had to go with them. It seems, however, to follow from the expression וַיִַּקּח, Jer_43:5, that no choice was given them. The people wished to have the prophet with them. In no case can we say that Jeremiah fled, for according to his own prophecy, he knew that he was going to meet ruin in Egypt.
20. On Jer_43:8-13. At the present day when we wish to convey to posterity the account of some accomplished fact, or the prediction of some fact to be accomplished (ex. gr. a last testament), we take paper and ink, write it down, seal it, have it subscribed by witnesses and preserve it in the registrar’s or recorder’s office. In ancient times they took a simpler and surer way. Jacob and Laban simply erected a heap of stones (Genesis 31), the two and a half tribes (Joshua 22) built an altar on the bank of the Jordan. As long as the heap and the altar were standing, the record was transmitted from generation to generation for what object these stone witnesses were set up, and thus, that which it was desired to convey to posterity lived in the memory of men. Jeremiah also knows how to use ink and pen (Jeremiah 32), but here he returns once more to the old manner of preserving archives. He simply places great stones in the clay, declaring what they signify, viz., that here, on this spot, Nebuchadnezzar’s tent shall stand. Whether the Egyptians and Jews then believed him or not, is of no consequence. The record of these stones and their meaning at any rate remained alive, and the Lord’s word was thus safely preserved till the day of its fulfilment.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
1. On Jer_40:1-12; Jer_41:1-3; Jer_42:1-16. Israel, the chosen nation, is in its destinies a type of human life in general. Consider only the exodus from Egypt. So also the destinies of the people of Israel, after the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, are pretypical. For 1. The deportation of the whole people in chains and fetters is a type of our universal human misery, from which no one (not even Jeremiah) is free. 2. The fate of Gedaliah and the journey to Egypt is a type of the insufficiency of all mere human help. 3. As the Jews after Gedaliah’s murder, so men at all times, find protection and deliverance in the Lord alone.
2. On Jer_40:1-6. The Christian in the tumult of the world. 1. He is regarded externally like others. 2. The eye of the Lord watches with special care over him, so that (a) not a hair of his head is bent, (b) all his wants are provided for. 3. He, however, on his part directs all his efforts to the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and will not be turned aside from this either by the violence or the friendliness of the world.
3. On Jer_40:7 to Jer_41:3. Gedaliah’s fate an example of what befals even the most noble in times of deep corruption. 1. They enjoy general confidence. 2. They are incapable of attributing extreme wickedness to men. 3. They become a sacrifice to their confidence. 4. They are therefore not in a condition to stay the divine judgments.
4. On Jer_42:1-16. What is the surest way of coming to the right conclusion in difficult cases? 1. To inquire of the Lord. 2. To obey unconditionally the direction which the Lord communicates. [“We must still in faith pray to be guided by a spirit of wisdom in our hearts, and the hints of Providence.” Henry.—S. R. A.]
5. On Jer_43:1-7. Characteristic example of the artfulness of the human heart: the Jews inquire of the Lord and promise to obey His direction (Jer_42:20). But when the direction does not accord with their wish, they at once declare it to be supposititious, not from the Lord. The prophet must be a liar, an alleged enemy has incited him. But what was long previously determined in the heart is obstinately brought to execution. [“Those that are resolved to contradict the great ends of the ministry, are industrious to bring a bad name upon it. It is well for persons who are thus misrepresented that their witness is in heaven, and their record on high.” Henry.—S. R. A.].
6. On Jer_43:8-13. The ways of the Lord are wonderful. Israel flees before Nebuchadnezzar far away to Egypt. But there they are not safe. The Lord causes it to be proclaimed to them that at the entrance of the king’s palace at Tahpanhes Nebuchadnezzar’s tent shall stand. Now indeed there is a brick-kiln there, in the clay of which Jeremiah is to place stones, the foundation stones, as it were, for the Chaldean king’s pavilion. Thus the Lord lays the germs of future events, and whatever He prepares in secret He reveals in His own time to the glory of His wisdom, omniscience and omnipotence.
Footnotes:
[1]Jer_41:7.—Preganant construction, Comp. naegelsb Gr., §112,7; 2Ki_10:14; 1Ma_7:19.
[2]Jer_41:9—בְיַד ג׳ J. D.Michaelis conjectures בַּיר (comp. Jer_6:7 Keri), which reading is said to be found in one Codex of De Rossi (comp. Rosenmuller ad. l) The LXX. translate φρέαρ μέλα τοῦτό ἐστιν, as if they had read בּוֹר הַגָּדוֹל הוּא which reading is adopted by dahler, movers, hitzig, graf. It would afford a good meaning. But the reading is not to be altered unneccessarily.
[3]Jer_41:9.—מִפְּנֵי, before, properly “on account of,” but used here in the sense of “against” Comp. Jdg_9:21; 1Ch_12:1.
[4]Jer_41:16.—אַנְשֵׁי הַמִּלְחָמָה is in apposition to גְּבָרִים and is to express that the latter is not to be taken in the same of mares generally, in which even the children might be included, but in the sense of “fighting men.”
[5]Jer_41:17—גֵּרוּת כִּמְהָם (Keri). The Chethibh seems to require the pronunciation כְּמוֹתֶם. The meaning of the word is not apparent. The old translators all express, though with great want of clearness and agreement among themselves, a proper name. Only josephus (Antiq. X., 9, §5) says: είς τίνα τόπον μάνδραν λεγόμενον. He evidently read גְּדֵרָה (wall, protection, hurdle. Comp. Zep_2:6).—גֵרוּת is ἅπ. λεγ>., but from its etymology must mean hospitium, diversorium.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain THE MURDER OF GEDALIAH, Jer_41:1-10.
THE MURDER OF GEDALIAH, Jer_41:1-10.
1. Seventh month — Gedaliah was in office less than two months. And the princes, etc, — Rather, and of the princes, etc. The language covers simply Ishmael and the ten men with him.
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Eat bread together — Hospitality on the one side, the basest treachery on the other.
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The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 1. in the seventh month] three months after the…
1. in the seventh month] three months after the capture and two after the burning of the city.
and one of the chief officers of the king] We should probably, with LXX, omit this clause. It is absent also from 2Ki_25:25.
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they did eat bread together] i.e. Gedaliah received Ishmael as a guest. Hence the crime assumed a still more atrocious character.
Jer_41:1-3. See introd. summary to the section. For Jer_41:1 see 2Ki_25:25.
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Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (1) It came to pass in the seventh month.—It…
XLI.
(1) It came to pass in the seventh month.—It lies in the nature of the case that the visit purported to be one of courtesy and recognition. The remaining representatives of the house of David (Jer_40:8) would show that they were ready to welcome the new Satrap. As the seventh month included the Feast of Tabernacles, it is not unlikely that they came as if to share in its festivities. Three months had passed since the capture of the city (Jer_39:2).
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The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 1-10. Assassination of Gedaliah and other Jews.
Vers. 1-10. Assassination of Gedaliah and other Jews.
In the seventh month; i.e. two months after the destruction of Jerusalem and the appointment of Gedaliah. It seems strange, however, that the occurrences related in Jer 40 and Jer 41 should have taken so short a time. Gratz calls in question the accuracy of the chronological statement. He quotes Eze_33:24-29, which shows that at least six months (according to his calculation) after the fall of Jerusalem Jewish fugitives still lingered on, and hoped to obtain possession of their fatherland, and points out that time was necessary for Gedaliah to erect a temple at Mizpah (see on ver. 5), for cities to arise out of their ruins, and for cultivation of the soil to be resumed. (Jer_40:10) Besides, according to Jer_52:30, a third deportation of Jews is mentioned. How can this be accounted for, if, only two months after the fall of Jerusalem, the remnant of the Jewish population emigrated under Johanan ben Kareah to Egypt? Gratz shows reason for thinking that this last deportation stands in close connection with Gedaliah"s death, and that consequently the interval between this latter event and the fall of Jerusalem lasted, not two months, but five years. The son of Elishama. Perhaps the Elishama men. tioned in Jer_36:12 as a secretary of state; or perhaps a son of David of that name. (see 2Sa_5:18 1Ch_3:8 1Ch_14:7; "son" being taken here in a wider sense) And the princes of the king; rather, and (one of) the princes of the king. Even ten men; rather, and ten men. Eleven determined bravoes overpower a crowd of unprepared men. Did eat bread together. Gedaliah, then, had invited them to a friendly banquet.
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Vers. 1-3. The assassination of Gedaliah.
I HIGH POSITION BRINGS GREAT DANGER. Kings are little to be envied. The world sees their state and majesty. It does not see the apprehensions which would make some of them willingly exchange places with the humblest peasant. Nevertheless, it is as cowardly and selfish to refuse to occupy a high position when duty calls to it as it is to fail in fulfilling one"s mission in any of the lower walks of life.
II A GOOD MAN WILL PREFER TO SUFFER DEATH RATHER THAN TO DEFEND HIMSELF BY UNRIGHTEOUS MEANS. Gedaliah had been warned of his danger, but he had refused to accept the warning. (Jer_40:13-16) It is better for one"s character, if not for one"s earthly fate, to be over generous than to be over suspicious. Though we may think Gedaliah wanting in discernment, we must commend his justice in refusing to consent to the assassination of Ishmael. When we are in doubt about the guilt of any one, it is our plain duty to give him the benefit of that doubt. In no case have we a right to defend ourselves against a future wrong by anticipating the blow with an act of unlawful violence.
III POLITICAL CRIMES ARE THE GREATEST CRIMES. Much vagueness exists as to the character of these crimes. If the assassin is successful, the world condones his offence, while, if he fails, his memory is execrated and he is condemned as a murderer. Many political acts are viewed as crimes by one party and as heroic deeds by another. But the moral character of a deed is not determined by such accidents as these. If it be really a crime, an offence against the eternal laws of right, its relation to public and national affairs aggravates its wickedness, inasmuch as it immensely enlarges the arena of its mischievous results (ver. 3).
IV PUBLIC INTEREST IS NO EXCUSE FOR POLITICAL CRIMES. Ishmael might have contended that he was a patriot helping his people to throw off the yoke of Babylon. If he were acting that noble part, his method of carrying it out would still have been odious and unpardonable. Patriotism is no excuse for private treachery. Moreover, public interest is never truly advanced by crime. Ishmael"s crime resulted in serious trouble to the Jews. It destroyed the hope of a quiet life in the land of Israel for the returned fugitives and the poor remnant of the nation. It probably led to a third deportation of exiles to Babylon.
HOMILIES BY S. CONWAY Vers. 1-10. Devils incarnate.
1. If ever there was such a one, this Ishmael was of whom these verses tell. His atrocities remind us of the Indian Mutiny, its leader, and the well at Cawnpore (cf. ver. 9). Treachery, ingratitude, murder, massacre, greed, cowardice, all are gathered in this detestable character (cf. Mr. Grove"s article "Ishmael," Smith"s "Dictionary of the Bible").
2. And such men are permitted to be. So clearly seen is this, that every drama has its villain; they are recognized as having definite place and function in this poor life of ours. History is full of them. But for them one might almost say there would be no history.
3. Can we explain this permission? Wherefore are such men created and preserved? It is a part of the great question of moral evil, for the full solution of which we must wait. Like as was said to a lad of one of our public schools, who had heard his master say in a sermon in the school chapel that in mathematics there were lines in the same plane ever converging but which never met. The lad heard this, and as he knew something of mathematics himself, he believed and said to a senior in the school that the master was wrong. The senior defended the master, and told the lad of the lines that mathematicians call asymptotes. "But explain," said the astonished lad. "No, I can"t," said the other. You must wait till you get there. The lad had not read on so far in the science as that, and hence there was nothing for it but to believe that, though it was at present incomprehensible to him how such lines as those spoken of could be, nevertheless, when he had read on further, he would see it clearly enough. And so we have to hear and see things which, to fully reconcile with the existence and superintendence of an all-loving and all-powerful God, is beyond our power, and there is nothing for it but that we must "wait till we get there there where the reading of these problems will be ready and clear. But the existence of such men as this Ishmael is but one out of the many terrible facts in God"s providence, such as plague, famine, earthquake, etc. In regard to such men, we can see some purposes that they subserve.
I They make evident the hideous capacities of evil which are in our nature, and the need, therefore, for God"s restraining grace.
II They are warnings to increased watchfulness on the part of those in whom the tendencies to like evil exist.
III They are God"s scourges for men"s sin (cf. Attila, the Scourge of God).
IV They weld together the people they oppress in one common league against them, and thus out of scattered tribes a nation is formed.
V They clear out much that is evil (cf. French Revolution; Napoleon). But sometimes, as here, we cannot see what good they do; and then we can only wait.
Conclusion. But we can get above these and all such afflictors of our lives. The fear of God will lift us up above their power. "Fear him, ye saints, and you will then Have nothing else to fear.
On the wings of the fear and love of God let us mount up; and like as the little birds escape the hawk by keeping above it, so shall we escape all fear of fiercest human evils if we are upborne by the fear and love of God. C.
HOMILIES BY D. YOUNG Vers. 1-18. A great crime and its consequence.
I A GREAT CRIME. The slaying of Gedaliah was accompanied by circumstances making it peculiarly atrocious.
1. The breach of good fellowship. There had been professions of amity before. Gedaliah shows by deed his confidence in Ishmael, sitting down with him at a common meal.
2. The subsequent slaughter. The slaying of Gedaliah was not enough to serve the purpose. A man, once entered on the ways of crime, cannot say, "So far I will go, and no further." Ishmael had to go on killing to secure his own safety and mastery.
II THE CONSEQUENCE. The chief consequence was the departure to a point nearer to Egypt, to escape if possible the vengeance of the Chaldeans. One man sins and other people suffer. The great lesson is to stop crime in its beginnings. Ishmael gained none of the ends he seems to have had in view, and was this much the worse, that he had deep stains of murder on him. Y.
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The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Then arose Ishmael.
Jer_41:1-10
Then arose Ishmael.
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Devils incarnate
1. If ever there was such a one, this Ishmael was of whom these verses tell. His atrocities remind us of the Indian Mutiny, its leader, and the well at Cawnpore (cf. Verse 9). Treachery, ingratitude, murder, massacre, greed, cowardice,--all are gathered in this detestable character (cf. Mr. Groves article Ishmael, Smiths Dictionary of the Bible)
2. And such men are permitted to be. So clearly seen is this, that every drama has its villain; they are recognised as having definite place and function in this poor life of ours.
3. Can we explain this permission? Wherefore are such men created and preserved? It is s part of the great question of moral evil, for the full solution of which we must wait. But the existence of such men as this Ishmael is but one out of the many terrible facts in Gods providence, such as plague, famine, earthquake, &c.
In regard to such men, we can see some purposes that they subserve.
1. They make evident the hideous capacities of evil which are in our nature, and the need, therefore, for Gods restraining grace.
2. They are warnings to increased watchfulness on the part of those in whom the tendencies to like evil exist.
3. They are Gods scourges for mens sin (cf. Attila, the Scourge of God).
4. They weld together the people they oppress in one common league against them, and thus out of scattered tribes a nation is formed.
5. They clear out much that is evil (cf. French Revolution; Napoleon). But, sometimes as here, we cannot see what good they do; and then we can only wait. (W. Clarkson, B. A.)
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The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES.—Chronology of the Chapter.—Only three months…
CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES.—Chronology of the Chapter.—Only three months after Jerusalem was captured by the Chaldeans: “in the seventh month” (Jer_41:1, comp. chap. Jer_32:2) See notes on two preceding chapters.
Personal Allusion. Jer_41:1. “Elishama.” Vide note, chap. Jer_36:12, in loc.
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Geographical References. Jer_41:7; Jer_41:9. “The pit:” properly cistern. “On the summit of the hill was Asa’s fortress, with a deep well within a high enclosed courtyard, dug by him for the security of the garrison” (Stanley). Asa’s reason for digging this cistern was, that when the city should be besieged by the king of Israel there might be sufficient water for the inhabitants. (See 1Ki_15:22.)
Jer_41:12. “The great waters that are in Gibeon.” Gibeon is about two miles north of Mizpah. The מַיִם רַבִּים, “great waters,” mean the vast pool and fountains which Robinson (Researches, ii. 136) describes, about 120 feet by 100. (See 2Sa_2:13.)
Jer_41:17. “The habitation of Chimham:” lit. Geruth-Chimham, i.e. the caravanserai belonging to Chimham (2Sa_19:37-38). Johanan makes this his headquarters until he could arrange his flight to Egypt.
SUBJECT OF CHAPTER 41
ISHMAEL’S SANGUINARY CONSPIRACY
Jer_41:1. Theme: UNSUSPICIOUSNESS. “They did eat bread together in Mizpah.”
I. Unsuspiciousness is indicative of a frank and generous soul.
1. Honest men are naturally trustful. Themselves faithful, they do not suspect, in seeming friends, perfidious conspirators!
2. Kindly hearts entertain no dark suspicions. “Charity thinketh no evil” (1Co_13:5). It is painful to look for a villain in him who dips his sop with us in the same dish.
So far Gedaliah’s was a praiseworthy simplicity.
II. Unsuspiciousness runs the risks of incaution.
1. Guileless minds cannot credit base reports. Although warned (chap. Jer_40:14; Jer_40:16), he could not believe it possible that Ishmael plotted foul designs. Conscious only of innocency and good purposes himself, he found it impossible to believe that wrong was intended him.
2. Indiscreet trust pays a severe penalty. In this case, Gedaliah’s virtue of unsuspiciousness became a fault; for in being injudiciously trustful he both imperilled his own life and exposed the public interests to disaster.
III. Unsuspiciousness is apt to invite calamity.
1. By neglecting lurking danger. It was Gedaliah’s duty to have regarded the information given him (chap. Jer_40:14), and arrested a villain whose plots threatened the public weal.
2. By shrinking from exercising a just severity. For the incapability of suspicions is allied often with a weak regard to justice; and hence a disinclination to punish wrong (chap. Jer_40:16).
3. By tolerating evident evils. And here is the folly and blunder of habitual unsuspiciousness: it will not see evils; it prefers to let them alone, hoping for the best. And thus iniquities thrive under the benign tolerance of an ingenuous rule.
IV. Unsuspiciousness plays into the hands of villany.
1. Villany is a fact, existing and active in all human society. He who ignores it is wanting in prudence.
2. Villany plots deeds so foul that no vigilance can be too alert to check its purposes. By neglecting this wise suspiciousness Gedaliah wronged Johanan (chap. Jer_40:16), imperilled the peace of the people, and placed himself in the assassin’s grasp (chap. Jer_41:1).
3. Villany shrinks not from outrage on noblest souls. Surely it is the highest crime (Jer_44:2) thus to woo generous confidence only to act the fiend! “One may smile, and smile, and be a villain!” The execrable character of such villany Shakespeare describes—
“My conscience hath a thousand several tongues,
And every tongue brings in a several tale,
And every tale condemus me for a villain.”
—Richard III. Jer_41:3.
Jer_41:2. Theme: HOSPITALITY OUTRAGED. “Then arose Ishmael, … and slew him!”
Murder is frightful enough in itself, but the moment of the deed makes it heinous in the extreme.
I. Hospitality: the infamy of its abuse. Ishmael polluted his hands with innocent blood at the sacred table of hospitality.
Universally and in all ages hospitality has been cherished as sacred.
The ancient heathen nations regarded it so, and its violation was counted by them the greatest atrocity.
An oath given when at table and afterwards broken called for summary vengeance.
Among the Greeks existed a custom of pledging lasting friendship in return for hospitality. It was in this wise: On a four-sided stone was written the name of each guest; the stone, called “Tessara Hospitalis,” was then broken, and each friend carried away the part of the stone bearing the other’s name, and it entitled the holder of the part to ask protection and shelter from the other whenever necessity arose.
See Percy Anecdotes, on “Hospitality,” for illustrations.
II. Jealousy: outraging every instinct of gratitude. Ishmael had been treated with magnanimity by Gedaliah, and now was being entertained with courtesy and kindness; yet—
1. Ambition and envy prompted him to violence. He was “of the royal seed” (Jer_41:1), and could not endure that Gedaliah should be in exaltation.
“Base envy withers at another’s joy,
And hates that excellence it cannot reach.”
—Thomson’s Seasons, 283.
“Jealousy is cruel as the grave.”
—Son_8:6.
“Jealousy, the injured lover’s hell.”
—Milton’s Paradise Lost.
“Fling away ambition:
By that sin fell the angels.”
—Shakespeare, Henry VIII., iii. 2.
2. Innocence was no shield against the lust of jealousy. Gedaliah had done Ishmael no wrong. Ishmael had not been deposed from power. All Gedaliah’s acts had been generous and trustful, yet Ishmael could not endure the sight of his supremacy.
Such outrage on innocence refutes all natural sentiments in the human heart, and shows Ishmael to be an odious monster. Horace speaks the natural sentiment which we cherish towards innocence—
“True, conscious honour is to feel no sin,
He’s armed without who’s innocent within:
Be this thy screen, and this thy wall of brass.”
—Pope’s Horace.
But it was this conscious innocence which made Gedaliah fearless and trustful, and should have ensured his safety.
“If there be a crime
Of deeper dye than all the guilty train
Of human vices, ’tis ingratitude.”—Brooke.
“Ingratitude is treason to mankind.”
—Thomson.
Theme: GEDALIAH’S FATE AN EXAMPLE. “Illustrating what befalls even the most noble in times of deep corruption:—
(i.) They enjoy general confidence.
(ii.) They are incapable of attributing extreme wickedness to men.
(iii.) They become a sacrifice to their confidence.
(iv.) They are therefore not in a condition to stay the divine judgments.”—Naegelsbach.
“Judas’s kiss and Jacob’s brethren are very common in the world, and take after their grandfather Cain, who spake kindly to Abel and yet had bloodthirsty thoughts (Gen_4:8). Yea, they take after their father the devil, who is a murderous spirit (Joh_8:14), and disguises himself as an angel of light (2Co_11:14).”—Cramer.
“Much treachery and cruelty hath been exercised at feasts. Absalom slew Amnon at a feast; so did Zimri, King Elah; so did Alexander, Philotas.”—Trapp.
Josephus suggests that Ishmael seized the opportunity of slaughter when Gedaliah and his guests were merry with wine, and his words are: “When Gedaliah had feasted Ishmael, and those that were with him, in a splendid manner at his table, and had given them presents, he became disordered in drink, while he endeavoured to be very merry with them; and when Ishmael saw him in this case, and that he was drowned in his cups to the degree of insensibility and fallen asleep, he rose up on a sudden, with his ten friends, and slew Gedaliah and those that were with him at the feast.”—Antiq. x. 9, 4.
Jer_41:3. “Ishmael also slew the Chaldeans and men of war.” This gives support to kitto’s suggestion, that “he regarded Gedaliah with hatred, as one who had stooped to hold office under the destroyers of his country.”—Daily Bib. Illus.
Jer_41:6. Theme: A TRAITOR’S TEARS. “Ishmael went forth weeping all along as he went.”
I. Patriotic pilgrims (Jer_41:5). It was now the season of the Feast of Tabernacles, and these pilgrims journeyed to Jerusalem—
1. Mourning over the Temple’s ruin.
2. Carrying their devout offerings, to present them amid the scene of desolation.
A piteous spectacle! Oh how their souls grieved for the destruction of “the house of the Lord”! They would fain, amid the ruins, keep the observances of the law, and mourn before the Lord who had permitted this direful calamity to overtake His sinning people. Their aspects show them to be—
(a.) A penitential group; (b.) bringing their propitiatory offerings before God; (c.) touched with patriotic sorrow.
II. A blasphemous decoy. “Ishmael went weeping.”
1. Pretending that he also bemoaned the ruin of Zion.
2. Capturing them by his foul deceit.
They were unsuspicious of his murderous designs; and he intending to slay them lest they, discovering his deed to Gedaliah, should rouse the country against him before he had completed his usurpation, decoyed them to destruction.
What barbarity is here, thus to seize defenceless strangers, and slay them without the faintest provocation!
How does this illustrate the progress of guilt; having polluted his hands in blood, Ishmael went on to even baser effrontery and deeper villany.
Jer_41:12. Theme: TREACHERY THWARTED. His design seems to have been to carry them as slaves into Ammon. The captives hailed their deliverer with joy, and deserted at once to Johanan, so that Ishmael returned, disgraced and defeated, to the king of Ammon, whose base purposes he attempted to serve. Yet—
How great woe may one foul hand work! How startling that no sorer punishment overtook him!
Nevertheless, though guilty men escape the immediate penalty of crime, their prolonged life only prolongs their career of wretchedness and terror, execrated by righteous men, and haunted by their guilty memories; for in this way God drags criminals daily before the tribunal of their own memory, and then lets them live under the curse of their own conscience.
Jer_41:16-18. Theme: MISTAKEN PATRIOTISM. “Johanan departed to go into Egypt.”
I. Courage ungoverned by godliness.
1. His energy for his people was praiseworthy.
2. His valour wrought their deliverance (Jer_41:16).
3. Yet his departure from God’s purpose, in inclining towards Egypt (Jer_41:17), showed both unbelief and wilfulness.
II. Safety sought from a forbidden alliance.
1. Though strictly denounced by God’s messengers, yet he intended to trust in Egypt.
2. Fear (of the Chaldeans) was allowed to rule them instead of faith (in God) (Jer_41:18).
3. Turning from the straight path of duty they were led to a tortuous and destructive policy.
III. Obedience to God proves the highest patriotism.
1. It wins more than noblest valour can effect.
2. Righteousness is always safest; doing God’s will regardless of consequences, untroubled by fears.
3. Simple faith in God’s word, regardless of our own fears, always issues best.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain Plot against Gedaliah and its Results (586 b.c.)
Plot against Gedaliah and its Results (586 b.c.)
1-10. Ishmael murders Gedaliah and others, and carries off captives.
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1. And the princes] RV 'and one of the chief officers'; a further description of Ishmael himself, not an addition to his band. Even] RV 'and.'
5. Having their beards shaven, etc.] in mourning for the destruction of the Temple: see on Jer_16:6.
6. Weeping all along] feigning equal concern with them, so as to put them off their guard.
7. Pit] RV 'cistern.'
8. Treasures] RV 'stores hidden.'Dry cisterns, covered with a deep layer of earth, are commonly used for this purpose in the East.
9. Because of] RV 'by the side of,'i.e. their bodies placed by his. Asa.. Baasha] see 1Ki_15:22.
11-18. Johanan rescues the captives and they start for Egypt.
12. Gibeon] the modern El-jib, a city of the priests (Jos_18:25; Jos_21:17), in the tribe of Benjamin.
14. Cast about] turned round.
15. These acts of treachery may well have been connected with woes predicted for Ammon in Jer_49:1.
17. The habitation of Chimham] RM 'the lodging place'(i.e. irai or khan) of Chimham: see 2Sa_19:37. It was natural that David as a mark of gratitude to the son of Barzillai should have given Chimham a piece of his patrimony.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain seventh month
seventh month
i.e. October.
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain Ishmael Slays Gedaliah
Ishmael Slays Gedaliah
v. 1. Now it came to pass in the seventh month, only about two months after the destruction of Jerusalem and the appointment of Gedaliah as governor, that Ishmael, the son of Netha-niah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal and the princes of the king, he belonged to a side-line of the house of David and therefore of the mighty ones of the land, even ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah, as the guests of Gedaliah, who received them apparently without a show of suspicion and without any attempt at safeguarding himself against any wickedness on their part.
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v. 2. Then arose Ishmael, the son of Neth-aniah, while he and his men were partaking of this hospitality, and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword and slew him, or, literally, "so he slew him," whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land. The men with Ishmael were all of them guilty of his murder, but the heaviest burden of guilt rested upon him who had planned the foul deed.
v. 3. Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, the armed men who had placed themselves at the disposal of the governor, and the Chaldeans that were found there, various officials of the Babylonian government, and the men of war, who were evidently unprepared for such an unexpected attack on the part of the governor’s guest.
v. 4. And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it, news of the murder not having reached any other part of the country as yet,
v. 5. that there came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, three cities farther north in the province, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven, as a sign of deep mourning, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, such incisions into the skin being forbidden to the children of Israel, as a heathen custom. Lev 19:27-28; Deu 14:1, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the Lord. These men mourned the destruction of the Temple, but continued their acts of worship even upon its site, covered with ruins as it was. Their road naturally led past the city of Mizpah, and they traveled along without the slightest apprehension of danger.
v. 6. And Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, whose scouts had undoubtedly informed him of their coming, went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went, pretending to weep, as they did, over the ruin of the Temple; and it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, thus assuming the role of the governor’s messenger.
v. 7. And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, still without the slightest suspicion regarding the ruse employed by Ishmael, that Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, slew them, murdered them in cold blood, and cast them into the midst of the pit, which was either the trench about the city or a large cistern used for storing water in the event of a siege, he and the men that were with him, for he could hardly have committed this wholesale murder single-handed.
v. 8. But ten men were found among them, the eighty who fell into Ishmael’s trap, that said unto Ishmael, Slay us not, for we have treasures in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey, for it was customary for men to hide their stores of grain and fruit in underground bins during troublous times in order to prevent their being taken by invading hordes. So he forbare and slew them not among their brethren, very likely taking their goods as a ransom for their lives, for the motive for Ishmael’s crime seems to have been plain robbery, since he was evidently a wild and lawless man.
v. 9. Now, the pit wherein Ishmael had cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had slain because of Gedaliah, literally, "at the hand of Gedaliah," that is, next to Gedaliah, whom he had first cast into this trench or cistern, was it which Asa, the king, had made for fear of Baasha, king of Israel, Cf 1Ki 15:16-22; and Ishmael, the son of Netha-niah, filled it with them that were slain, a gruesome heap of his victims.
v. 10. Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters, all the princesses of the royal household, including the daughters of Zedekiah, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzar-adan, the captain of the guard, had committed to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, putting them into his care as people who had professed their loyalty to the Babylonian rule; and Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, carried them away captive and departed to go over to the Ammonites, his intention being either to have his captives settle in the territory of the Ammonites, in the service of whose king he seems to have placed himself, or to sell them outright as slaves. Such is the way of men who yield to a life of sin: one crime leads to another, until they are fairly steeped in sins.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 it happened that
it happened that
This phrase is used here to mark the beginning of a new part of the story. If your language has a way for doing this, you could consider using it here.
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in the seventh month
This is the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar. It is during the last part of September and the first part of October on Western calendars. (See: Hebrew Months and Ordinal Numbers)
Ishmael son of Nethaniah
See how you translated these men's names in Jeremiah 40:8. (See: How to Translate Names)
Elishama
This is the name of a man. (See: How to Translate Names)
Gedaliah son of Ahikam son of Shaphan
See how you translated these men's names in Jeremiah 39:14. (See: How to Translate Names)
in charge of the land
Here "land" represents the people. AT: "in charge of the people of Judah" (See: Metonymy)
Then Ishmael killed
Here "Ishmael" represents himself and the ten men with him. AT: "Then Ishmael and the ten men with him killed" (See: Synecdoche)
the Chaldean fighting men found there
This can be stated in active form. AT: "also the Chaldean soldiers there" (See: Active or Passive)
translationWords
royal
family
king
Mizpah
raise
sword
Babylon
Judea
Chaldea
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 41:1-2 in midautumn: These events took place three months…
41:1-2 in midautumn: These events took place three months after the fall of Jerusalem. • While they were eating together: With this attack, Ishmael viciously violated Gedaliah’s hospitality.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.