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41 (A) But in the seventh month,[a] Ishmael[b] came to Mizpah with ten of his soldiers. He had been one of the king's officials and was a member of the royal family. Ishmael and his men were invited to eat with Gedaliah. During the meal, Ishmael and his soldiers killed Gedaliah, the man chosen as ruler of Judah by the king of Babylonia. Then they killed the Jews who were with Gedaliah, and they also killed the Babylonian soldiers who were there.

The next day, the murders had still not been discovered, when 80 men came down the road toward Mizpah from the towns of Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria. They were on their way to the temple to offer gifts of grain and incense to the Lord. They had shaved off their beards, torn their clothes, and cut themselves, because they were mourning.

Ishmael went out the town gate to meet them. He pretended to be weeping, and he asked them to come into Mizpah to meet with Gedaliah, the ruler of Judah. But after they were inside the town, Ishmael ordered his soldiers to kill them and throw their bodies into a well. He let ten of the men live, because they offered to give him supplies of wheat, barley, olive oil, and honey they had hidden in a field. The well that he filled with bodies[c] had been dug by King Asa[d] of Judah to store rainwater, because he was afraid that King Baasha[e] of Israel might surround Mizpah and keep the people from getting to their water supply.

10 Nebuzaradan, King Nebuchadnezzar's[f] officer in charge of the guard, had left King Zedekiah's[g] daughters and many other people at Mizpah, and he had put Gedaliah in charge of them. But now Ishmael took them all prisoner and led them toward Ammon, on the other side of the Jordan River.

11 Johanan and the other army officers heard what Ishmael had done. 12 So they and their troops chased Ishmael and caught up with him at the large pit at Gibeon. 13 When Ishmael's prisoners saw Johanan and the officers, they were happy 14 and turned around and ran toward Johanan. 15 But Ishmael and eight of his men escaped and went to Ammon.

Johanan Decides To Take the People to Egypt

16 Johanan and the officers had rescued the women, children, and royal officials that Ishmael had taken prisoner after killing Gedaliah. Johanan led the people from Gibeon 17-18 toward Egypt. They wanted to go there, because they were afraid of what the Babylonians would do when they found out that Ishmael had killed Gedaliah, the ruler appointed by King Nebuchadnezzar.[h]

The People Ask Jeremiah To Pray for Them

On the way to Egypt, we[i] stopped at the town of Geruth Chimham near Bethlehem. 42 Johanan, Jezaniah,[j] the other army officers, and everyone else in the group, came to me and said, “Please, Jeremiah, pray to the Lord your God for us. Judah used to have many people, but as you can see, only a few of us are left. Ask the Lord to tell us where he wants us to go and what he wants us to do.”

“All right,” I answered, “I will pray to the Lord your God, and I will tell you everything he says.”

They answered, “The Lord himself will be our witness that we promise to do whatever he says, even if it isn't what we want to do. We will obey the Lord so that all will go well for us.”

Ten days later, the Lord gave me an answer for Johanan, the officers, and the other people. So I called them together and told them that the Lord God of Israel had said:

You asked Jeremiah to pray and find out what you should do. 10 I am sorry that I had to punish you, and so I now tell you to stay here in Judah, where I will plant you and build you up, instead of tearing you down and uprooting you. 11 Don't be afraid of the King of Babylonia. I will protect you from him, 12 and I will even force him to have mercy on you and give back your farms.

13 But you might keep on saying, “We won't stay here in Judah, and we won't obey the Lord our God. 14 We are going to Egypt, where there is plenty of food and no danger of war.”

15 People of Judah, you survived when the Babylonian army attacked. Now you are planning to move to Egypt, and if you do go, this is what will happen. 16-17 You are afraid of war, starvation, and disease here in Judah, but they will follow you to Egypt and kill you there. None of you will survive the disasters I will send.

18 I, the Lord, was angry with the people of Jerusalem and punished them. And if you go to Egypt, I will be angry and punish you the same way. You will never again see your homeland. People will be horrified at what I do to you, and they will use the name of your city as a curse word.

Jeremiah Gives a Warning

19 I told the people:

You escaped the disaster that struck Judah, but now the Lord warns you to stay away from Egypt. 20 You asked me to pray and find out what the Lord our God wants you to do, and you promised to obey him. But that was a terrible mistake, 21 because now that I have given you the Lord's answer, you refuse to obey him. 22 And so, you will die in Egypt from war, hunger, and disease.

Footnotes

  1. 41.1 seventh month: Tishri, also called Ethanim, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-September to mid-October.
  2. 41.1 Ishmael: Hebrew “Ishmael son of Nethaniah and grandson of Elishama.”
  3. 41.9 with bodies: One ancient translation; Hebrew “with bodies of those killed by Gedaliah.”
  4. 41.9 Asa: Ruled 911–870 b.c.
  5. 41.9 Baasha: Ruled 909–886 b.c.
  6. 41.10 Nebuchadnezzar's: See the note at 21.2.
  7. 41.10 Zedekiah's: See the note at 1.3.
  8. 41.17,18 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2.
  9. 41.17,18 we: The group of people included Jeremiah, since he had been staying with Gedaliah near Mizpah (see 40.6).
  10. 42.1 Jezaniah: Hebrew “Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah”; one ancient translation “Azariah son of Hoshaiah” (see also 43.2 and the note there).

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