⁹ Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, took an oath to reassure them and their men. “Do not be afraid to serve^(A) the Babylonians,^[a](B)” he said. “Settle down in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you.^{(C) 10} I myself will stay at Mizpah^(D) to represent you before the Babylonians who come to us, but you are to harvest the wine,^(E) summer fruit and olive oil, and put them in your storage jars,^(F) and live in the towns you have taken over.”^(G)

¹¹ When all the Jews in Moab,^(H) Ammon, Edom^(I) and all the other countries^(J) heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah and had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, as governor over them,