Jeremiah Freed

40 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord after Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard had released him at Ramah.e He had found Jeremiah bound in chains among all the captivesf from Jerusalem and Judah who were being carried into exile to Babylon. 2 When the commanderg of the guard found Jeremiah, he said to him, “The Lord your God decreedh this disasteri for this place.j 3 And now the Lord has brought it about; he has done just as he said he would. All this happened because you people sinnedk against the Lord and did not obeyl him. 4 But today I am freeingm you from the chainsn on your wrists. Come with me to Babylon, if you like, and I will look after you; but if you do not want to, then don’t come. Look, the whole country lies before you; go wherever you please.”o 5 However, before Jeremiah turned to go,a Nebuzaradan added, “Go back to Gedaliahp son of Ahikam,q the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has appointedr over the townss of Judah, and live with him among the people, or go anywhere else you please.”t

Then the commander gave him provisions and a presentu and let him go. 6 So Jeremiah went to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpahv and stayed with him among the people who were left behind in the land.

Gedaliah Assassinated

40:7–9; 41:1–3pp—2Ki 25:22–26

7 When all the army officers and their men who were still in the open country heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam as governorw over the land and had put him in charge of the men, women and children who were the poorestx in the land and who had not been carried into exile to Babylon, 8 they came to Gedaliah at Mizpahy—Ishmaelz son of Nethaniah, Johanana and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth, the sons of Ephai the Netophathite,b and Jaazaniahb the son of the Maakathite,c and their men. 9 Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, took an oath to reassure them and their men. “Do not be afraid to served the Babylonians,c e” he said. “Settle down in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you.f 10 I myself will stay at Mizpahg to represent you before the Babylonians who come to us, but you are to harvest the wine,h summer fruit and olive oil, and put them in your storage jars,i and live in the towns you have taken over.”j

11 When all the Jews in Moab,k Ammon, Edoml and all the other countriesm 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, 12 they all came back to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah, from all the countries where they had been scattered.n And they harvested an abundance of wine and summer fruit.

13 Johanano son of Kareah and all the army officers still in the open country came to Gedaliah at Mizpahp 14 and said to him, “Don’t you know that Baalis king of the Ammonitesq has sent Ishmaelr son of Nethaniah to take your life?” But Gedaliah son of Ahikam did not believe them.

15 Then Johanans son of Kareah said privately to Gedaliah in Mizpah, “Let me go and killt Ishmael son of Nethaniah, and no one will know it. Why should he take your life and cause all the Jews who are gathered around you to be scatteredu and the remnantv of Judah to perish?”

16 But Gedaliah son of Ahikam said to Johananw son of Kareah, “Don’t do such a thing! What you are saying about Ishmael is not true.”

41 In the seventh month Ishmaelx son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood and had been one of the king’s officers, came with ten men to Gedaliah son of Ahikam at Mizpah. While they were eating together there, 2 Ishmaely son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword,z killing the one whom the king of Babylon had appointeda as governor over the land.b 3 Ishmael also killed all the men of Judah who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, as well as the Babyloniana soldiers who were there.

4 The day after Gedaliah’s assassination, before anyone knew about it, 5 eighty men who had shaved off their beards,c torn their clothesd and cute themselves came from Shechem,f Shilohg and Samaria,h bringing grain offerings and incensei with them to the house of the Lord.j 6 Ishmael son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them, weepingk as he went. When he met them, he said, “Come to Gedaliah son of Ahikam.”l 7 When they went into the city, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and the men who were with him slaughtered them and threw them into a cistern.m 8 But ten of them said to Ishmael, “Don’t kill us! We have wheat and barley, olive oil and honey, hidden in a field.”n So he let them alone and did not kill them with the others. 9 Now the cistern where he threw all the bodies of the men he had killed along with Gedaliah was the one King Asao had made as part of his defensep against Baashaq king of Israel. Ishmael son of Nethaniah filled it with the dead.

10 Ishmael made captives of all the rest of the peopler who were in Mizpah—the king’s daughterss along with all the others who were left there, over whom Nebuzaradan commander of the imperial guard had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam. Ishmael son of Nethaniah took them captive and set out to cross over to the Ammonites.t

11 When Johananu son of Kareah and all the army officers who were with him heard about all the crimes Ishmael son of Nethaniah had committed, 12 they took all their men and went to fightv Ishmael son of Nethaniah. They caught up with him near the great poolw in Gibeon. 13 When all the peoplex Ishmael had with him saw Johanan son of Kareah and the army officers who were with him, they were glad. 14 All the people Ishmael had taken captive at Mizpahy turned and went over to Johanan son of Kareah. 15 But Ishmael son of Nethaniah and eight of his men escapedz from Johanan and fled to the Ammonites.

Flight to Egypt

16 Then Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officersa who were with him led away all the people of Mizpah who had survived,b whom Johanan had recovered from Ishmael son of Nethaniah after Ishmael had assassinated Gedaliah son of Ahikam—the soldiers, women, children and court officials he had recovered from Gibeon. 17 And they went on, stopping at Geruth Kimhamc near Bethlehemd on their way to Egypte 18 to escape the Babylonians.b They were afraidf of them because Ishmael son of Nethaniah had killed Gedaliahg son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had appointed as governor over the land.

42 Then all the army officers, including Johananh son of Kareah and Jezaniaha son of Hoshaiah,i and all the people from the least to the greatestj approached 2 Jeremiah the prophet and said to him, “Please hear our petition and prayk to the Lord your God for this entire remnant.l For as you now see, though we were once many, now only a fewm are left. 3 Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.”n

4 “I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will certainly prayo to the Lord your God as you have requested; I will tellp you everything the Lord says and will keep nothing back from you.”q

5 Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the Lord be a truer and faithfuls witnesst against us if we do not act in accordance with everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us. 6 Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, we will obey the Lord our God, to whom we are sending you, so that it will go wellu with us, for we will obeyv the Lord our God.”

7 Ten days later the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah. 8 So he called together Johanan son of Kareah and all the army officersw who were with him and all the people from the least to the greatest.x 9 He said to them, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition,y says:z 10 ‘If you stay in this land,a I will buildb you up and not tear you down; I will plantc you and not uproot you,d for I have relented concerning the disaster I have inflicted on you.e 11 Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon,f whom you now fear.g Do not be afraid of him, declares the Lord, for I am with you and will saveh you and deliver you from his hands.i 12 I will show you compassionj so that he will have compassion on you and restore you to your land.’k

13 “However, if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and so disobeyl the Lord your God, 14 and if you say, ‘No, we will go and live in Egypt,m where we will not see war or hear the trumpetn or be hungry for bread,’o 15 then hear the word of the Lord,p you remnant of Judah. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and you do go to settle there, 16 then the swordq you fearr will overtake you there, and the famines you dread will follow you into Egypt, and there you will die.t 17 Indeed, all who are determined to go to Egypt to settle there will die by the sword, famine and plague;u not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring on them.’ 18 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘As my anger and wrathv have been poured out on those who lived in Jerusalem,w so will my wrath be poured out on you when you go to Egypt. You will be a curseb x and an object of horror,y a cursec and an object of reproach;z you will never see this place again.’a

19 “Remnantb of Judah, the Lord has told you, ‘Do not go to Egypt.’c Be sure of this: I warn you today 20 that you made a fatal mistake when you sent me to the Lord your God and said, ‘Pray to the Lord our God for us; tell us everything he says and we will do it.’d 21 I have told you today, but you still have not obeyed the Lord your God in all he sent me to tell you.e 22 So now, be sure of this: You will die by the sword, faminef and plagueg in the place where you want to go to settle.”h