Jeremiah 41:10-16

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

TRANSLATION

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

COMMENTS

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

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

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

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

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