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Jeremiah 40

KJV · Chapter 40/52

1The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after that Nebuzar–adan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Judah, which were carried away captive unto Babylon.

2And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, The Lord thy God hath pronounced this evil upon this place.

3Now the Lord hath brought it, and done according as he hath said: because ye have sinned against the Lord, and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you.

4And now, behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which were upon thine hand. If it seem good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come; and I will look well unto thee: but if it seem ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, forbear: behold, all the land is before thee: whither it seemeth good and convenient for thee to go, thither go.

5Now while he was not yet gone back, he said, Go back also to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon hath made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people: or go wheresoever it seemeth convenient unto thee to go. So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a reward, and let him go.

6Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and dwelt with him among the people that were left in the land.

7Now when all the captains of the forces which were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and had committed unto him men, and women, and children, and of the poor of the land, of them that were not carried away captive to Babylon;

8Then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even 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 a Maachathite, they and their men.

9And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan sware unto them and to their men, saying, Fear not to serve the Chaldeans: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.

10As for me, behold, I will dwell at Mizpah to serve the Chaldeans, which will come unto us: but ye, gather ye wine, and summer fruits, and oil, and put them in your vessels, and dwell in your cities that ye have taken.

11Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab, and among the Ammonites, and in Edom, and that were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan;

12Even all the Jews returned out of all places whither they were driven, and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah, unto Mizpah, and gathered wine and summer fruits very much.

13Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah,

14And said unto him, Dost thou certainly know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites hath sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to slay thee? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed them not.

15Then Johanan the son of Kareah spake to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying, Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it: wherefore should he slay thee, that all the Jews which are gathered unto thee should be scattered, and the remnant in Judah perish?

16But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah, Thou shalt not do this thing: for thou speakest falsely of Ishmael.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Jeremiah chooses to stay in the land of Judah instead of going to Babylon, joining the newly appointed governor Gedaliah. But rumors surface of a plot to assassinate Gedaliah, which he refuses to believe.

Explanation

It is remarkable that the Babylonian captain Nebuzaradan himself publicly acknowledges that the destruction of Jerusalem was the direct result of the people's sin against their own God — a pagan foreigner confirming the message Jeremiah had been preaching for decades. Gedaliah, appointed governor over the small remnant left in the land, tries to rebuild a normal life and simply asks the people to work the land and serve the Babylonians in peace. His refusal to believe the warning about a plot against his life, despite being warned directly, sets the tragic stage for the events of the following chapter.

Fun facts

  • Gedaliah belonged to the family of Shaphan, scribes who repeatedly supported Jeremiah throughout the book, showing a continuity of family support for the prophet amid the national crisis.
  • Mizpah, chosen as the new administrative seat, lay north of Jerusalem and had been an important religious and political center since the days of Samuel (1 Samuel 7:5-6).

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Jeremiah 40:1Sets the scene: Jeremiah had been taken by mistake along with the other captives to Ramah, on the way to deportation to Babylon, before being identified and released.
  2. Jeremiah 40:2The Babylonian commander himself surprisingly acknowledges that it was the God of Judah who brought about this disaster -- a foreigner repeating the theological explanation given by Judah’s own prophets.
  3. Jeremiah 40:3Nebuzaradan confirms that the destruction happened exactly as God had warned, because of the sin and disobedience of the people -- publicly acknowledging the spiritual reason for the fall.
  4. Jeremiah 40:4He offers Jeremiah a real choice: go to Babylon with a guarantee of good treatment, or stay anywhere in the land he prefers -- a rare freedom for a prisoner of war.
  5. Jeremiah 40:5Gedaliah, from a family that had already protected Jeremiah before (see 26:24, he was the son of Ahikam), was appointed governor over the small part of Judah left after the destruction -- a Babylonian attempt to keep some local administration instead of annexing everything directly.
  6. Jeremiah 40:6Jeremiah chooses to stay and goes to Mizpah, the city chosen as the new administrative seat, to live under Gedaliah’s protection among the people left in the land.
  7. Jeremiah 40:7Word that Gedaliah had been appointed governor reaches the Jewish military commanders still scattered across the countryside, resisting after the official fall of Jerusalem.
  8. Jeremiah 40:8Lists the military leaders who present themselves to Gedaliah at Mizpah, among them Ishmael son of Nethaniah -- the same man who will later assassinate Gedaliah himself.
  9. Jeremiah 40:9Gedaliah swears to reassure these commanders: there is no reason to fear serving the Chaldeans, and life under this arrangement would be safe, as long as they accepted Babylonian authority.
  10. Jeremiah 40:10He tells the group to settle down and simply gather the normal harvest -- wine, summer fruit, oil -- a sign that basic economic life could continue even after the disaster.
  11. Jeremiah 40:11Jews who had fled to neighboring countries -- Moab, Ammon, Edom -- during the invasion hear that a government remains in Judah and begin to consider returning.
  12. Jeremiah 40:12Many of these refugees do return to Judah, join Gedaliah at Mizpah, and that year’s harvest is described as quite abundant -- a brief moment of normalcy after the catastrophe.
  13. Jeremiah 40:13Johanan, another military commander, and his companions go in person to Gedaliah at Mizpah, bringing an urgent warning.
  14. Jeremiah 40:14The warning: the Ammonite king Baalis sent Ishmael to assassinate Gedaliah -- a foreign conspiracy using a Jew to eliminate the governor who was cooperating with Babylon. Gedaliah does not believe it.
  15. Jeremiah 40:15Johanan proposes, in secret, to kill Ishmael preemptively before he carries out the plan, arguing that Gedaliah’s death would destroy the only stability left for the scattered people.
  16. Jeremiah 40:16Gedaliah refuses the proposal, calling the accusation against Ishmael a lie -- a naive trust that will cost him his own life in the next chapter.

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