Jeremiah 40:1

JEREMIAH 40

JEREMIAH LIVES WITH THE NEW GOVERNOR; GEDALIAH

This and the following five chapters deal principally with the history of Jeremiah's life after the fall of Jerusalem.

It seems to distress some commentators that this chapter begins with a statement that applies to all six of these chapters, "The word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah" (Jeremiah 40:1) Thompson stated that. "These words normally precede an oracle, but none follows."[1] He labeled the formula as a parenthesis. Cheyne expressed his disapproval of the words here thus: "The formula seems to announce a prophecy, but no prophecy follows!"[2]

Such comments spring from the ignorance of writers who have never learned that, in the holy Bible, the history written by God's prophets is just as divinely inspired as are the oracles, or predictive prophecies. "The formula `thus saith Jehovah' is appropriate, not merely for a prediction of the future, but to an account of the past, if written by an inspired prophet!"[3]

The Dean of Canterbury was speaking the high truth when he wrote the above quotation; because, in the Bible, there is no special classification of "historical books," such being a merely human and inaccurate classification. The Son of God Himself classified all of the so-called "historical books" as actually belonging to the Nebhiim, a division endorsed by Jesus himself in Luke 24:44, in which passage Jesus quoted the classical division of the Old Testament into its three, and only three, divisions, (1) The Torah, (2) The Psalms (inclusive of the poetical books), and (3) The Prophets. Jesus used the words, "The Law, the Psalms, and the Prophets"; but these three divisions were called by the Jews, (1) The Torah, (2) The Kethubhim, and the Nebhiim.[4]

Thus, the appearance in this historical narrative of the words, "Thus saith Jehovah" should most certainly have been expected.

Regarding the length of Gedaliah's reign, "Barnes placed it at less than two months";[5] Halley said, "It was less than three months,"[6] and Green admitted that, "How long it lasted, we cannot tell."[7]

Gedaliah, as judged from his auspicious beginning, would surely have been an efficient and successful governor; but the Jewish cup of iniquity was not yet full. A descendant of the House of David treacherously murdered the new governor while partaking of his hospitality, as related in the next chapter.

Jeremiah 40:1-4

GEDALIAH WAS APPOINTED GOVERNOR

"The word which came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, after that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah, that were carried away captive unto Babylon. And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him, Jehovah thy God pronounced this evil upon this place; and Jehovah hath brought it, and done according as he spake: because ye have sinned against Jehovah, and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing is come upon you. And now, behold, I loose you this day from the chains which are upon thy 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 unto thee to come with me into Babylon, forbear: behold, all the land is before thee; whither it seemeth good and right unto thee, thither go."

"The captain ..." let him go from Ramah (Jeremiah 40:1). Many writers have difficulty discussing what is written in the Bible, being continually troubled with what they call "difficulties!" Graybill wrote: "It is difficult to reconcile the statement here that Jeremiah was released after being held a prisoner at Ramah with the inference of the previous chapter (Jeremiah 39:13,14) that the Babylonian princes freed him from the Jerusalem prison."[8] The simple answer is that Jeremiah was released twice. Could there be any wonder that something like that occurred in the confusion and disordered bedlam of the siege and destruction of a great city? See our more complete discussion of this under Jeremiah 39:14. It is high time that men stopped criticizing the Bible and started reading it!

Another alleged "difficulty" concerns Jeremiah 40:2,3, in which the captain of the guard uses the very language of Jeremiah in describing what happened to Jerusalem. "Some believe that such a quotation is incongruous in the mouth of a Babylonian";[9] and from this false judgment deny the integrity of the passage. Such an error again springs from the lack of information on the part of the critics. They should know that both the Assyrians and the Babylonians were familiar with the religion of conquered peoples; and they were skilled in the use of all those religions in their psychological warfare.

A startling example of using the religion of opponents against them is that of Rabshakeh (2 Kings 18:19-25), in which event Rabshakeh pointed out that Hezekiah had destroyed the high places of Jehovah all over Judaea, and claimed that Jehovah had sent him (his master Sennacherib) to attack and destroy Jerusalem!

In addition to all this, Nebuzaradan had without doubt spent much time with Gedaliah (about to be appointed governor), and from him had learned all about Jeremiah's life-long campaign to persuade Israel to submit to Babylon, and the reasons that underlay God's decision to destroy the nation of Judah. Upon what other basis, may it be supposed, would the Babylonians have released Jeremiah?

Thus, as Feinberg noted, "Nebuzaradan knew of Jeremiah's preaching and was merely quoting it in Jeremiah 40:2-3, upon an appropriate occasion."[10]

"Because ye have sinned against Jehovah ..." (Jeremiah 40:3). The word "ye" here is plural, referring not to Jeremiah, but to the whole nation."

In addition to the familiarity with Gedaliah, there were countless deserters to the Babylonians who most certainly would have told them about Jeremiah's preaching.