Jeremiah 41:16

JOHANAN TO LEAD THE PEOPLE TO EGYPT

"Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, to wit, the men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought back from Gibeon. And they departed and dwelt at Geruth Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt, because of the Chaldeans, for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor over the land."

"And they dwelt at Geruth Chimham ..." (Jeremiah 41:17). Little is known of this place except what is stated here, that it was near Bethlehem. The name Chimham, however, in 2 Samuel 19:37, is mentioned as the name of a man David the king rewarded for a favor done the king during the rebellion of Absalom. Chimham was the son of a very wealthy and powerful man, Barzillai, a friend of David the king. From this, it may be supposed that Geruth Chimham was a large estate near Bethlehem, of sufficient size to accommodate the considerable population that had been gathered by Johanan.

"To go to enter into Egypt ..." (Jeremiah 41:17). This decision, no doubt, was made by Johanan and supported by the fear of the people who supposed that the Babylonians might arrive any day and take vengeance upon the people for their murder of the governor appointed by the Chaldeans. "They may have feared that the Chaldeans would not understand who was at fault, and therefore punish the innocent; or they may have thought that the Chaldeans would see the entire episode as an attempted revolt, and would not distinguish the innocent from the guilty."[7] However, the decision was a terrible mistake.

It was contrary to God's will for the people to return to Egypt; and, besides that, Egypt was by no means out of the reach of the Babylonians. Johanan had been true and correct in his warning Gedaliah of Ishmael; but now he would become a key factor in moving a remnant of Israel back under the power of the Pharaohs.