Jeremiahchapter 40
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Key verse
The 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.
It stands in scene A of the chapter, verses 1 to 6.
The chapter
Chapter summary
Nebuzaradan finds Jeremiah bound among the captives at Ramah, releases him, and (with a Babylonian officer's summary of Judah's own theology, that this came because they sinned against Jehovah) gives him a free choice: come to Babylon and be looked after, or go anywhere you please. He returns to Gedaliah at Mizpah and dwells among the people left in the land. Scattered Judeans hear that a governor has been appointed and stream back from Moab, Ammon, and Edom, gathering wine and summer fruits in great abundance. Then the shadow: Johanan warns that Baalis king of Ammon has sent Ishmael to kill Gedaliah, and offers to kill him first. Gedaliah refuses to believe it.
Context
Prophecy · Jeremiah · Jeremiah overview
Where the chapter sits
Jeremiah 40 falls in Jerusalem's fall narrated (chapters 34–45). Zedekiah's vacillation; Jehoiakim burns the scroll (36); siege and fall (39); assassination of Gedaliah; flight to Egypt with the remnant.
Before it: Book of consolation, chapters 30–33. After it: Oracles against the nations, chapters 46–51.
The whole shape of Jeremiah→The world behind this chapter
Jeremiah 40The history
The chapter opens with a scene worth picturing: Jeremiah is found in chains at Ramah among all the captives being carried away, a prisoner in a holding camp where the columns were assembled and shackled before the long march. The Babylonian commander singles him out, unbinds him, and offers him a choice of Babylon with an allowance or staying with the governor. He stays.
The rest of the history, and what it meant to them
Mizpah, generally identified with the mound of Tell en-Nasbeh a few miles north of Jerusalem, becomes the administrative centre because Jerusalem is uninhabitable. Excavation there shows the site continuing in use through this period while Jerusalem lay in ruins.
Gedaliah son of Ahikam is installed as governor. His father had saved Jeremiah's life at the trial in chapter 26, and his grandfather Shaphan was Josiah's secretary. A seal reading belonging to Gedalyahu who is over the house was found at Lachish, and is often connected with this man, though the identification cannot be proved from the seal alone.
His policy is practical and hopeful: settle in the towns, gather wine and summer fruits and oil, store them in your vessels, and serve the king of Babylon. The harvest that year was reportedly abundant. Judeans who had fled to Moab, Ammon and Edom during the war started coming back.
What it meant to them
For the first hearers this was the one chapter where things might have turned out differently. The land was quiet, the harvest was in, and a decent man from a good family was in charge.
The warning that ends it is the tragedy in miniature. Johanan tells the governor plainly that the king of Ammon has sent Ishmael to assassinate him, and Gedaliah refuses to believe it. A seal from a site in Ammon naming a servant of Baalisha shows there really was a king of that name across the river.
Sources cited
- Walton, Matthews and Chavalas, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament
- Kenneth A. Kitchen, On the Reliability of the Old Testament
A. Loosed from His Chains at Ramah: Go Back to Gedaliah
1. (vv. 1-3)
a.let him go from Ramah: The scene opens with Jeremiah already in chains among the captives bound for Babylon, caught up in the general deportation from Ramah despite Nebuchadnezzar's earlier order that he be treated well. Nebuzaradan's speech is the chapter's surprise, a Babylonian captain of the guard stating Judah's fall in the very terms Jeremiah himself had preached for forty years, the Lord hath brought it, and done according as he hath said, because ye have sinned against the Lord. Henry and Gill both note the irony that a pagan officer speaks truer theology than the false prophets Jeremiah opposed, confessing the Lord's hand in the judgment the nation's own priests denied.
Jeremiah 40:1, 4 voicesWhat preachers and commentators have said about these verses, in their own words.
Jeremiah 40:1
“Jeremiah, who was sanctified in the womb and was known in his mother's belly, enjoyed the high privilege because he was predestined to the blessing of virginity. And when all were captured and even the vessels of the temple were plundered by the king of Babylon, he alone was liberated by the enemy, did not know the insults of captivity and was supported by the conquerors; and Nebuchadnezzar, though he gave Nebuzaradan no charge concerning the Holy of Holies, did give him charge concerning Jeremiah.”
Jerome· written before 420· Against Jovinianus 1.33patristic
Jeremiah 40:1
“The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord,.... The word of prophecy, as the Targum; but there being no prophecy in this and the following chapter, only a narration of facts, this is generally referred to what came ten days after, and which begins Jer 42:7; so Jarchi and Kimchi; all between being included in a parenthesis, or a relation of facts preparatory, to lead on to it; though Abarbinel takes it to be a general title to all histories and prophecies in this book, from henceforward to the end of it.”
Jeremiah 40:1
“As what follows is mainly a historical narrative, it seems that the title “The word ...” was appropriate not merely to a prediction of the future, but to an account of the past, if written by a prophet. The Jews regarded history as inspired if written by a seer, and thus their historical books are called “the early prophets.” Ramah - Probably all the prisoners of note were collected at Ramah indiscriminately, and examined there.”
Jeremiah 40:1
“Ramah - Ramah was a city in the tribe of Benjamin near Gibeon. Babylon - Jeremiah was by mistake and expressly contrary to the king's orders carried amongst the other prisoners; probably the captain of the guard at that place called over his prisoners, and among them found the prophet contrary to his expectation.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Jeremiah 40:2, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:2
“The Lord thy God hath pronounced - I know that thou art a true prophet, for what thou hast predicted from thy God is come to pass.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Jeremiah 40:2-3
“The people of Israel had been often told this from the pulpit by their prophets, and they would not regard it; now they are told it from the bench by the conqueror, whom they dare not contradict and who will make them regard it. Note, Sooner or later men shall be made sensible that their sin is the cause of all their miseries.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2. (vv. 4-6)
a.I loose thee this day from the chains: Nebuzaradan sets Jeremiah free with an open choice, Babylon under royal protection or the land under Gedaliah, and Jeremiah takes neither as compulsion but chooses the land, going to Gedaliah at Mizpah to dwell among the people left behind. Keil observes that the choice itself is the last kindness Babylon shows the prophet who told it the truth, food and a reward given alongside the freedom. Jeremiah's decision to stay with the poorest of the land rather than accept honor in the conqueror's court fits the pattern the book has already set, a prophet who shares his people's suffering rather than escaping it.
Jeremiah 40:4, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:4
“He now tells us, that he, as yet bound with chains, had been brought forth to Ramah in that miserable condition. These things appear inconsistent, but, as I have said, we must bear in mind, that there is an omission in that summary, which we have noticed.”
John Calvin· Commentaries (1554)reformed
Jeremiah 40:4
“He advised him to go to Gedaliah and settle with him. This Gedaliah, made governor of the land under the king of Babylon, was an honest Jew, who (it is probably) betimes went over with his friends to the Chaldeans, and approved himself so well that he had this great trust put into his hands,”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jeremiah 40:5, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:5
“Now while he was not yet gone back - Most modern commentators render “And as he yet answered nothing, Return then, he said, to Gedaliah ...” Victuals - A ration of food. A reward - A present.”
Jeremiah 40:5
“He set him at liberty, but it was in a country that was laid waste, and in which, as the posture of it now was, he might have perished, though it was his own country, if he had not been thus kindly furnished with necessaries.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jeremiah 40:6, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:6
“Then went Jeremiah to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah,.... A city in the tribe of Benjamin, not far from Ramathon; which, as Josephus says, was about five miles from Jerusalem.”
Jeremiah 40:6
“Jeremiah indeed had never in his prophecies spoken of any such good days reserved for the Jews immediately after the captivity; but Providence seemed to raise and encourage such an expectation, and it would be to that miserable people as life from the dead. Gedaliah, one of themselves, is made governor in the land, by the king of Babylon,”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
B. Gathering Wine and Summer Fruits: the Remnant Returns
1. (vv. 7-10)
a.the captains of the forces which were in the fields: Word reaches the scattered captains still in the field that Gedaliah son of Ahikam has been made governor over the remnant, and they gather to him at Mizpah with their men. Gedaliah's oath, fear not to serve the Chaldeans, dwell in the land, and it shall be well with you, offers a policy of submission for survival, the same counsel Jeremiah had given the exiles at 29:5-7, build houses and plant gardens. Gill notes that Gedaliah, grandson of Shaphan the scribe who read Josiah's book of the law, comes from a family already sympathetic to Jeremiah's message, which explains the trust the prophet places in him.
Jeremiah 40:7, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:7
“The men would be the old and infirm: the women those whose husbands and protectors had perished in the wars (e. g. Jer 41:10). The word children includes all the inferior members of a household.”
Jeremiah 40:7
“To show that he designed to make and keep them easy he did not give this commission to one of the princes of Babylon, but to one of their brethren, who, they might be sure, would seek their peace. He was the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, one of the princes.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jeremiah 40:8, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:8
“Ishmael the son of Nethaniah - This is he who afterwards murdered Gedaliah. He had been employed to do this by Baalis, king of the Ammonites, with whom he appears to have taken refuge during the siege. See Jer 40:14.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Jeremiah 40:8
“Ishmael - It is likely these were commanders of parties, which either were within the city 'till it was taken, and then escaped, or where somewhere in the country, and not so much regarded by the Chaldeans, who were more intent upon the conquest of the city, than pursuing these little parties.”
John Wesley· Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765)evangelical
Jeremiah 40:9, 3 voices
Jeremiah 40:9
“To serve the Chaldeans - literally, as margin; to be their minister and lieutenant. Gedaliah supposed that officers of high rank would come from time to time from Babylon to look after the king’s interests. But whatever was ordered would be done through him, as being the prime minister. Gather ye wine - As Jerusalem was captured in the fifth month, August, it would now be autumn, and there would be fruit upon the trees, enough to maintain the scanty population during the winter. Taken - Or, seized.”
Jeremiah 40:9
“Fear not--They were afraid that they should not obtain pardon from the Chaldeans for their acts. He therefore assured them of safety by an oath. serve--literally, "to stand before" (Jer 40:10; Jer 52:12), that is, to be at hand ready to execute the commands of the king of Babylon.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Jeremiah 40:9
“Fear not the sin of it." Though the divine law had forbidden them to make leagues with the heathen, yet the divine sentence had obliged them to yield to the king of Babylon. "Fear not the reproach of it, and the disparagement it will be to your nation; it is what God has brought you to, has bound you to, and it is no disgrace to any to comply with him.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jeremiah 40:10, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:10
“He does not now add that these very fruits were to constitute the chief part of the tribute to be paid to Babylon: which, though fruitful in corn, was less productive of grapes, figs, and olives [HERODOTUS, 1.193]. The grant of "vineyards" to the "poor" (Jer 39:10) would give hope to the discontended of enjoying the best fruits (Jer 40:12).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Jeremiah 40:10
“Gedaliah is willing thus to give them the assurance of an oath that he will do his part in protecting them, but, being apt to err (as many good men are) on the charitable side, he did not require an oath from them that they would be faithful to him, else the following mischief might have been prevented.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2. (vv. 11-12)
a.the Jews that were in Moab, and among the Ammonites, and in Edom: News of Gedaliah's appointment draws Jews home even from Moab, Ammon and Edom, the neighboring lands where they had fled the invasion, and the remnant gathers a full harvest of wine and summer fruit. Henry reads the brief peace as a genuine mercy, land and community briefly restored after the city's fall, though the chapter's next verses already carry the threat that will end it. The gathering here answers, however briefly, the promise Jeremiah had spoken of a people planted rather than plucked up.
Jeremiah 40:11, 1 voice
Jeremiah 40:11-12
“It would be a great reviving to those that were dispersed to come together again, to those that were dispersed into foreign countries to come together in their own country, to those that were under strange kings to be under a governor of their own nation. See here in wrath God remembered mercy, and yet admitted some of them upon a further trial of their obedience.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jeremiah 40:12, 1 voice
Jeremiah 40:12
“Here is a dark cloud gathering over this infant state, and threatening a dreadful storm. How soon is this hopeful prospect blasted! For when God begins in judgment he will make an end.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
C. Warned of Ishmael's Plot, and Not Believing It
1. (vv. 13-16)
a.came to Gedaliah to Mizpah: Johanan and the other captains bring Gedaliah a specific warning, that Baalis king of Ammon has sent Ishmael son of Nethaniah to kill him, and offer to remove the threat secretly before it can strike. Gedaliah refuses to believe them and forbids the killing, calling the report a lie about Ishmael, a decision the commentators uniformly read as fatal naivety rather than genuine virtue. Clarke notes that Gedaliah's trust was itself commendable in a man of good will, but his refusal to credit Johanan's specific intelligence left the whole remnant exposed to the assassination the next chapter carries out.
Jeremiah 40:14, 2 voices
Jeremiah 40:14
“But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed then not - The account given of this man proves him to have been a person of uncommon greatness of soul. Conscious of his own integrity and benevolence, he took the portrait of others from his own mind; and therefore believed evil of no man, because he felt none towards any in his own breast. He may be reproached for being too credulous and confident: but any thing of this kind that may be justly charged against him serves only to show the greatness of his mind.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Jeremiah 40:14
“Baalis--named from the idol Baal, as was often the case in heathen names. Ammonites--So it was to them that Ishmael went after murdering Gedaliah (Jer 41:10). slay--literally, "strike thee in the soul," that is, a deadly stroke.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Jeremiah 40:15, 1 voice
Jeremiah 40:15
“Wherefore should he slay thee? Herein he showed more courage and zeal than sense of justice; for, if it be lawful to kill for prevention, who then can be safe, since malice always suspects the worst? That Gedaliah, being a man of sincerity himself, would by no means give credit to the information given him of Ishmael's treachery.”
Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Jeremiah 40:16, 1 voice
Jeremiah 40:16
“Thou shalt not do this thing - He cannot be so base. Thou speakest falsely of Ishmael - He thought it quite possible that the man who was capable of becoming an assassin was capable of telling a lie; and therefore he would not credit what he said. Had he been a little more distrustful, he would have saved his own life. The next chapter shows that Johanan’s information was too true. So noble Gedaliah lost his life by not believing that evil of others of which he himself was incapable.”
Adam Clarke· Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
The text of this chapter
This page carries no textual note on Jeremiah 40. Where this site has examined a place the manuscripts differ, the examination is in the manuscripts room. Every place this site examines →
This page draws on 9 works. Open for the list.
This page draws on Adam Clarke; Albert Barnes; Carl Friedrich Keil, The Prophecies of Jeremiah; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871); Jerome, Against Jovinianus 1.33; John Calvin, Commentaries (1554); John Gill; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament (1765) and Matthew Henry.
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