King James Version
Jeremiah 41
18 verses with commentary
The Assassination of Gedaliah
Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and the princes of the king, even ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah.
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KJV Study Commentary
The tragedy foretold unfolds: 'in the seventh month' (October 586 BC), approximately two months after Gedaliah's appointment, Ishmael son of Nethaniah arrived with 'ten men' to murder the governor. The detail that Ishmael was 'of the seed royal' explains his motivation—royal blood gave him claim to leadership that Gedaliah, from a scribal family, lacked in his view. The phrase 'the princes of the ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
XLI.
(1) **It came to pass in the seventh month.**—It lies in the nature of the case that the visit purported to be one of courtesy and recognition. The remaining representatives of the house of David (Jeremiah 40:8) would show that they were ready to welcome the new Satrap. As the seventh month included the Feast of Tabernacles, it is not unlikely that they came as if to share in its festivities....
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**3. bend ... tongues ... for lies--**that is, with lies as their arrows; they direct lies on their tongue as their bow (Psa 64:3, 4).
**not valiant for ... truth--**(Jr 7:28). Maurer translates, "They do not prevail by truth" or faith (Psa 12:4). Their tongue, not faith, is their weapon.
**upon ... earth--**rather, "in the land."
**know not me--**(Ho 4:1).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword, and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land.
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KJV Study Commentary
Ishmael, of royal blood, assassinates Gedaliah and his supporters 'with the sword.' This treachery destroys the peaceful remnant community Gedaliah was building. Evil persists even after judgment falls. Ishmael's alliance with Ammon (40:14) shows political intrigue continued amid the ruins. Human sin complicates even God's disciplinary work.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Then arose Ishmael.**—The narrative suggests the thought that, as in the massacre of Glencoe, the guests murdered their host at the very time when he was receiving them with open arms.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**4. supplant--**literally, "trip up by the heel" (Ho 12:3).
**walk with slanders--**(Jr 6:28).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there, and the men of war.
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KJV Study Commentary
Ishmael's massacre extended beyond Gedaliah to 'all the Jews that were with him at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there, and the men of war.' This wasn't surgical elimination of one governor but wholesale slaughter aimed at destroying Babylon's administrative structure in Judah. Killing 'the Chaldeans' (Babylonian officials) ensured Babylon would respond with severe reprisal, making Ish...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **Ishmael also slew all the Jews. . . .**—We wonder at first that ten men were able to effect so much. It does not follow, however, that the massacre went beyond the Jews and Chaldæan officers who were sharing Gedaliah’s hospitality, and they may easily have been surprised, like Gedaliah, unarmed, and in the act of feasting. Possibly, too, the ten princes may each have brought their retinue of...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**5. weary themselves--**are at laborious pains to act perversely [Maurer]. Sin is a hard bondage (Ha 2:13).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it,
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KJV Study Commentary
The phrase 'the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it' reveals Ishmael's calculated deception—he concealed the murders to avoid immediate alarm while he consolidated control. This detail emphasizes premeditation and cold calculation rather than passionate crime. The following verses (5-10) describe how Ishmael exploited religious pilgrims traveling to worship at Jerusalem's ru...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6. Thine--**God addresses Jeremiah, who dwelt in the midst of deceitful men.
**refuse to know me--**Their ignorance of God is wilful (Jr 9:3; 5:4, 5).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →That there came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the LORD.
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KJV Study Commentary
These men came from northern regions to worship at Jerusalem's ruins, bringing offerings despite the temple's destruction. Their devotion shows that true worship transcends buildings. The 'meat offerings and incense' demonstrate continued faith in YAHWEH even after judgment. God preserves a remnant of sincere worshipers even in darkest times.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **There came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria.**—The LXX. gives Salem instead of Shiloh, and this agrees better with the order of the names, Salem being a tower or fortress near Shechem (Genesis 33:18), while Shiloh lay further off. The eighty travellers were coming apparently on a pilgrimage of mourning to the ruins of the Temple, perhaps to keep the Feast of Tabernacles in...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7. melt ... try them--**by sending calamities on them.
**for how shall I do--**"What else can I do for the sake of the daughter of My people?" [Maurer], (Is 1:25; Mal 3:3).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went: and it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. weeping: Heb. in going and weeping
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Ishmael's deceptive greeting to the pilgrims—'Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam'—exploited their trust and likely desire to meet with Judah's governor. By invoking Gedaliah's name, Ishmael used the murdered man's reputation to lure victims, compounding betrayal with exploitation. The phrase 'when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them, and cast them into...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **Weeping all along as he went.**—The treacherous prince met them as sharing in their grief. He does not tell them of the murder; but assuming that they have heard of Gedaliah’s appointment as Satrap, invites them to come and see him, as being now within the bounds of his jurisdiction. The LXX., it may be noted, represents the pilgrims, and not Ishmael, as weeping.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8. tongue ... arrow shot out--**rather, "a murdering arrow" [Maurer] (Jr 9:3).
**speaketh peaceably ... in heart ... layeth ... wait--**layeth his ambush [Henderson], (Psa 55:21).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them, and cast them into the midst of the pit, he, and the men that were with him.
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KJV Study Commentary
The chilling detail that Ishmael 'cast them into the midst of the pit, he, and the men that were with him' emphasizes both the act and the corporate guilt—Ishmael didn't act alone but led others into his wickedness. The phrase 'into the midst of the pit' (literally 'into the hand/midst of the pit') suggests bodies were thrown into a cistern, likely the same one where he disposed of Gedaliah and ot...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them.**—The purpose of the new murder does not appear at first sight. The very presence of the devout mourners may have roused him to bitterness. Their recognition of Gedaliah may have seemed the act of traitors to their country. Possibly also the act may have been one of vindictive retaliation for the murder of his kinsmen (Jeremiah 52:10), or have been per...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
9. (Jr 5:9, 29).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael, Slay us not: for we have treasures in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey. So he forbare, and slew them not among their brethren.
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KJV Study Commentary
The ten survivors who declared, 'Slay us not: for we have treasures in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey' reveal human desperation and Ishmael's greed. These men bought their lives by offering hidden stores—'treasures in the field' suggests supplies buried or concealed outside Mizpah for security during unstable times. The list (wheat, barley, oil, honey) represents comp...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **But ten men were found among them.**—The stores which formed the purchase-money by which the ten saved their lives represented probably the produce of the previous year, which, after the manner of the East, had been concealed in pits, far from the habitations of men, while the land was occupied by the Chaldæan armies.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
10. Jeremiah breaks in upon Jehovah's threats of wrath with lamentation for his desolated country.
**mountains--**once cultivated and fruitful: the hillsides were cultivated in terraces between the rocks.
**habitations of ... wilderness--**rather, "the pleasant herbage (literally, 'the choice parts' of any thing) of the pasture plain." The Hebrew for "wilderness" expresses not a barren desert,...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →Now the pit wherein Ishmael had cast all the dead bodies of the men, whom he had slain because of Gedaliah, was it which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with them that were slain. because: or, near Gedaliah: Heb. by the hand, or, by the side of Gedaliah
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KJV Study Commentary
The historical detail that the pit where Ishmael disposed of bodies was 'that which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel' connects this atrocity to Israel's divided monarchy history three centuries earlier (1 Kings 15:16-22). King Asa (911-870 BC) fortified Mizpah as a northern defensive position against Baasha of Israel, building infrastructure including large cisterns for sieg...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **Because of Gedaliah.**—Literally, *by the hand of Gedaliah; i.e., *by using his name to entrap the unsuspecting pilgrims.
**Which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha . . .**—See 1Kings 15:22; 2Chronicles 16:6. Baasha had tried to fortify Ramah as an outpost of his kingdom. Asa called in the help of Benhadad, king of Syria, and compelled him to desist, and then carried off the stones and...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. And--**omit "And." Jehovah here resumes His speech from Jr 9:9.
**heaps--**(see on Is 25:2).
**dragons--**jackals.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 41
God's care of his people. (Is. 41:1-9) they are encouraged not to fear. (Is. 41:10-20) The vanity and folly of idolatry. (Is. 41:21-29)
**Verses 1-9** Can any heathen god raise up one in righteousness, make what use of him he pleases, and make him victorious over the nations? The Lord did so with Abraham, or rather, he would do so with Cyrus. Sinners encourage one another in the w...
Read full commentary →Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king's daughters, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the Ammonites .
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KJV Study Commentary
Ishmael's treachery in kidnapping the remnant, including 'the king's daughters,' represents complete betrayal of those entrusted to Gedaliah's care. This violence continues the chaos following Jerusalem's fall. Human wickedness doesn't pause even during national catastrophe. Yet God's purposes continue despite human evil - these events drive the remnant to Egypt, setting up further prophecies.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **Even the king’s daughters.**—We find in Jeremiah 39:6 that the sons of Zedekiah were slain at Riblah. The daughters (the word was probably used generally for all the princesses of the royal house) were spared, and consigned to the protection of Gedaliah. In taking possession of them, Ishmael was asserting, after the fashion of the East, his claim as the representative of the royal house. Th...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
12. Rather, "Who is a wise man? (that is, Whosoever has inspired wisdom, 2Pe 3:15); let him understand this (weigh well the evils impending, and the causes of their being sent); and he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken (that is, whosoever is prophetically inspired), let him declare it to his fellow countrymen," if haply they may be roused to repentance, the only hope of safety.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done,
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KJV Study Commentary
Johanan's immediate response to news of Ishmael's murders—gathering 'all the captains of the forces that were with him' and preparing pursuit—shows leadership and military competence. His swift action prevented Ishmael's complete success, eventually rescuing the captives (v.14). The phrase 'when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, heard of all the evil...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
13. Answer to the "for what the land perisheth" (Jr 9:12).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →Then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon.
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KJV Study Commentary
The military pursuit—'Then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah'—demonstrates Johanan's commitment to justice and rescue. The phrase 'found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon' provides geographical specificity: Gibeon, about 6 miles north of Jerusalem and some 2-3 miles south of Mizpah, had significant water sources including a famous pool (2 Samuel 2:...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **By the great waters that are in Gibeon.—**Johanan and his friends had been unable to prevent the slaughter of which they had warned Gedaliah (Jeremiah 41:15), but they were not too late to avenge it. Gibeon, retaining its name with little alteration in the modern *El-jibe, *lay about two miles from Mizpah; so that Ishmael must have halted on thinking himself safe against attack. On the east...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
14. (Jr 7:24).
**Baalim--**plural of Baal, to express his supposed manifold powers.
**fathers taught them--**(Ga 1:14; 1Pe 1:18). We are not to follow the errors of the fathers, but the authority of Scripture and of God [Jerome].
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →Now it came to pass, that when all the people which were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, then they were glad.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>When all the people which were with Ishmael saw Johanan...then they were glad</strong> (וַיִּשְׂמְחוּ, vayyismchu)—The captives' joy at seeing Johanan and his forces reveals that Ishmael held them against their will. Their gladness (<em>simchah</em>) contrasts starkly with the mourning that preceded their abduction—they'd come to Mizpah with shaved beards and torn clothes (v. 5), tradition...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **They were glad.**—The words are significant as implying the popularity of Gedaliah, and the joy of those who had been under him at seeing the prospect of his murder being avenged. They at once took refuge with the leader of the avenging party.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**15. feed--**(Jr 8:14; 23:15; Psa 80:5).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →So all the people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned, and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah.
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KJV Study Commentary
The captives' joyful response to seeing Johanan—'So it was, that all the people whom Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned, and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah'—demonstrates both their prior unwillingness to follow Ishmael and their relief at rescue opportunity. The phrase 'cast about' (or 'turned around') indicates they immediately reversed direction upon seeing...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. nor their fathers have known--**alluding to Jr 9:14, "Their fathers taught them" idolatry; therefore the children shall be scattered to a land which neither their fathers nor they have known.
**send a sword after them--**Not even in flight shall they be safe.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites .
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KJV Study Commentary
The report that 'Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites' reveals both success and failure in Johanan's rescue: he liberated captives but Ishmael escaped justice. The detail that only 'eight men' remained with Ishmael (down from the original ten in v.1) suggests two were killed, captured, or defected during the confrontation. Ishmael's escape to ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **With eight men.**—He had come with ten (Jeremiah 41:1), and it is a natural inference that two had perished in one or other of the conflicts of Jeremiah 41:2; Jeremiah 41:12.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17. mourning women--**hired to heighten lamentation by plaintive cries baring the breast, beating the arms, and suffering the hair to flow dishevelled (2Ch 35:25; Ec 12:5; Mt 9:23).
**cunning--**skilled in wailing.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →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, even mighty men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought again from Gibeon:
View commentary (4 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
Johanan's recovery of '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' emphasizes both rescue success and context: these survivors had witnessed Gedaliah's assassination and Ishmael's massacres, traumatizing events that would shape their subsequent choices. The detailed listing—'mighty men of wa...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **Mighty men of war . . .**—These were apparently such as had escaped the massacre of Jeremiah 41:2. In the women, the children, and the eunuchs we find the survivors of the king’s harem. Ebed-melech may well have been among the latter.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
18. (Jr 14:17).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →And they departed, and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt,
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KJV Study Commentary
The remnant's stop at 'Geruth Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt' reveals their immediate decision: flee to Egypt rather than remain in Judah. The place name 'Geruth Chimham' (possibly meaning 'lodging place of Chimham') had historical significance—Chimham was likely the son of Barzillai the Gileadite, whom David blessed for supporting him during Absalom's rebellion (2 Samue...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(17) **They departed, and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham.**—The word translated “habitation “is not found elsewhere, but it is connected with one which means “stranger,” “foreigner,” and means probably a *caravanserai, *or *hospitium *for travellers. The name of Chimham throws us back on the history of Barzillai in 2Samuel 19:37. When the Gileadite chief pleaded his age as a ground for not acc...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
19. The cry of "the mourning women."
**spoiled--**laid waste.
**dwellings cast us out--**fulfilling Le 18:28; 20:22. Calvin translates, "The enemy have cast down our habitations."
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →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 in the land.
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KJV Study Commentary
The remnant's motivation for fleeing to Egypt is explained: '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 in the land.' This verse articulates their fear: Babylon would hold the entire Jewish remnant responsible for Ishmael's murder of the governor and Babylonian officials. ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**20. Yet--**rather, "Only" [Henderson]. This particle calls attention to what follows.
**teach ... daughters wailing--**The deaths will be so many that there will be a lack of mourning women to bewail them. The mothers, therefore, must teach their daughters the science to supply the want.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 10-20** God speaks with tenderness; Fear thou not, for I am with thee: not only within call, but present with thee. Art thou weak? I will strengthen thee. Art thou in want of friends? I will help thee in the time of need. Art thou ready to fall? I will uphold thee with that right hand which is full of righteousness, dealing forth rewards and punishments. There are those that strive with G...
Read full commentary →