Reflections on Jeremiah 40

Jeremiah 40 (Contemporary English Version)
1. I was led away in chains along with the people of Judah and Jerusalem who were being taken to Babylonia. Nebuzaradan was the officer in charge of the guard, and while we were stopped at Ramah, the LORD had him set me free.
   
2. Nebuzaradan said: Jeremiah, the LORD your God warned your people that he would bring disaster on this land.
   
3. But they continued to rebel against him, and now he has punished them just as he threatened.
   
4. Today I am taking the chains off your wrists and setting you free! If you want to, you can come with me to Babylonia, and I will see that you are taken care of. Or if you decide to stay here, you can go wherever you wish.
   
5. King Nebuchadnezzar has chosen Gedaliah to rule Judah. You can live near Gedaliah, and he will provide for you, or you can live anywhere else you want. Nebuzaradan gave me a supply of food, then let me leave.
   
6. I decided to stay with the people of Judah, and I went to live near Gedaliah in Mizpah.
   
7. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, together with Johanan and Jonathan, the two sons of Kareah, had been officers in Judah's army. And so had Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah from Maacah. They and their troops had been stationed outside Jerusalem and had not been captured. They heard that Gedaliah had been chosen to rule Judah, and that the poorest men, women, and children had not been taken away to Babylonia. So they went to Mizpah and met with their new ruler.
   
8. (SEE 40:7)
   
9. Gedaliah told them, "There's no need to be afraid of the Babylonians. Everything will be fine, if we live peacefully and obey King Nebuchadnezzar.
   
10. I will stay here at Mizpah and meet with the Babylonian officials on each of their visits. But you must go back to your towns and bring in the harvest, then store the wine, olive oil, and dried fruit."
    
11. Earlier, when the Babylonians had invaded Judah, many of the Jews escaped to Moab, Ammon, Edom, and several other countries. But these Jews heard that the king of Babylonia had appointed Gedaliah as ruler of Judah, and that only a few people were left there. So the Jews in these other countries came back to Judah and helped with the grape and fruit harvest, which was especially large that year.
    
12. (SEE 40:11)
    
13. One day, Johanan got together with some of the other men who had been army officers, and they came to Mizpah and met with Gedaliah.
    
14. They said, "Gedaliah, we came to warn you that King Baalis of Ammon hired Ishmael to murder you!" Gedaliah refused to believe them,
    
15. so Johanan went to Gedaliah privately and said, "Let me kill Ishmael. No one will find out who did it. There are only a few people left in Judah, but they are depending on you. And if you are murdered, they will be scattered or killed."
    
16. Gedaliah answered, "Don't kill Ishmael! What you've said about him can't be true."
    
    

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    After the fall of Jerusalem, recorded in the previous chapter, captives were taken in chains to Ramah where Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, setup temporary headquarters after Jerusalem fell. From there prisoners met their fate or were dispersed to Babylon. Jeremiah was one of the prisoners brought in chains to Ramah. Nebuzaradan, captain of the Babylonian guard, was evidently handling the processing of prisoners, and dealt with Jermiah. He recognized, better than some of the Judeans, that "The LORD your God decreed this disaster on this place." (40:2) Therefore, he knew Jeremiah's role in this decree and that he had not rebelled against Babylon. Thus he set Jeremiah free to go where he wished. If he stayed in Judah, Nebuzaradan recommended he stay with Gedaliah who Nebuchadnezzar had appointed vassal governor over Judah. Nebuzaradan then gave Jeremiah "a ration and a gift and released him." (40:5) Jeremiah chose to stay in Judah, so he went to Mizpah, the administrative center for Judah after the destruction of Jerusalem, to stay with Gedaliah the governor.
    
    As word spread that Gedaliah had been appointed governor of Judah, remnants of Judah's army that had escaped the Babylonian takeover and other Judeans who had scattered to various places began to return. After several years under the threat of Babylon's attack on Judah, the Judeans who had survived and not be deported to Babylon had the opportunity to enjoy peace and try to rebuild and return their lives to a new normal. This opportunity, however, was dependent on their obedience to God which involved subservience to Babylon. To rebel against Babylon would destroy what was left of the people and the nation. Among the soldiers who returned to Mizpah was a commander by the name of Ishmael. Ishmael was not satisfied to enjoy this peace under Babylonian rule nor to heed God's instructions to do so. Therefore, he harbored a plot to kill Gedaliah, the governor. Word of this plot was brought to Gedaliah by another of the returned army commanders, but Gedaliah refused to believe it. Chapter 41 will continue the account of Ishmael's uprising.
    
    In previous reflections in the book of Jeremiah I have likened God's dealings with Judah and Israel to a building that has outlived its usefulness and must be torn down to allow for the construction of a new building in its place. The destruction of Judah was like the demolition of the outmoded building. But as with the demolition of the old building, the goal in Judah's fall was not her destruction, but the building of a new nation. For God to make of anyone the person He wants them to be, change is required. For some this change may be likened to a remodeling project, for others more extensive change is needed and is more like a complete makeover. For still others not even a makeover will suffice. The foundation and supporting structure are inadequate. A demolition is required and God must rebuild a completely new person to have what he intends for that individual.
    
    Judah required a total demolition for God to make of her the nation He intended. As destructive as was the Babylonian defeat of Judah, Judah's demolition was not complete. The nation could not yet be built that God intended for Judah. Though God had hoped further demolition of Judah would not be necessary, Judah was proving otherwise.