Assassination of Gedaliah
- 41:1 “ate a meal together” - sharing a meal was a sacred occasion
for even the most blood thirsty Middle Eastern ethic.
- 41:2 “got up and struck down Gedaliah” - assassination during a shared meal
was utterly heinous even to most who might sympathize with Ishmael’s aims.
This band was morally bankrupt.
- 41:3 “Ishmael also killed” - quite the massacre by the time he is done.
- 41:5 “cut themselves” - this was actually against the law,
Deuteronomy 14:1
but as we saw under Josiah, ignorance of the law was rampant.
2 Chronicles 34:14
The men seem to be well meaning.
- 41:6 “weeping as he went” - the utter shamelessness of Ishmael is astounding.
- 41:8 “we have hidden treasure” - without conscience, but easily bought.
Who thinks he kept the bargain after obtaining the treasure?
- 41:9 “cistern was a large one .. filled with the slain” - the cistern was
large enough to supply the city during an attack. And was entirely filled
the bodies of Ishmael’s victims.
- 41:10 “took captive all the remnant” - now these are the kind of slaves
we hear about in the US South. Judah refused to submit to the light
service (levy) imposed by Nebuchadnezzar - and are now in the worst kind of
slavery.
So you wanna go back to Egypt
- 41:12 “took all their men and went to fight Ishmael” - guerilla fighters
to the rescue. Couldn’t fight a World Empire, but a small criminal
gang (of royal elites) they can handle.
- 41:14 “turned and went over to Johanan” - understandable, but very
bad timing. Now the gang leader can escape in the confusion.
- 41:15 “Ishmael and eight of his men escaped” - sigh.
- 41:17 “in order to proceed to Egypt” - they had a false idea of security
in Egypt. I am reminded of the false ideas many people have entering
the US illegally.
- 41:18 “they were afraid of the Chaldeans” - and they had false ideas
about the Chaldeans, who actually had a just ruler.