THE CONSEQUENCES OF THE DESTRUCTION.
The National Decay--The Fugitives--Enmity of
the Idumæans--Johanan, Son of Kareah--The
Lamentation--Nebuchadnezzar appoints Gedaliah as
Governor--Jeremiah Encourages the People--Mizpah--Ishmael
Murders Gedaliah--The Flight to Egypt--Jeremiah's Counsel
Disregarded--Depopulation of Judah--The Idumæans make
Settlements in the Country--Obadiah--Condition of the Judæans
in Egypt--Defeat of Hophra--Egypt under Amasis--Jeremiah's Last
Days.
586-572 B. C. E.
About a thousand years had passed since the tribes of Israel had so
courageously and hopefully crossed the Jordan under their brave leader,
and half that interval had elapsed since the first two kings of the
house of David had raised the nation to a commanding position. After
such a career, what an ending! The greater part of the Ten Tribes had
been scattered for more than a century in unknown countries. Of the
remaining tribes, composing the kingdom of Judah, the greater part
had been destroyed by war, famine and pestilence; a small number had
been led away into captivity, and an insignificant few had emigrated
to Egypt or fled elsewhere, or lived in their own country, in constant
terror of the fate which the victors might have reserved for them.
Manifold enemies, in fact, let loose their anger against these few, in
order to bring about their destruction, as if not a single Israelite
was to survive in his own country.
The remainder of the soldiers, who had fled at night with Zedekiah
from the conquered capital, had dispersed at the approach of the
Chaldæan pursuers. A handful, under the command of one of the princes
of the blood royal, Ishmael, son of Nethaniah, had escaped across the
Jordan, and had found shelter with Baalis, the king of the Ammonites.
The rest had preferred to flee to Egypt, whither several families had
already emigrated, because they hoped to receive the protection of
Hophra, who was an ally of their country. But in order to reach it they
had to cross Idumæan territory, and here a fierce, unrelenting enemy
awaited them. The Idumæans, mindful of their old hatred, untouched by
the brotherly kindliness of Judah, and not contented with the fall of
Jerusalem and with the booty they had acquired, carried their enmity so
far as to post a guard on the borders of their land for the purpose of
killing the fugitive Israelites or delivering them up to the Chaldæans,
with whom they wished to ingratiate themselves. It was not only
dislike, but also policy which prompted Edom to behave with cruelty
to the miserable fugitives. They hoped to obtain possession of the
entire territory which had so long been in the hands of the people of
Israel. The Idumæans loudly exclaimed, "Both the nations and both the
kingdoms will belong to us" (Ezekiel xxxv. 10). The Philistines also,
and all the neighbouring nations displayed hatred and malice, and but
few of the Israelitish fugitives found refuge in the Phœnician cities.
Phœnicia was too far from Judæa, and before the fugitives could reach
it they were overtaken and made prisoners by the Chaldæans.
The greater number of the chiefs and soldiers who had fled from
Jerusalem with Zedekiah preferred to remain in their own country. They
clung to the ground on which they had been born as though they could
not separate themselves from it. At their head was Johanan, son of
Kareah. But they had to seek hiding-places in order to escape from the
Chaldæans. They hid in the clefts, grottoes and caves of the mountains,
or among the ruins of the fallen cities, and doubtless made raids
from their hiding-places in order to obtain provisions, or to attack
straggling Chaldæans and their adherents. These Judæans were often
obliged to seek the means for sustaining their miserable existence
at the peril of their lives. If they were caught they were condemned
to an ignominious death or subjected to disgraceful treatment. The
nobles of advanced age were hanged; the young were condemned to carry
mills from one place to another, and to do other slavish work. A
psalmist, who was one of the sufferers from the woes of this desperate
condition, composed a heart-rending lamentation, the short verses of
which sound like sobs and tears (Lamentations, ch. v.). For a short
time it seemed as if this miserable condition of the scattered people,
this destructive war against the fugitives, would come to an end.
Nebuchadnezzar did not wish Judah to be annihilated; he determined to
let the insignificant community remain in the land, though he did not
wish a native or even a foreign king to be at their head. He therefore
determined to appoint Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, as governor over
them; his capital was to be at Mizpah, which is an hour and a half's
journey to the north-east of Jerusalem.
Nebuchadnezzar could not have made a better choice. Gedaliah was a
man in every way fitted for the difficult post; he was gentle and
peace-loving, having been to a certain extent the disciple of the
prophet Jeremiah, of whom his father Ahikam had been the friend and
protector. In order to heal the still bleeding wounds, a gentle hand
was wanted, that of a man capable of complete self-devotion and
abnegation. Gedaliah was, perhaps, too gentle, or he relied too much
on the grateful feelings of men. Nebuzaradan entrusted to him the more
harmless of the prisoners, the daughters of King Zedekiah and many
women and children; he also placed under him the husbandmen, in all,
not much above a thousand persons. Nebuchadnezzar also desired that
the prophet Jeremiah should assist Gedaliah; he therefore ordered
Nebuzaradan to behave considerately towards Jeremiah, and to grant all
his wishes.
Nebuzaradan proceeded from Jerusalem to Ramah (in the vicinity of which
was the tomb of Rachel), in order to decide which of the prisoners
and deserters should remain in their country, and which should be
banished to Babylon. Here he released Jeremiah from the chains with
which he, like the other prisoners, had been bound, and offered him
the choice of emigrating to Babylon, where he would be kindly treated,
or of selecting any other dwelling-place; but he advised him to go to
Gedaliah, at Mizpah.
Jeremiah, who had justly bewailed the lot which fell to him, of being
selected to see the full measure of misery, was now forced to behold
the pitiful sight of the captives at Ramah being led in fetters to
Babylon. Heart-rending were the cries of the unfortunate men, women,
and children, who were being dragged away from their fatherland;
Jeremiah endeavoured to comfort them (Jerem. xxxi. 14, seq).
With a heavy heart Jeremiah, attended by his disciple Baruch, prepared
to visit Gedaliah in Mizpah. He had not much hope of effecting good
results among the small remnant of the ignorant common people, seeing
that for forty years he had striven in vain amongst the nobles and
educated classes. However, he determined to cast his lot with theirs.
Nebuchadnezzar thought so well of Jeremiah that he sent him gifts and
money. His presence in Gedaliah's immediate vicinity inspired those
who had remained in the country with greater confidence in the future.
The governor had announced that all those fugitives who would collect
around him would remain unmolested and at peace in the cities, and be
permitted to cultivate their fields. Gradually the scattered tribes
from Moab and the neighbouring countries who did not feel at ease in
the places where they had settled, joined Gedaliah, and made peace with
him; that is to say, they bound themselves to be faithful subjects of
the Chaldæan king.
They cultivated the land, and not only grew corn, but also vines and
figs; the soil yielded its fruits again, and as the population was
small, the farmers, gardeners and vine-dressers received larger shares
of the land, and succeeded in obtaining rich harvests. Several towns
arose out of the ruins; in Mizpah, Gedaliah erected a sanctuary, as
Jerusalem and the Temple on the Mount were destroyed and had become
haunts for jackals.
Mizpah thus became a centre of importance and a holy place. The
half-Israelitish, half-heathen colony of the Cuthæans of Shechem,
Shiloh and Samaria, recognised this sanctuary, and made pilgrimages
thither, offering sacrifices and incense.
"The remnant of Judah" over whom Gedaliah had been placed was reminded
of its dependence on a Chaldæan ruler by the presence of the Chaldæan
garrison. The latter not only kept watch over the nation, but also over
the governor, in order that they might not engage in conspiracies. But
considering the circumstances and the fearful misfortunes which had
befallen the country, this state of things was endurable, or at least
more favourable than the people could have expected; they were, at
any rate, in their own country. The military chiefs, who were weary
of their adventurous lives in the mountains and deserts, and of their
contests with the wild animals that infested the land and the yet
wilder Chaldæans, and who had relied on their swords and on delusive
hopes, now determined to submit to Gedaliah. Johanan, son of Koreah,
and his associates, laid down their weapons, cultivated the fields,
and built up cities upon the ruins which until now had served them as
hiding-places.
The last to make peace was the leader Ishmael, son of Nethaniah.
Ishmael was a cunning and unprincipled man, and an evil spirit seems to
have accompanied him to Mizpah, to disturb the comparatively favourable
condition of the remnant of Judah. It is true that he made peace
with Gedaliah and the Chaldæans, and promised submission; but in his
heart he cherished anger and rage against both. Baalis, the king of
Ammon, who had been opposed to the growth and development of a Judæan
colony under Chaldæan protection, now instigated Ishmael to a crime
which was to put an end to it. The remaining captains, and especially
Johanan, the son of Koreah, received private intelligence of Ishmael's
treacherous intentions towards Gedaliah. They informed Gedaliah of the
matter, placed themselves at his disposal, and entreated permission to
put an end to the malefactor; but Gedaliah placed no faith in their
warning. This confidence, whether it owed its cause to a feeling of
power or of weakness, was destined to prove fatal to him and to the
newly-organised community.
It was about four years after the destruction of Jerusalem and the
gathering of the scattered Judæans around their governor, that Ishmael,
with ten followers, displaying great friendliness to Gedaliah,
arrived in Mizpah to celebrate a festival. Gedaliah invited them to
a banquet, and whilst the assembly, perhaps under the influence of
wine, anticipated no evil, Ishmael and his followers drew their swords
and killed the governor, the Chaldæans and all men present who were
capable of bearing arms. The remaining people in Mizpah, old men,
women, children, and eunuchs, he placed under the guard of his people,
in order that his crime might not become known. Ishmael and his ten
followers then carried off into captivity the inhabitants of Mizpah,
for the most part women and children, among them the daughters of King
Zedekiah, as also the venerable prophet Jeremiah and his disciple
Baruch, taking them across the Jordan to the Ammonites.
However, secretly though he had performed his evil deeds, they could
not long remain unknown. Johanan and the other chiefs had received
information of what had happened, and were not a little indignant at
being deprived of their protector, and cast back into the uncertainties
of an adventurous existence. They hurriedly armed themselves to punish
the crime as it deserved. The murderers were met at their first
halting-place, at the lake of Gibeon, by Johanan and the others, who
prepared to do battle with them. At sight of the pursuers the prisoners
hurried to join them. It appears that a fray ensued, in which two of
Ishmael's followers were killed. He, however, escaped, with eight men,
crossed the Jordan, and returned to the land of Ammon. His nefarious
design, nevertheless, had succeeded; with the death of Gedaliah the
Jewish commonwealth was broken up.
The survivors were at a loss how to act. They feared to remain in their
country, as it was easy to foresee that Nebuchadnezzar would not leave
the death of the Chaldæans unavenged, even if he overlooked the murder
of Gedaliah, and would punish them as accessories. Even had this fear
been groundless, how could they remain in the country without a leader
to control the unruly elements? Their first thought was to emigrate
to Egypt. The chiefs, with Johanan at their head, therefore directed
their steps southwards. As they gradually became calmer, the question
arose whether it might not be more advisable to remain in the land of
their fathers than to travel, on a venture, into a foreign country. It
appears that the idea first suggested itself to Baruch, and that it was
received with favour by some of the chiefs, whilst others were opposed
to it. Owing to this difference of opinion concerning the plan on which
the weal and woe of so many depended, the leaders determined to leave
the decision to Jeremiah. He was to pray to God, and entreat Him for a
prophetic direction as to the course they should adopt, calling on God
to witness that they would abide by his word.
Ten days Jeremiah wrestled in prayer that his spirit might be illumined
by the true prophetic light. During this time the feelings of the
leaders had changed, and they had all determined on emigration. When
Jeremiah called together the chiefs and all the people, and informed
them that the prophetic spirit had revealed to him that they should
remain in the land without fear, he saw from their looks that they
rejected this decision. He therefore added the threat that, if they
insisted on emigration, the sword which they feared would the more
surely reach them; that none of them would ever again behold his
fatherland, and that they would all perish through manifold plagues, in
Egypt. Hardly had Jeremiah ended his address, when Jezaniah and Johanan
called to him, "Thou proclaimest lies in the name of God; not He has
inspired thee with these words, but thy disciple Baruch." Without
further consideration the leaders proceeded on the way towards Egypt,
and the entire multitude had perforce to follow them.
Jeremiah and Baruch also had to join the rest, for they could do
nothing in their deserted country. Thus they wandered as far as the
Egyptian town of Taphnai (Tachpanches). They were kindly received by
King Hophra, who was sufficiently grateful to show hospitality towards
those whom his persuasions had brought to their present misery. There
they met with older Judæan emigrants. Thus, more than a thousand years
after the Exodus, the sons of Jacob returned to Egypt, but under what
changed circumstances! At that time they had been powerful shepherd
tribes, narrow in their views it is true, but unsullied and strong,
with hearts swelling with hope. Their descendants, on the contrary,
with sore hearts and disturbed minds, were too much estranged from
their principles to find solace and tranquillity in their God and their
nationality, yet not sufficiently changed to merge themselves into the
other races and disappear amongst them. Like all unwilling emigrants,
they were buoyed up by false hopes, and watched every political
movement which might bring them an opportunity to return to their
country, there to live in their former independence.
Meanwhile, Judæa was almost completely depopulated. Nebuchadnezzar
was not inclined to treat the occurrences at Mizpah, the murder of
Gedaliah and the Chaldæans with him, with indifference. He probably
saw that it had been an error to permit a weak Judæan community to
exist, dependent solely on one man. He, therefore, once more sent out
the leader of his guards, in order to take revenge on the remaining
Judæans. Nebuzaradan, as a matter of course, found none of the leaders,
nor any man of importance; none but the remaining agriculturists,
gardeners, and vine-dressers. These, with their wives and children,
being seven hundred and forty-five persons in all, the last remnant of
the population of Judæa, were led to Babylonia (582) into captivity.
This was the third banishment since Jehoiachin. The innocent, on this
occasion also, had to suffer for the guilty. There is no historical
record as to what became of Ishmael and his fellow-conspirators.
Gedaliah's name, on the other hand, remained in the memory of the
survivors, on account of his violent death. The anniversary of his
murder was observed in Babylonia as a fast day. Nebuchadnezzar, after
Gedaliah's death, determined to leave no Judæan in the country, and
Judæa remained depopulated and deserted. A later prophet laments over
its utter desertion: "The holy cities have become a waste, Zion a
wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation" (Isaiah lxiv. 9).
Thus the punishment which the prophets had predicted was fulfilled.
The soil of Judah could now rest, and celebrate the Sabbatical years
which had been neglected so long. In the south the Idumæans had
appropriated some stretches of Judæan territory on their borders (with
or without permission from the Babylonian king), and had extended their
possessions as far as the slope (Shephela) of the Mediterranean Sea.
The exiles therefore felt a bitter hatred against the Idumæans, who,
in addition to plundering Jerusalem, and giving up the fugitives, had
now seized on the land of their heritage. Two prophets, who had escaped
from the massacre and the desolation, and lived amongst the exiles,
gave vivid expression to this deplorable feeling--Obadiah and an
anonymous prophet. Both prophesied evil against Edom, as a retribution
for its conduct towards the kindred nation, the Jews, and towards
Jerusalem.
Although the Judæans were everywhere coldly received, and their own
country had become, to a certain extent, the property of their enemies,
the refugees in Egypt still nursed the hope that they would soon
return to their fatherland, and again inhabit it. Warlike happenings
strengthened this hope, but the venerable prophet Jeremiah endeavoured
to dispel their illusions. His heart prompted him to speak severely
to the Egyptian Judæans, because, unchastened by misfortunes, they
had once more devoted themselves to the worship of the goddess Neith.
Despite their infatuation with strange gods, they yet, in their
incomprehensible blindness, clung to the name of Jehovah, and swore
by Him. Jeremiah, for the last time before descending to his grave,
desired to tell them that, owing to their unconquerable folly, they
would never return to their fatherland. He therefore summoned the
Judæans of Migdol, Taphnai, Memphis, and Sais (?) to a general meeting
at Taphnai. He still possessed sufficient influence to ensure their
obeying his summons. He put the case before them in plain language.
Their idolatrous practices, however, were so dear to their hearts that
they openly boasted of them, and told the prophet that they would not
relinquish them. The women were particularly aggressive: "The oath
which we have taken, to offer up incense and wine to the queen of
heaven, shall be kept, as we and our fathers were formerly accustomed
to do in the cities of Judæa and in the streets of Jerusalem. At that
time we had bread in plenty, we were happy, and saw no evil. Since
we have left off making sacrifices to the queen of heaven we have
been in want, and our people have perished by the sword or through
hunger." Jeremiah thus answered their blasphemy: "Fulfil your oaths;
all the men of Judah will surely die in the land of Egypt; only a
few fugitives from the sword shall return from Egypt into the land
of Judah. They shall learn whose word shall endure--mine or theirs."
As a sign, he predicted that King Hophra, on whom they depended,
would fall into the hands of his enemy, as Zedekiah had fallen into
the hands of Nebuchadnezzar. The announcement that Hophra would
meet with a disastrous end was fulfilled. In a warlike expedition
against Cyrene, his army was defeated, and his warriors, jealous of
the Carians and Ionians, whom he favoured, rebelled against him. An
Egyptian of low caste, Amasis (Amosis), placed himself at the head
of the rebels, conquered Hophra, dethroned him, and caused him to be
strangled (571-70). This new Pharaoh, who was very careful to attract
to himself the Egyptians and also to win the Greeks over to his side,
took no interest in those Judæans who had settled in Egypt. They were
neglected, and their dream of returning to their fatherland through the
help of Egypt was dispelled. Jeremiah seems to have lived to see this
change.
His tender heart must have become still sadder in his old age, as he
had not succeeded in "bringing forth the precious from the vile."
The few Judæans who were around him in Egypt remained firm in their
folly and hardness of heart. But Jeremiah had not toiled in vain. The
seed which he had sown grew up plentifully on another ground, where
it was carefully tended by his fellow-prophets. His office, not only
to destroy, but to rebuild and plant anew, was carried on in another
place. His disciple Baruch, son of Neriah, appears to have left the
exiles in Egypt for those in Babylon, after the death of the prophet of
Anathoth.