Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 46:2
Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.
2. Pharaoh-neco ] This monarch (b.c. 610 594) had defeated and slain Josiah at Megiddo (b.c. 608). In three months he had deposed Josiah’s successor, Jehoahaz, and imprisoned him at Riblah, and had set up Jehoiakim. He was extending his conquests in the Asiatic direction when he was overthrown at Carchemish (b.c. 605).
Carchemish ] Gargamish in Assyrian inscriptions, was not Circesium at the junction of the rivers Chaboras and Euphrates, but considerably higher up the latter stream and some distance to the north of lat. 36. Professor Rawlinson ( Anc. Mon. II. 475) describes it as the key of Syria on the east and as commanding the ordinary passage of the Euphrates. It was, he adds, the only great city in that quarter. The meaning of the name is unknown.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
2 12. Co. declines to accept objections which have been brought by some recent commentators to the substantial genuineness of these vv., and Gi. on the whole agrees, but considers the passage to have been expanded.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Against … – i. e., relating to, concerning. So Jer 48:1; Jer 49:1; see the note at Jer 46:13.
Pharaoh-necho – See 2Ki 23:29 note.
In – (at) Carchemish – (The Gargamis of the inscriptions, now Jerabis, on the Euphrates, about 16 miles south of Birejik.)
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 2. Pharaoh-necho] This was the person who defeated the army of Josiah, in which engagement Josiah received a mortal wound, of which he died, greatly regretted, soon after at Megiddo. After this victory, he defeated the Babylonians, and took Carchemish; and, having fortified it, returned to his own country. Nabopolassar sent his son Nebuchadnezzar with an army against him, defeated him with immense slaughter near the river Euphrates, retook Carchemish, and subdued all the revolted provinces, according to the following prophecies.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Pharah-necho was king of Egypt in Josiahs time; it was by his army that Josiah was killed at Megiddo, 2Ki 23:29; it was he that made Jehoiakim king of Judah, taking away Jehoahaz, 2Ki 23:34; but though he prevailed at that time, and that was one time when he came out against Carchemish, 2Ch 35:20, yet he was overthrown by Nebuchadnezzar in a battle with him afterwards, as appears from 2Ki 24:7, and Jehoiakim was made tributary to Nebuchadnezzar, as we read, 2Ki 24:1; and the king of Egypt was brought so low by that victory, that he stirred no more out of Egypt, for the king of Babylon had taken from him all from Nilus, the great river of Egypt, to Euphrates; and this, saith this verse, was in the fourth year of Jehoiakim. This prophecy must be before that time.
Carchemish appeareth, from Isa 10:9, to have been a place in Syria where the Egyptian army had been in Josiahs time, and then went away conquerors, as appears from 2Ch 35:20, &c.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
2. Inscription of the firstprophecy.
Pharaoh-nechoHe, whengoing against Carchemish (Cercusium, near the Euphrates), encounteredJosiah, king of Judah (the ally of Assyria), at Megiddo, and slew himthere (2Ki 23:29; 2Ch 35:20-24);but he was four years subsequently overcome at Carchemish, byNebuchadnezzar, as is foretold here; and lost all the territory whichhad been subject to the Pharaohs west of the Euphrates, and betweenit and the Nile. The prediction would mitigate the Jews’ grief forJosiah, and show his death was not to be unavenged (2Ki24:7). He is famed as having fitted out a fleet of discovery fromthe Red Sea, which doubled the Cape of Good Hope and returned toEgypt by the Mediterranean.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Against Egypt,…. This is the title of the first prophecy against Egypt; which is the first mentioned, because first accomplished; and because the Jews placed great confidence in and much relied on the Egyptians for help:
against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt; who is by Herodotus q called Necos; he was the son and successor of Psammitichus, and was succeeded by his son Psammis; and he by Apries, the same with Pharaohhophra, Jer 44:30; the Targum calls this king Pharaoh the lame:
which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish; of which place
[See comments on Isa 10:9]; this being in the land of the king of Assyria, as appears from the same place. Pharaohnecho, in Josiah’s time, came up against him, in order to take it from him; but whether he did or no is not certain; see 2Ki 23:29; however, he appeared at the same place a second time, against the king of Babylon, into whose hands it was now very probably fallen, with the whole Assyrian monarchy; and here, in this second battle, his army was routed, as follows:
which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah; when he took away from the king of Egypt all that belonged to him between the Nile and Euphrates, so that he came no more out of his land, 2Ki 24:7. Kimchi and Abarbinel think there was but one expedition of Pharaohnecho; and that the siege of Carchemish continued to the fourth year of Jehoiakim; when he met with an entire overthrow from the king of Babylon, which God suffered as a judgment on him for killing Josiah. This, according to Bishop Usher, was in the year of the world 3397, and before Christ 607; and, according to the Universal History, in the year of the world 3396, and before Christ 608.
q L. 2. sive Euterpe, c. 158.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
He then says that he had prophesied of the destruction of the Egyptian army which King Nebuchadnezzar overthrew in the fourth year of Jehoiakim Jeremiah had then foretold before this time what was to be. It might have been that before Pharaoh-necho prepared his army, Jeremiah predicted what would take place; but it is probable that this prophecy was announced at the time when Pharaoh-necho went forth against the Chaldeans, for he was fighting then for the Assyrians. As they were not equal to the Chaldeans they made a treaty with the Egyptians. They then had come for a subsidy to drive away the Babylonians, and thus to defend the Assyrians against their forces. But at first the expedition met with success; yet at last what had been predicted by the Prophet was fulfilled.
It is not known whether or not the design was to alleviate the sorrow of the people by this prophecy; and yet I am disposed to receive what the greater part of interpreters have held, that as at that time the people were in the greatest trouble, this prophecy was given in order that the faithful might know that God had not ceased to care for his people. But we must especially attend to the truth of history, for when Pharaoh-necho was induced, as it has been said, by the Assyrians, to lead his army to the Euphrates, the pious king Josiah met him, and he was then a confederate with the Babylonians, because there had been a friendly intercourse between the Chaldeans and the Jews since the reign of Hezekiah. As then Josiah wished to render service to a king who was his friend, he opposed the army of Pharaoh; but he was conquered and slain. Now the expedition of Pharaoh was fortunate and successful for a time, but when he began to boast of victory he was suddenly cast down; for King Nebuchadnezzar not only checked his audacity, but having routed his army, compelled him to return into Egypt, and occupied the whole country from the Euphrates to Palusium. That country had not yet been exposed to those continual changes which afterwards happened, that is, when those robbers who had succeeded Alexander the Great boasted that they were the kings of kings, and when every one strove to draw all things to himself. For hence it happened that now Egyptian kings, and then Asiatic kings, often shook that land as far as they could. This had not yet happened when Jeremiah prophesied, nor had Alexander been yet born, but it yet appears that these regions were even then subject to changes, so that there was nothing fixed or permanent connected with them. We must then bear in mind that the events of wars were dubious, so that, one while, the Egyptians forcibly seized a portion of Asia, and at another time the Assyrians diminished their power, and again the Chaldeans. Pharaoh-necho was then so repulsed that he never dared again to come forth, as sacred history testifies in 2Kg 24:7.
Let us now come to the Prophecy of Jeremiah. He says that he prophesied against the army of Pharaoh-necho, when it was at Euphrates, that is when he fought there and thought that he would be a conqueror, as he had far and wide desolated a hostile land, and brought under his authority many cities. When therefore he had met with great successes, Jeremiah was then bidden to prophesy against his army, so that the Jews might know that the death of pious Josiah would not go unpunished, because God had purposed to destroy that great army by which Josiah had been killed, and so to break down and lay prostrate the power of Egypt, that King Pharaoh would hereafter remain as shut up in prison as it afterwards happened. The rest to-morrow.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(2) Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaoh-necho.The king of Egypt thus named was the last of its great native sovereigns. He was the sixth king of the twenty-sixth dynasty of Manetho, and succeeded his father Psammetichus in B.C. 610, and reigned for sixteen years. Herodotus (ii. 158, 159) relates as his chief achievements that he anticipated the Suez Canal by endeavouring to connect the Nile with the Red Sea, but was stopped by an oracle, and sent a fleet of Phnician ships to circumnavigate Africa. One hundred and twenty thousand lives were said to have been sacrificed in the former enterprise. On desisting from it, he turned his attention to other plans of conquest, defeated the Syrians at Magdolus, near Pelusium, and took Cadytis, a great city of Syria, which Herodotus describes as not much less than Sardis. By some writers this has been identified with the capture of Jerusalem in 2Ch. 36:3, the name Cadytis being looked on as equivalent to Kadusha (=the holy city),and so anticipating the modern Arabic name of El-Khuds. Herodotus, however (iii. 5), describes it as being near the coast, and this has led to its being identified with Gaza, or Kedesh-Naphtali, or a Hittite cityKeteshon the Orontes, near which the great commercial and. military road turned off for Damascus and the Euphrates. In any case, it was in the course of this invasion, directed against the Babylonian Empire, then ruled by Nabopolassar, the father of Nebuchadnezzar, that he defeated and slew Josiah at Megiddo (2Ch. 35:20-24), deposed Jehoahaz, and appointed Jehoiakim (2Ch. 36:4). By some writers, accordingly (R. S. Poole, in Smiths Dict. Bible, Art. Pharaoh-necho), Megiddo is identified with the Magdolus of Herodotus. His army advanced, and took the city of Carchemish, by some (Hitzig) identified with Circesium, an island formed by the confluence of the Chaboras and the Euphrates; by others (Rawlinson) with a Hittite city, now Jerablus, a corruption of the Greek Hierapolis, much higher up the Euphrates. (See Note on Isa. 10:9). After the capture Necho appears to have returned to Egypt. Three years later (B.C. 606) Carchemish was taken by Nebuchadnezzar with the almost total defeat of Nechos army, he himself having returned to Egypt, and it is this defeat of which Jeremiah now proceeds to speak as in a song of anticipated triumph at the downfall of the Egyptian oppressor.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
2. Against Egypt The particular caption of the passage immediately following. As there are two sections pertaining to Egypt (3-12 and 13-26) this title may relate to both.
Pharaoh-necho Said by Manetho to have been the sixth king of the twenty-sixth dynasty. His date has been fixed from 611 to 595 B.C.
Carchemish The site of this important ancient city is not determined beyond question. That it was on the Euphrates is settled by this passage. The common opinion is, that it was at the junction of the Chebar with the Euphrates, and identical with the Greek Circesium. Others, however, locate it higher up the Euphrates, about in latitude thirty-six. Professor Rawlinson favours this. The place is mentioned in the cuneiform inscriptions, and also in the Egyptian hieroglyphical sculptures. Circesium, which is the site commonly identified with “Carchemish,” was built on a narrow wedge-shaped plain in the fork between the two rivers. All that now remains of it is ruins.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
A). Oracle Concerning Nebuchadrezzar’s Defeat Of The Egyptian Army At Carchemish In 605 BC ( Jer 46:2-12 ).
The importance of this prophesy to a people reeling under the unexpected death of their good and godly king Josiah, and who now as a consequence found themselves under tribute to Egypt, with their king held hostage, is clear. It was an indication that God had taken note of affairs and would eventually punish Egypt accordingly.
Yet whilst it may well be that Jeremiah had seen this defeat as punishment of Egypt for their behaviour towards Judah/Israel, both in bringing about the death of Josiah and in its aftermath, it is noteworthy that he does not draw this out in the prophecy. Rather it is simply a poetically inspired statement of what happened to the Egyptians. As we know from earlier, in 609 BC the Egyptian army had moved up the Coastal Plain to the aid of an Assyria which was on its last legs against a Medo-Babylonian invasion, with a view to stemming the rising Babylonian power. It was in seeking to interfere in this that Josiah lost his life. Having defeated Josiah’s army the Egyptians then moved on, and although not arriving in time to succour the Assyrians, took possession of all the lands from their own borders right up to Carchemish in the north, meanwhile taking Josiah’s heir, Jehoahaz as a hostage to Egypt and replacing him with Jehoiakim. They were able to sustain this position for a time because Nebuchadrezzar’s attention, as commander-in-chief of his father’s armies was taken up elsewhere. But once those problems had been dealt with Nebuchadrezzar addressed the situation and totally humiliated the Egyptian army, first at Carchemish and then at Hamath, driving Egypt back to its own borders. Babylon then took over Egypt’s fleeting ‘empire’, including Judah.
Jer 46:2
‘Of Egypt: Concerning the army of Pharaoh-neco king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah.’
The oracle is stated to be in respect of the defeat by Nebuchadrezzar of the Egyptian army of Pharaoh-Neco, which had its headquarters at Carchemish near the Euphrates. This was the very army which had slain Josiah. This took place in 605 BC. In consequences the new Egyptian ‘empire’ had lasted for only four years. It is noteworthy that in what follows there is no description of the battle. It is not history as such. The idea is rather in order to bring out that after their proud preparations, carried out in such expectancy, they were totally routed and humiliated. Man proposes, but God disposes.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Jer 46:2. Pharaoh-necho This prince is remarkable for his attempt to join the Nile to the Red Sea, by cutting a canal from one to the other; though they are above one hundred and eighteen English miles asunder; but after the loss of one hundred and twenty thousand workmen, he was obliged to desist. His first military action was against the Medes and Babylonians, who, having by the capture of Nineveh destroyed the Assyrian empire, became formidable to the neighbouring states. Josiah opposed him in his march through his country; but was defeated, and received a wound in the battle, which proved mortal. Necho continued his march after this victory, defeated the Babylonians, took Carchemish, and, securing it with a strong garrison, returned into his own country. Nabopalassar, observing that all Syria and Palestine had revolted on account of the reduction of Carchemish, sent his son Nebuchadrezzar with an army against Necho, whom he vanquished near the river Euphrates, recovered Carchemish, and subdued the revolted provinces, according to this prophesy of Jeremiah, in the year of the world, 3367; before Christ 607. See Rollin’s Ancient Hist. vol. 1: book 1 and Calmet.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Jer 46:2 Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.
Ver. 2. Against Egypt. ] First, That the Jews might not rely on that broken reed, as they did to their ruin, because they would never be warned.
Against the army of Pharaohnecho.
a Joseph., lib. x. cap. 7.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 46:2-12
2To Egypt, concerning the army of Pharaoh Neco king of Egypt, which was by the Euphrates River at Carchemish, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon defeated in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:
3Line up the shield and buckler,
And draw near for the battle!
4Harness the horses,
And mount the steeds,
And take your stand with helmets on!
Polish the spears,
Put on the scale-armor!
5Why have I seen it?
They are terrified,
They are drawing back,
And their mighty men are defeated
And have taken refuge in flight,
Without facing back;
Terror is on every side!
Declares the LORD.
6Let not the swift man flee,
Nor the mighty man escape;
In the north beside the river Euphrates
They have stumbled and fallen.
7Who is this that rises like the Nile,
Like the rivers whose waters surge about?
8Egypt rises like the Nile,
Even like the rivers whose waters surge about;
And He has said, I will rise and cover that land;
I will surely destroy the city and its inhabitants.
9Go up, you horses, and drive madly, you chariots,
That the mighty men may march forward:
Ethiopia and Put, that handle the shield,
And the Lydians, that handle and bend the bow.
10For that day belongs to the Lord GOD of hosts,
A day of vengeance, so as to avenge Himself on His foes;
And the sword will devour and be satiated
And drink its fill of their blood;
For there will be a slaughter for the Lord GOD of hosts,
In the land of the north by the river Euphrates.
11Go up to Gilead and obtain balm,
O virgin daughter of Egypt!
In vain have you multiplied remedies;
There is no healing for you.
12The nations have heard of your shame,
And the earth is full of your cry of distress;
For one warrior has stumbled over another,
And both of them have fallen down together.
Jer 46:2 Pharaoh Neco Necho II (609-593 B.C.) marched through Judah to confront Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish in Syria. Josiah attempted to stop him and was wounded at Meggido. Josiah later died of his wounds (i.e., 609 B.C.). Pharaoh Necho’s army was defeated (partially because Josiah delayed him which allowed Babylon to defeat the remaining Assyrian army). As Pharaoh Necho returned to Egypt he stopped at Jerusalem and exiled King Jehoahaz, Josiah’s successor of only three months (cf. 2Ki 23:28-37; 2Ch 35:20 to 2Ch 36:4). Necho placed Jehoiakim (a relative of Josiah) on Judah’s throne as his surrogate (cf. 2Ki 23:29 ff).
Jer 46:3-4 line up These IMPERATIVES (see Contextual Insights, E) were orders given by Egyptian officers to the Egyptian soldiers.
Jer 46:4 helmets These helmets were rarely worn, therefore, this denotes that the soldiers were to immediately prepare for battle.
Jer 46:5 What powerful poetry of fear and defeat. It reminds me of Nahum 2.
Line 7, terror is on every side, is an often repeated phrase in Jeremiah (cf. Jer 6:25; Jer 20:3; Jer 20:10; Jer 49:29, see BDB 159 II, KB 544).
Jer 46:7-8 These two verses seem to reflect the arrogant attitude of the Egyptian army; they used the annual overflowing of the Nile as the imagery of victorious military conquest. But it is all a myth, a false hope. In reality the Egyptian army and her mercenaries flee before the Babylonian military. Instead of the Nile overflowing its banks, it retreats!
Jer 46:9 This verse identifies several national elements of the Egyptian army (i.e., Ethiopia, Put, and Lydia). It is uncertain if they were mercenaries (cf. Jer 46:21) or defeated armies that joined Egypt’s victorious army.
Jer 46:10 the Lord GOD of hosts (twice) The first title Lord is the term Adon (BDB 10) which denotes owner, master, lord, husband.
The second title is literally YHWH Sabbaoth. YHWH is usually noted in English Bibles as all capitals, LORD.
Jer 46:10 may be the Divine response to Pharaoh Necho killing Josiah and replacing (exiling) his heir who reigned only three months!
the sword Often in poetic passages in the OT the sword is personified. The sword of the Babylonians is the sword of YHWH.
NASBa slaughter for the LORD
NKJVthe LORD. . .has a sacrifice
NRSVthe LORD. . .holds a sacrifice
NJBthe LORD. . .is holding a sacrificial feast
JPSOAthe LORD. . .is preparing a sacrifice
The UBS’ A Handbook On Jeremiah (p. 847) has a good comment on this phrase. The picture is that of a sacrificial feast in which the worshiper is allowed to eat part of the animal that has been sacrificed. The same idea is conveyed in Eze 39:17-20; Zep 1:7.
Jer 46:11 Gilead was widely known for its healing balms. But there was no balm for Egypt (cf. lines 3, 4). She is doomed to defeat and shame.
virgin daughter of Egypt This is the NOUN CONSTRUCT of virgin (BDB 413) and daughter (BDB 123 I). The CONSTRUCT daughter(s) of _________ is a way to refer to a nation.
1. Zion/Jerusalem/Judah – Psa 9:14; Isa 1:8; Isa 10:32; Isa 16:1; Isa 37:22; Isa 52:2; Isa 62:11; Jer 4:11; Jer 6:2; Jer 6:23; Jer 6:26; Jer 8:11; Jer 8:19; Jer 8:21-22; Jer 9:1; Jer 9:7; Jer 14:17; Lamentations (many times); Mic 1:13; Mic 4:8; Mic 4:10; Zep 3:14; Zec 2:10; Zec 9:9
2. Israel – 2Sa 1:24; Eze 16:55
3. Tyre – Psa 45:12; Isa 23:12
4. Babylon/Chaldea – Ezr 2:61; Psa 137:8; Isa 47:1; Isa 47:5; Jer 50:42; Jer 51:33; Zec 2:7
5. Egypt – Jer 46:24
6. Tarshish – Isa 23:10
7. Philistia – Eze 16:27; Eze 16:57
8. all nations – Eze 32:16
When the term virgin daughter is used it seems to emphasize the vulnerability of the nation addressed.
1. Zion – 2Ki 19:21; Isa 37:22; Jer 14:17; Lam 2:10; Lam 2:13
2. Israel – Jer 18:13; Jer 31:4; Jer 31:21; Amo 5:2
3. Babylon – Isa 47:1
4. Egypt – Jer 46:11
In 2Ki 19:21 both forms are found in poetic parallel. Also note the changing meaning of Israel, sometimes referring to all of the covenant people, descendants from Jacob/Israel, and in other contexts (i.e., the Divided Monarchy, 922 B.C. – 722 B.C.) it refers to the Northern Ten Tribes (i.e., Israel, Samaria, Ephraim).
Jer 46:12 The nations have heard of your shame This is exactly the opposite of YHWH’s intended purpose for His covenant people (cf. Gen 12:3; Eze 36:22-36). YHWH wanted the descendants of Abraham to reflect His character to the world and, thereby to attract the world to Himself. This is still His purpose for His people. See Special Topic: YHWH’s Eternal Redemptive Plan .
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Egypt. Comes first because most important in connection with Judah, as well as coming second to Babylon at that time (with which it corresponds in position in the Structure above). Judah was indeed, then subject to Egypt. The policy of Judah’s rulers was to lean on Egypt instead of heeding Jeremiah. These prophecies are designed to assure the nation that it could not rely on Gentile powers to thwart God’s word by Jeremiah.
Carchemish. Compare 2Ch 35:20-24. The Gargamish of the Inscriptions, now known as Jerablus, or Membij, &c.
the fourth year of Jehoiakim. A critical era in the history of Egypt, Babylon, Judah, and the world. See App-86. Four years before, Pharaoh-necho, on his way to Carchemish, had defeated and slain Josiah at Megiddo, and afterward taken his son Shallum as a vassal to Egypt, and set up Jehoiakim (2Ki 23:29-35).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Against Egypt: Jer 46:14, Jer 25:9, Jer 25:19, Eze 29:1 – Eze 32:32
Pharaohnecho: 2Ki 23:29, Pharaoh-nechoh, 2Ch 35:20, 2Ch 35:21, Necho
Carchemish: Isa 10:9
in the: Jer 25:1, Jer 36:1
Reciprocal: 2Ki 24:1 – his days 2Ki 24:7 – the king Jer 35:1 – in the Jer 46:10 – the north Eze 29:2 – against all Zec 9:8 – because of him that passeth by
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Jer 46:2. The prediction against Egypt was made and the historical comments cited in Jer 43:8-13.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Jer 46:2. Against Egypt, against the army of Pharaoh-necho Pharaoh- necho was king of Egypt in Josiahs time, and it was by his army that Josiah was killed at Megiddo, as is related 2Ki 23:29, where see the note. That army was then marching under the conduct of Necho against the Medes and Babylonians, who, having by the capture of Nineveh destroyed the Assyrian empire, had become formidable to the neighbouring states. Josiah opposed it in its march through the country, but was defeated, and received a wound in the battle which proved mortal. Necho continued his march after this victory, defeated the Babylonians, took Carchemish, and securing it with a strong garrison, returned into his own country. Nabopolassar, the king of Babylon, observing that all Syria and Palestine had revolted on account of the reduction of Carchemish by the Egyptians, sent his son Nebuchadnezzar with an army to retake that city, and recover the revolted provinces. Necho marched with a powerful army to oppose him; and it appears it was at the time when the Egyptian army lay along the banks of the Euphrates, waiting to oppose the entrance of Nebuchadnezzar into Syria, that this prophecy was delivered, namely, as is here said, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim. The two armies came to an engagement near the city of Carchemish, and the event of the battle proved very disastrous to the Egyptians, who were routed with prodigious slaughter, as is here foretold by the prophet in a very animated style, and with great poetic energy and liveliness of colouring.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
46:2 Against Egypt, against the army of {b} Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, who was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah.
(b) Read 2Ki 23:29; 2Ki 24:7, 2Ch 35:20 .
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
This is a title verse for the subsection dealing with Nebuchadnezzar’s defeat of Pharaoh Neco at Carchemish (lit. fort of Chemosh, the god of the Moabites), in northern Syria, in 605 B.C. (Jer 46:1-12). The title describes the defeat as past, but undoubtedly Jeremiah gave his prediction before the battle.
Egypt controlled Canaan and Aram (Syria) during most of the second millennium B.C., until about 1200, when internal weakness resulted in her losing her grip. Assyria, then Babylonia, then Persia took over control of this region in turn. But Egypt was still a force to be reckoned with, even after she lost the upper hand. One particularly strong Egyptian Pharaoh was Shishak (945-924 B.C.), who invaded Canaan (cf. 1Ki 14:25-26). In 609 B.C., Pharaoh Neco II (ca. 610-594 B.C.) marched to Carchemish on the Euphrates River in northern Syria (modern Turkey). On the way, King Josiah opposed him, and Neco slew the Judean king (609 B.C., 2Ki 23:29). Neco wanted to assist the Assyrians in defeating the young and threatening Neo-Babylonian Empire, but the Babylonians, led by Prince Nebuchadnezzar, won the battle in 605 B.C. This is the victory that gave Babylonia sovereignty in the ancient Near East.