Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Jeremiah 41:4
And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew [it],
4. the second day ] probably meaning the next day.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Ch. Jer 41:4-18. Ishmael commits further massacres and carries off captives
The section may be summarized as follows.
(i) Jer 41:4-10. The following day eighty pilgrims arrive. Ishmael goes weeping to meet them, and bids them come to Gedaliah. Having thus decoyed them into the city, he puts them all to death, except ten men who purchase their lives by disclosing the places where they possess hidden stores of food. Ishmael fills a pit with the slain, and carries away captive all the rest of the inhabitants of Mizpah. (ii) Jer 41:11-18. Johanan and the captains who were with him go in pursuit of Ishmael, and release his captives. Ishmael himself with ten men escapes to the country of Ammon, while Johanan takes those whom he had rescued to the vicinity of Bethlehem, with a view of passing into Egypt as a refuge from the Chaldaeans.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
That is, no man who lived at any great distance from Mizpah, for Ishmael was concerned what in him lay to keep this slaughter private, for fear the news of it should have reached the ears of the king of Babylon, or the commanders of some of his forces, so as he should not have had time to make his escape.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
4. no man knew itthat is,outside Mizpah. Before tidings of the murder had gone abroad.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And it came to pass, the second day after he had slain Gedaliah,…. That is, the day following, for it was in the night, as Josephus relates, as before observed, the murder was committed:
and no man knew [it]; not any out of the city, or in remote parts; for those that were in the city must be sensible of it; but as yet the report of it had not reached the neighbourhood, and much less distant parts; this is observed on account of the following story, and to show how easily the persons after mentioned were drawn in by Ishmael.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
On the next day after the murder of Gedaliah, “when no man knew it,” i.e., before the deed had become known beyond Mizpah, “there came eighty men from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria,” having all the tokens of mourning, “with their beards shaven, their clothes rent, and with cuts and scratches on their bodies ( , see on Jer 16:6), and a meat-offering and frankincense in their hand, to bring them into the house of Jahveh.” The order in which the towns are named is not geographical; for Shiloh lay south from Shechem, and a little to the side from the straight road leading from Shechem to Jerusalem. Instead of , the lxx ( Cod. Vat.) have ; they use the same word as the name of a place in Gen 33:18, although the Hebrew is there an adjective, meaning safe, in good condition. According to Robinson ( Bibl. Res. iii. 102), there is a village named Slim three miles east from Nabls (Shechem); Hitzig and Graf, on the strength of this, prefer the reading of the lxx, to preserve the order of the names in the text. But Hitzig has renounced this conjecture in the second edition of his Commentary, “because Slim in Hebrew would be , not .” There is absolutely no foundation for the view in the lxx and in Gen 33:18; the supposition, moreover, that the three towns are given in their topographical order, and must have stood near each other, is also unfounded. Shechem may have been named first because the greater number of these men came from that city, and other men from Shiloh and Samaria accompanied them. These men were pious descendants of the Israelites who belonged to the kingdom of Israel; they dwelt among the heathen colonists who had been settled in the country under Esarhaddon (2Ki 17:24.), but, from the days of Hezekiah or Josiah, had continued to serve Jahveh in Jerusalem, where they used to attend the feasts (2Ch 34:9, cf. Jer 30:11). Nay, even after the destruction of Jerusalem, at the seasons of the sacred feasts, they were still content to bring at least unbloody offerings – meat-offerings and incense – on the still sacred spot where these things used to be offered to Jahveh; but just because this could now be done only on the ruins of what had once been the sanctuary, they appeared there with all the signs of deep sorrow for the destruction of this holy place and the cessation of sacrificial worship. In illustration of this, Grotius has adduced a passage from Papinian’s instit. de rerum divis. sacrae: “Locus in quo aedes sacrae sunt aedificatae, etiam diruto aedificio, sacer adhuc manet.”
Vs. 4-10: MORE ATROCITIES
1. The bloodthirsty Ishmael was not satisfied with the slaying of Gedaliah and his attendants.
2. On the second day following his murderous adventure, there came eighty mourning men, from Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria, with meal-offerings and frankincense – intent upon offering them in the area of the recently-destroyed temple, (vs. 4-5).
a. They had shaved off their beards.
b. They had torn their clothes.
c. And, contrary to the law of the Lord, they had cut their own flesh, (Lev 19:28; Lev 21:5; Deu 14:1; Jer 16:6).
3.Hearing of their approach, Ishmael went out to meet them -feigning sorrow as he went; when he met them he urged them to call upon Gedaliah, at Mizpah, before they presented their offerings, (vs.6).
4. When these men acted upon Ishmael’s request, he and his men swiftly slew 70 of them as soon as they entered into the city -throwing their carcasses into a pit, (vs. 7; comp. Psa 55:23; Isa 59:7; Eze 22:27).
5. The other ten escaped the sword only because they promised to reveal to Ishmael their stores of wheat, barley, oil and honey which were hidden away, (vs. 8).
6. The pit which Ishmael filled with human corpses had been made by Asa, king of Judah, out of his fear of Baasha, the king of Israel, (vs. 9; 1Ki 15:17-22; 2Ch 16:1-6).
7. Evidently fearing reprisal, Ishmael is then seen leading away captive the remnant of the people who were left at Mizpah – including the princesses whom Nebuzar-adan had committed to the care of Gedaliah; it was his intention to take them with him to Baalis, the king of Ammon, (vs. 10).
3. The massacre of the pilgrims (Jer. 41:4-9)
TRANSLATION
(4) And it came to pass on the day after the murder of Gedaliah, while no man yet knew of it, (5) eighty men from Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria who had shaved their beards, torn their garments, and cut themselves, came with offerings and incense in their hand to present at the house of the LORD. (6) And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them weeping as he went. (7) And when he reached them he said unto them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. (7) And when they came into the midst of the city Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them and cast them into the cistern, he and the men who were with him. (8) However, ten men among them said unto Ishmael, Do not kill us for we have provisions of wheat, barley, oil, and honey in the field. So he stopped and did not kill them along with their brethren. (9) Now the cistern into which Ishmael threw all the bodies of the men he had slain in addition to Gedaliah is the one which king Asa made as a defense measure against Baasha king of Israel. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those who had been slain.
COMMENTS
For two days Ishmael and his brigands controlled the town of Mizpah. No one was allowed to leave the town and therefore no one outside Mizpah knew that the crime had been committed (Jer. 41:4). The women, children and old men left in Mizpah were no match for the armed soldiers of Ishmael though they were few in number. Apparently Ishmael delayed his return to Ammon in order that he might increase his booty at the expense of some unsuspecting group of travelers who might be passing through Mizpah. This opportunity came on the second day after the murder of Gedaliah. A group of eighty pilgrims approached the town of Mizpah on their way to offer sacrifices at the ruins of the Temple in Jerusalem. These men were pious Israelites living in the former territory of the Northern Kingdom. Though the Temple had been destroyed and Jerusalem was in ruins these faithful few continued to observe the appointed festivals of the law of Moses. However, the festivals were no longer occasions for joy but for lamentation. The shaved beards, torn clothes and cut bodies are signs of the most intense mourning (Jer. 41:5).
Cunning Ishmael, shedding crocodile tears as though he too were sharing in the lamentation of the hour, went out to meet the pilgrims. He lured them into the town of Mizpah with the appeal that they should salute Gedaliah the governor of the land while they were in the vicinity (Jer. 41:6). As the unsuspecting pilgrims entered the town, Ishmaels gang pounced upon them and murdered seventy of these harmless and helpless people. The corpses of the unfortunate victims were thrown into an old cistern constructed three hundred years earlier by King Asa when he fortified Mizpah against the possible attack of King Baasha of the Northern Kingdom of Israel (Jer. 41:9).[348] Some fifty such cisterns have been found at the ancient site of Mizpah. It is impossible, of course, to identify the one which was made by Asa.
[348] Cf. 1Ki. 15:22; 2Ch. 16:6. Apparently Gedaliahs body was also in this cistern for verse nine states that their bodies were by the side of Gedaliah (ASV). The KJV wrongly translates here because of Gedaliah and creates the false impression that the pilgrims died because of some connection to Gedaliah.
During the massacre ten of the eighty men were spared because they offered to show Ishmael the whereabouts of stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey (Jer. 41:8). Probably these goods were stored away in underground cisterns on their fields. The bribe was sufficient and Ishmael spared the lives of these men. Perhaps this reveals Ishmaels motive in the massacre. He is seeking supplies and booty for his band of robbers and for the king of Ammon, who had sponsored the enterprise.
4. No man knew it “No man” beyond Mizpah.
Ishmael Continues His Bloodthirsty Slaughter And Seeks To Escape To Ammon ( Jer 41:4-10 ).
Having carried out his bloodbath Ishmael now learned of a party of pilgrims who were approaching Mizpah, coming from the northern former Israelite towns of Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria, all of which had been important religious sanctuaries. They were in mourning, and their aim was apparently to intercede with YHWH at the Temple site. The road that they were taking for Jerusalem led past Mizpah which was close to the road leading from the north. The fact that he so unnecessarily perpetrated evil against such men suggests that he was violently anti-Yahwist and against all things Yahwist, perhaps as a reaction to the destruction of Jerusalem and the royal house, although it may also be that he was fearful of what the reaction of such good men would be to what he had done (news would inevitably have filtered out into the countryside). He knew that what he had done in abusing hospitality would inevitably be frowned on by all people of goodwill. Furthermore he may also have seen their approaching Mizpah as evidence of their support for Gedaliah. But the detail given about the men suggests that it was primarily to be seen as an act of rebellion against YHWH. They were religious men connected with recognised religious sanctuaries.
Jer 41:4-5
‘And it came about on the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it, that there came men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with meal-offerings and frankincense in their hand, to bring them to the house of YHWH.’
It is apparent from this that the site of the ruined Temple of Solomon was still seen as holy, and as ‘the house of YHWH’. Their aim may simply have been worship at an especially holy site, or it may have been in order to pray for the restoration of the Temple. The approximately eighty men in question would have had to pass near Mizpah on the road leading from the north to Jerusalem. They would be pious descendants of Israelites in the northern kingdom who had preserved their faith, and were connected with the ancient sanctuaries. Indeed we know from what happened later on that many in the northern kingdom had continued to serve YHWH by coming to Jerusalem, where they used to attend the regular feasts (2Ch 34:9; compare Jer 30:11). They had possibly been inspired into this action by their observance of the Day of Atonement on the 10th day of the month. It will be noted that here they brought meal offerings and frankincense which could be offered within the ruins of the Temple. This was necessary because there was now no altar of sacrifice. It can be seen that particular emphasis is being laid on the piety of the men. Thus to attack them was to attack YHWH.
‘Having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves.’ These were recognised signs of mourning. The paring of the beard and the cutting of themselves was forbidden by the Law of Moses (Lev 19:28; Lev 21:5), but they were still customs which were commonly practised. These men were thus not totally orthodox. But they were unquestionably pious YHWH worshippers. ‘Shechem, Shiloh and Samaria’ are placed in the order in which they became sanctuaries. They could be seen as summing up northern Israel’s religious history.
Jer 41:6
‘And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went, and it came about, as he met them, that he said to them, “Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.”
It would appear that had Ishmael not gone out to these pious men they would have passed Mizpah by. It may well, however, have been that Ishmael feared that they would hear news of what he had done and would spread it abroad. On the other hand the great emphasis on their religious status suggests that this was to be seen as an open attack on YHWH. Whatever may be the case, he went out to them, making a pretence of mourning along with them, in order to win their confidence. He then deliberately lured them into Mizpah by inviting them to meet the governor, thus once again abusing the laws of hospitality. The worshippers would see such an invitation as one not to be refused, the equivalent of an official command. Thus he obtained his way by trickery. His sole aim was murder, and that of pious worshippers of YHWH.
Jer 41:7
‘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 who were with him.”
But once the worshippers had innocently entered the city all but ten of them were slain by Ishmael and his men, who then cast their bodies into a pit. The pit would be an excavation in the form of a cistern, or subterranean storehouse, constructed in the open country, for the purpose of storing grain and other produce. The opening or entrance to it would be concealed so that it would not be perceived by those intent on stealing the produce. Alternately it may have been the cistern which supplied the city’s water supply in time of siege, and have been a deliberate attempt to make it useless and ‘unclean’, thus preventing its use in any future defence of the city when Nebuchadrezzar came seeking vengeance.
Jer 41:8
‘But ten men were found among them who said to Ishmael, “Do not kill us, for we have stores hidden in the countryside, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey.” So he forbore, and did not kill them among their brethren.’
Ten of the men were spared, but the only reason for this was that they offered to divulge the whereabouts of hidden stores as a bribe in return for their lives, possibly requiring confirmation of the agreement by oath so as to make it binding. Ishmael’s greed was even greater than his hatred of YHWH.
Jer 41:9
‘Now the pit in which Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had slain, by the side of Gedaliah (the same was that which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel,) Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those who were slain.’
The pit in question was one which Asa of Judah had built in preparing defences against Baasha king of Israel. The purpose in mentioning this may merely have been as an historical explanation of the existence of the pit, or it may have been an ironical indication that what had been made for the purpose of deliverance from fear, had become the very opposite. It was the same pit into which Gedaliah’s body had been thrown, along with many of those slain with him. There is no mention of the construction of this pit elsewhere, but its background was clearly well known at the time. It may have consisted of defenceworks, or have been for the purpose of water storage in readiness for times of siege.
Jer 41:10
‘Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people who were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters, and all the people who remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the children of Ammon.’
No doubt hoping that news of his escapades had not spread Ishmael then gathered, possibly as hostages, all those who had been left in Gedaliah’s care by Nebuzaradan, including among them the king’s daughters (the royal household), and presumably Jeremiah. Taking them captive he set out for Ammon where he intended to find refuge, having fulfilled the king of Ammon’s requirements. We note here how provision had been made by Nebuchadrezzar for the king’s daughters to live in the manner to which they were accustomed. Apart from when carrying out vengeance royalty showed consideration towards royalty. Among other things it helped to retain the goodwill of the people. Ishmael’s taking of responsibility for the royal household may indicate an intention to represent himself as having royal status as ‘head of the house’ with the future in mind. Establishing a ‘royal house’ in exile would prepare the way for a later claim to kingship. But it was not to be.
Was there ever a monster of iniquity further gone in the lust of human blood / than this Ishmael? The Prophet doth not fail to tell us that he was of the seed royal! Oh! how disgraceful, had he been of the offspring of the dung-hill. But, Reader! do not overlook the common stock of sin, by whatever temporary distinctions they are known. Here there is one common level; and it is grace alone that makes a difference.
Jer 41:4 And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew [it],
Ver. 4. And no man knew it. ] Heb., A man knew not. See on Jer 41:3 .
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Jer 41:4-8
4Now it happened on the next day after the killing of Gedaliah, when no one knew about it, 5that eighty men came from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria with their beards shaved off and their clothes torn and their bodies gashed, having grain offerings and incense in their hands to bring to the house of the LORD. 6Then Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he went; and as he met them, he said to them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam! 7Yet it turned out that as soon as they came inside the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the men that were with him slaughtered them and cast them into the cistern. 8But ten men who were found among them said to Ishmael, Do not put us to death; for we have stores of wheat, barley, oil and honey hidden in the field. So he refrained and did not put them to death along with their companions.
Jer 41:5 Shechem. . .Shiloh. . .Samaria These were three northern cities. Samaria was the ancient capital of the Northern Ten Tribes, established by Omri. This area was devastated by Assyria in 722 B.C.
with their beards shaved off and their clothes torn and their bodies gashed They were Jews going to Jerusalem to bemoan the destruction of the temple (see Special Topic: GRIEVING RITES ). The gashing of their bodies is related to pagan mourning rites (cf. Jer 16:6; Jer 47:5; Lev 19:28; Lev 21:5; Deu 14:1; 1Ki 18:28). The elements of the amalgamated worship of YHWH and the gods of Canaan continue.
Jer 41:6-10 Something of Ishmael’s personality can be seen.
1. fake crying, Jer 41:6
2. killing 70 innocent mourners, apparently just to cover up his slaughter of Gedaliah
3. sparing ten people for their hidden supplies or for ransom
4. polluting the water supply of Mizpah with the dead corpses
5. kidnapping the remainder of the population of Mizpah, for what reason is unsure, possibly to sell into slavery or as a gift to Baalis
Jer 41:8 oil and honey hidden in the field This was a usual procedure both for keeping the food cool and for hiding it in times of war.
Jer 41:4-7
Jer 41:4-7
THE MURDER OF THE PILGRIMS
And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it, that there came men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with meal-offerings and frankincense in their hand, to bring them to the house of Jehovah. 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. 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.
Weeping all along as he went…
(Jer 41:6). The perfidious behavior of Ishmael was totally wicked. His weeping was hypocrisy; his pretended intention of helping the pilgrims was a lie; his murderous treachery was unlimited.
Scholars have attempted to guess why Ishmael destroyed those pilgrims, but the only suggestion that makes a little sense is that Baalis the king of Ammonites had instructed Ishmael, his partner in the plot, to terrorize the people with such atrocities in order to prevent any civil order from prevailing in the land. Also, it has been thought that Ishmael wanted to prevent any word of the murder from being carried far and near into all countries by such a company as that of the pilgrims. Then too, there is the supposition that Ishmael was merely a murderer who killed people for the gratification of his sadistic blood-lust. In any case, it was indeed a deed of infamy!
The shaven heads, the rent clothes, the cuts on their bodies, and the offerings in their hands, “Symbolized the distress of the pilgrims over the desertion and the destruction of the house of God.”
Some significant facts are implied by this account of the slain pilgrims. (1) The Jews still honored the commandment to worship God at one altar only, namely, the One in Jerusalem. (2) Also, even though the temple was destroyed, the ruins of it were considered sacred and “holy unto the Lord.” “By the Jewish people, the Western wall of the temple in Jerusalem until this day is considered sacred.”
The senseless murder of those seventy pilgrims is utterly inexplicable, unless, as stated by Smith, “Ishmael intended to fill the whole land with terror, utterly frustrate Gedaliah’s work, and destroy the last possibility of the land being in peace, which was also very likely the object of Baalis the king of Ammon.”
3. The massacre of the pilgrims (Jer 41:4-9)
For two days Ishmael and his brigands controlled the town of Mizpah. No one was allowed to leave the town and therefore no one outside Mizpah knew that the crime had been committed (Jer 41:4). The women, children and old men left in Mizpah were no match for the armed soldiers of Ishmael though they were few in number. Apparently Ishmael delayed his return to Ammon in order that he might increase his booty at the expense of some unsuspecting group of travelers who might be passing through Mizpah. This opportunity came on the second day after the murder of Gedaliah. A group of eighty pilgrims approached the town of Mizpah on their way to offer sacrifices at the ruins of the Temple in Jerusalem. These men were pious Israelites living in the former territory of the Northern Kingdom. Though the Temple had been destroyed and Jerusalem was in ruins these faithful few continued to observe the appointed festivals of the law of Moses. However, the festivals were no longer occasions for joy but for lamentation. The shaved beards, torn clothes and cut bodies are signs of the most intense mourning (Jer 41:5).
Cunning Ishmael, shedding crocodile tears as though he too were sharing in the lamentation of the hour, went out to meet the pilgrims. He lured them into the town of Mizpah with the appeal that they should salute Gedaliah the governor of the land while they were in the vicinity (Jer 41:6). As the unsuspecting pilgrims entered the town, Ishmaels gang pounced upon them and murdered seventy of these harmless and helpless people. The corpses of the unfortunate victims were thrown into an old cistern constructed three hundred years earlier by King Asa when he fortified Mizpah against the possible attack of King Baasha of the Northern Kingdom of Israel (Jer 41:9). Cf. 1Ki 15:22; 2Ch 16:6. Apparently Gedaliahs body was also in this cistern for verse nine states that their bodies were by the side of Gedaliah (ASV). The KJV wrongly translates here because of Gedaliah and creates the false impression that the pilgrims died because of some connection to Gedaliah. Some fifty such cisterns have been found at the ancient site of Mizpah. It is impossible, of course, to identify the one which was made by Asa.
During the massacre ten of the eighty men were spared because they offered to show Ishmael the whereabouts of stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey (Jer 41:8). Probably these goods were stored away in underground cisterns on their fields. The bribe was sufficient and Ishmael spared the lives of these men. Perhaps this reveals Ishmaels motive in the massacre. He is seeking supplies and booty for his band of robbers and for the king of Ammon, who had sponsored the enterprise.
after: 1Sa 27:11, Psa 52:1, Psa 52:2
Jer 41:4. This verse verities the remark on the preceding one. for it says concerning the slaying of Gedaliah that no man knew it.
Jer 41:4-18. Ishmaels Deeds and Flight.Eighty pilgrims from N. Israel to Jerusalem, mourning its fall, and carrying offerings (Jer 17:26), were met by Ishmael and enticed into Mizpah. There he killed them all except ten who acknowledged that they had stores of grain, etc. Ishmael threw all the dead bodies into a great cistern, made by Asa, and started for Ammon, with the surviving Jews as his captives, including certain princesses (doubtless also Jeremiah and Baruch; cf. Jer 42:2; Jer 43:3). Johanan and other Jews pursued Ishmael and overtook him at Gibeon, but he escaped with eight men. His captives were taken by Johanan to the neighbourhood of Bethlehem, with a view to migration into Egypt (for other refugees there, cf. Jer 24:8).
Jer 41:5. For the ceremonial cuttings, cf. Jer 16:6. The offerings would presumably be made on the site of the destroyed Temple.
Jer 41:6. LXX refers this weeping more naturally to the pilgrims.
Jer 41:8. The stores hidden in the field would be at home; underground pits are still used for such a purpose; see Thomson, pp. 509f.
Jer 41:9. by the side of Gedaliah: read instead, with LXX, was a great cistern. Asa would make this for water-storage, when he fortified the place (1Ki 15:22).
Jer 41:12. Gibeon: 1 m. N. of Mizpah; for the waters, see 2Sa 2:13.
Jer 41:16. Emend with Hitzig, Ishmael . . . had taken captive for he had recovered from Ishmael, and omit of war. The eunuchs would be in attendance on the princesses of Jer 41:10.
Jer 41:17. Geruth Chimham: Geruth should perhaps be folds of (so Aquila); cf. Josephus (Antiq. x. 9. 5); for Chimham, see 2Sa 19:37-40.
Ishmael’s further atrocities and Johanan’s intervention 41:4-18
Two days after Gedaliah’s murder, before the news of it had spread, 80 religious pilgrims came down from the old towns of Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria in northern Israel on their way to Jerusalem. Their dress and other signs of mourning (cf. Jer 16:6; Jer 48:37) demonstrated grief over the effects of the Babylonian invasion (cf. Psalms 74; Psalms 79; Isa 63:7 to Isa 64:12). They may also have been fulfilling a vow. However, cutting their flesh was a pagan practice that the Mosaic Law condemned (Lev 19:28; Lev 21:5; Deu 14:1; cf. Jer 16:6). They came with grain and incense to offer to Yahweh in worship. It was probably impossible to make animal sacrifices at the temple site at this time. Evidently there was some continuation of worship in the ruined capital after the temple fell.
"Even the ruins were held to be sacred, just as the Western [Wailing] Wall of the temple in Jerusalem is sacred to this day. Also, a token shrine might have been built." [Note: Feinberg, "Jeremiah," p. 631.]
Since it was the seventh month (September-October, Jer 41:1), the pilgrims probably came to celebrate one or more of the fall festivals. The Jews celebrated the Feast of Trumpets on the first day of the seventh month, the Day of Atonement on the tenth day of the month, and the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths, Ingathering) on the fifteenth through the twenty-second of the month (Lev 23:23-44). The first two events were optional for Israelites males to attend, and the third was required by the Law. The first and third events were feasts, and the second was a fast.
There were some people left in the territory of the old Northern Kingdom who still accepted and remained faithful to Josiah’s reforms of 622 B.C. (cf. Deu 12:5-6; 2Ki 23:15-20; 2Ch 34:9; 2Ch 34:33). These pilgrims apparently made a stop in Mizpah to pay their respects to Gedaliah. [Note: Keown, p. 244.]
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)