May 31, 2011
GODLY GEDALIAH, MEET THE IDIOT ISHMAEL
Jeremiah 41
Matthew Wideman
Central Truth
He who trusts in himself will have only himself to blame. He who trusts in the Lord shall fear no one.
Key Verse | Jeremiah 41:2
Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him arose and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword and put to death the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land. (Jeremiah 41:2)
Jeremiah 41
Gedaliah Murdered
1 In the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, one of the chief officers of the king, came with ten men to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. As they ate bread together there at Mizpah, 2 Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men with him rose up and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, with the sword, and killed him, whom the king of Babylon had appointed governor in the land. 3 Ishmael also struck down all the Judeans who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, and the Chaldean soldiers who happened to be there.
4 On the day after the murder of Gedaliah, before anyone knew of it, 5 eighty men arrived from Shechem and Shiloh and Samaria, with their beards shaved and their clothes torn, and their bodies gashed, bringing grain offerings and incense to present at the temple of the LORD. 6 And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah came out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he came. As he met them, he said to them, “Come in to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.” 7 When they came into the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the men with him slaughtered them and cast them into a cistern. 8 But there were ten men among them who said to Ishmael, “Do not put us to death, for we have stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey hidden in the fields.” So he refrained and did not put them to death with their companions.
9 Now the cistern into which Ishmael had thrown all the bodies of the men whom he had struck down along with 1 41:9 Hebrew by the hand of Gedaliah was the large cistern that King Asa had made for defense against Baasha king of Israel; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain. 10 Then Ishmael took captive all the rest of the people who were in Mizpah, the king's daughters and all the people who were left at Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah took them captive and set out to cross over to the Ammonites.
11 But when Johanan the son of Kareah and all the leaders of the forces with him heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, 12 they took all their men and went to fight against Ishmael the son of Nethaniah. They came upon him at the great pool that is in Gibeon. 13 And when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah and all the leaders of the forces with him, they rejoiced. 14 So all the people whom Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned around and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah. 15 But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites. 16 Then Johanan the son of Kareah and all the leaders of the forces with him took from Mizpah all the rest of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam—soldiers, women, children, and eunuchs, whom Johanan brought back from Gibeon. 17 And they went and stayed at Geruth Chimham near Bethlehem, intending to go to Egypt 18 because of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land.
Dive Deeper | Jeremiah 41
Jerusalem has been overtaken, and hope was diminishing. I can only imagine the breath of fresh air Gedaliah must have been to the remnant left in the land. Because he was a Proverbs 16:7-type of guy, making "even his enemies to be at peace with him," the king of Babylon had placed him in charge. This man -- living in a land controlled by foreigners, eating his last supper with those whom he would count as his friends -- is betrayed by one of them and thrown into the grave. Does this sound familiar? Those who trusted in Gedaliah would now be utterly disappointed, if not destroyed.
Ishmael trusted in himself. He thought the simple fact that he was in the royal Davidic line meant that he had the right to be in control. In his mind, his hope was in himself. His heritage handed him honor, and his ancestry allowed his actions, even murder. Ishmael killed Gedaliah and those with him, then faked some tears to 80 men on their way to Jerusalem. When he discovered that they were sympathetic to Gedaliah, he decided to kill them as well. He threw their bodies into a ditch and spent the rest of his life running from those seeking to avenge his murders. Ishmael trusted in himself, so he had only himself to blame for his situation.
As believers, our hope is not found in ourselves. It is also not found in any ruler in our world. Our only hope is found in the One who, although He was betrayed by His friends and cast into the grave, didn't stay there. He is still alive today! And because of these truths, I can face any situation in my path. I can have hope when everything around me is hopeless. I can live because He lives! I shall fear no one, not even the Ishmaels in my life, because not even the grave can hold me now!
Discussion Questions
1. You may never have murdered as Ishmael did, but where in your life today are you trusting in yourself to solve your problems?
2. What situation in your life are you going to trust God with today? And how are you going to trust God instead of yourself?
3. Do you ever feel as though your hope is lost or that you are in a hopeless situation? Have you ever put your hope in Jesus Christ, the only one who won't disappoint?
WEEKLY FAMILY ACTIVITY
JEREMIAH 40-44 (MAY 30-JUNE 3)
Read Jeremiah 44:1-10.
What did God repeat four times in this passage? (Hint: What were the people doing that made Him angry?) Why would He repeat it four times? What had the people not learned so far? (Verse 9)
Have you ever struggled with also doing the "wrong thing" over and over again?
What does He call us to do when we sin (i.e., do the wrong thing)?
How do you learn from your mistakes? What does it mean to repent?
What keeps you from repeating the same "wrong things" over and over again?
ACTIVITY: Get 24 blank note cards. You are going to create your own memory game. Have everyone make pictures on only one side of the cards. Remember to make matching pictures. Do all 12 sets. Then play the game together.
After playing, discuss the idea of learning from your mistakes. What did you do to help remember where the different pictures were? How would this help you learn to repent and do the right thing when you make mistakes in life?