What is the meaning of Jeremiah 40:11? When all the Jews in Moab The first phrase points to Israelites who had escaped to Moab when Babylon invaded (see Jeremiah 27:3; 2 Kings 24:2). • These refugees never forgot the land God promised (Genesis 15:18). • Hearing news from Judah stirred hope for return, just as earlier exiles in Egypt longed for home (2 Kings 25:26). • God had already foretold He would “bring them back to their land” (Jeremiah 27:22). Ammon Ammon lay just north of Moab. Jews there heard the same report. • The territory often opposed Judah (Jeremiah 49:1), yet God moved hearts even in hostile surroundings. • Ishmael later conspired with the Ammonite king to assassinate Gedaliah (Jeremiah 40:14–41:2), reminding us that God’s purposes advance despite human schemes. Edom To the south, Edom sheltered Jews too. • Edom rejoiced over Jerusalem’s fall (Obadiah 10–14), but God still preserved His people within its borders. • Their response to the news previews future regathering promises (Isaiah 11:11–12). and all the other lands This sweeping phrase gathers every scattered family (Jeremiah 23:3). • The dispersion fulfilled covenant warnings (Deuteronomy 28:64) yet also set the stage for mercy (Deuteronomy 30:3). • God never loses track of a single exile (Psalm 147:2). heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah The word “remnant” is crucial. • Nebuchadnezzar left “the poorest of the land to tend the vineyards” (Jeremiah 39:10). • Scripture often highlights a faithful remnant through whom God sustains His promises (Isaiah 10:20–22; Jeremiah 24:5–7). • For scattered Jews, this signaled that Judah was not erased and God’s covenant line endured (2 Chronicles 36:20). and had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over them Gedaliah’s lineage mattered: • Shaphan read the rediscovered Law to King Josiah (2 Kings 22:8–14). • Ahikam defended Jeremiah from execution (Jeremiah 26:24). • Gedaliah’s appointment (2 Kings 25:22; Jeremiah 40:5) offered a stable, pro-Jeremiah leadership, inviting the people to “serve the king of Babylon and live” (Jeremiah 27:12). • His governance proved God’s care for daily civil order even amid judgment. summary Jeremiah 40:11 shows God stirring hope among scattered Jews. Hearing that a remnant survived under a trusted governor, far-flung exiles sensed the door opening to return. The verse teaches that no matter how wide the dispersion or how severe the discipline, God safeguards a remnant, raises faithful leaders, and keeps His covenant path intact. |
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