2 Kings 25:23 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
2 Kings 25:23
And when all the captains of the armies, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, there came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Careah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men.
a head person (of any rank or class) · noun, common masculine plural construct
armies
הַחֲיָלִ֜יםha.cha.ya.Lim
H2428
probably a force · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
men
וְהָאֲנָשִׁ֗יםve.ha.'a.na.Shim
H582
a man in general (singly or collectively) · conjunction + definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
heard
וַיִּשְׁמְעוּ֩vai.yish.me.'U
H8085
to hear intelligently (often with implication of attent… · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
king
מֶֽלֶךְMe.lekh-
H4428
a king · noun, common masculine singular construct
Babylon
בָּבֶל֙ba.Vel
H894
Babel (i.e. Babylon) · proper noun, a place name
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Jeremiah 40:7-9 Now when all the captains of the forces which were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah…
Joshua 18:26 And Mizpeh, and Chephirah, and Mozah,
Jeremiah 40:11-12 Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab, and among the Ammonites, and in Edom, and that were in all the countries, heard that the king…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on 2 Kings 25:22–end
In these verses we have,
I. The dispersion of the remaining people. The city of Jerusalem was quite laid waste. Some people there were in the land of Judah (Kg2 25:22) that had weathered the storm, and (which was no small favour at this time, Jer 45:5) had their lives given them for a prey. Now see, 1. What a good posture they were put into. The king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah, one of themselves, to be their governor and protector under him, a very good man, and one that would make the best of the bad, Kg2 25:22. His father Ahikam was one that countenanced and protected Jeremiah when the princes had vowed his death, Jer 26:24. It is probable that this Gedaliah, by the advice of Jeremiah,…
Nebuchadnezzar . . . made Gedaliah . . . ruler--The people permitted to remain were, besides the king's daughters, a few court attendants and others (Jer 40:7) too insignificant to be removed, only the peasantry who could till the land and dress the vineyards. Gedaliah was Jeremiah's friend (Jer 26:24), and having, by the prophet's counsel, probably fled from the city as abandoned of God, he surrendered himself to the conqueror (Jer 38:2, Jer 38:17), and being promoted to the government of Judea, fixed his provincial court at Mizpeh. He was well qualified to surmount the difficulties of ruling at such a crisis. Many of the fugitive Jews, as well as the soldiers of Zedekiah who had accompanie…
To Mizpah - This is said to have been situated on the east side of the river Jordan, and most contiguous to Babylon, and therefore the most proper for the residence of Gedaliah, because nearest to the place from which he was to receive his instructions. But there were several places of this name, and we do not exactly know where this was situated.
John Gill on 2 Kings 25:22
And as for the people that remained,.... That were left in the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen; over these the king of Babylon made Gedaliah governor, to whom the captains, with their scattered troops, came, and submitted for a time; of whom; see Gill on Jeremiah 40:7; see Gill on Jeremiah 40:8; see Gill on Jeremiah 40:9.
Dictionary and topics
Careah — (bald head), father of Johanan, (2 Kings 25:23) elsewhere spelt Kareah.
Chaldees — Or Chaldeans, the inhabitants of the country of which Babylon was the capital. They were so called till the time of the Captivity (2 Kings 25; Isa. 13:19; 23:13), when, particularly in the Book of…
Fast — The sole fast required by the law of Moses was that of the great Day of Atonement (q.v.), Lev. 23:26-32. It is called “the fast” (Acts 27:9). The only other mention of a periodical fast in the Old…
Jaaz-aniah — Heard by Jehovah. (1.) The son of Jeremiah, and one of the chief Rechabites (Jer. 35:3). (2.) The son of Shaphan (Ezek. 8:11). (3.) The son of Azur, one of the twenty-five men seen by Ezekiel (11:1)…
Jaazaniah — (whom Jehovah hears).
Jerusalem — Called also Salem, Ariel, Jebus, the “city of God,” the “holy city;” by the modern Arabs el-Khuds, meaning “the holy;” once “the city of Judah” (2 Chr. 25:28). This name is in the original in the…
Jezaniah — (whom Jehovah hears), the son of Hoshaiah the Maachathite, and one of the captains of the forces who had escaped from Jerusalem during the final attack of the beleaguering army of the Chaldeans.…
Johanan — Whom Jehovah graciously bestows. (1.) One of the Gadite heroes who joined David in the desert of Judah (1 Chr. 12:12). (2.) The oldest of King Josiah’s sons (1 Chr. 3:15). (3.) Son of Careah, one of…
Kings, The Books of — The two books of Kings formed originally but one book in the Hebrew Scriptures. The present division into two books was first made by the LXX., which now, with the Vulgate, numbers them as the third…
Maachathi — (oppression) and Maach’athites, The, two words which denote the inhabitants of the small kingdom of Maachah. (3:14; Joshua 12:5; 13:11,13); (2 Samuel 23:34; 2 Kings 25:23; Jeremiah 40:8)
Nethaniah — Given of Jehovah. (1.) One of Asaph’s sons, appointed by David to minister in the temple (1 Chr. 25:2, 12). (2.) A Levite sent by Jehoshaphat to teach the law (2 Chr. 17:8). (3.) Jer. 36:14. (4.) 2…
Gedaliah
גְּדַלְיָ֔הוּge.dal.Ya.hu
H1436
Gedaljah · proper noun, a man's name
governor
הִפְקִ֤ידhif.Kid
H6485
to visit (with friendly or hostile intent) · verb, hiphil perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
came
וַיָּבֹ֥אוּvai.ya.Vo.'u
H935
to go or come (in a wide variety of applications) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
Gedaliah
גְּדַלְיָ֖הוּge.dal.Ya.hu
H1436
Gedaljah · proper noun, a man's name
Mizpah
הַמִּצְפָּ֑הha.mitz.Pah
H4709
Mitspah · definite article + proper noun, a place name
Ishmael
וְיִשְׁמָעֵ֣אלve.yish.ma.'El
H3458
Jishmael · conjunction + proper noun, a man's name
son
בֶּןben-
H1121
a son (as a builder of the family name) · noun, common masculine singular construct
Nethaniah
נְתַנְיָ֡הne.tan.Yah
H5418
Nethanjah · proper noun, a man's name
Johanan
וְיוֹחָנָ֣ןve.yo.cha.Nan
H3110
Jochanan · conjunction + proper noun, a man's name
son
בֶּןben-
H1121
a son (as a builder of the family name) · noun, common masculine singular construct
Careah
קָ֠רֵחַKa.re.ach
H7143
Kareach · proper noun, a man's name
Seraiah
וּשְׂרָיָ֨הu.se.ra.Yah
H8304
Serajah · conjunction + proper noun, a man's name
son
בֶןven-
H1121
a son (as a builder of the family name) · noun, common masculine singular construct
a man in general (singly or collectively) · conjunction + noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine plural
Keil & Delitzsch on 2 Kings 25:22-26
Installation of Gedaliah the governor. His assassination, and the flight of the people to Egypt. - Much fuller accounts have been handed down to us in Jer 40-44 of the events which are but briefly indicated here.
Kg2 25:22-23
Over the remnant of the people left in the land Nebuchadnezzar placed Gedaliah as governor of the land, who took up his abode in Mizpah. Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, who had interested himself on behalf of the prophet Jeremiah and saved his life (Jer 26:24), and the grandson of Shaphan, a man of whom nothing more is known (see at Kg2 22:12), had his home in Jerusalem, and, as we may infer from his attitude towards Jeremiah, had probably secured the confidence of the Cha…
Because Gedaliah came from a family experienced in civic affairs, his governorship was initially well accepted (see also Jer 40:1-12). A seal impression recovered from Lachish confirms Gedaliah’s importance as the officer “over the house” (see study note on 1 Kgs 4:6). • In addition to the army commanders, the prophet Jeremiah also went to Mizpah to support Gedaliah (Jer 40:6). This Mizpah was a border town in Benjamin; it had been prominent in Israelite history as a place of religious assembly (1 Sam 7:5-6). • The men listed here held important posts. Ishmael was from a prominent family of royal lineage (2 Kgs 25:25; Jer 36:12). Johanan served Gedaliah faithfully (Jer 40:13-16). The name Je…
Seraiah — Soldier of Jehovah. (1.) The father of Joab (1 Chr. 4:13, 14). (2.) The grandfather of Jehu (1 Chr. 4:35). (3.) One of David’s scribes or secretaries (2 Sam. 8:17). (4.) A Netophathite (Jer. 40:8), a…
Tanhumeth — Consolation, a Netophathite; one of the captains who supported Gedaliah (2 Kings 25:23; Jer. 40:8).
Gedaliah · into — into
Ishmael · and takes many Jews — and takes many Jews
Jaazaniah · .A — .A
Jerusalem · Calamities of, mentioned: Taken and burned by Nebuchadnezzar — Calamities of, mentioned: Taken and burned by Nebuchadnezzar
Johanan · 1. A Jewish — 1. A Jewish
Kareah · Father of — Father of
Mizpah · had been — had been
Nethaniah · 1. Father of Ishmael — 1. Father of Ishmael
Seraiah · 3. An Israelite — 3. An Israelite
Tanhumeth · Father of Seraiah — Father of Seraiah
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
