41But in midautumn, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and grandson of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family and had been one of the king’s high officials, went to Mizpah with ten men to meet Gedaliah. While they were eating together,H7637H2320H3458H1121H5418H1121H476H2233H4410H7227H4428H6235H582H935H1436H1121H296H4709H398H3899H3162H47082Ishmael and his ten men suddenly jumped up, drew their swords, and killed Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon had appointed governor.H6965H3458H1121H5418H6235H582H5221H1436H1121H296H1121H8227H2719H4191H4428H894H6485H7763Ishmael also killed all the Judeans and the Babylonian soldiers who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah.H3458H5221H3064H1436H4709H3778H4672H582H44214The next day, before anyone had heard about Gedaliah’s murder,H8145H3117H4191H1436H376H30455eighty men arrived from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria to worship at the Temple of the Lord. They had shaved off their beards, torn their clothes, and cut themselves, and had brought along grain offerings and frankincense.H935H582H7927H7887H8111H8084H376H2206H1548H899H7167H1413H4503H3828H3027H935H1004H30686Ishmael left Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he went. When he reached them, he said, “Oh, come and see what has happened to Gedaliah!”H3458H1121H5418H3318H4709H7125H1058H1980H1980H6298H559H935H1436H1121H2967But as soon as they were all inside the town, Ishmael and his men killed all but ten of them and threw their bodies into a cistern.H935H8432H5892H3458H1121H5418H7819H8432H953H5828The other ten had talked Ishmael into letting them go by promising to bring him their stores of wheat, barley, olive oil, and honey that they had hidden away.H6235H582H4672H559H3458H4191H3426H4301H7704H2406H8184H8081H1706H2308H4191H8432H2519The cistern where Ishmael dumped the bodies of the men he murdered was the large one dug by King Asa when he fortified Mizpah to protect himself against King Baasha of Israel. Ishmael son of Nethaniah filled it with corpses.H953H3458H7993H6297H582H5221H3027H1436H609H4428H6213H6440H1201H4428H3478H3458H1121H5418H4390H249110Then Ishmael made captives of the king’s daughters and the other people who had been left under Gedaliah’s care in Mizpah by Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard. Taking them with him, he started back toward the land of Ammon.H3458H7617H7611H5971H4709H4428H1323H5971H7604H4709H5018H7227H2876H6485H1436H1121H296H3458H1121H5418H7617H3212H5674H1121H598311But when Johanan son of Kareah and the other guerrilla leaders heard about Ishmael’s crimes,H3110H1121H7143H8269H2428H8085H7451H3458H1121H5418H621312they took all their men and set out to stop him. They caught up with him at the large pool near Gibeon.H3947H582H3212H3898H3458H1121H5418H4672H7227H4325H139113The people Ishmael had captured shouted for joy when they saw Johanan and the other guerrilla leaders.H5971H3458H7200H3110H1121H7143H8269H2428H805514And all the captives from Mizpah escaped and began to help Johanan.H5971H3458H7617H4709H5437H7725H3212H3110H1121H714315Meanwhile, Ishmael and eight of his men escaped from Johanan into the land of Ammon.H3458H1121H5418H4422H6440H3110H8083H582H3212H1121H598316Then Johanan son of Kareah and the other guerrilla leaders took all the people they had rescued in Gibeon—the soldiers, women, children, and court officials whom Ishmael had captured after he killed Gedaliah.H3947H3110H1121H7143H8269H2428H7611H5971H7725H3458H1121H5418H4709H310H5221H1436H1121H296H1397H582H4421H802H2945H5631H7725H139117They took them all to the village of Geruth-kimham near Bethlehem, where they prepared to leave for Egypt.H3212H3427H1628H3643H681H1035H3212H935H471418They were afraid of what the Babylonians would do when they heard that Ishmael had killed Gedaliah, the governor appointed by the Babylonian king.H6440H3778H3372H3458H1121H5418H5221H1436H1121H296H4428H894H6485H776
Dublin, OH
, Ishmael son of Nethaniah and grandson of Elishama, who was a member of the royal family and had been one of the king’s high officials, went to Mizpah with ten men to meet Gedaliah. While they were eating together,H7637
