11 Have no fear of the king of Babylon, of whom you are now in fear; have no fear of him, says the Lord: for I am with you to keep you safe and to give you salvation from his hands.
What may we say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us?
Because of the Chaldaeans: for they were in fear of them because Ishmael, the son of Nethaniah, had put to death Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had made ruler over the land.
Have no fear, for I am with you: I will take your seed from the east, and get you together from the west;
When you go through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not go over you: when you go through the fire, you will not be burned; and the flame will have no power over you.
Be strong and take heart; have no fear, and do not be troubled on account of the king of Assyria and all the great army with him: for there is a greater with us. With him is an arm of flesh; but we have the Lord our God, helping us and fighting for us. And the people put their faith in what Hezekiah, king of Judah, said.
Have no fear, for I am with you; do not be looking about in trouble, for I am your God; I will give you strength, yes, I will be your helper; yes, my true right hand will be your support.
But the Lord was by my side and gave me strength; so that through me the news might be given out in full measure, and all the Gentiles might give ear: and I was taken out of the mouth of the lion.
And I said all this to Zedekiah, king of Judah, saying, Put your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and become his servants and his people, so that you may keep your lives.
And I will make you a strong wall of brass to this people; they will be fighting against you, but they will not overcome you: for I am with you to keep you safe, says the Lord.
The Lord of armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our high tower. (Selah.)
The Lord of armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our high tower. (Selah.)
While you are living, all will give way before you: as I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will not take away my help from you or give you up.
For the Lord your God goes with you, fighting for you to give you salvation from those who are against you.
Then all the people, small and great, and the captains of the forces, got up and went away to Egypt, for fear of the Chaldaeans.
For I am with you, and no one will make an attack on you to do you damage: for I have a number of people in this town.
And have no fear of those who put to death the body, but are not able to put to death the soul. But have fear of him who has power to give soul and body to destruction in hell.
And it will come on into Judah; rushing on and overflowing, till the waters are up to the neck; *** and his outstretched wings will be covering the land from side to side: for God is with us. Have knowledge, O peoples, and be in fear; give ear, all you far-off parts of the earth: Let your designs be formed, and they will come to nothing; give your orders, and they will not be effected: for God is with us.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Jeremiah 42
Commentary on Jeremiah 42 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 42
Johanan and the captains being strongly bent upon going into Egypt, either their affections or politics advising them to take that course, they had a great desire that God should direct them to do so too like Balaam, who, when he was determined to go and curse Israel, asked God leave. Here is,
Jer 42:1-6
We have reason to wonder how Jeremiah the prophet escaped the sword of Ishmael; it seems he did escape, and it was not the first time that the Lord hid him. It is strange also that in these violent turns he was not consulted before now, and his advice asked and taken. But it should seem as if they knew not that a prophet was among them. Though this people were as brands plucked out of the fire, yet have they not returned to the Lord. This people has a revolting and a rebellious heart; and contempt of God and his providence, God and his prophets, is still the sin that most easily besets them. But now at length, to serve a turn, Jeremiah is sought out, and all the captains, Johanan himself not excepted, with all the people from the least to the greatest, make him a visit; they came near (v. 1), which intimates that hitherto they had kept at a distance from the prophet and had been shy of him. Now here,
Jer 42:7-22
We have here the answer which Jeremiah was sent to deliver to those who employed him to ask counsel of God.