Jeremiah 43:5-7

Jeremiah 43:5-7

[5] But Johanan  the son  of Kareah,  and all the captains  of the forces,  took  all the remnant  of Judah,  that were returned  from all nations,  whither they had been driven,  to dwell  in the land  of Judah;  [6] Even men,  and women,  and children,  and the king's  daughters,  and every person  that Nebuzaradan  the captain  of the guard  had left  with Gedaliah  the son  of Ahikam  the son  of Shaphan,  and Jeremiah  the prophet,  and Baruch  the son  of Neriah.  [7] So they came  into the land  of Egypt:  for they obeyed  not the voice  of the LORD:  thus came  they even to Tahpanhes. 

What does Jeremiah 43:5-7 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

These leaders took this remnant, which included Jews who had returned to the land from neighboring countries, Jews whom the Babylonians had left in the land, Jeremiah , and Baruch , and proceeded to Egypt. They stopped at Tahpanhes (Gr. Daphne; cf. Jeremiah 2:16), an Egyptian frontier town in the northeastern Nile Delta region on the road from Canaan, perhaps to obtain permission to settle in the land. [1] They did this in disobedience to the Lord. Note the continued emphasis on the people"s disobedience throughout this whole chapter.
"Think of it! Abraham"s descendants returned to Egypt long after their liberation from it. With great suffering they had been delivered from their bondage in Egypt only to return there a defeated and hopeless remnant nearly nine hundred years later ..." [2]
It is difficult to tell whether Jeremiah went with them as a prisoner or by his own choice. It seems unlikely that this group of rebels against God"s messages through Jeremiah would have forced him (and Baruch) to accompany them, knowing that he would continue to be a thorn in their side. If Jeremiah went to Egypt by his own choice, he must have done so convinced that Yahweh wanted him to be His voice among the rebels. At the same time, he could not have gone to escape danger and still have remained completely faithful to his Lord, since he had preached cooperation and submission to the Babylonians as God"s will. Many of the commentators speculate that he did not go voluntarily (cf. Jeremiah 32:6-15; Jeremiah 40:1-6; Jeremiah 42:13-18), and I tend to agree.