October 1, 2020: Day 40 – Jeremiah 40

Jeremiah seems to be given a favored person status by the Babylonians.  Isn’t it interesting that with his own people he was thrown in jail, he was mocked, he was left in a pit to die, but for those who were invading the land he was treated as a bit of a hero.  We find him approached by the captain of the guard who said if you want to travel to Babylon with me, you can.  I will take care of you  in Babylon and I will be sure that you have everything that you need.  But, you are free to do as you please.  Basically only Jeremiah and those who were coming in from the field, the poorest in the land, were given liberty to move and live as they pleased.  All those in Jerusalem were taken off to Babylon in captivity.  The captain of the guard gives Jeremiah these options of freedom and lets him decide on his own and then he gives him food to live on for a while as well as a present.  What in the what?  

Jeremiah stayed in the land and decided not to go off to Babylon but rather to join up with those who were left behind and were tending the crops who were left in the land.  We finish the chapter with a bit of an impending issue that is about to come up.  There is one who is looking to kill Gedaliah who was placed in charge of all those who remained in the land.  As Scripture calls them: “those of the poorest of the land who had not been taken into exile to Babylon.”  One of Gedaliah’s helpers asks if he can go and kill the person who is looking to kill him, and Gedaliah says, nah, that’s not a great idea.  I’m good. Let’s  see what happens next chapter, if he really is good or not.