Jeremiah 42 Study Notes: Warning Against Going to Egypt
The survivors ask Jeremiah to pray for guidance and vow to obey whatever the LORD says. Ten days later the LORD promises to protect and plant them if they stay in Judah but warns that war and famine will find them in Egypt, and Jeremiah tells them they have fooled themselves.
General
What did Jeremiah say the people had done when they sent him to pray and promised to obey (Jeremiah 42:19-21)?
Answer: They had deceived themselves, since they would not obey
Jeremiah repeated the LORD’s command against going to Egypt and told them he had clearly warned them (42:19). He said they had deceived themselves when they sent him to pray and promised to do whatever the LORD said (42:20), for he had told them the LORD’s word that day and they had not obeyed it (42:21). So they would die by sword, famine and plague in the land they had chosen (42:22). The next chapter confirms his words: Azariah, Johanan and the other arrogant men called Jeremiah a liar (43:2). James warns that hearing God’s word without doing it is self-deception (James 1:22). Through Jeremiah the LORD had declared that the human heart is more deceitful than anything else and cannot heal itself (17:9), so people can ask for God’s will while their hearts are already set against it. Only God can give a heart that truly fears and follows Him, as He promised to do (32:39-40).
- Jeremiah 42:19-22 (BSB)“The LORD has told you, O remnant of Judah, ‘Do not go to Egypt.’ Know for sure that I have warned you today! For you have deceived yourselves by sending me to the LORD your God, saying, ‘Pray to the LORD our God on our behalf, and as for all that the LORD our God says, tell it to us and we will do it.’ For I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in all He has sent me to tell you. Now therefore, know for sure that by sword and famine and plague you will die in the place where you desire to go to reside.””Jeremiah warns that the people deceived themselves and will die in the place they want to go.
- Jeremiah 43:2 (BSB)“Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying! The LORD our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to reside there.’”The people’s leaders reject the LORD’s word at once and accuse Jeremiah of lying.
- James 1:22 (BSB)“Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.”Hearing God’s word without doing it is self-deception.
- Jeremiah 17:9 (BSB)“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”The LORD declared through Jeremiah that the human heart is deceitful and incurable.
- Jeremiah 32:39-40 (BSB)“I will give them one heart and one way, so that they will always fear Me for their own good and for the good of their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never turn away from doing good to them, and I will put My fear in their hearts, so that they will never turn away from Me.”God promised to give His people one heart and put His fear in them so they would never turn away from Him.
Theological
How did Jeremiah characterize the remnant’s request and vow in light of their response (Jeremiah 42:19-21)?
Answer: They had deceived themselves, since they would not obey
Restating the LORD’s prohibition on Egypt and his own solemn warning (42:19), Jeremiah charged the people with self-deception: they had sent him to the LORD pledging to do all He said (42:20), yet having heard His word they had not obeyed (42:21). Death by sword, famine and plague awaited them in the place of their choosing (42:22). Their leaders’ immediate charge that Jeremiah was lying (43:2) confirms his verdict. This is the self-deceit of hearers who are not doers (James 1:22), and it springs from the human heart’s natural condition, more deceitful than all else and beyond cure (17:9). Religious petitions and vows of obedience can coexist with a heart not yet renewed by God and still set on its own course, which is why true obedience depends on God’s promised work of giving one heart and putting His fear within (32:39-40).
- Jeremiah 42:19-22 (BSB)“The LORD has told you, O remnant of Judah, ‘Do not go to Egypt.’ Know for sure that I have warned you today! For you have deceived yourselves by sending me to the LORD your God, saying, ‘Pray to the LORD our God on our behalf, and as for all that the LORD our God says, tell it to us and we will do it.’ For I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD your God in all He has sent me to tell you. Now therefore, know for sure that by sword and famine and plague you will die in the place where you desire to go to reside.””Jeremiah warns that the people deceived themselves and will die in the place they want to go.
- Jeremiah 43:2 (BSB)“Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying! The LORD our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to reside there.’”The people’s leaders reject the LORD’s word at once and accuse Jeremiah of lying.
- James 1:22 (BSB)“Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.”Hearing God’s word without doing it is self-deception.
- Jeremiah 17:9 (BSB)“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”The LORD declared through Jeremiah that the human heart is deceitful and incurable.
- Jeremiah 32:39-40 (BSB)“I will give them one heart and one way, so that they will always fear Me for their own good and for the good of their children after them. I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never turn away from doing good to them, and I will put My fear in their hearts, so that they will never turn away from Me.”God promised to give His people one heart and put His fear in them so they would never turn away from Him.
General
Why did the LORD tell the remnant not to fear Babylon’s king (Jeremiah 42:11-12)?
Answer: He was with them to save them and would turn the king to mercy
The people were afraid of Babylon’s king (41:18), yet the LORD commanded them twice not to fear him, because He was with them to save and rescue them from the king’s power (42:11). The LORD would show them compassion and would cause the king to show them compassion too, letting them return to their own land (42:12). This is the same comfort God gave Jeremiah at his call (1:8) and gives His people elsewhere, with His own presence as the reason not to fear (Isaiah 41:10). The LORD can do this because He directs the hearts of kings wherever He pleases (Proverbs 21:1).
- Jeremiah 42:11-12 (BSB)“Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, whom you now fear; do not be afraid of him, declares the LORD, for I am with you to save you and deliver you from him. And I will show you compassion, and he will have compassion on you and restore you to your own land.’”The LORD tells the remnant not to fear Babylon’s king, promising His presence and compassion.
- Jeremiah 1:8 (BSB)“Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.”At his call the LORD gave Jeremiah the same assurance: no need to fear, because God would be with him to rescue him.
- Isaiah 41:10 (BSB)“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”God’s presence with His people is His reason for telling them not to fear.
- Proverbs 21:1 (BSB)“The king’s heart is a waterway in the hand of the LORD; He directs it where He pleases.”The LORD directs a king’s heart wherever He pleases, so He could move Babylon’s king to show mercy.
Theological
On what basis did the LORD tell the remnant not to fear Babylon’s king (Jeremiah 42:11-12)?
Answer: He was with them to save them and would turn the king to mercy
The remnant’s dread of Babylon (41:18) is met by the LORD’s twice-repeated command not to fear, grounded in His presence to save and deliver them (42:11). He would show them compassion and incline the king to show compassion as well, restoring them to their land (42:12). The assurance repeats the formula of Jeremiah’s call (1:8) and the covenant comfort of Isaiah 41:10. It rests on God’s sovereignty over rulers: rulers’ hearts are in the LORD’s hand, turned wherever He wills (Proverbs 21:1), so the remnant had nothing to fear from a king whose heart God governed.
- Jeremiah 42:11-12 (BSB)“Do not be afraid of the king of Babylon, whom you now fear; do not be afraid of him, declares the LORD, for I am with you to save you and deliver you from him. And I will show you compassion, and he will have compassion on you and restore you to your own land.’”The LORD tells the remnant not to fear Babylon’s king, promising His presence and compassion.
- Jeremiah 1:8 (BSB)“Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the LORD.”At his call the LORD gave Jeremiah the same assurance: no need to fear, because God would be with him to rescue him.
- Isaiah 41:10 (BSB)“Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”God’s presence with His people is His reason for telling them not to fear.
- Proverbs 21:1 (BSB)“The king’s heart is a waterway in the hand of the LORD; He directs it where He pleases.”The LORD directs a king’s heart wherever He pleases, so He could move Babylon’s king to show mercy.
General
True or False: Jeremiah agreed to pray but said he would pass on only the parts of the LORD’s answer they were ready to hear (Jeremiah 42:4).
Answer: False
This is false. Jeremiah agreed to carry their request to the LORD just as they had asked, and he promised to tell them everything the LORD answered, holding nothing back (42:4). That had been his calling from the start: he must speak all that God commanded him (1:7), and he had earlier been told not to leave out a single word (26:2). The apostle Paul likewise told the Ephesian elders that he had kept back no part of God’s purpose from them (Acts 20:27). Jeremiah kept his promise. When the answer came, he gave all of it, including the warning against going to Egypt (42:9-22).
- Jeremiah 42:4 (BSB)““I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will surely pray to the LORD your God as you request, and I will tell you everything that the LORD answers. I will not withhold a word from you.””Jeremiah agrees to pray and promises to report the LORD’s whole answer.
- Jeremiah 1:7 (BSB)“But the LORD told me: “Do not say, ‘I am only a child.’ For to everyone I send you, you must go, and all that I command you, you must speak.”At his call Jeremiah was told he must speak everything God commanded him.
- Jeremiah 26:2 (BSB)““This is what the LORD says: Stand in the courtyard of the house of the LORD and speak all the words I have commanded you to speak to all the cities of Judah who come to worship there. Do not omit a word.”Jeremiah had earlier been ordered not to leave out a single word of God’s message.
- Acts 20:27 (BSB)“For I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole will of God.”Paul told the Ephesian elders that he had held back no part of God’s purpose in his teaching.
Theological
True or False: Jeremiah promised to pray but reserved the right to soften or hold back parts of the LORD’s answer (Jeremiah 42:4).
Answer: False
This is false. Jeremiah consented to intercede as requested and pledged to report the LORD’s entire answer without withholding anything (42:4). Faithful transmission of the whole word was the essence of his prophetic office from his call (1:7) and had been explicitly charged on him before (26:2), just as Paul later kept back no part of God’s purpose from those he taught (Acts 20:27). Jeremiah’s full and unwelcome report in the rest of the chapter (42:9-22) shows that he kept the pledge.
- Jeremiah 42:4 (BSB)““I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will surely pray to the LORD your God as you request, and I will tell you everything that the LORD answers. I will not withhold a word from you.””Jeremiah agrees to pray and promises to report the LORD’s whole answer.
- Jeremiah 1:7 (BSB)“But the LORD told me: “Do not say, ‘I am only a child.’ For to everyone I send you, you must go, and all that I command you, you must speak.”At his call Jeremiah was told he must speak everything God commanded him.
- Jeremiah 26:2 (BSB)““This is what the LORD says: Stand in the courtyard of the house of the LORD and speak all the words I have commanded you to speak to all the cities of Judah who come to worship there. Do not omit a word.”Jeremiah had earlier been ordered not to leave out a single word of God’s message.
- Acts 20:27 (BSB)“For I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole will of God.”Paul told the Ephesian elders that he had held back no part of God’s purpose in his teaching.
General
What did the commanders and the rest of the people ask Jeremiah to pray for (Jeremiah 42:1-3)?
Answer: That the LORD would show them which way to go and what to do
Johanan, Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, the other commanders, and everyone, great and small, came to Jeremiah the prophet (a spokesman who delivers God’s messages). They asked him to bring a request before the LORD for the whole remnant, since only a few of them were left out of many (42:1-2). They asked that the LORD would show them which way to walk and what to do (42:3). That was a right request, for Jeremiah had confessed that no one is able to direct his own steps (10:23), and the psalmist likewise asks God to teach him the way to walk (Psalm 143:8). Yet they made it after they had already set out toward Egypt (41:17).
- Jeremiah 42:1-3 (BSB)“Then all the commanders of the forces, along with Johanan son of Kareah, Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, approached Jeremiah the prophet and said, “May our petition come before you; pray to the LORD your God on behalf of this entire remnant. For few of us remain of the many, as you can see with your own eyes. Pray that the LORD your God will tell us the way we should walk and the thing we should do.””The commanders and all the people ask Jeremiah to pray for guidance for the remnant.
- Jeremiah 41:17 (BSB)“And they went and stayed in Geruth Chimham, near Bethlehem, in order to proceed into Egypt”They had already set out toward Egypt before making this request.
- Jeremiah 10:23 (BSB)“I know, O LORD, that a man’s way is not his own; no one who walks directs his own steps.”Jeremiah confessed that no one directs his own steps, so guidance must come from the LORD.
- Psalm 143:8 (BSB)“Let me hear Your loving devotion in the morning, for I have put my trust in You. Teach me the way I should walk, for to You I lift up my soul.”The psalmist asks God to teach him the way he should walk.
Theological
For what did the remnant ask Jeremiah to intercede with the LORD (Jeremiah 42:1-3)?
Answer: That the LORD would show them which way to go and what to do
The commanders, including Johanan and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, together with the whole people, great and small, petitioned Jeremiah to intercede for the dwindled remnant (42:1-2). Their request was for divine direction: that the LORD would reveal the way they should go and the thing they should do (42:3). The petition itself was sound, since human beings cannot direct their own steps (10:23) and must be taught the way by God (Psalm 143:8). Yet it was made while they were already on their way to Egypt (41:17).
- Jeremiah 42:1-3 (BSB)“Then all the commanders of the forces, along with Johanan son of Kareah, Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, approached Jeremiah the prophet and said, “May our petition come before you; pray to the LORD your God on behalf of this entire remnant. For few of us remain of the many, as you can see with your own eyes. Pray that the LORD your God will tell us the way we should walk and the thing we should do.””The commanders and all the people ask Jeremiah to pray for guidance for the remnant.
- Jeremiah 41:17 (BSB)“And they went and stayed in Geruth Chimham, near Bethlehem, in order to proceed into Egypt”They had already set out toward Egypt before making this request.
- Jeremiah 10:23 (BSB)“I know, O LORD, that a man’s way is not his own; no one who walks directs his own steps.”Jeremiah confessed that no one directs his own steps, so guidance must come from the LORD.
- Psalm 143:8 (BSB)“Let me hear Your loving devotion in the morning, for I have put my trust in You. Teach me the way I should walk, for to You I lift up my soul.”The psalmist asks God to teach him the way he should walk.
General
What did the people promise when they asked Jeremiah to seek the LORD for them (Jeremiah 42:5-6)?
Answer: To obey the LORD’s answer whether it pleased them or not
The people called on the LORD to stand as a reliable witness against them if they failed to act on every word He sent through Jeremiah (42:5). Whether His answer seemed good or bad to them, they said, they would obey the LORD their God so that things would go well for them (42:6). Their words sounded like Israel’s promise at Mount Horeb (Sinai) to listen and obey. The LORD praised that promise but longed that they had a heart that would truly fear Him and keep His commands (Deuteronomy 5:27-29). Scripture warns that not vowing at all is better than making a vow and breaking it (Ecclesiastes 5:5), and the next chapter shows that this vow was broken at once (43:2).
- Jeremiah 42:5-6 (BSB)“Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act upon every word that the LORD your God sends you to tell us. Whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, so that it may go well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God!””The people call the LORD as witness and vow to obey whatever answer He gives.
- Deuteronomy 5:27-29 (BSB)“Go near and listen to all that the LORD our God says. Then you can tell us everything the LORD our God tells you; we will listen and obey.” And the LORD heard the words you spoke to me, and He said to me, “I have heard the words that these people have spoken to you. They have done well in all that they have spoken. If only they had such a heart to fear Me and keep all My commandments always, so that it might be well with them and with their children forever.”Israel made a similar promise at Horeb, and the LORD longed for them to have a heart that would truly obey.
- Ecclesiastes 5:5 (BSB)“It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.”Scripture warns that a vow left unfulfilled is worse than no vow at all.
- Jeremiah 43:2 (BSB)“Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying! The LORD our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to reside there.’”When the answer came, Azariah, Johanan and other arrogant men rejected it and accused Jeremiah of lying.
Theological
What did the remnant vow before Jeremiah sought the LORD’s answer (Jeremiah 42:5-6)?
Answer: To obey the LORD’s answer whether it pleased them or not
The people invoked the LORD as a faithful witness against themselves should they fail to act on His every word (42:5), and they pledged obedience whether His answer proved agreeable or not, so that things would go well for them (42:6). The vow echoes Israel’s pledge at Horeb, which the LORD commended while lamenting that they lacked a heart that would fear Him and keep His commandments (Deuteronomy 5:27-29). The words were right, but the heart was not; the vow went unpaid (Ecclesiastes 5:5), as the immediate rejection of the LORD’s word shows (43:2).
- Jeremiah 42:5-6 (BSB)“Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act upon every word that the LORD your God sends you to tell us. Whether it is pleasant or unpleasant, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God to whom we are sending you, so that it may go well with us when we obey the voice of the LORD our God!””The people call the LORD as witness and vow to obey whatever answer He gives.
- Deuteronomy 5:27-29 (BSB)“Go near and listen to all that the LORD our God says. Then you can tell us everything the LORD our God tells you; we will listen and obey.” And the LORD heard the words you spoke to me, and He said to me, “I have heard the words that these people have spoken to you. They have done well in all that they have spoken. If only they had such a heart to fear Me and keep all My commandments always, so that it might be well with them and with their children forever.”Israel made a similar promise at Horeb, and the LORD longed for them to have a heart that would truly obey.
- Ecclesiastes 5:5 (BSB)“It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.”Scripture warns that a vow left unfulfilled is worse than no vow at all.
- Jeremiah 43:2 (BSB)“Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah, and all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying! The LORD our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to reside there.’”When the answer came, Azariah, Johanan and other arrogant men rejected it and accused Jeremiah of lying.
General
After ten days, what did the LORD promise the remnant if they would stay in the land (Jeremiah 42:10)?
Answer: He would plant and build them, not uproot and tear them down
Ten days later the LORD’s answer came, and Jeremiah called together Johanan, the commanders and everyone else (42:7-8). The LORD said that if they remained in the land, He would establish and plant them rather than tear them down and uproot them, because He would relent of (turn back from) the disaster He had brought on them (42:9-10). These words echo Jeremiah’s call, which spoke of uprooting and tearing down, building and planting (1:10). Elsewhere the LORD promised that, just as He had watched over His people to tear down, He would watch over them for building and planting (31:28), and He had used these same words in His promise to the exiles taken to Babylon (24:6).
- Jeremiah 42:7-8 (BSB)“After ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, and he summoned Johanan son of Kareah, all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest.”After ten days the LORD answers, and Jeremiah gathers the leaders and the people.
- Jeremiah 42:9-10 (BSB)“Jeremiah told them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition: ‘If you will indeed stay in this land, then I will build you up and not tear you down; I will plant you and not uproot you, for I will relent of the disaster I have brought upon you.”The LORD promises to build and plant the remnant if they stay in the land.
- Jeremiah 1:10 (BSB)“See, I have appointed you today over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and plant.””Jeremiah’s commission used the same language of uprooting and tearing down, building and planting.
- Jeremiah 31:28 (BSB)“Just as I watched over them to uproot and tear down, to demolish, destroy, and bring disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares the LORD.”God promised that just as He had watched over His people to tear down, He would watch over them to build and plant.
- Jeremiah 24:6 (BSB)“I will keep My eyes on them for good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them.”God made the same promise of building and planting to the exiles taken to Babylon.
Theological
What did the LORD’s answer, given after ten days, promise the remnant on condition that they remain in Judah (Jeremiah 42:10)?
Answer: He would plant and build them, not uproot and tear them down
Ten days later the LORD’s word came, and Jeremiah assembled the commanders and the people (42:7-8). If they would abide in the land, the LORD would build and plant them instead of demolishing and uprooting them, for He would relent of the calamity He had brought (42:9-10). The language recalls Jeremiah’s commission over nations to uproot and to plant (1:10) and the LORD’s promise to watch over His people for building just as He had for tearing down (31:28), and the same pledge He had given the exiles taken to Babylon (24:6). The sovereign Judge who had uprooted now offers to plant again, and the condition is trusting obedience: remaining in the land where He told them to stay.
- Jeremiah 42:7-8 (BSB)“After ten days the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, and he summoned Johanan son of Kareah, all the commanders of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest.”After ten days the LORD answers, and Jeremiah gathers the leaders and the people.
- Jeremiah 42:9-10 (BSB)“Jeremiah told them, “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your petition: ‘If you will indeed stay in this land, then I will build you up and not tear you down; I will plant you and not uproot you, for I will relent of the disaster I have brought upon you.”The LORD promises to build and plant the remnant if they stay in the land.
- Jeremiah 1:10 (BSB)“See, I have appointed you today over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and plant.””Jeremiah’s commission used the same language of uprooting and tearing down, building and planting.
- Jeremiah 31:28 (BSB)“Just as I watched over them to uproot and tear down, to demolish, destroy, and bring disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant,” declares the LORD.”God promised that just as He had watched over His people to tear down, He would watch over them to build and plant.
- Jeremiah 24:6 (BSB)“I will keep My eyes on them for good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them.”God made the same promise of building and planting to the exiles taken to Babylon.
General
What did the LORD warn would happen if the remnant went to Egypt to escape war and hunger (Jeremiah 42:13-17)?
Answer: The sword and famine they feared would catch up with them there
The people pictured Egypt as a place with no war, no battle trumpet (a ram’s horn blown to warn of attack) and no hunger (42:13-14). The LORD warned that if they insisted on going, the very sword they feared would overtake them in Egypt and the famine they dreaded would follow them, and they would die there. None of those set on going would escape the disaster (42:15-17). His anger poured out on Jerusalem would fall on them in Egypt, and they would not see their homeland again (42:18). The danger they ran from would meet them in the very place they ran to. God had long ago forbidden Israel to return to Egypt (Deuteronomy 17:16), and Isaiah condemned going there for refuge without asking the LORD (Isaiah 30:2).
- Jeremiah 42:13-14 (BSB)“But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and you thus disobey the voice of the LORD your God, and if you say, ‘No, but we will go to the land of Egypt and live there, where we will not see war or hear the sound of the ram’s horn or hunger for bread,’”The LORD describes the people’s plan to escape war and hunger by going to Egypt.
- Jeremiah 42:15-18 (BSB)“then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah! This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and reside there, then the sword you fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow on your heels into Egypt, and you will die there. So all who resolve to go to Egypt to reside there will die by sword and famine and plague. Not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring upon them.’ For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Just as My anger and wrath were poured out on the residents of Jerusalem, so will My wrath be poured out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become an object of cursing and horror, of vilification and disgrace, and you will never see this place again.’”The LORD warns that the sword and famine they fear will follow them into Egypt, and His wrath will fall on them there.
- Deuteronomy 17:16 (BSB)“But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the LORD has said, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’”The LORD had said long before that His people were never to go back to Egypt.
- Isaiah 30:2 (BSB)“They set out to go down to Egypt without asking My advice, to seek shelter under Pharaoh’s protection and take refuge in Egypt’s shade.”Isaiah condemned going down to Egypt for refuge without asking the LORD’s counsel.
Theological
What judgment did the LORD announce on the remnant if they fled to Egypt for safety (Jeremiah 42:13-17)?
Answer: The sword and famine they feared would catch up with them there
The remnant imagined Egypt as a refuge from war, alarm and hunger (42:13-14). The LORD declared that if they were set on going, the sword they feared would overtake them in Egypt, and the famine they dreaded would pursue them, so that all who resolved to go would die without survivor or escape (42:15-17). The wrath poured out on Jerusalem would follow them, and they would not see their homeland again (42:18). Fleeing from God’s word would bring no escape; the evils they ran from would meet them in Egypt. The return to Egypt reverses the exodus that the LORD had forbidden His people to undo (Deuteronomy 17:16), and Isaiah had denounced such refuge-seeking without His counsel (Isaiah 30:2).
- Jeremiah 42:13-14 (BSB)“But if you say, ‘We will not stay in this land,’ and you thus disobey the voice of the LORD your God, and if you say, ‘No, but we will go to the land of Egypt and live there, where we will not see war or hear the sound of the ram’s horn or hunger for bread,’”The LORD describes the people’s plan to escape war and hunger by going to Egypt.
- Jeremiah 42:15-18 (BSB)“then hear the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah! This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and reside there, then the sword you fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow on your heels into Egypt, and you will die there. So all who resolve to go to Egypt to reside there will die by sword and famine and plague. Not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring upon them.’ For this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: ‘Just as My anger and wrath were poured out on the residents of Jerusalem, so will My wrath be poured out on you if you go to Egypt. You will become an object of cursing and horror, of vilification and disgrace, and you will never see this place again.’”The LORD warns that the sword and famine they fear will follow them into Egypt, and His wrath will fall on them there.
- Deuteronomy 17:16 (BSB)“But the king must not acquire many horses for himself or send the people back to Egypt to acquire more horses, for the LORD has said, ‘You are never to go back that way again.’”The LORD had said long before that His people were never to go back to Egypt.
- Isaiah 30:2 (BSB)“They set out to go down to Egypt without asking My advice, to seek shelter under Pharaoh’s protection and take refuge in Egypt’s shade.”Isaiah condemned going down to Egypt for refuge without asking the LORD’s counsel.