Bible Strands
Jeremiah 40:11
When all the Jews in Moab, Ammon, Edom, and all the other lands heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant in Judah and had appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, over them,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrative reports a historical moment immediately following Gedaliah’s appointment as governor and his instructions to the remaining population in Mizpah. It establishes the geographical and political backdrop for the subsequent return of exiles to Judah.
The words — כּוֹל (kal) translates literally to “all,” emphasizing the totality of the displaced population. יְהוּדִים (Yehudim) denotes “the Jews” or “Judahites,” identifying the specific ethnic and political group affected by Babylonian policy.
The thread — The displacement of Judahites into Moab, Ammon, and Edom echoes earlier warnings about fugitives seeking refuge in those same territories (Isaiah 16:4). The geographic references to Moab, Ammon, and Edom align with the regions where Israel’s neighbors and later exiles were historically scattered (Genesis 36:8; Numbers 22:1).
Why it lands — The text records a factual report of widespread awareness regarding Babylonian administrative policy before describing the population’s response. It requires the reader to recognize how political reports historically preceded mass movements and communal realignment.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab, and among the Ammonites, and in Edom, and that were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan;
Cross-references
- Isaiah 16:4 Let my fugitives stay with you; be a refuge for Moab from the destroyer.” When the oppressor has gone, destruction has ceased, and the oppressors have vanished from the land,
- Genesis 36:8 So Esau (that is, Edom) settled in the area of Mount Seir.
- Numbers 22:1 Then the Israelites traveled on and camped in the plains of Moab near the Jordan, across from Jericho.
- Numbers 25:1 While Israel was staying in Shittim, the men began to indulge in sexual immorality with the daughters of Moab,
- 1 Samuel 11:1 Then Nahash the Ammonite came up and laid siege to Jabesh-gilead. All the men of Jabesh said to him, “Make a treaty with us, and we will serve you.”
- 1 Samuel 12:12 But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites was moving against you, you said to me, ‘No, we must have a king to rule over us’—even though the LORD your God was your king.
- Jeremiah 24:9 I will make them a horror and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a disgrace and an object of scorn, ridicule, and cursing wherever I have banished them.
- Ezekiel 5:3 But you are to take a few strands of hair and secure them in the folds of your garment.
- Ezekiel 5:12 A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.
- Ezekiel 25:2 “Son of man, set your face against the Ammonites and prophesy against them.