Bible Strands
Jeremiah 41:4
On the second day after the murder of Gedaliah, when no one yet knew about it,
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records the chronological marker immediately following Ishmael’s assassination of Gedaliah and the Chaldean soldiers. This moment occurs before any messenger or survivor has reported the event to the surrounding population.
The words — The Hebrew בַּיּוֹם הַשֵּׁנִי (ba-yom ha-sheni) literally renders “on the second day,” fixing the narrative timeline. The clause וְאִישׁ לֹא יָדַע (ve-ish lo yada) translates to “and any man did not know,” stressing the total absence of information.
The thread — The pattern of concealed events triggering later consequences appears in 1 Samuel 27:11 and Psalm 52:1, where delayed knowledge or deliberate reporting alters outcomes. These references align with Jeremiah 41:4 by showing how silence or hidden actions precede inevitable exposure.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to track the gap between an event and its public awareness. It asks for attention to how withheld information creates a fragile window before consequences unfold.
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
And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it,
Cross-references
- 1 Samuel 27:11 David did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he said, “Otherwise they will report us, saying, ‘This is what David did.’” And this was David’s custom the whole time he lived in Philistine territory.
- Psalms 52:1 For the choirmaster. A Maskil of David. After Doeg the Edomite went to Saul and told him, “David has gone to the house of Ahimelech.” Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The loving devotion of God endures all day long.