Commentary - 2 Kings 25:22-26

Bird's-eye view

This short, tragic account concludes the sorry tale of Judah's fall. After the destruction of Jerusalem and the great deportation, a glimmer of hope appears for the remnant left in the land. Nebuchadnezzar, the instrument of God's wrath, appoints a Judean governor, Gedaliah, who seems to be a man of prudence and good faith. He urges the remaining people to settle down and serve the Babylonians, promising them that it will go well for them. This was God's ordained will for them at that time; their chastisement was to be accepted. But this fragile peace is shattered by a man of royal blood, Ishmael, who embodies the rebellious, faithless spirit that brought Judah to ruin in the first place. His assassination of Gedaliah and those with him plunges the remnant into fear, leading them to disobey God's prophet Jeremiah and flee to Egypt, the very place from which God had rescued their fathers. This final act of disobedience demonstrates the profound hardness of the people's hearts and sets the stage for the final scattering of the people of Judah.

The passage is a microcosm of Israel's history: a moment of provisional grace from God, followed by a foolish, prideful rebellion that rejects God's ordained authority, which in turn leads to fear, further disobedience, and a flight to worldly security instead of trusting in God's promises. It is a grim reminder that without a fundamental change of heart, a new covenant written on the heart, man will always choose the path of Ishmael over the path of Gedaliah.

Outline

Context In 2 Kings

These closing verses of 2 Kings bring the historical narrative of the kings of Israel and Judah to its final, sorrowful conclusion. The book has meticulously tracked the downward spiral of the two kingdoms, a story of persistent idolatry and covenant unfaithfulness, punctuated by the warnings of prophets who were consistently ignored. The destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in the preceding verses (25:1-21) was the catastrophic climax of this long rebellion against Yahweh. This brief episode concerning Gedaliah functions as a tragic epilogue. It demonstrates that even after the ultimate judgment had fallen, the heart of the people had not changed. The cancer of rebellion was not excised by the Babylonian sword. The flight to Egypt is the final act of turning their backs on the Promised Land and the God who gave it to them, a pathetic end to a once-glorious history.

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

v. 22 Now as for the people who were left in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan over them.

After the fire and smoke have cleared, we see that God, in His mercy, has not made a complete end of the people. A remnant is left. This is always God's way. Judgment is never His final word for His covenant people. And into this shattered landscape, Nebuchadnezzar, the pagan king who is nevertheless God's servant (Jer. 27:6), makes a reasonable and even gracious appointment. He sets a Judean over the Judeans. Gedaliah comes from a good family; his grandfather Shaphan was the scribe who assisted King Josiah in his reforms (2 Kings 22). His father Ahikam protected the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 26:24). This is a man from a family that knew how to fear God and respect His word. God's providence is at work, providing a stable and godly leader for this poor remnant. The people are being given a chance to learn humility and submission under God's chastening hand.

v. 23 Then all the commanders of the military forces, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah governor. So they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah...

The men who had been fighting a guerilla war, the last vestiges of Judah's army, hear the news. These are hard men, soldiers who have seen their nation destroyed. They are faced with a choice. Do they continue a pointless resistance, or do they accept the new reality? Initially, they make the right move. They come to Mizpah, the new administrative center, to meet with the appointed governor. They are willing to parley. This is a moment of opportunity. The possibility of peace, of rebuilding, of starting over, is on the table.

v. 24 Then Gedaliah swore to them and their men and said to them, “Do not be afraid of the servants of the Chaldeans; live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will be well with you.”

Gedaliah gives them a solemn oath. An oath is a serious thing, an act of worship where God is called as a witness. Gedaliah is binding himself before God to the terms he offers. And his counsel is straightforward, godly, and wise. It is the same counsel Jeremiah the prophet had been giving for years. "Do not be afraid... serve the king of Babylon, and it will be well with you." Fear is the great enemy here. It is fear that drives men to foolishness and rebellion. Gedaliah tells them to put it aside. God has ordained this submission to Babylon. To fight it is to fight God. To accept it is to walk in the path of life. The promise is simple: submit, and you will live. This is the gospel principle in its political application for that moment. Die to your nationalistic pride, your dreams of rebellion, and you will find life.

v. 25 But it happened in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the royal seed, came with ten men and struck Gedaliah down so that he died...

But. Here is the pivot on which this brief hope turns to tragedy. Ishmael arrives. Notice his pedigree: "of the royal seed." He is a man animated by wounded pride. He cannot stomach a mere son of a scribe ruling over him, especially under the authority of a foreign king. His royal blood boils with resentment. This is the spirit of Cain, of Absalom, of all who will not accept their place in God's economy. He doesn't come alone; he has a small band of conspirators. And in an act of treacherous violence, likely at a shared meal (see Jer. 41:1), he murders the man who offered them peace. This is not a political act; it is a theological one. Ishmael is rejecting God's ordained authority and God's clear command to submit. He is choosing chaos over order, pride over humility, death over life.

v. 26 Then all the people, both small and great, and the commanders of the military forces arose and went to Egypt; for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

The result of Ishmael's sin is precisely what Gedaliah had warned against: fear. The assassination of the Babylonian-appointed governor is an act of rebellion, and the people rightly fear reprisal. But what do they do? Do they turn to the Lord? Do they seek the counsel of Jeremiah, who was among them? No. Their fear drives them to Egypt. This is the ultimate act of apostasy. Egypt is the symbol of slavery, the house of bondage from which God had miraculously delivered them. To return there is to undo the Exodus. It is to say that they prefer the security of slavery under Pharaoh to the uncertain freedom of trusting God in the land He gave them. They chose to trust in the world's power rather than in God's promise. Their fear of the Chaldeans was greater than their fear of God, and so they ran from the very place of God's blessing and judgment, sealing their own fate.

Application

This passage is a stark warning against the twin sins of rebellious pride and faithless fear. Ishmael's pride could not bear to submit to God's ordained, albeit humbling, circumstances. He wanted glory, he wanted his royal rights, and he was willing to kill to get them. We must always be on guard against this spirit in our own hearts. When God puts us in a lowly place, when He calls us to submit to authorities we did not choose, do we chafe and plot and murmur? Or do we, like Gedaliah, accept God's providence and seek to live peaceably?

The people's fear drove them to make a disastrous decision. They feared the Babylonians more than they feared disobeying God. How often do we do the same? Fear of financial loss, fear of what others will think, fear of discomfort, these fears can drive us to compromise, to disobey God's clear commands, and to run for the "Egypt" of worldly security. The Christian life is a call to fear God alone. Gedaliah's counsel remains true for us: "Do not be afraid... serve the King... and it will be well with you." Our King is not Nebuchadnezzar, but the Lord Jesus Christ. When we submit to His lordship, even when it is hard, even when it costs us, we find that it is the only path to true life and peace.