Day 759: Rescued, but not free - Jeremiah 41 vs 9 – 18

9-10 Now the cistern into which Ishmael had thrown all the bodies of the men whom he had struck down along with Gedaliah was the large cistern that King Asa had made for defence against Baasha king of Israel. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain. Then Ishmael took captive all the rest of the people who were in Mizpah, the king's daughters and all the people who were left at Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah took them captive and set out to cross over to the Ammonites.

11-12 But when Johanan the son of Kareah and all the leaders of the forces with him heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, they took all their men and went to fight against Ishmael the son of Nethaniah. They came upon him at the great pool that is in Gibeon. 13-14 And when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah and all the leaders of the forces with him, they rejoiced. So all the people whom Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned round and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah. 15 But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites.

16-17 Then Johanan the son of Kareah and all the leaders of the forces with him took from Mizpah all the rest of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam - soldiers, women, children, and eunuchs, whom Johanan brought back from Gibeon. 18 And they went and stayed at Geruth-Chimham near Bethlehem, intending to go to Egypt because of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land. Jeremiah 41:9-18 English Standard Version

Verses 1-8 of this chapter told of the terrible treachery of Ishmael who assassinated Gedaliah and massacred a band of pilgrims. He then took a whole community captive and was forcing them to go with him to the land of the Ammonites. But, like the cavalry in movies who come to the rescue, Johanan and his men intercepted Ishmael at a pool in Gibeon where he and his captives may have stopped for water and to rest. What was the response of those who had forcibly been taken captive when Johanan and his armed men arrived? (vs 13-14)

How true that is of any rescued person. It's certainly true of those who have been rescued out of the bondage to sin that Satan had held them in. There are countless testimonies of people who were drug addicts, alcoholics, or slaves to lust, but who were set free by Christ through the gospel. The story here is somewhat different. Ishmael, the criminal in chief, was able to escape. Those who had been rescued by Johanan set off back to Mizpah (perhaps to collect what few possessions they'd been forced to leave behind) but then to a small town near Bethlehem. Why did they do that? (vs 18)

They were afraid that when the King of Babylon heard how Gedaliah had been assassinated he would send a strong force to punish the wrongdoers and they would be blamed for the crime. So there plan was to take refuge in Egypt. We will see how that develops and how Jeremiah comes back into the picture in the next chapter. But there’s an application we can make from today's reading. These people had been rescued from their situation, but they were still not free.

There's a sense in which that can be true of people now as well as then. People sometimes receive help from others (whether welfare agencies, psychologists, and even from Christians) which gives them relief from a pressing problem in their life. But they may still not be free. They may still not have dealt with the root cause of so many trials; namely, keeping God out of their lives, or only wanting God in their lives on their terms. Unless we take full responsibility for our wrongdoings, humbly repent, and embrace Christ as Lord as well as Saviour, we will never be truly free.