Jeremiah 43:8-13

II. EVENTS IN THE LAND OF EGYPT

Jeremiah 43:8 to Jeremiah 44:30

It is impossible to determine precisely what year the Jews immigrated to Egypt. The year 583 or 582 B.C. would probably not be far wrong. This conjecture is based on the fact that the armies of Nebuchadnezzar arrived in the land of Judah in 582 B.C. to punish the Jews for the death of Gedaliah. Therefore it would seem appropriate to assume that the flight to Egypt had occurred shortly before the coming of the Chaldeans. The present section contains the last recorded oracle of Jeremiah. That oracle was delivered before the death of Pharaoh Hophra in 569 B.C. Therefore, Jeremiah 43:8 to Jeremiah 44:30 covers at the maximum a period of thirteen years, from 583 to 570 B.C. However, the likelihood is that the actual number of years covered here is less than half the maximum figure.

A. A Prophetic Announcement Jeremiah 43:8-13

TRANSLATION

(8) And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying, (9) Take in your hand large stones and hide them in the mortar in the brick pavement which is at the entrance of the house of Pharaoh in Tahpanhes in the presence of the men of Judah. (10) Then say unto them, Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am about to send and take Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, My servant, that I may set up his throne over these stones which I have hidden; and he shall stretch out his canopy over them. (11) When he comes he will smite the land of Egypt; such as are appointed to death, to death, those appointed to exile, to exile, and those appointed to the sword, to the sword. (12) And I will kindle a fire in the house of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them or carry them away captive. He will wrap himself in the land of Egypt as a shepherd wraps his garment about him; and he shall go out from that place unmolested. (13) And he shall break down the images of Bethshemesh which is in the land of Egypt and he will burn the houses of the gods of Egypt.

COMMENTS

Jeremiah did not cease from his prophetic activity in the land of Egypt. Indeed the final three oracles of his ministry were delivered on Egyptian soil. In the first of these Jeremiah elaborates upon the warning which he made to the remnant at their encampment near Bethlehem. He boldly predicts that Nebuchadnezzar would attempt to conquer Egypt and the remnant would greatly suffer in the ensuing war.

1. Announcement of coming invasion (Jeremiah 43:8-10)

The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah at Tahpanhes situated at the eastern edge of the Egyptian Delta, some seven miles west of the Suez Canal. At one time, before it dried up, the Pelusior branch of the Nile flowed past the site. The city was one of the major fortresses guarding the eastern entrance into Egypt. It was also an important commercial center, since all the caravans going to and from Egypt passed through there. The site was excavated by Sir Flinders Petrie, the famous British archaeologist, in 1886. He found the native name of the place to be Qasr Bent el Yehudi, palace of the Jew's daughter. This name had for centuries preserved the memory of the visit of Zedekiah's daughters following the collapse of the kingdom of Judah.

Shortly after the Jews arrived in Tahpanhes Jeremiah delivered his first oracle to them (Jeremiah 43:8). No doubt the exiles would be compelled to halt here in order to secure permission from the Egyptian government to sojourn in their land. As on so many occasions in his ministry Jeremiah chose to dramatize his message. Now God instructed him to take great stones. and hide them in the mortar in the brickwork, which is at the entry of Pharaoh's house in Tahpanhes (Jeremiah 43:9). Pharaoh's house is not the royal palacethat was located at Saisbut a government building of some sort which Pharaoh used as his residence when in Tahpanhes. The brickwork (ASV) is most likely the brick pavement at the entrance of this royal residence. Sir Flinders Petrie discovered a large brick platform at the main entrance of the fortress in Tahpanhes. This platform may well have been the very place where the Lord instructed Jeremiah to bury the large stones.

Just how Jeremiah was able to perform this act is not stated. Some scholars think it was done at night. On the other hand, the native Egyptians may have regarded Jeremiah as insane and therefore have tolerated his actions, But this much is certain: The men of Judah were present to observe the prophet performing this strange act. When Jeremiah had finished burying the stones beneath the brickwork he rose to make a startling announcement. He predicted that Nebuchadnezzar would come to Egypt and place his throne on the very spot where the stones were hidden (Jeremiah 43:10). Here on this very spot the Great King would spread his royal canopy (Jeremiah 43:10).[357] This is probably not the tent where the king would reside but an awning or covering borne by attendants designed to protect the monarch from the rays of the sun.

[357] The Hebrew word occurs only here and is of uncertain meaning. Though canopy seems to be the best translation, some have suggested carpet as the best translation.

2. Consequences of the coming invasion (Jeremiah 43:11-13)

The invasion of Nebuchadnezzar would have terrible consequences for the inhabitants of Egypt and for the Jews who were seeking refuge there. Some would die of deadly wounds suffered in battle, others from famine which would result when cities were besieged. Still others would be carried away into captivity or given over to the sword of the executioner (Jeremiah 43:11).

Nebuchadnezzar would have no respect for the gods of Egypt. He would put the torch to the temples of the land and carry their images away to Babylon as trophies of war. He will break the images of Beth-shemesh as well. The word translated here images is the same word rendered pillar in Isaiah 19:19. In both of these passages the word probably refers to the obelisk. Beth-shemesh means house of the sun. The place was called Heliopolis by the Greeks and On by the Egyptians. It is located near the southern point of the Egyptian Delta region a few miles south of Tahpanhes and about ten miles northeast of modern Cairo. A famous temple dedicated to the sun was located here which had in front of it a row of obelisks. It is to these obelisks that the present passage points. When the geographer Strabo visited the city twenty years before Christ it was already a heap of ruins. Nothing now remains of the city but some traces of the massive walls, fragments of sphinxes and an obelisk of red granite sixty-eight feet high.

Jeremiah's prediction of a Chaldean invasion of Egypt were fulfilled in a marvelous way. The Jewish historian Josephus tells of an invasion of Egypt by Nebuchadnezzar five years after the fall of Jerusalem. In this invasion the king of Egypt was killed and the Jews in Egypt carried away captive to Babylonian.[358] Many scholars questioned the accuracy of the Josephus account until a fragmentary inscription[359] from the archives of Nebuchadnezzar was discovered which told of a Chaldean invasion of Egypt. To be sure this invasion did not occur until the thirty-seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar, nineteen years after the fall of Jerusalem (i.e., 568 B.C.). This fragment certainly establishes the fact that punitive campaigns to Egypt could be part of Nebuchadnezzar's foreign policy. The fragment suggests that the purpose of the Great King was not permanent conquest. Rather Nebuchadnezzar was aiming to cripple Egypt so as to prevent Pharaoh from ever again meddling in Syria-Palestine. Pharaoh Amasis (570-526 B.C.) who ruled Egypt at the time was able to retain his throne. Subsequent to the invasion he seems to have maintained friendly relations with Babylon. Jeremiah's prophecy does not demand a lengthy subjugation of Egypt and therefore it may be regarded as fulfilled by one or both of the invasions mentioned above.

[358] Josephus, Antiquities, X. 9. 7.

[359] See Ancient Near Wastern Texts, op. cit., p. 308. The tablet, now in the British Museum, has unfortunately been badly damaged.