Jeremiah Chapter 43
Jeremiah 43
Jeremiah in Egypt
Jeremiah 43:1-3, Jeremiah Accused of Prophesying Falsely
Jeremiah 43:1-3, “And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the LORD their God, for which the LORD their God had sent him to them, even all these words, Then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou speakest falsely: the LORD our God hath not sent thee to say, Go not into Egypt to sojourn there: But Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, for to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they might put us to death, and carry us away captives into Babylon.”
Jeremiah 43 opens immediately after Jeremiah has finished delivering the word of the LORD in Jeremiah 42. The remnant had asked for guidance. They had promised to obey whether the answer was pleasing or displeasing. God answered clearly through Jeremiah, “Go ye not into Egypt.” But when the answer contradicted their desire, their false submission was exposed.
Azariah, Johanan, and all the proud men accuse Jeremiah of speaking falsely. The word “proud” explains the heart issue. This is not confusion. This is not a lack of evidence. These men had watched Jeremiah’s prophecies come true through the fall of Jerusalem, the destruction of the city, the captivity of Judah, and the judgment on Zedekiah. Yet now, because the word of God contradicts their chosen path, they call Jeremiah a liar.
Their accusation is spiritually irrational. They say, “the LORD our God hath not sent thee.” In Jeremiah 42, they had asked Jeremiah to pray to the LORD and promised to obey His answer. Now that the answer is not what they want, they deny that God gave it.
This is the danger of seeking guidance with an already decided heart. When a man has already chosen his Egypt, even the clear word of God sounds false to him.
They also blame Baruch the son of Neriah. They claim Baruch has set Jeremiah against them to deliver them into the hand of the Chaldeans. This accusation is absurd. Jeremiah had stood before kings, princes, priests, false prophets, mobs, prisons, pits, and threats of death without changing his message. He was not going to be manipulated by Baruch.
But rebellious hearts often invent conspiracies to avoid obedience. If they can discredit the messenger, they can excuse their rejection of the message. They do not want to admit, “We will not obey the LORD.” So they say, “Jeremiah is lying, and Baruch is controlling him.”
Jeremiah 43:4-7, Johanan and the Officers Take the Remnant to Egypt by Force
Jeremiah 43:4-7, “So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, obeyed not the voice of the LORD, to dwell in the land of Judah. But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the remnant of Judah, that were returned from all nations, whither they had been driven, to dwell in the land of Judah; Even men, and women, and children, and the king's daughters, and every person that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah. So they came into the land of Egypt: for they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: thus came they even to Tahpanhes.”
The text states the issue plainly, “obeyed not the voice of the LORD.” Their problem is no longer lack of information. God has spoken. Jeremiah has declared the answer. The command is clear. They disobey.
Johanan, the captains, and the people refuse to dwell in Judah. They take the entire remnant, including men, women, children, the king’s daughters, and all those Nebuzaradan had left with Gedaliah. They also take Jeremiah and Baruch.
This means Jeremiah is taken to Egypt against his will. He had preached that they must not go. He had told them that the sword, famine, and pestilence they feared would follow them there. Yet they drag him with them into the very place God forbade.
This is bitterly ironic. The remnant had been delivered from Babylonian captivity in the land, only to choose Egypt. Centuries earlier, God had delivered Israel from bondage in Egypt. Now, after Jerusalem’s fall, the remnant returns to Egypt in unbelief.
The journey to Egypt is not merely geographical. It is theological rebellion. Egypt represents the old place of bondage, the place Israel was never to trust as a refuge. The arm of flesh looks safer to them than the word of the LORD.
They come to Tahpanhes, an Egyptian border city. There, outside the land of promise, Jeremiah will continue to speak. The people have left Judah, but they have not escaped God. They have rejected the word, but the word follows them.
Jeremiah 43:8-9, The Sign of the Hidden Stones
Jeremiah 43:8-9, “Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying, Take great stones in thine hand, and hide them in the clay in the brickkiln, which is at the entry of Pharaoh's house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah;”
The word of the LORD comes to Jeremiah in Tahpanhes. This is significant. Jeremiah is outside Judah because others forced him there, but God still speaks to him. The LORD does not treat Jeremiah as guilty for being dragged into Egypt against his will.
The remnant may have thought Egypt placed them beyond the reach of Jeremiah’s warnings. They were wrong. God’s word is not confined to the land. The LORD can speak in Jerusalem, in the court of the prison, in the pit, at Ramah, at Mizpah, and now in Tahpanhes.
God commands Jeremiah to take great stones and hide them in the clay in the brickkiln at the entry of Pharaoh’s house. He must do this publicly, “in the sight of the men of Judah.” This is another acted prophecy. Jeremiah’s action becomes a visible sign of what God will soon declare.
The location matters. These stones are hidden at the entrance of Pharaoh’s house. The people came to Egypt seeking Pharaoh’s protection, but God marks the very place of Egyptian royal power as the future platform of Babylonian domination.
They fled Babylon by going to Egypt. God now shows them that Babylon will come to Egypt.
Jeremiah 43:10-13, The Message of the Hidden Stones
Jeremiah 43:10-13, “And say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid; and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them. And when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt, and deliver such as are for death to death; and such as are for captivity to captivity; and such as are for the sword to the sword. And I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captives: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd putteth on his garment; and he shall go forth from thence in peace. He shall break also the images of Bethshemesh, that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of the Egyptians shall he burn with fire.”
The hidden stones are explained. The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, will send and take Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, whom He calls “my servant.” This title does not mean Nebuchadrezzar is personally righteous. It means God uses him as an instrument of judgment.
Nebuchadrezzar will set his throne upon the stones Jeremiah has hidden. The image is direct and humiliating. The Babylonian king will establish authority at the very place connected with Pharaoh’s house. The remnant ran to Egypt for protection from Babylon, but God says Babylon’s throne will be planted there.
Nebuchadrezzar will spread his royal pavilion over those stones. The place where Pharaoh’s power was supposed to protect them will become a place displaying Babylon’s power.
When Nebuchadrezzar comes, he will smite Egypt. Those appointed for death will go to death. Those appointed for captivity will go to captivity. Those appointed for the sword will go to the sword. The same categories of judgment the remnant feared in Judah will follow them into Egypt.
This fulfills the warning of Jeremiah 42.
Jeremiah 42:16-17, “Then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die. So shall it be with all the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there; they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them.”
God also says He will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt. The gods of Egypt will not save Egypt, and they will not save Judah’s remnant. Their temples will burn. Their idols will be carried away. The religious strength of Egypt will be exposed as powerless before the LORD.
Nebuchadrezzar will array himself with the land of Egypt as a shepherd puts on his garment. The picture is one of ease. Egypt, which looked so secure to the remnant, will be taken by Babylon as easily as a man puts on his clothing.
The images of Bethshemesh in Egypt will be broken, and the houses of Egypt’s gods will burn with fire. Bethshemesh means “house of the sun,” likely referring to a major center of Egyptian sun worship. The LORD’s judgment reaches both Egypt’s political power and religious pride.
The message is devastatingly clear. They could not escape God by running to Egypt. They could not escape Babylon by running to Egypt. They could not find safety in the place God forbade. The only safe place was obedience.
Doctrinal and Practical Notes
Jeremiah 43 teaches that pride rejects God’s word when it contradicts desire. The proud men called Jeremiah false because they did not want to obey.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that insincere seekers often turn on the messenger once the answer is not what they wanted. The same people who asked Jeremiah for prayer accused him of lying.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that rebellion often invents conspiracies. They blamed Baruch rather than admit they were rejecting the LORD.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that disobedience harms the innocent. Johanan and the captains dragged men, women, children, the king’s daughters, Jeremiah, and Baruch into Egypt.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that physical relocation cannot escape spiritual accountability. They left Judah, but the word of the LORD came to them in Tahpanhes.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that God still speaks through His faithful servant even when that servant is forced into hardship by others.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that Egypt cannot protect those whom God commanded not to go there. The sword they feared would follow them.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that God rules over pagan empires. Nebuchadrezzar is called God’s servant because the LORD uses Babylon to accomplish His judgment.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that false refuges become places of judgment. Pharaoh’s house becomes the place marked for Nebuchadrezzar’s throne.
Jeremiah 43 teaches that the gods of the nations cannot save. The houses of the gods of Egypt will burn, and their images will be broken.
Summary
Jeremiah 43 records the remnant’s rejection of the word of the LORD given in Jeremiah 42. After Jeremiah finishes speaking all the words God sent him to deliver, Azariah, Johanan, and all the proud men accuse him of speaking falsely. They deny that the LORD sent him to command them not to go to Egypt. They also accuse Baruch son of Neriah of setting Jeremiah against them to deliver them into Babylonian hands.
Johanan, the captains, and the people refuse to obey the voice of the LORD and do not remain in Judah. They take the whole remnant, including men, women, children, the king’s daughters, everyone Nebuzaradan left with Gedaliah, Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch son of Neriah. They go into Egypt because they refuse to obey the LORD, arriving at Tahpanhes.
In Tahpanhes, the word of the LORD comes to Jeremiah. God commands him to take great stones and hide them in the clay in the brickkiln at the entrance of Pharaoh’s house, in the sight of the men of Judah. Jeremiah is to tell them that the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, will send and take Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, His servant, and set his throne upon those hidden stones. Nebuchadrezzar will spread his royal pavilion over them.
When Nebuchadrezzar comes, he will strike Egypt and deliver some to death, some to captivity, and some to the sword. God will kindle fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt. Nebuchadrezzar will burn them, carry them away, and array himself with Egypt as easily as a shepherd puts on his garment. He will break the images of Bethshemesh in Egypt and burn the houses of the Egyptian gods with fire.
