1Men allerede samme år i den syvende måned kom Ishmael til Mitzpa med ti mand og opsøgte Gedalja. Ishmael var af kongelig herkomst og en af den tidligere konges betroede embedsmænd. Gedalja inviterede dem til spisning dér i Mitzpa.2Under måltidet sprang Ishmael og hans mænd pludselig op, trak deres sværd og dræbte Gedalja.3Derefter løb de ud og dræbte samtlige judæiske embedsmænd og babyloniske soldater i guvernørens hovedkvarter.4Næste dag, før nogen vidste noget om mordet på Gedalja,5var en gruppe på 80 mænd fra Sikem, Shilo og Samaria på vej til Jerusalem med korn og røgelse for at ofre til Herren. De havde raget skægget af, revet flænger i tøjet og skåret sig i huden for at vise deres sorg over Jerusalems fald.6Da de nærmede sig Mitzpa, kom Ishmael dem grædende i møde og sagde: „Kom og se, hvad der er sket med Gedalja.”7Men så snart de var kommet ind i byen, begyndte Ishmael og hans mænd at slå dem ihjel og kaste ligene i et vandreservoir.8Ti af dem undgik døden ved at love at give ham deres forråd af hvede, byg, olivenolie og honning, som de havde skjult i nærheden af byen.9Det vandreservoir, som Ishmael kastede de 70 mænd ned i, havde kong Asa ladet bygge, dengang han befæstede Mitzpa i krigen mod kong Basha af Israel.10Ishmael tog så resten af byens indbyggere til fange, både kongens døtre og alle dem, som Nebuzaradan havde overladt i Gedaljas varetægt i Mitzpa, og flygtede til ammonitternes land.11Men da Johanan og de øvrige officerer hørte, hvad Ishmael havde gjort,12samlede de alle deres mænd og satte efter ham, og de indhentede ham ved dammen nær Gibeon.13-14Så snart Ishmaels fanger fra Mitzpa fik øje på Johanan og hans mænd, jublede de af glæde og sluttede sig til ham.15Ishmael undslap med nød og næppe sammen med otte af sine mænd og nåede i sikkerhed i Ammon.16-17Johanan og hans mænd tog nu alle dem, de havde befriet, soldater, kvinder, børn og hoffolk, og førte dem til landsbyen Gidrot-Kimham ved Betlehem. De havde nemlig planer om at tage til Egypten,18for de var bange for, hvordan babylonierne ville reagere på budskabet om Gedaljas død. Gedalja var jo blevet indsat som guvernør af selveste den babyloniske konge.
1In the seventh month, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal family, one of the chief officers of the king, came with ten men to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah. As they ate bread together there at Mizpah, (2.Kong 25,25; Salm 41,9; Jer 40,6; Jer 40,8; Jer 40,10)2Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men with him rose up and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, with the sword, and killed him, whom the king of Babylon had appointed governor in the land. (2.Sam 13,28; Jer 40,5)3Ishmael also struck down all the Judeans who were with Gedaliah at Mizpah, and the Chaldean soldiers who happened to be there. (Jer 41,1)4On the day after the murder of Gedaliah, before anyone knew of it,5eighty men arrived from Shechem and Shiloh and Samaria, with their beards shaved and their clothes torn, and their bodies gashed, bringing grain offerings and incense to present at the temple of the Lord. (5.Mos 14,1; Josva 17,7; Josva 18,1; 1.Kong 16,24; 2.Kong 25,9; Es 15,2; Jer 23,13; Jer 36,24; Jer 48,37)6And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah came out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he came. As he met them, he said to them, “Come in to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.” (Jer 40,6; Jer 40,8; Jer 40,10)7When they came into the city, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the men with him slaughtered them and cast them into a cistern.8But there were ten men among them who said to Ishmael, “Do not put us to death, for we have stores of wheat, barley, oil, and honey hidden in the fields.” So he refrained and did not put them to death with their companions. (Dom 6,11)9Now the cistern into which Ishmael had thrown all the bodies of the men whom he had struck down along with[1] Gedaliah was the large cistern that King Asa had made for defense against Baasha king of Israel; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with the slain. (1.Kong 15,22; 2.Krøn 16,6)10Then 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. (Jer 38,23; Jer 40,7; Jer 40,14)11But 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, (Jer 40,8; Jer 40,13)12they 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. (Josva 9,3; Josva 9,17; 2.Sam 2,13)13And 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. (Jer 40,13)14So all the people whom Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned around and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah. (Jer 41,10; Jer 41,16)15But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites. (Jer 40,14)16Then 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. (Josva 9,3; Josva 9,17; Jer 40,7; Jer 41,13)17And they went and stayed at Geruth Chimham near Bethlehem, intending to go to Egypt (1.Mos 35,19; 2.Sam 19,37; Matt 2,1; Matt 2,14)18because 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. (Jer 40,5; Jer 41,2)