One of the striking features of the narrative in Jeremiah 40:7–41:18 is the total absence of Jeremiah. He never speaks and is not mentioned. We are told that after his release by Nebuzaradan, Jeremiah went to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, at Mizpah, and lived with him among the people who were left in the land
(Jeremiah 40:6). The most obvious conclusion must therefore be that Jeremiah was present as the events in the rest of Jeremiah 40:1–16 and Jeremiah 41:1–18 unfolded. We must assume he was present when Judah’s remnant started to gather around Gedaliah; he was there when Gedaliah ignored Johanan’s warning about Ishmael’s plot to assassinate him. He was in Mizpah when Gedaliah was killed and Ishmael slaughtered the pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. Jeremiah must also have been part of the group of captives that Ishmael took with him as he made his way to the Ammonites and he must have joined Johanan at Gibeon when Ishmael was intercepted. It is possible that Jeremiah withdrew to some other place while all this took place and only returned to Mizpah when Johanan returned there with the remnant that he had rescued at Gibeon. But that would be pure speculation and the narrative gives no indication of him withdrawing. The most natural reading of the text is that he was present through it all, or at the very least was aware of it all. But why is he so silent? No reasons are given and so readers are left to draw conclusions as best they can. One reason for his silence may be that the focus of the narrative in Jeremiah 40:7–41:18 is to tell the story of the remnant in Judah. As the events unfold, the total silence of Jeremiah may simply emphasize the tragic fate of this remnant. Despite the initial signs that this new community developing around Gedaliah may just offer the hope of new beginnings in the land, it soon becomes very obvious that the future of the land and any hope of restoration will not come from this group. It is almost as if Jeremiah, and by implication the Lord too, are silent witnesses to the unfolding tragedy. What will also become obvious is that this remnant’s attitude to the Lord’s word is no different from what we have seen from the people of Judah in the rest of the book. Even if the Lord had intervened through his prophet, it is clear that his word would have been ignored.
Whatever the reasons are for his absence, Jeremiah reappears in the narrative at the beginning ofJeremiah 42:1–22, and the last part of his ministry is introduced. The remnant that Johanan and the other commanders had taken from Mizpah with the intention of going to Egypt now come to Jeremiah, "from the greatest to the least,” and ask him to hear their plea for mercy, and they ask him to pray to the Lord your God for us, all this remnant.
This request is unanimous from a group of people who acknowledge that they are a small and vulnerable group and ask that the Lord should show them the way we should go, and the thing that we should do.
This request for guidance from the Lord seems to be an encouraging development, but there are some troubling signs. They ask Jeremiah to pray to the Lord your God.
They clearly feel as though there is distance between them and the Lord. They see no direct link with the Lord and leave it to Jeremiah to deal with him. They also see themselves as a remnant and they use the Hebrew word serit, which speaks of a people who remain under the Lord’s judgment1. This does not seem to be a people seeking to draw close to their Lord in times of trouble. The request that they want Jeremiah to present to the Lord is also worrying. They have already decided that they should leave the land because they fear the Babylonians. They have already started the journey (see Jeremiah 41:16–18). It is as if they are asking for the Lord’s approval of a course of action that they have already decided on. True faith will not dictate the parameters within which the Lord must respond
2. This follows the same pattern of behaviour that king Zedekiah followed in Jeremiah 37:1–21 and Jeremiah 38:1–28 where he repeatedly requested intervention from the Lord through Jeremiah and yet refused to listen to what the Lord said. The implication is that nothing has changed since the Babylonian invasion. These people’s attitude towards the Lord and his word is the same as Zedekiah’s3.
2 et dirent à Jérémie, le prophète: Que nos supplications soient favorablement reçues devant toi! Intercède en notre faveur auprès de l'Eternel, ton Dieu, en faveur de tous ceux qui restent, car nous étions beaucoup, et nous restons en petit nombre, comme tes yeux le voient;