Jeremiah 43 7

Jeremiah 43:7 kjv

So they came into the land of Egypt: for they obeyed not the voice of the LORD: thus came they even to Tahpanhes.

Jeremiah 43:7 nkjv

So they went to the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD. And they went as far as Tahpanhes.

Jeremiah 43:7 niv

So they entered Egypt in disobedience to the LORD and went as far as Tahpanhes.

Jeremiah 43:7 esv

And they came into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the LORD. And they arrived at Tahpanhes.

Jeremiah 43:7 nlt

The people refused to obey the voice of the LORD and went to Egypt, going as far as the city of Tahpanhes.

Jeremiah 43 verses

Jeremiah 43 7 meaning

Jeremiah 43:7 describes the culmination of the disobedient journey of a group of Judeans, including Johanan, his military captains, Jeremiah, and Baruch, as they entered the land of Egypt. The verse unequivocally states that their actions were a direct consequence of their refusal to obey the specific command of the LORD, conveyed through Jeremiah, which strictly forbade them from seeking refuge in Egypt. Their final destination in this phase of their flight was the Egyptian border city of Tahpanhes.

Jeremiah 43 7 Context

Jeremiah 43:7 marks a tragic turning point in the post-exilic history of Judah's remnant. Following the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon in 586 BCE, a small Judean population remained in the land under the Babylonian-appointed governor Gedaliah. However, after Gedaliah's assassination (Jer 41), a wave of fear gripped the surviving Judeans, led by Johanan and his military commanders. They approached Jeremiah, promising to obey fully whatever the LORD commanded regarding whether they should remain in Judah or flee to Egypt (Jer 42:1-6). For ten days, Jeremiah sought the LORD's counsel. The divine answer was explicit and severe: remaining in Judah guaranteed God's protection, while fleeing to Egypt would lead to their utter destruction by the very sword and famine they sought to escape (Jer 42:7-18). Despite God's clear warning and their earlier solemn oath, Johanan and the captains, along with "all the arrogant men," openly rejected Jeremiah's message, accusing him of lying and being influenced by Baruch (Jer 43:1-3). Their profound distrust of Yahweh and preference for a perceived, humanly engineered safety in Egypt drove their actions. Thus, the verse signifies the direct culmination of this deliberate disobedience as they forcibly took Jeremiah and Baruch along with them, cementing their chosen path towards divine judgment. Tahpanhes, an important border city and garrison town in the northeastern Nile Delta, became their initial, ill-fated destination.

Jeremiah 43 7 Word analysis

• So they entered (וַיָּבֹאוּ - vayavo'u): This is a waw-consecutive imperfect verb from the root bo' (בוא), meaning "to come, to enter." The prefixed 'wa' (ו) connects it sequentially to the preceding events. The plural form highlights that the entire group, acting collectively, completed the act of crossing the border. It emphasizes the active, deliberate choice they made despite clear divine prohibition.
• the land of Egypt (אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם - eretz Mitzrayim): Eretz (אֶרֶץ) denotes 'land' or 'country,' and Mitzrayim (מִצְצְרַיִם) is Egypt. The phrase highlights a geographical location that God had specifically forbidden them to enter, thereby marking their explicit defiance against His stated will. Historically, Egypt was often viewed as a place of refuge but frequently led to spiritual compromise or military futility for Israel (cf. Isa 30:1-7; 31:1-3).
• for (כִּי - ki): A conjunction that directly introduces the reason or cause for their action. This word creates a causal link between their entry into Egypt and their disobedience, leaving no ambiguity about the motivation behind their actions.
• they did not obey (לֹא שָׁמְעוּ - lo shama'u): Lo (לֹא) is the standard Hebrew negative particle 'not.' Shama'u (שָׁמְעוּ) is the perfect tense, third person plural of shama' (שָׁמַע), which means "to hear, to listen." Crucially, in a covenantal and prophetic context, 'to hear' implicitly includes 'to obey.' Therefore, "they did not obey" encapsulates their outright refusal to follow the divine command, not just their failure to hear it. It implies an act of willful defiance.
• the voice of the LORD (בְּקוֹל יְהוָה - b'kol YHVH): B'kol (בְּקוֹל) means 'in/by the voice of.' Kol (קול) refers to a 'voice' or 'sound.' YHVH (יְהוָה) is the Tetragrammaton, God's personal covenant name. This phrase stresses that their disobedience was not against a human opinion or an unclear instruction, but against the explicit, authoritative, and direct word of God Himself, revealed through Jeremiah. This accentuates the severity of their rebellion.
• And they came (וַיָּבֹאוּ - vayavo'u): A repetition of the initial 'they entered,' reinforcing the certainty and finality of their arrival.
• to Tahpanhes (עַד תַּחְפַּנְחֵס - ad Tachpanches): Ad (עַד) means 'up to' or 'as far as,' specifying their destination. Tahpanhes (תַּחְפַּנְחֵס), an Egyptian border city known as Daphnae in Greek sources, was a significant stronghold in the eastern Nile Delta, located on a major trade route. Its mention confirms the specific location where God's prophetic word, predicting Nebuchadnezzar's future invasion of Egypt (Jer 43:8-13), would soon unfold directly before them. This specific detail anchors the narrative in historical reality and sets the stage for future prophetic fulfillments.

Jeremiah 43 7 Bonus section

The Hebrew phrasing "לא שמעו בקול יהוה" (lo shama'u b'kol YHVH – "they did not obey the voice of the LORD") uses the preposition 'bet' (ב) before 'voice', which implies listening into or attentively to the voice, underscoring that their failure was not merely an oversight but a conscious and deep-seated rejection of what was clearly spoken by God. This choice to trust in a geopolitical alliance with Egypt rather than in God’s direct promise mirrors earlier warnings in Isaiah and Hosea against seeking help from Egypt (Isa 30:1-7; Hos 7:11). This pattern reveals a persistent historical inclination among some Israelites to lean on foreign powers rather than on their covenant God. Their journey to Tahpanhes effectively takes them from one 'house of bondage' (Judah under Babylonian control, albeit with God's promise for those who remained) to another (Egypt), leading to a deeper captivity of their own choosing. The presence of Jeremiah and Baruch in this forced migration signifies God's persistent grace, as even in their rebellion, His prophetic word continued to be present among them, providing opportunity for repentance, albeit rejected by most.

Jeremiah 43 7 Commentary

Jeremiah 43:7 represents a poignant moment of covenantal apostasy and human stubbornness. After solemnly vowing to obey the LORD's word regardless of the outcome, the Judean remnant chose their own path of perceived security over divine instruction, making their journey to Egypt an act of profound spiritual rebellion. This decision was driven by an "evil, unbelieving heart" (Heb 3:12), which preferred the perceived strength of Pharaoh's armies and Egypt's stability to the direct, promised protection of Yahweh in a desolated Judah. Their defiance against "the voice of the LORD" (בְּקוֹל יְהוָה) highlights the seriousness of their sin, as it was a direct rejection of God's authority and wisdom, revealing a fundamental distrust in His ability to provide and protect. By dragging Jeremiah and Baruch with them to Tahpanhes, they not only disobeyed God personally but also attempted to nullify His prophet's integrity and message, setting the stage for further confrontation and the grim fulfillment of God's judgment against them in Egypt (Jer 44:26-28). The irony lies in their flight to Egypt—the very land from which God had miraculously delivered their ancestors, now becoming the land of their self-inflicted judgment. This act serves as a perpetual warning against prioritizing human reasoning and perceived safety over explicit divine command, reminding us that true security is found only in obedience and trust in God's word.