Jeremiah 42:11

11 " 'Do not be afraid of the king of Babylonia. You are afraid of him now. Do not be,' announces the Lord. 'I am with you. I will keep you safe. I will save you from his powerful hands.

Jeremiah 42:11 Meaning and Commentary

Jeremiah 42:11

Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid,
&c.] Lest he should revenge the death of Gedaliah upon them, which was a groundless fear; see ( Jeremiah 41:18 ) ; or that they should be dealt hardly with by him, and be cruelly oppressed, and not able to live in subjection to him; see ( Jeremiah 40:9 ) ; be not afraid of him, saith the Lord: who, being omniscient, knew they
were;
and, being omnipotent, a greater King than the king of Babylon, the King of king?, they had no reason to fear anything from him, since they were under his protection: for I [am] with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand;
from his avenging and oppressing hand; though they were not to be delivered as yet from subjection to him, or being tributaries to him; which they might be, and yet dwell in peace and safety.

Jeremiah 42:11 In-Context

9 I said to all of them, "The LORD is the God of Israel. You asked me to present your appeal to him.

10 He told me, 'Stay in this land. Then I will build you up. I will not tear you down. I will plant you. I will not pull you up by the roots. I am very sad that I had to bring all of this trouble on you.

11 " 'Do not be afraid of the king of Babylonia. You are afraid of him now. Do not be,' announces the Lord. 'I am with you. I will keep you safe. I will save you from his powerful hands.

12 I will show you my loving concern. Then he will have concern for you. And he will let you return to your land.'

13 "But suppose you say, 'We won't stay in this land.' If you do, you will be disobeying the LORD your God.