Chapter 42 is one of the most difficult and instructive chapters in Sefer Yirmiyahu: the remnant of Judah, following the assassination of Gedaliah ben Achikam, approaches the prophet and asks him to pray and inquire of the word of Hashem - what to do and where to go. They take a solemn oath to fulfill whatever they will be told, yet it turns out that the entire inquiry was nothing more than a cover for a desire that had already been decided in advance: to go down to Egypt. This chapter is an eternal lesson on what it truly means to "ask a Rav," and what happens when someone asks not to seek guidance, but to receive validation.
The Question That Is Not a Question
וַיִּגְּשׁוּ כָּל־שָׂרֵי הַחֲיָלִים וְיוֹחָנָן בֶּן־קָרֵחַ וִיזַנְיָה בֶּן־הוֹשַׁעְיָה וְכָל־הָעָם מִקָּטֹן וְעַד־גָּדוֹל׃ וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֶל־יִרְמְיָהוּ הַנָּבִיא תִּפָּל־נָא תְחִנָּתֵנוּ לְפָנֶיךָ וְהִתְפַּלֵּל בַּעֲדֵנוּ אֶל־ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ בְּעַד כָּל־הַשְּׁאֵרִית הַזֹּאת כִּי־נִשְׁאַרְנוּ מְעַט מֵהַרְבֵּה כַּאֲשֶׁר עֵינֶיךָ רֹאוֹת אֹתָנוּ׃ - Then all the officers of the army, and Yochanan the son of Kareach, and Yezanyah the son of Hoshayah, and all the people from small to great, approached. And they said to Yirmiyahu the prophet, "May our supplication fall before you, and pray on our behalf to Hashem your God, on behalf of this entire remnant; for we are left but a few out of many, as your eyes see us."
וְיַגֶּד־לָנוּ ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶת־הַדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר נֵלֶךְ־בָּהּ וְאֶת־הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר נַעֲשֶׂה׃ - "That Hashem your God may tell us the way in which we should walk, and the thing that we should do."
Pay close attention to the wording of their request. They did not say, "that He may tell us what we should do" - precisely that was not what they said. Rather, they said: "the way in which we should walk, and the thing that we should do." The Malbim explains: they had already agreed among themselves that they were going to Egypt. The decision had already been made. All they were asking was for him to tell them in Hashem's Name what the most comfortable and safe route to reach Egypt would be, and what they should do once they arrived there - how they would be saved from the sword of the king of Babylon. It was not a question of whether to go, but a question of how to go.
Yirmiyahu's Answer: I Will Not Withhold a Thing From You
וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם יִרְמְיָהוּ הַנָּבִיא שָׁמַעְתִּי הִנְנִי מִתְפַּלֵּל אֶל־ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם כְּדִבְרֵיכֶם וְהָיָה כָּל־הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר־יַעֲנֶה ה' אֶתְכֶם אַגִּיד לָכֶם לֹא־אֶמְנַע מִכֶּם דָּבָר׃ - And Yirmiyahu the prophet said to them, "I have heard; behold, I will pray to Hashem your God according to your words, and it shall be that whatever word Hashem answers you, I will tell you; I will not withhold a thing from you."
Yirmiyahu notifies them in advance: I will tell you exactly what Hashem tells me. If the answer turns out to be the best route to go down to Egypt, I will tell you. And if the answer is that you should not go that way at all, but rather remain in the Land of Israel, I will tell you that as well. "I will not withhold a thing from you": I have no intention of concealing any answer, whether favorable toward going down or unfavorable; I intend to deliver everything exactly as it is.
The Oath: Whether Good or Bad
וְהֵמָּה אָמְרוּ אֶל־יִרְמְיָהוּ יְהִי ה' בָּנוּ לְעֵד אֱמֶת וְנֶאֱמָן אִם־לֹא כְּכָל־הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר יִשְׁלָחֲךָ ה' אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֵלֵינוּ כֵּן נַעֲשֶׂה׃ - And they said to Yirmiyahu, "May Hashem be a true and faithful witness among us, if we do not act according to every word with which Hashem your God sends you to us."
They bind themselves with an oath: We are ready to accept it. Even if Hashem tells us not to go - something completely contrary to our plans, since our current plan is indeed to go - even then it is acceptable to us, and so we will do.
אִם־טוֹב וְאִם־רָע בְּקוֹל ה' אֱלֹהֵינוּ אֲשֶׁר אֲנַחְנוּ שֹׁלְחִים אֹתְךָ אֵלָיו נִשְׁמָע לְמַעַן אֲשֶׁר יִיטַב־לָנוּ כִּי נִשְׁמַע בְּקוֹל ה' אֱלֹהֵינוּ׃ - "Whether it is good or whether it is bad, we will listen to the voice of Hashem our God to Whom we are sending you, so that it may be well with us when we listen to the voice of Hashem our God."
What is meant by "whether good or bad"? If Hashem commands us to remain here in the Land - is that good or bad? To us it seems bad, while in the eyes of Heaven it is good. That is to say, according to our limited perception it seems bad to us, yet nevertheless we are ready to heed the counsel of Hashem. And why? "So that it may go well with us when we listen to the voice of Hashem our God." This is the true good, in the words of the verse, "What does Hashem your God ask of you, but to fear...", and as the prophet said to Shaul: to obey the word of Hashem. The very act of obedience itself guarantees and brings in its wake success and blessing, even though in our eyes the matter appears bad. This is the meaning of "whether good or bad": we know that it is truly good, even though initially it may very well seem bad to us.
After Ten Days: The Word of Hashem Arrives
וַיְהִי מִקֵּץ עֲשֶׂרֶת יָמִים וַיְהִי דְבַר־ה' אֶל־יִרְמְיָהוּ׃ - And it came to pass at the end of ten days, that the word of Hashem came to Yirmeyahu.
וַיִּקְרָא אֶל־יוֹחָנָן בֶּן־קָרֵחַ וְאֶל כָּל־שָׂרֵי הַחֲיָלִים אֲשֶׁר אִתּוֹ וּלְכָל־הָעָם לְמִקָּטֹן וְעַד־גָּדוֹל׃ וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵיהֶם כֹּה־אָמַר ה' אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר שְׁלַחְתֶּם אֹתִי אֵלָיו לְהַפִּיל תְּחִנַּתְכֶם לְפָנָיו׃ - Then he called Yochanan son of Kare'ach, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, and all the people from the least to the greatest, and said to them: Thus says Hashem, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your supplication before Him.
The First Option: Remaining in the Land
אִם־שׁוֹב תֵּשְׁבוּ בָּאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת וּבָנִיתִי אֶתְכֶם וְלֹא אֶהֱרֹס וְנָטַעְתִּי אֶתְכֶם וְלֹא אֶתּוֹשׁ כִּי נִחַמְתִּי אֶל־הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתִי לָכֶם׃ - If you will indeed remain in this land, then I will build you and not pull you down, and I will plant you and not uproot you; for I relent concerning the misfortune that I have brought upon you.
This is the first option presented by the prophet. "Then I will build you" - I will build you up, you will have sovereignty and you will have leadership. "And not pull you down" - I will not ruin you further as I exiled those before you. "And I will plant you and not uproot you" - you will be firmly planted in the Land with a populous nation, and I will not forsake you. "For I relent concerning the misfortune" - it is My will that a remnant remain in Eretz Yisrael, with a future and a hope. Therefore, you may dwell here in peace and quiet.
אַל־תִּירְאוּ מִפְּנֵי מֶלֶךְ בָּבֶל אֲשֶׁר־אַתֶּם יְרֵאִים מִפָּנָיו אַל־תִּירְאוּ מִמֶּנּוּ נְאֻם־ה' כִּי־אִתְּכֶם אָנִי לְהוֹשִׁיעַ אֶתְכֶם וּלְהַצִּיל אֶתְכֶם מִיָּדוֹ׃ - Do not fear the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; do not fear him, says Hashem, for I am with you to save you and to rescue you from his hand.
The repeated phrasing, "Do not fear... do not fear," addresses two matters. First: do not be afraid of the concern that frightens you right now, that he might take vengeance on you for having killed his appointee, Gedalyah ben Achikam. And the second addresses the future: that he will not do further harm to you, nor subject you to hard labor and the like. "For I am with you" - I am with you to save and deliver you from his hand, so that he will not harm you in any way.
וְאֶתֵּן לָכֶם רַחֲמִים וְרִחַם אֶתְכֶם וְהֵשִׁיב אֶתְכֶם אֶל־אַדְמַתְכֶם׃ - And I will grant you mercy, that he may have compassion upon you and return you to your own land.
You will receive mercy, and "and return you to your own land" - meaning that the very property of the land will be yours, under your ownership.
The Second Option: Going Down to Egypt
וְאִם־אֹמְרִים אַתֶּם לֹא נֵשֵׁב בָּאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת לְבִלְתִּי שְׁמֹעַ בְּקוֹל ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם׃ - But if you say, "We will not dwell in this land," refusing to listen to the voice of Hashem your God,
Here the prophet transitions from promise to threat. You sent me to Hashem, you asked me to hear His word, and I have indeed conveyed Hashem's word to you plain and unvarnished. But what if you say: "Thank you very much, Yirmiyahu, for what you conveyed in the name of Hashem, but these words do not appeal to us and we do not intend to follow them" - whether because you do not want to remain in the land, or because you prefer the land of Egypt? Hashem promises that things will go well for you here, yet you say, "We do not want this land."
לֵאמֹר לֹא כִּי אֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם נָבוֹא אֲשֶׁר לֹא־נִרְאֶה מִלְחָמָה וְקוֹל שׁוֹפָר לֹא נִשְׁמָע וְלַלֶּחֶם לֹא־נִרְעָב וְשָׁם נֵשֵׁב׃ - Saying: "No, but we will go to the land of Egypt, where we will see no war, nor hear the sound of the shofar, nor hunger for bread, and there we will dwell."
This is their calculation: we prefer the land of Egypt, because there is no war there, no sound of the shofar - no alarms or sirens of battle. It is safer there. "Nor hunger for bread" - there is no disgrace of starvation and no siege. "And there we will dwell" - we will settle in that land without a worry.
The Punishment: The Sword and the Famine Will Overtake You There of All Places
וְעַתָּה לָכֵן שִׁמְעוּ דְבַר־ה' שְׁאֵרִית יְהוּדָה כֹּה־אָמַר ה' צְבָאוֹת אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אִם־אַתֶּם שׂוֹם תְּשִׂמוּן פְּנֵיכֶם לָבֹא מִצְרַיִם וּבָאתֶם לָגוּר שָׁם׃ - And now, therefore, hear the word of Hashem, remnant of Yehudah! So said Hashem, Master of Legions, the God of Israel: If you indeed set your faces to enter Egypt, and you come to dwell there:
Scripture is precise: "to enter Egypt" specifically. If you were to go to other lands, your only loss would be forfeiting the goodness I promised you here, but you would not be actively punished for it. But if you go to Egypt - regarding this I have already warned you previously, especially since there is an explicit Torah prohibition against returning to Egypt: "You shall never again return by this way."
וְהָיְתָה הַחֶרֶב אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם יְרֵאִים מִמֶּנָּה שָׁם תַּשִּׂיג אֶתְכֶם בְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם וְהָרָעָב אֲשֶׁר־אַתֶּם דֹּאֲגִים מִמֶּנּוּ שָׁם יִדְבַּק אַחֲרֵיכֶם מִצְרַיִם וְשָׁם תָּמֻתוּ׃ - Then the sword that you fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine about which you worry shall cling to you there in Egypt, and there you shall die.
The very two things you are fleeing from - the sword and the famine - are what will overtake you there. In Egypt you will not be shielded from the sword; it will reach you. Nevuchadnezzar, after completing his campaign here, will press on into Egypt.
וְיִהְיוּ כָל־הָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר־שָׂמוּ אֶת־פְּנֵיהֶם לָבוֹא מִצְרַיִם לָגוּר שָׁם יָמוּתוּ בַּחֶרֶב בָּרָעָב וּבַדָּבֶר וְלֹא־יִהְיֶה לָהֶם שָׂרִיד וּפָלִיט מִפְּנֵי הָרָעָה אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי מֵבִיא עֲלֵיהֶם׃ - So shall it be with all the men who set their faces to enter Egypt to dwell there: they shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and none of them shall have any remnant or survivor from the calamity that I will bring upon them.
Beyond the sword and the famine overtaking you, you will reach a state where no remnant or survivor will remain - "from the calamity that I will bring upon them." Here lies a profound principle. There are two types of calamity: there is calamity that occurs when Hashem withdraws His Divine Providence, leaving a person exposed to natural hazards. On the other hand, there is providential calamity. When Hashem merely withdraws His providence, great harm might occur, or perhaps nothing will happen at all - because matter is left to nature and circumstance. But when Hashem actively turns His attention to punish, that is far worse, for then retribution is guaranteed to strike and harm is certain to come, as Hashem Himself providentially brings the calamity. This is the meaning of "the calamity that I will bring upon them" - an orchestrated, providential punishment, where Hashem ensures that harm strikes directly.
כִּי כֹה אָמַר ה' צְבָאוֹת אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל כַּאֲשֶׁר נִתַּךְ אַפִּי וַחֲמָתִי עַל־יֹשְׁבֵי יְרוּשָׁלִַם כֵּן תִּתַּךְ חֲמָתִי עֲלֵיכֶם בְּבֹאֲכֶם מִצְרָיִם וִהְיִיתֶם לְאָלָה וּלְשַׁמָּה וְלִקְלָלָה וּלְחֶרְפָּה וְלֹא־תִרְאוּ עוֹד אֶת־הַמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה׃ - For so said Hashem, Master of Legions, the God of Israel: Just as My anger and My wrath were poured out upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall My wrath be poured out upon you when you enter Egypt; and you shall be an oath, an astonishment, a curse, and a disgrace, and you shall never see this place again.
Just as punishment came upon you in Jerusalem through direct Divine Providence, so too will it be when you enter Egypt: Hashem, through direct Providence, will bring punishment upon you from Him, blessed be He.
The Prophet's Own Words: "For You Have Dealt Deceitfully with Your Own Selves"
דִּבֶּר ה' עֲלֵיכֶם שְׁאֵרִית יְהוּדָה אַל־תָּבֹאוּ מִצְרָיִם יָדֹעַ תֵּדְעוּ כִּי־הַעִידֹתִי בָכֶם הַיּוֹם׃ - Hashem has spoken concerning you, O remnant of Judah: Do not go into Egypt! Know for certain that I have admonished you this day.
Up to this point, Yirmiyahu was conveying the word of Hashem; from here on, he speaks of his own accord. "Hashem has spoken concerning you, O remnant of Judah" - see, the Holy One, blessed be He, is warning and cautioning you. Listen to Hashem's command, heed His warning.
כִּי הִתְעֵיתֶם בְּנַפְשׁוֹתֵיכֶם כִּי־אַתֶּם שְׁלַחְתֶּם אֹתִי אֶל־ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם לֵאמֹר הִתְפַּלֵּל בַּעֲדֵנוּ אֶל־ה' אֱלֹהֵינוּ וּכְכֹל אֲשֶׁר יֹאמַר ה' אֱלֹהֵינוּ כֵּן הַגֶּד־לָנוּ וְעָשִׂינוּ׃ - For you have dealt deceitfully with your own selves, for you sent me to Hashem your God, saying, "Pray for us to Hashem our God, and according to all that Hashem our God shall say, so tell us, and we will do it."
Here the matter is exposed in all its severity: it turns out that from the start you took a path of deception and deceit. You came to me ostensibly in innocence and said: Yirmiyahu, please inquire what we should do, perhaps we should go down to Egypt and be saved there. But your intention from the very beginning was to go down to Egypt. You never truly intended to pause and deliberate; what did you want? To receive backing, a stamp of approval. And the moment Hashem says to you, "No, do not go down" - suddenly it no longer pleases you, and you go down anyway. It turns out that from the very beginning you deceived Hashem. You did not come to ask a question with sincerity out of an earnest desire to know what to do; rather, you came to receive validation for your pre-determined desire. This is what is meant by "you have dealt deceitfully with your own selves" - attempting to deceive Hashem.
וָאַגִּד לָכֶם הַיּוֹם וְלֹא שְׁמַעְתֶּם בְּקוֹל ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם וּלְכֹל אֲשֶׁר־שְׁלָחַנִי אֲלֵיכֶם׃ - And I have declared it to you today, but you have not obeyed the voice of Hashem your God, nor anything with which He sent me to you.
You sent me to Hashem, you asked that I pray on your behalf, and you promised, "and according to all that Hashem our God shall say, so tell us, and we will do it" - and now it turns out that you never intended this from the start; rather, your true intention was not to obey the word of Hashem. Nothing will come of this for you but ruin.
וְעַתָּה יָדֹעַ תֵּדְעוּ כִּי בַּחֶרֶב בָּרָעָב וּבַדֶּבֶר תָּמוּתוּ בַּמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר חֲפַצְתֶּם לָבוֹא לָגוּר שָׁם׃ - And now know for certain that by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence you shall die in the place where you desired to go to dwell.
Note the precise wording of "and now": had you not asked me in advance, you would not have known what your end would be. But now, once the matter has already been stated in prophecy, it is difficult for it to be rescinded. Therefore, know that your end will not be good if you act against Hashem's command. From the moment I inquired of Hashem for you, it became your obligation to obey His command, and by remaining here, you are guaranteed not to be harmed.
In Summary:
The remnant of Judah came to Yirmiyahu with an impassioned plea and a solemn oath: "Whether good or bad, we will obey the voice of Hashem our God." After ten days, the word of Hashem came, clear and explicit: Remain in the land and I will build you and plant you, and do not fear the king of Babylon, for I am with you; but if you go down to Egypt - the sword and the famine from which you are fleeing will overtake you specifically there, in a Providential calamity from which there is no escape. And the conclusion of the chapter reveals the root of the failure: "For you have dealt deceitfully with your own selves" - they did not ask in order to know, but rather to obtain a stamp of approval for a desire that was already decided. From this comes the great moral lesson for all generations: a question asked with an answer already prepared in one's heart is no question at all, and it only increases the questioner's culpability, for once the word of Hashem has been spoken, it can no longer be ignored.