Tzom Gedaliah - Core Concepts

Perek 40

The word that came to Jeremiah from God, after Nebuzaradan, the chief of the executioners, set him free at Ramah, to which he had taken him, chained in fetters, among those from Jerusalem and Judah who were being exiled to Babylon. The chief of the executioners took charge of Jeremiah, and he said to him, “God your Lord threatened this place with this disaster; and now God has brought it about. He has acted as He threatened, because you sinned against God and did not obey Him. That is why this has happened to you. Now, I release you this day from the fetters which were on your hands. If you would like to go with me to Babylon, come, and I will look after you. And if you don’t want to come with me to Babylon, you need not. See, the whole land is before you: go wherever seems good and right to you.”— But [Jeremiah] still did not turn back.—“Or go to Gedaliah son of Achikam son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has put in charge of the towns of Judah, and stay with him among the people, or go wherever you want to go.” The chief of the executioners gave him an allowance of food, and dismissed him. So, Jeremiah came to Gedaliah son of Achikam at Mizpah, and stayed with him among the people who were left in the land. The officers of the troops in the open country, and their men with them, heard that the king of Babylon had put Gedaliah son of Achikam in charge of the region, and that he had put in his charge the men, women, and children—of the poorest in the land—those who had not been exiled to Babylon. So, they with their men came to Gedaliah at Mizpah—Yishmael son of Netania; Yochanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareyach; Seraiah son of Tanhumet; the sons of Ephai the Netophatite; and Yezaniah son of the Maacatite. Gedaliah son of Achikam son of Shaphan reassured them and their men, saying, “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Stay in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you. I am going to stay in Mizpah to attend upon the Chaldeans who will come to us. But you may gather wine and figs and oil and put them in your own vessels, and settle in the towns you have occupied.” Likewise, all the Judeans who were in Moab, Ammon, and Edom, or who were in other lands, heard that the king of Babylon had let a remnant stay in Judah, and that he had put Gedaliah son of Achikam son of Shaphan in charge of them. All these Judeans returned from all the places to which they had scattered. They came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah, and they gathered large quantities of wine and figs. Yochanan son of Kareyach, and all the officers of the troops in the open country, came to Gedaliah at Mizpah and said to him, “Do you know that King Baalis of Ammon has sent Yishmael son of Netania to kill you?” But Gedaliah son of Achikam would not believe them. Yochanan son of Kareyach also said secretly to Gedaliah at Mizpah, “Let me go and strike down Yishmael son of Netania before anyone knows about it; otherwise he will kill you, and all the Judeans who have gathered about you will be dispersed, and the remnant of Judah will perish!” But Gedaliah son of Achikam answered Yochanan son of Kareyach, “Do not do such a thing: what you are saying about Yishmael is not true!”

Perek 41

In the seventh month, Yishmael son of Netania son of Elishama, who was of royal descent and one of the king’s commanders, came with ten men to Gedaliah son of Achikam at Mizpah; and they ate together there at Mizpah. Then Yishmael son of Netania and the ten men who were with him arose and struck down Gedaliah son of Achikam son of Shaphan with the sword and killed him, because the king of Babylon had put him in charge of the land. Yishmael also killed all the Judeans who were with him—with Gedaliah in Mizpah—and the Chaldean soldiers who were stationed there. The second day after Gedaliah was killed, when no one yet knew about it, eighty men came from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, their beards shaved, their garments torn, and their bodies gashed, carrying meal offerings and frankincense to present at the House of God. Yishmael son of Netania went out from Mizpah to meet them, weeping as he walked. As he met them, he said to them, “Come to Gedaliah son of Achikam.” When they came inside the town, Yishmael son of Netania and the men who were with him slaughtered them [and threw their bodies] into a cistern. But there were ten men among them who said to Yishmael, “Don’t kill us! We have stores hidden in a field—wheat, barley, oil, and honey.” So, he stopped, and did not kill them along with their fellows. — The cistern into which Yishmael threw all the corpses of the men who had been killed by the hand of Gedaliah was the one that King Asa had constructed on account of King Baasha of Israel. That was the one which Yishmael son of Netania filled with corpses. — Yishmael carried off all the rest of the people who were in Mizpah, including the daughters of the king—all the people left in Mizpah, over whom Nebuzaradan, the chief of the guards, had appointed Gedaliah son of Achikam. Yishmael son of Netania carried them off, and set out to cross over to the Ammonites. Yochanan son of Kareyach, and all the army officers with him, heard of all the crimes committed by Yishmael son of Netania. They took all their men and went to fight against Yishmael son of Netania; and they encountered him by the great pool in Gibeon. When all the people held by Yishmael saw Yochanan son of Kareyach and all the army officers with him, they were glad; all the people whom Yishmael had carried off from Mizpah turned back and went over to Yochanan son of Kareyach. But Yishmael son of Netania escaped from Yochanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites. Yochanan son of Kareyach and all the army officers with him took all the rest of the people whom he had rescued from Yishmael son of Netania from Mizpah after he had murdered Gedaliah son of Achikam—the men, soldiers, women, children, and eunuchs whom [Yochanan] had brought back from Gibeon. They set out, and they stopped at Gerut Chimham, near Bethlehem, on their way to go to Egypt because of the Chaldeans. For they were afraid of them, because Yishmael son of Netania had killed Gedaliah son of Achikam, whom the king of Babylon had put in charge of the land.

And it was in the seventh month – Gedalia son of Achikam was murdered on Rosh HaShana, and the fast was established on the day following Rosh HaShana because it was a holiday.

Halacha 1

There are days on which all of Israel fast because of the tragedies which occurred on them, in order to awaken the hearts to open the paths of return. And this provides an awareness of our evil actions and the actions of our forefathers which were like ours now, to the point of causing to them and us these same tragedies. In being aware of these things we return to be good, as it says, "They shall state their transgressions and the transgressions of their fathers along with their own" (Vayikra 26:40).

Halacha 2

They are as follows: The third day of Tishrei, on which Gedaliah the son of Achikam was killed, and the last ember of Israel’s independence was extinguished, and caused her dispersion’s completion…

“The pit into which Yishmael threw all the corpses who had been slain by the hand of Gedaliah” – But did Gedaliah kill them!? It was Yishmael who killed them! Gedaliah was one of those killed by Yishmael and his men! The Gemara answers: Rather, since Gedaliah should have been concerned and cautious based on the advice of Yochanan, son of Kareyach, who warned him that Yishmael was conspiring to kill him and even offered to go and kill Yishmael in a preemptive strike (see Jer. 40:13-16), but Gedaliah was not concerned and he refused to listen to Yochanan’s advice, saying that he did not want to listen to malicious speech, the verse ascribes him blame as though he himself killed them.

Rava said: With regard to this prohibition against listening to malicious speech, even though one should not accept the malicious speech as true, one is nevertheless required to be concerned about the harm that might result from ignoring it.

What needs to be understood is that you cannot judge acts of chassidut (righteousness) based on their first impression; rather it is necessary to observe and contemplate the outcome and consequences of the deed. For there may sometimes be a deed that on its’ own looks good, but because of its bad consequences, it must not be done. And if a person would do it, he would be a sinner, and not a chassid.

The story of Gedaliah ben Achikam makes it clear to us, that because of his chassidut not to judge Yishmael (who murdered him, eventually) in a bad way, or not to accept the Lashon Hara about him, that he told Yochanan ben Kareyach "You are lying about Yishmael!" (Jer. 40:16), And what did he [Gedaliah] cause? He caused his own death, and Yisrael were scattered, and the last remaining ember of hope was put out. And the verse itself attributes the murder of the [innocent] people who were with him, to Gedaliah – as if he himself killed them! As Chazal say (B. Nidda 61a), on the verse "[and the pit where Yishmael tossed] all the corpses of the people who were killed by the hand of Gedaliah" (Jer. 41:9)