“Ishmael,
The son of Nethaniah,
Came out from Mizpah
To meet
The weeping pilgrims.
As he met them,
He said to them.
‘Come to Governor Gedaliah,
The son of Ahikam.’
When they reached
The middle of the city,
Ishmael,
The son of Nethaniah,
With his men
Slaughtered them.
He threw them into a cistern.
But there were ten men
Among them
Who said to Ishmael,
‘Do not kill us!
We have stores
Of wheat,
Of barley,
Of oil,
Of honey
Hidden in the fields.’
So he refrained.
He did not kill them
Along with their companions.”
Ishmael went out to meet these 80 mourning crying pilgrims as they approached Mizpah. He told them to come and meet the new governor of Judah, Gedaliah. When they got to the center of Mizpah, Ishmael and his 10 men killed these 80 pilgrims. He saved 10 of these northern pilgrims because they said that they hidden provisions of wheat, barley, oil, and honey in the fields. However, the other dead people were thrown into a cistern well. It is amazing how strong these 10 men with Ishmael were.