Exile Experiences
“In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.” (Daniel 1:1–2, LEB)[1]
My name is Geula [DGW1] (גְּאוּלָה), and I was only about ten when they took many
of my friends to Babylon. As a girl, I wasn’t allowed to enjoy the learning of
the boys, but I knew Daniyyel and the three shovavim that would end up
following him. Daniyyel’s younger brothers were my friends. They even taught me
to read Hebrew by scratching the letters into the dirt. They agreed it was a silly
rule and we all thought we’d change it when I grew up and made the rules. That’s
when Babylon came, defeating our soldiers, and our king switched allegiances.
Babylon took many of my friends. My brother Aharon was killed that day, with so
many others, before the king switched sides. The boys were taken during the
first deportation, while I remained in Jerusalem under the vassal king,
Jehoiakim.
Losing many of my friends, especially the ‘smart’ ones was
hard. I still practiced my letters when nobody was looking, brushing it away
quickly if any adults came looking. After the breaking, one day, I looked down
the road and Aliyah’s parents were walking toward our bakery. I expected to see
Aliyah, but she wouldn’t be there, then I remembered she was taken, and my
chest ached. Her parents’ shoulders were slumped forward, their faces seemed hollow
and sunken. I offered them a bite of our freshest bread. I think they saw her
in me, because Aliyah’s ima would jostle my hair and offer a tight smile, then
wipe her eyes a little before she would turn away to speak with my parents. When
she did that, my eyes burned, my chest felt tight, like I couldn’t breathe, but
I shoved it down, to be strong for Aliyah’s ima. Most days, though, I just felt
numb, like my laughter had disappeared. I helped around the bakery, eventually
taking it over as I got older.
The adults whispered about how the Assyrians took the
Northern Kingdom of Israel away many generations ago, but they never believed
it could happen to us, not in Yehuda, especially not in Yerushalaym, the very
home of HaShem. Then again, my parents argued bitterly with The Cohanim, that
if they had not allowed all of the other Elohim such prominence in our high
places, HaShem would not have allowed Babylon to come in the first place. The Cohanim
waved them off dismissively.
In many ways, life seemed to carry on normally, until I was
18. I was running the bakery with my ima when the shofar began blowing all
throughout the city, and men came running down the streets yelling that the Babylonians
had come, with Chaldeans, Aram, Moab, and Ammonites as well. People began
throwing closed their shops, locking their doors, and looking for the hiding
places we’d dug out in case this day ever came. I couldn’t move, I was too numb,
too frozen. I watched the chaos begin around me, while my ima and I just stood
there, covered in flour dust. Eventually, aba came into the room and found us
just standing there, and he shook us into movement. We closed everything, and
went into hiding. We stayed there for months, eating what bread we had stored,
making little cakes over dung fires from our storage reserves. We heard about
horrible things people were doing in other parts of the city just to eat something.
The Vassal King, Jehoiakim thought he would ignore the Tributes we owed to Babylon after he initially switched allegiances from Egypt to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar didn’t like that much and showed up outside our walls. It’s been almost a year now, and we have no food left. We suck on bread sacks, hoping for a bit of the stale flour. My Parents have discussed sneaking passed the city guards to surrender to the Babylonians, because that couldn’t be worse then living in the city, could it? Then, we got word this evening that Jehoiakim died mysteriously, nobody was very upset about it or asked too many questions. The guards opened the gates and let the invaders come in, surrendering to them, placing the body of Jehoiakim in front of the gate. What will this mean for me? What will happen to us? Could it be worse than starving to death in my own city, the city of HaShem, Yerushalaym? I will lay myself on HaShem’s mercy, perhaps I can find favor in my new home, when they take me away, as long as stay faithful to Adonai, like my friends Daniyyel is rumored to have done.
“And these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the remainder of the exiles, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had deported from Jerusalem to Babylon… “Thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have deported from Jerusalem to Babylon, ‘Build houses and live in them, and plant gardens and eat their fruit. Take wives and father sons and daughters, and take for your sons wives, and give your daughters to men that they may bear sons and daughters, and multiply there, and you must not be few. And seek the prosperity of the city where I have deported you, and pray on behalf of it to Yahweh, for in its prosperity you will have prosperity.’ For thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst, and your diviners, deceive you, and you must not listen to your dreams that you are causing them to dream. For they are prophesying falsely to you in my name; I have not sent them,’ declares Yahweh. For thus says Yahweh, ‘As soon as the time has passed, seventy years for Babylon, I will attend to you, and I will fulfill my good word to you, to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans that I am planning concerning you,’ declares Yahweh, ‘plans for prosperity and not for harm, to give to you a future and a hope. Then when you call me, and you come and pray to me, then I will listen to you. When you search for me, then you will find me, if you seek me with all your heart. And I will let myself be found by you,’ declares Yahweh, ‘and I will restore your fortunes, and I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places to which I have driven you,’ declares Yahweh, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from which I deported you.’” (Jeremiah 29:1–14, LEB)
Shortened Version (200 words): Exile Experiences
--Initial Post (in response to my prompt) - 150-200
words (+-10%)
“In the third year of the reign of Jehoiakim king of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it.” (Daniel 1:1–2, LEB)[2]
My name is Geula [DGW2] (גְּאוּלָה) and I was ten when my brother Aharon died
in the battle at Carchemish before King Jehoiakim switched sides from Egypt to
Babylon, and then they took my friends to Babylon, including Daniyyel and his
three shovavim (mischievous) friends.
One day, I saw Aliyah’s parents walking toward our bakery. I
expected to see Aliyah, then I remembered she was taken, and my chest ached. Her
parents’ shoulders were slumped forward, their faces seemed hollow and sunken. I
offered them a bite of our freshest bread. Aliyah’s ima jostled my hair and
offered a tight smile, then wipe her eyes a little before she would turn away
to speak with my parents. When she did that, my eyes burned, my chest felt
tight, like I couldn’t breath, but I shoved it down, to be strong for Aliyah’s
ima. Most days, though, I just felt numb, like my laughter had disappeared. I
helped around the bakery, eventually taking it over as I got older.
I was running the bakery with my ima when the shofar began
and shouts came the Babylonians were here. This morning, the gates were opened
and the body of Jehoiakim was tossed to the army as an offering.
What will this mean for me? What will happen to us? Could it be worse than starving to death in my own city, the city of HaShem, Yerushalaym?
[1]
The Lexham
English Bible (LEB), Fourth Edition, Logo Bible Software, Harris, W. H.,
III, Ritzema, E., Brannan, R., Mangum, D., Dunham, J., Reimer, J. A., &
Wierenga, M. (Eds.) (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2010), Referenced during
this reflection: Daniel 1:1–2, 2 Kings 23:34–24:7, 2 Chronicles 36:4–8,
Jeremiah 22:18–19, 29:4–7, 36:23, http://www.lexhampress.com.
[2]
The Lexham
English Bible (LEB), Fourth Edition, Logo Bible Software, Harris, W. H.,
III, Ritzema, E., Brannan, R., Mangum, D., Dunham, J., Reimer, J. A., &
Wierenga, M. (Eds.) (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2010), Referenced during
this reflection: Daniel 1:1–2, 2 Kings 23:34–24:7, 2 Chronicles 36:4–8,
Jeremiah 22:18–19, 29:4–7, 36:23, http://www.lexhampress.com.
[DGW1]A
Hebrew name that represents "return" or "end of an
era" is "Geula" (גְּאוּלָה).
Geula (גְּאוּלָה)
·
Meaning: The name Geula
means "redemption" or "deliverance" in
Hebrew.
·
Significance: In
Jewish tradition, Geula signifies the act of being redeemed or liberated
from a state of exile or hardship. It often refers to the prophesied future
redemption of the Jewish people and the end of a difficult period, symbolizing
both a return to a promised state and the end of an era of
suffering.
·
Usage: Geula
is used as a feminine given name in Hebrew-speaking communities.
Contextual Significance
·
Biblical References:
The concept of Geula is rooted in the Hebrew Bible, where it denotes
God's saving actions on behalf of His people.
·
Cultural Meaning:
The name embodies hope, renewal, and the transition into a new and better
phase, making it synonymous with the end of an era and the beginning of
another.
Alternative Names
·
Shuv (שׁוּב): Derived
from the Hebrew root meaning "return," though it's less
commonly used as a given name.
·
Nehemiah (נְחֶמְיָה):
Meaning "God comforts," associated with the return to
Jerusalem and rebuilding after the Babylonian exile.
·
Aliyah (עֲלִיָּה): Meaning
"ascent" or "going up," commonly used to
refer to the act of immigrating to Israel, symbolizing a return to the
homeland.
[DGW2]A
Hebrew name that represents "return" or "end of an
era" is "Geula" (גְּאוּלָה).
Shalom שָׁלוֹם: Live Long and Prosper!
Storyteller | Writer | Thinker | Consultant | Freelancer | Bible Nerd *Written withs some editing and research assistance from ChatGPT-4o
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