Waswe, Iu Savve Long Shaphan and Famili Bilong Hem?

TAEM iu readim Bible bilong iu, waswe, iu enitaem lukim nem bilong Shaphan and bilong samfala famili member bilong hem wea garem hae position? Hu nao olketa? Wanem nao olketa duim? Wanem nao olketa leson wea iumi lanem from olketa?

Bible firstaem storyim “Shaphan son bilong Azaliah wea hem son bilong Meshullam” insaed story abaotem taem Josiah mekem tru worship kamap moa long 642 B.C.E. (2 Kings 22:3) Insaed long next 36 year, go kasem taem Jerusalem distroe long 607 B.C.E., Bible storyim fofala son bilong hem, Ahikam, Elasah, Gemariah, and Jaazaniah, and tufala granson bilong hem, Micaiah and Gedaliah. (Lukim chart.) Encyclopaedia Judaica sei: “Famili member bilong Shaphan garem olketa hae position [long kingdom bilong Judah] and duim waka olsem secretary bilong king from taem bilong Josiah go kasem taem olketa go prisoner long Babylon.” Samting Bible talem abaotem Shaphan and famili bilong hem bae helpem iumi savve long wei wea olketa saportim profet Jeremiah and trufala worship bilong Jehovah.

Shaphan Saportim Tru Worship

Long 642 B.C.E., taem King Josiah hem samting olsem 25 year, Bible sei Shaphan hem secretary and copyist bilong king. (Jeremiah 36:10) Wanem nao disfala waka? Olsem Encyclopaedia Judaica hem talem, scribe and secretary bilong king garem waka for advaesem king, lukaftarem olketa samting saed long selen, savve hao for story witim olketa difren kantri, for deal witim olketa difren kantri, law bilong difren kantri, and olketa agreement saed long wei for duim bisnis. So, olsem secretary bilong King, Shaphan garem bigfala paoa long datfala kingdom.

Tenfala year bifor diswan, young Josiah “start for luk aotem God bilong David, laen dadi bilong hem.” Shaphan hem olo winim Josiah and so hem fit for advaesem hem saed long spiritual samting and for givim saport long firstaem wea Josiah trae for startim bak tru worship.a—2 Chronicles 34:1-8.

Taem olketa fixim temple, olketa faendem “datfala barava buk bilong law”, and Shaphan “start for read from hem front long king.” Josiah hem seke for herem toktok insaed datfala buk and hem sendem samfala man wea hem trustim for go long woman profet Huldah mekem olketa askem Jehovah abaotem datfala buk. Wei wea King markem Shaphan and son bilong hem, Ahikam, for insaed datfala sekson hem showaot hem trustim tufala.—2 Kings 22:8-14; 2 Chronicles 34:14-22.

Diswan hem only taem Bible storyim samting Shaphan hem duim. Olketa nara verse long Bible storyim hem olsem dadi or grandadi nomoa. Olketa pikinini bilong Shaphan waka witim profet Jeremiah.

Ahikam and Gedaliah

Olsem iumi lukim finis, Bible firstaem storyim son bilong Shaphan, Ahikam, long taem datfala sekson go long woman profet Huldah. Wanfala buk sei: “Nomata Hebrew Bible no talem position bilong Ahikam, hem klia hao hem garem hae position.”

Fiftin year bihaen diswan, laef bilong Jeremiah hem insaed danger. Taem hem warnim pipol hao Jehovah bae distroem Jerusalem, “olketa priest and profet and evri pipol holem hem and sei: ‘Iu mas dae.’” Then wanem nao happen? Bible go ahed for sei: “Hand bilong Ahikam datfala son bilong Shaphan nao hem stap witim Jeremiah, wea mekem pipol no fit for kasem hem and killim hem dae.” (Jeremiah 26:1-24) Wanem nao diswan showaot? The Anchor Bible Dictionary hem sei: “Disfala samting wea happen no pruvim wei wea Ahikam garem bigfala paoa nomoa, bat hem showimaot tu hao hem, olsem olketa nara famili member bilong hem, saportim Jeremiah.”

Samting olsem 20 year bihaen, bihaen olketa bilong Babylon distroem Jerusalem long 607 B.C.E. and tekem big haf bilong pipol bilong hem go prisoner, granson bilong Shaphan, Gedaliah, son bilong Ahikam, hem kamap governor bilong olketa Jew wea stap bihaen. Waswe, hem bae olsem olketa nara famili bilong hem wea lukaftarem Jeremiah? Bible hem sei: “So Jeremiah go long Gedaliah, son bilong Ahikam long Mizpah and stap witim hem.” Bihaen tu-thri month, olketa killim dae Gedaliah, and olketa nara Jew tekem Jeremiah witim olketa and muv go long Egypt.—Jeremiah 40:5-7; 41:1, 2; 43:4-7.

Gemariah and Micaiah

Son bilong Shaphan, Gemariah, and son bilong Gemariah, Micaiah, garem important part insaed story bilong Jeremiah chapter 36. Disfala story happen long 624 B.C.E., mek-faev year bilong King Jehoiakim. Baruch, secretary bilong Jeremiah, hem read big from toktok bilong Jeremiah, “insaed rum for kaikai bilong Gemariah, son bilong Shaphan,” insaed haos bilong Jehovah. From diswan, “Micaiah son bilong Gemariah datfala son bilong Shaphan hem herem evri toktok bilong Jehovah from datfala buk.”—Jeremiah 36:9-11.

Micaiah talem dadi bilong hem and evri nara prince abaotem datfala buk, and evriwan laek for herem toktok insaed. Wanem nao olketa duim? “So stretawe bihaen olketa herem evri toktok, olketa luk long each other witim feeling for fraet; and olketa go ahed for sei long Baruch: ‘For sure mifala bae talem king evri toktok hia.’” Bat, bifor olketa talem long king, olketa advaesem Baruch olsem: “Go, haedem iuseleva, iu and Jeremiah, mekem no eniwan savve ples iutufala stap.”—Jeremiah 36:12-19.

Olsem olketa tingim, king rejectim message insaed scroll and bonem evribit. Samfala prince, insaed diswan hem son bilong Shaphan, Gemariah, “barava askem king for no bonem datfala scroll, bat hem no lisin long olketa.” (Jeremiah 36:21-25) Disfala buk Jeremiah—An Archaeological Companion hem sei: “Gemariah hem strong for saportim Jeremiah front long King Jehoiakim.”

Elasah and Jaazaniah

Long 617 B.C.E., Babylon tekovarem kingdom bilong Judah. Staka thousand Jew, “evri prince and evri strong, maeti man . . . and tu evri savveman and olketa wea buildim wall,” olketa go prisoner, wea insaed diswan hem profet Ezekiel. Mattaniah, wea olketa long Babylon changem nem bilong hem go long Zedekiah, hem kamap king wea stap anda long Babylon. (2 Kings 24:12-17) Bihaen, Zedekiah sendem samfala, wea insaed diswan hem son bilong Shaphan, Elasah, go long Babylon. Jeremiah givim Elasah wanfala leta wea garem important message from Jehovah for olketa Jew long Babylon.—Jeremiah 29:1-3.

So Bible record showimaot hao Shaphan, thrifala long olketa son bilong hem, and tufala granson bilong hem olketa iusim hae position bilong olketa for saportim tru worship and datfala faithful profet Jeremiah. Waswe long son bilong Shaphan Jaazaniah? Hem no olsem olketa nara famili member bilong Shaphan, hem worshipim idol. Long mek-six year bilong Ezekiel long Babylon, or long samting olsem 612 B.C.E., datfala profet lukim vision wea 70-fala man offerim incense go long olketa idol long temple long Jerusalem. Wanfala long olketa hia hem Jaazaniah, wea hem nomoa nem bilong hem olketa talem. Diswan maet minim hem nao leadim disfala sekson. (Ezekiel 8:1, 9-12) Example bilong Jaazaniah showaot hao, wei wea man growap kam insaed famili wea servem God no minim hem bae faithful for worshipim Jehovah. Each man seleva nao karem responsibility for samting hem duim.—2 Corinthians 5:10.

Famili Bilong Shaphan

Shaphan and famili bilong hem stap long taem wea pipol long Judah iusim seal. Seal hem olsem stamp wea givim pruv long or saenem important pepa, and olketa wakem from olketa difren kaen spesol ston, metal, ivory, or glass. Staka taem datfala seal garem nem bilong man wea ownim, nem bilong dadi bilong hem and, samfala taem, title bilong man wea ownim.

Olketa faendem staka handred Hebrew raeting from olketa seal long clay. Professor Nahman Avigad, savveman saed long oldfala Hebrew raeting, hem sei: “Olketa raeting from olketa seal nomoa hem kaen Hebrew raeting from bifor wea garem nem bilong pipol wea Bible story abaotem.” Waswe, olketa faendem eni raeting from seal wea talem nem bilong Shaphan or olketa famili member bilong hem? Yes, datfala nem Shaphan and son bilong hem Gemariah olketa stap long seal wea iu lukim long page 19 and 21.

Olketa savveman sei tu hao luk olsem olketa nara seal garem tu nem bilong nara fofala member bilong datfala famili—Azaliah, dadi bilong Shaphan; Ahikam son bilong Shaphan; Gemariah son bilong Shaphan; and Gedaliah, wea seal storyim olsem hem “hed bilong datfala Haos.” Olketa sei mek-foa long olketa seal hia hem bilong Gedaliah, granson bilong Shaphan, nomata seal hia no garem nem bilong dadi bilong hem Ahikam. Title bilong hem long disfala seal showaot hem garem barava hae position long datfala gavman.

Wanem nao Iumi Savve Lanem?

Shaphan and famili bilong hem showimaot nambawan example saed long wei for iusim hae position for saportim tru worship and faithful Jeremiah! Iumi tu savve iusim wanem iumi garem and paoa wea iumi garem for saportim organization bilong Jehovah and olketa brata bilong iumi.

Hem bae strongim faith bilong iumi for no just readim Bible evritaem bat tu for dig deep insaed and savve gud long olketa witness bilong Jehovah from taem bifor olsem Shaphan and olketa famili member bilong hem. Olketa tu part bilong datfala bigfala “cloud bilong olketa witness” wea example bilong olketa iumi savve followim.—Hebrews 12:1.

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Huldah—Woman Profet wea Garem Hae Position

Taem King Josiah herem reading bilong “datfala barava buk bilong law” wea olketa faendem insaed temple, hem givim order for Shaphan and fofala narawan wea garem hae position for “askem Jehovah” abaotem datfala buk. (2 Kings 22:8-20) Wea nao bae olketa hia kasem ansa? Jeremiah and maet Nahum and Zephaniah, wea evriwan long olketa profet and raetem Bible, stap long Judah long datfala taem. Nomata olsem, disfala sekson go long woman profet Huldah.

Disfala buk Jerusalem—An Archaeological Biography hem sei: “Spesol samting abaotem disfala story nao hem wei wea olketa man go long wanfala woman and hem normal nomoa. No eniwan tingse hem no stret hao olketa man tekem Scroll Bilong Law go long wanfala woman for hem disaed hem tru or nomoa. Taem datfala woman profet talem olketa scroll hia garem toktok bilong Lord, no eniwan kwestinim wei wea hem fit for disaedem datwan. Olketa savveman wea studyim living bilong olketa woman long Israel bifor olketa missim disfala story.” Tru nao, datfala message hem from Jehovah.

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Famili Tree Bilong Shaphan

Meshullam

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Azaliah

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Shaphan

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Ahikam Elasah Gemariah Jaazaniah

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Gedaliah Micaiah

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Gemariah and samfala moa barava askem Jehoiakim for no bonem datfala scroll from Jeremiah

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Nomata Jaazaniah hem member bilong famili bilong Shaphan, insaed vision wea Ezekiel lukim hem worshipim olketa idol

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Courtesy Israel Antiquities Authority

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Courtesy Israel Antiquities Authority