11 But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces that were with him heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done. 12 So they took all the men and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and they found him by the great [e]pool that is in Gibeon. 13 Now as soon as all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah and the commanders of the forces that were with him, they were glad. 14 So all the people whom Ishmael had taken captive from Mizpah turned around and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah. 15 But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men and went to the sons of Ammon. 16 Then Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces that were with him took from Mizpah all the remnant of the people whom he had [f]recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, after he had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, that is, the men who were [g]soldiers, the women, the [h]children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought back from Gibeon. 17 And they went and stayed in [i]Geruth Chimham, which is beside Bethlehem, in order to proceed into Egypt 18 because of the Chaldeans; for they were afraid of them, since Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land.
Even though Gedaliah refused to listen to him, Johanan and the other commanders were not going to leave the survivors of Mizpah at the mercy of Ishmael and his Ammonite friends. Rather, they rally their men and give chase, finding Ishmael encamped near Gibeon–he hadn’t gone very far. It seems Ishmael wasn’t much of a fighter, for all his captives took off when Johanan showed up, and Ishmael ran away with eight remaining men.
When I think of this rescue by Johanan (and company), two words come to mind, “Be ready.” They didn’t dilly dally, they didn’t wait a week to gather supplies and make sure they had all their men gathered. Nope, they heard the news, and off they went. How do we know? Because Gibeon is not very far from Mizpah; on the map in my Bible the distance is a whopping 5-6 miles.
It reminds me also of Paul’s words to Timothy (2 Tim. 4), “be ready in season and out of season”. Whether it is to battle, or to speak into someone’s life, to defend your faith, or whatever opportunity God gives you, be ready. God may not give you much notice (or any), but when He calls, we need to be ready and willing.
A big part of that is actually listening for God’s voice, praying every day, and reading His Word. Seems so simple and elementary, but far too easy to take for granted and be caught napping. So again, in the words of Paul, “be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”