וְהָעָ֗ם הַנִּשְׁאָר֙ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ יְהוּדָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֣ר הִשְׁאִ֔יר נְבֽוּכַדְנֶאצַּ֖ר מֶ֣לֶךְ בָּבֶ֑ל וַיַּפְקֵ֣ד עֲלֵיהֶ֔ם אֶת־גְּדַלְיָ֖הוּ בֶּן־אֲחִיקָ֥ם בֶּן־שָׁפָֽן׃ (פ)
And as for the people that were left in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, governor.
From David to Destruction
To arrive at a satisfying explanation for Tzom Gedaliah, we must delve into the motivations of the assassin, as outlined in Melachim II 25:22-26, and paralleled in Yirmiyahu 41. The assassin, Yishmael ben Netaniah, is described as a member of the royal family. It is not difficult to discern why Yishmael ben Netaniah is deeply disturbed by Gedaliah ben Achikam’s actions.