Jeremiah 21:1-14. Today’s reading jumps ahead in history to the final years of the kingdom of Judah. After the decisive Battle of Carchemish in 605 BC Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, took control of the territory east of the Mediterranean Sea and the Babylonian Empire was born (technically reborn since there had been an earlier Babylonian Empire). At that time Nebuchadnezzar swept through the area and took promising young men back to his capital to become advisors in his government, Daniel, Shadrech, Meshach, and Abed-Nego were among these captives. In 609 BC Josiah, king of Judah, went to battle against Pharaoh Necho to prevent him from adding the Assyrians against the Babylonians. He was killed in the battle and his son Jehoahaz became king. Jehoahaz was only king for three months when Pharaoh Necho made his brother Eliakim king. Necho changed Eliakims name to Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim reigned from 609-597 BC. Jehoiakim rebelled against the newly powerful Babylonian empire late in 598 BC. Nebuchadnezzar marched toward Jerusalem to put down the rebellion. Before he arrived Jehoiakim died. Jehoiakim’s 18 year old son Jehoiachin became king and felt the brunt of Nebuchadnezzar’s anger. He was taken captive to Babylon and Nebuchadnezzar put his uncle Mattaniah (another of Josiah’s sons) in charge. Nebuchadnezzar also changed Mattaniah’s name to Zedekiah. For most of his reign the people pressured Zedekiah to revolt against Babylon. In 588 BC he gave in and made an alliance with Egypt against Babylon. In response Nebuchadnezzar marched back into the region and in 586 BC Jerusalem fell. It was during these 2 years 588-586 BC that the events of chapter 21 occur.
Zedekiah must have felt pretty desperate. Since the time of Josiah all of the kings of Judah had been evil, turning their back on Yahweh (the personal name of the God of the Israelites; the one true God). Here in chapter 21 Zedekiah sends a group of religious leaders to talk to Jeremiah. Notice in verse 1 that we are specifically told that Jeremiah’s answer to them is going to be from the LORD (Yahweh). The two men who came to Jeremiah were Pashur the son of Malchijah and Zephaniah a priest. This is not the same Pashur from yesterday’s reading (notice they had different fathers). The two men ask Jeremiah to talk to Yahweh for them; for the king. The interesting thing here is that it really was a prophet’s job to speak to the people from God. Sometimes we see a prophet asking God to give information, but here the request is for help in the war against Nebuchadnezzar. They are asking Jeremiah to speak to God and see if he cannot persuade God to act in a certain way.
Under the rules that Moses gave the people from God, priests were to be representatives to God for the people. In 2 Chronicles 7:12-22 God promised Solomon that if the people would respond to God when he sent trouble their way and would turn back to him that he would preserve the kingdom, but if they would not turn back to him then the kingdom and the temple would fall into ruin (Solomon had just finished the temple and was dedicating it at the time God, Yahweh, told him this). Also in Deuteronomy 28 Moses informed the people that when they entered and took over the land that God had promised to them that they would be secure if they obeyed the rules God had given them but that they would suffer and lose the land if they dishonored God. He commanded them to have a special ceremony where the blessings and curses would be repeated after they entered the land. The consequences of disobedience were very specific and included many of the things that Jeremiah has been warning the people about. In Joshua 8:33 we see the actual ceremony and it involved the priests as representative of the people. I think it would have been more appropriate for the king, his representatives, and the priests to talk to God themselves. The problem is that they were looking to control God rather than humbling themselves and turning away from their plans and begging for mercy (see 2 Chronicles 7:14).
So they came to Jeremiah thinking he might be able to control God. Of course their request wasn’t, “Hey Jeremiah, get God in line and on our side!” They were more subtle than that. “Hey why don’t you see if God can throw some of those great miracles our way, were having a little trouble with Nebuchadnezzar.” What they were missing was that Jeremiah had been telling them for years that it was God, Yahweh< who was bringing Nebuchadnezzar to town. At least I hope they had missed that point, otherwise they were just being disrespectful and trying to manipulate God.
In verses 4-7 Zedekiah gets his answer. Jeremiah never really asks God anything, we just see a message come through from God, and it’s not what Zedekiah wanted to hear. Jeremiah informs Zedekiah’s representatives that the weapons of the Israelites are the ones that are going to be ineffective. He also tells them that the guys outside the walls who are besieging the city will eventually be standing right in the middle of the town. There will be no victory for the people of Jerusalem here because God is personally involved in this battle and is against them; he is not happy with they way they have been acting (verse 5). First many of the people and even their animals will die. It appears that a lot of the death will come as a result of disease, a common thing when cities were surrounded for a long time and bodies began to pile up inside of them. In verse 7 we see that God will eventually turn Zedekiah, his leaders, and the surviving people over to Nebuchadnezzar who will kill many of them and show no mercy.
Verses 8-10 are very interesting. While Nebuchadnezzar will show no mercy once he has broken into the city, God is ever merciful. There is actually a way out of this nightmare, surrender to the forces he has sent to conquer them. I’m sure that message was very unpopular with the leaders and Jeremiah must have felt a lot of fear as he delivered it. In verse 10 we see that Yahweh (LORD) had made his decision Nebuchadnezzar would win this battle and Jerusalem would be burned to the ground.
In verses 11-14 we have a personal message to Zedekiah and his household. First we see what appears to be a way out of the trouble that they are in, start living for God again. The Biblical word for this is “repent”; stop and go the other way. In verses 13-14 though we see Yahweh returning to the idea of destruction and assuring them that that is what is coming. Notice in verse 13 that the men were saying, “Who will come down against us?” That is pride speaking and it is the opposite of humility (like in 2 Chronicles 7:14). The destruction that is coming is a sure thing because the people of Judah had turned away from God, were proud, and had no intention of honoring God any more, so why the offer of a way out? I think the answer is found in the wording of verse 12. Notice the offer is addressed to the “house of David”. While Zedekiah may have been a descendant of David the idea of the “house of David” goes beyond being a relative. Although he made plenty of mistakes David was called a “man after my own heart” (1 Samuel 13:14, Acts 13:22). God made specific promises to David about a forever kingdom that would be ruled by one of his descendants. Eventually that promise will be fulfilled by Jesus in an eternal kingdom (see Revelation 20-21). There will be an earthly aspect to his kingdom that will involve the Jewish people. The Jewish people tended to focus more on the physical part of the kingdom and physical descendants but when we read about the “house of David” we should think more about the relationship David had with God. Physical birth alone is not what gives us a relationship with God. God is looking for people who love him; people “after his heart”.
It is tragic that God was so clear with the Jewish people and that they refused to listen. He warned them over and over for centuries before he finally destroyed their kingdoms. Even then, though, there was hope. Their immediate situation would not change but their eternal situation was not lost, not as a nation and not as individuals. The individuals facing the sword, famine, and disease in Jerusalem in 588 BC could escape if they gave up their right now for me attitudes and surrendered to the punishment God was bringing on them. Those who were taken captive in 586 BC were in part paying for centuries of disobedience by their ancestors. Once every seven years the Israelites were to let their fields rest; they were to rest, and trust in God. For 490 years they disobeyed that commandment, 70 years of rest had been missed. Beginning in 586 BC God was going to bring rest to the fields of Israel. Late in that century the Israelite people would return from captivity in Babylon under orders from yet another non-Jewish king. Those who had humbled themselves would be restored or at least their children. God is the one in ultimate control and he is good and loving and forgiving and kind but we must put our existence in his hands to enjoy those qualities. For those who stubbornly stay walled up in their own fortresses destruction awaits. God is fair, those who don’t want him won’t get him. No matter how bad living for God might be living without him for eternity will be infinitely worse.
God thank you for being so patient. Thank you for always offering a way out; a way to be right with you (1 Corinthians 10:13). Thank you for sending the ultimate “Son of David”, Jesus, to pay the price for my disobedience. Help me live humbly with you each day. Help me overcome the fear of following you. Help me honor your messages, to me and through me. Let me be a light to the world, helping the world see you for who you are, Yahweh, the one true God. Let me be submissive when you punish and correct me. Let me follow your path wherever it leads, even if that path is thought he “valley of the shadow of death” (Psalm 23). Thank you for loving me. Keep me faithful.