| |
21 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur the son of Malchiah and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, saying, “Inquire of the LORD for us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the LORD will deal with us according to all his wonderful deeds and will make him withdraw from us.”
Then Jeremiah said to them: “Thus you shall say to Zedekiah, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands and with which you are fighting against the king of Babylon and against the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the walls. And I will bring them together into the midst of this city. I myself will fight against you with outstretched hand and strong arm, in anger and in fury and in great wrath. And I will strike down the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast. They shall die of a great pestilence. Afterward, declares the LORD, I will give Zedekiah king of Judah and his servants and the people in this city who survive the pestilence, sword, and famine into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of their enemies, into the hand of those who seek their lives. He shall strike them down with the edge of the sword. He shall not pity them or spare them or have compassion.’
“And to this people you shall say: ‘Thus says the LORD: Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. He who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, but he who goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who are besieging you shall live and shall have his life as a prize of war. For I have set my face against this city for harm and not for good, declares the LORD: it shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.’
“And to the house of the king of Judah say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD, O house of David! Thus says the LORD:
“‘Execute justice in the morning,
and deliver from the hand of the oppressor
him who has been robbed,
lest my wrath go forth like fire,
and burn with none to quench it,
because of your evil deeds.’”
“Behold, I am against you, O inhabitant of the valley,
O rock of the plain,
declares the LORD;
you who say, ‘Who shall come down against us,
or who shall enter our habitations?’
I will punish you according to the fruit of your deeds,
declares the LORD;
I will kindle a fire in her forest,
and it shall devour all that is around her.”
(ESV)
It has finally happened. Babylon is bearing down on Judah and God is allowing it to happen. He has warned them over so many chapters of this coming doom if they did not repent of their sins. Ironically, the first person they call is… wait for it… wait for it… Jeremiah! This is the same man they laughed at, mocked, put in stocks, and beat when everything was going well for them. The same man who back in Jeremiah 38 had been cast into the dungeon for his alleged disloyalty to the kingdom. Now, King Zedekiah is desperate and in that desperation, he is hoping the Lord will intervene for Judah.
But it’s too little, too late. The Lord answers through Jeremiah…
‘This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: I am about to repel the weapons of war in your hands, those you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the wall, and I will bring them into the center of this city. [5] I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a strong arm, with anger, rage, and intense wrath. [6] I will strike the residents of this city, both people and animals. They will die in a severe plague.
Jeremiah 21:4-6 CSB
God goes on to say that if they surrender, they will live, but if they try and stay in the city, they will die by sword, famine, or plague. In other words, surrendering = life. Not much has changed today.
It’s easy to relax and ignore God when things are going well and we’re comfortable. But as soon as everything blows up we come running back begging for his help. Yet in this, God still offers grace. It is the grace of surrender. None of these people deserve to live, but Jeremiah tells them that if they surrender they will at least be able to stay alive. They will be in captivity, but they will be alive. If not, then they will die a horrible death. This is a metaphor for our relationship with God. When we do things “our way” we will experience pain and exile. When we surrender everything over to the Lord, He promises life.
These people have wanted nothing to do with God for several chapters now. Their disobedience has been offensive and completely selfish. They have worshiped false gods and even sacrificed their own children to them. The fact that God would still allow them to live is a testament to his grace and mercy. We must understand that God does not have to give these people a path to life. They deserve death just like we do. But in His grace, there is a path to life, and the same is true today.