Read Jeremiah 21
God Rejects Zedekiah’s Request
21 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur son of Malkijah and the priest Zephaniah son of Maaseiah. They said: 2 “Inquire now of the Lord for us because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is attacking us. Perhaps the Lord will perform wonders for us as in times past so that he will withdraw from us.”
3 But Jeremiah answered them, “Tell Zedekiah, 4 ‘This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am about to turn against you the weapons of war that are in your hands, which you are using to fight the king of Babylon and the Babylonians who are outside the wall besieging you. And I will gather them inside this city. 5 I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm in furious anger and in great wrath. 6 I will strike down those who live in this city—both man and beast—and they will die of a terrible plague. 7 After that, declares the Lord, I will give Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the people in this city who survive the plague, sword and famine, into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and to their enemies who want to kill them. He will put them to the sword; he will show them no mercy or pity or compassion.’
8 “Furthermore, tell the people, ‘This is what the Lord says: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death. 9 Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; they will escape with their lives. 10 I have determined to do this city harm and not good, declares the Lord. It will be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will destroy it with fire.’
11 “Moreover, say to the royal house of Judah, ‘Hear the word of the Lord.12 This is what the Lord says to you, house of David:
“‘Administer justice every morning;
rescue from the hand of the oppressor
the one who has been robbed,
or my wrath will break out and burn like fire
because of the evil you have done—
burn with no one to quench it.
13 I am against you, Jerusalem,
you who live above this valley
on the rocky plateau, declares the Lord—
you who say, “Who can come against us?
Who can enter our refuge?”
14 I will punish you as your deeds deserve,
declares the Lord.
I will kindle a fire in your forests
that will consume everything around you.’”
Go Deeper
Jeremiah 21 is a great example of how God’s word weaves perfectly through different writers and eras to teach us exactly what we need to know about God.
Jeremiah 21 picks up about 20 years after Jeremiah 20 ends. The chapter is the background information about the siege of Jerusalem that was discussed in II Kings and II Chronicles 36. King Zedekiah is asking Jeremiah to intercede for the people of Jerusalem because the Babylonians are about to take over the city. It appears that the King anticipates God coming to the rescue, as He has so many times in the past.
However, this time Jeremiah tells the King that the people are about to perish. In fact Jeremiah 21:5 says that God will also join in the fight against the people of Jerusalem. The only way to stay alive is found in Jeremiah 21:9 “Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; they will escape with their lives.”
Even though the people have continually turned their backs on God and followed false gods and prophets, God still loves them enough to provide a way out. Proverbs 19:3 in the NLT says “People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the Lord.” However, even when we go down the wrong path with the choices that we freely make, God still allows us to come to repentance. That does not mean that we use God as a “good luck charm” and only call upon His name in times of trouble. Rather, God’s grace calls us to a life of repentance and forgiveness.
Questions
- What do we learn about God’s character in Jeremiah 21?
- What can we learn about accountability from Jeremiah 21?
- What can we learn about dependence on God from Jeremiah 21?
A Quote
“God’s hand never slips. He never makes a mistake. His every move is for our own good and for our ultimate good.” — Billy Graham
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4 thoughts on “Jeremiah 21”
Remember what the Hebrew writer said; “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:31). Because of God’s character he won’t ignore sin, even through he is patient and long suffering willing that no one should perish. There comes a day of reckoning, and for Judah it has arrived. Their stubborn hearts bent on rebellion paired with idol worship will not serve them well in the face of God’s judgement. “I will punish you as your deeds deserve, declares the Lord” (v14). In order to represent Christ well our dependence must fully rely upon the completed work of the cross. Our hope and trust can be in no other as we daily determine to follow him. Because of the finality of His work and the certainty we can have in Him, we should be encouraging each other to love and good deeds and making every effort to be unified as believers. It’s hard and holy work that will result in rich rewards.
BUT GOD!! In our strivings to seek out what we want in this world we so quickly forget God. For 19 chapters these people have been told to turn to God that He is the only way. They ridiculed, beat up and made Jeremiah an outcast but as soon as trouble comes who do they run to for help? Jeremiah says, so sorry, you have been told multiple times, and here it comes, and even God Himself is going to fight against you. BUT GOD shows them some mercy with sparing their life, even though it will be in captivity if they chose it. Here comes us. God sent His Son, who willingly died for us and yet we still take this for granted :{ Grace was costly and God’s love for us DEEP!!! Choices bring consequences: good or bad. God’s plan are in place. Which way will you choose today? How will you pray, intercede, for others today?
God thank You for sending Your Son. Thank You that He is alive!! WOOHOO!!! Thank You for the plans You have made for me. God help me to see, listen, and obey the way You want, need and desire to direct my path. God let Your spot in my heart grow bigger so that it pushes out the things that are not pleasing to/for You. God give me ears to hear You, eyes to see Your people the way You do, and words that edify You in these minutes of this day in Jesus name amen.
WOOHOO!!!!
9 “Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague. But whoever goes out and surrenders to the Babylonians who are besieging you will live; they will escape with their lives.”
Wow. This is a tough one. I too would have been hard pressed to believe that it was God’s will for me to go surrender to the enemy. Really? Are you really a prophet? Is this really God’s will? Once again, God’s ways are not my ways!
Judgement will come. Too often we expect God to rescue us in our time of need and in our time of prosperity we put God aside. Note to self: heed God’s warning.