A MERCIFUL GOD

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

While Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army and all the kingdoms and peoples in the empire he ruled were fighting against Jerusalem and all its surrounding towns, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Go to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it down. You will not escape from his grasp but will surely be captured and given into his hands. You will see the king of Babylon with your own eyes, and he will speak with you face to face. And you will go to Babylon.’”

“‘Yet hear the Lord’s promise to you, Zedekiah king of Judah. This is what the Lord says concerning you: You will not die by the sword; you will die peacefully. As people made a funeral fire in honor of your predecessors, the kings who ruled before you, so they will make a fire in your honor and lament, “Alas, master!” I myself make this promise, declares the Lord.’”

Then Jeremiah the prophet told all this to Zedekiah king of Judah, in Jerusalem, while the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah that were still holding out—Lachish and Azekah. These were the only fortified cities left in Judah.

Jeremiah 34:1-7

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Right before God sent the Babylonians to exact judgment on His people for their blatant disrespect and disobedience, the king of Israel was a man by the name of Zedekiah.

What kind of leader was he in the eyes of God?

The Bible gives us an idea in these verses from 2 Chronicles:

Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord his God and did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet, who spoke the word of the Lord. He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him take an oath in God’s name. He became stiff-necked and hardened his heart and would not turn to the Lord, the God of Israel. Furthermore, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful, following all the detestable practices of the nations and defiling the temple of the Lord, which He had consecrated in Jerusalem. 2 Chronicles 36:11-14

Not exactly a glowing resume, right?

God’s word tells us Zedekiah did evil in the sight of the Lord and failed to humble himself even when warned by the prophet who spoke to the king on God’s behalf. And the king’s attitude went well beyond the way he responded to Jeremiah for we learn that Zedekiah became “stiff-necked and hardened his heart” to where he would not even turn to God anymore.

His subordinates followed suit for our scripture passage tells us that “all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful, following all the detestable practices of the nations”, even going so far as defiling the Lord’s temple.

Note that a king could easily set the tone in regard to the kingdom he ruled over. Zedekiah chose evil and his people followed.

Now, if you read an account like this, you would probably think that this king deserved no sense of leniency or grace from God, only His deepest wrath.

If you did, you would be wrong.

For when we look at today’s opening verses from the 34th Chapter of Jeremiah, we find another confirmation that the Lord is a merciful God. Look at these words of God as spoken through His prophet:

While Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army and all the kingdoms and peoples in the empire he ruled were fighting against Jerusalem and all its surrounding towns, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Go to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it down. You will not escape from his grasp but will surely be captured and given into his hands. You will see the king of Babylon with your own eyes, and he will speak with you face to face. And you will go to Babylon.’”

“‘Yet hear the Lord’s promise to you, Zedekiah king of Judah. This is what the Lord says concerning you: You will not die by the sword; you will die peacefully. As people made a funeral fire in honor of your predecessors, the kings who ruled before you, so they will make a fire in your honor and lament, “Alas, master!” I myself make this promise, declares the Lord.’”

Then Jeremiah the prophet told all this to Zedekiah king of Judah, in Jerusalem, while the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and the other cities of Judah that were still holding out—Lachish and Azekah. These were the only fortified cities left in Judah.  Jeremiah 34:1-7

God’s mind was made up about the penalty He was going to send on the southern kingdom of Judah and its beloved holy city of Jerusalem. He sent the Babylonians under the leadership of King Nebuchadnezzar to fight against the Israelites, destroying everything and leaving it in ruins before taking the people of God away into a seventy year exile. They would lose everything, including their freedom.

As for Zedekiah’s fate, he wouldn’t escape being held accountable. He would not escape from Nebuchadnezzar’s grasp and would be captured by his opposing king, seeing him face-to-face with his own eyes. And rather than die at the hands of the Babylonians there in Jerusalem, Zedekiah would be taken into captivity with the people he allowed to sin openly in God’s sight.

Note here that Zedekiah would not get what he most assuredly deserved and that is executed in some brutal fashion by the Babylonians. We know this because the Lord promised it when He said that Zedekiah “would not die by the sword”. Rather the Lord, in His great mercy, allowed the king to perish peacefully and then guaranteed that he would be given proper honors after his death, making a fire in honor of him and all his predecessors who had rules.

So how does this apply to you and me here today in the 21st century, well over 2,000 years since God’s promise was given to Zedekiah through Jeremiah?

The answer comes in assessing how we ourselves all stand before the Lord.

For each of us is a sinner and has done evil in the Lord’s sight. All of us, like Zedekiah, deserve God’s wrath and anger for our wickedness born out of the sins we have committed.

But like Zedekiah, we do not get what we deserve. For the same merciful God who he answered to is our God today and He so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

God could have wiped us out but instead He chose to save us through Jesus. It is the greatest example of mercy known and truly is amazing grace.

Won’t you take time right now to celebrate that with me?

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark
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