Topic: Looming Catastrophe [Friday October 13, 2017]
Text: Jeremiah 21:1-14
Key Verse: “Thus saith the LORD God of Israel; Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, which besiege you without the walls, and I will assemble them into the midst of this city.” (Jeremiah 21:4).
What would make a loving father to give up on his biological son? Zedekiah was the reigning king when Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians. He had tried to overrun the invading army of Babylon but his attempt was not approved by God.
When the people sought divine help, Jeremiah made it clear to Zedekiah the king “Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Behold I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands wherewith ye fight the king of Babylon.” In other words, God’s answer was an emphatic ‘no’.
Consequently, the two sons of Zedekiah were slaughtered before his eyes by the Babylonians. His own eyes were blinded and in painful humiliation, he was led away in chains to Babylon where he died later in exile.
The underlying spiritual cause of the fall of Judah and Jerusalem was not so much due to the superior military might of Babylon as to the effect of God’s decree against the people because of Manasseh’s sin and Judah’s apostasy. God never excuses unconfessed sin. He Judges and punishes it. Those who repeatedly reject God’s clear reproof and warning, who despise His chastening and correction, run the inevitable risk of excluding themselves from His grace. There is no more plea for mercy when once God’s grace is abused and rejected. Receive His grace therefore and avoid His wrath.
Thought for the day: Kings and rulers are not to take God’s grace for granted.
Bible Reading in one Year: 2 Kings 3-4
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
