Staying Firm on Faith and Trusting Only God
Scripture Passage: Jeremiah 38:1-13 (NASB)
1 Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malchijah heard the words that Jeremiah was speaking to all the people, saying, 2 “This is what the Lord says: ‘Anyone who stays in this city will die by the sword, by famine, or by plague; but anyone who surrenders to the Chaldeans will live and have his own life as plunder, and stay alive.’ 3 This is what the Lord says: ‘This city will certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon and he will capture it.’” 4 Then the officials said to the king, “Please have this man put to death, since he is discouraging the men of war who are left in this city and all the people, by speaking words like these to them; for this man is not seeking the well-being of this people, but rather their harm.” 5 And King Zedekiah said, “Behold, he is in your hands; for the king can do nothing against you.” 6 So they took Jeremiah and threw him into the cistern of Malchijah the king’s son, which was in the courtyard of the guardhouse; and they let Jeremiah down with ropes. Now in the cistern there was no water but only mud, and Jeremiah sank into the mud. 7 But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch, while he was in the king’s palace, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the cistern. Now the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin; 8 and Ebed-melech went out from the king’s palace and spoke to the king, saying, 9 “My lord the king, these men have acted wickedly in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet whom they have thrown into the cistern; and he will die right where he is because of the famine, for there is no more bread in the city.” 10 Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, “Take thirty men from here under your authority and bring Jeremiah the prophet up from the cistern before he dies.” 11 So Ebed-melech took the men under his authority and went into the king’s palace to a place beneath the storeroom, and took from there worn-out clothes and worn-out rags, and let them down by ropes into the cistern to Jeremiah. 12 Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, “Now put these worn-out clothes and rags under your armpits under the ropes”; and Jeremiah did so. 13 So they pulled Jeremiah out with the ropes and lifted him out of the cistern, and Jeremiah stayed in the courtyard of the guardhouse.
SUMMARY
Jeremiah is prophesying that anyone who stays in Jerusalem will die, while those who surrender to the Chaldeans (the Babylonians) will live. King Zedekiah’s officials hear that Jeremiah is saying this, and ask King Zedekiah to put Jeremiah to death. King Zedekiah allows his officials to throw Jeremiah into a well and leave him there to die from starvation. But an official from the Ethiopian court hears of Jeremiah’s treatment and rebukes King Zedekiah’s officials for doing this. King Zedekiah allows the Ethiopian official to have his men bring Jeremiah up from the well.
REFLECTION
There is a great contrast between people like Jeremiah and the Ethiopian official, who have such conviction and determination, and King Zedekiah, who has no faith and is blown by the winds. Jeremiah knows God’s word and follows it and preaches it with certainty. So although his circumstances are miserable, although he is beaten, imprisoned and thrown into a well, he is not shaken. By contrast, King Zedekiah is seemingly rich and holds authority over an entire country, but in reality seems to be completely powerless. He has no ability to hold back the Babylonians. And because he has no inner conviction, he is swayed by whoever approaches him. First he is convinced by his own officials to throw Jeremiah into the well. Then he changes his mind when the Ethiopian official rebukes him and has Jeremiah pulled back out.
I’m sure that Jeremiah had his own doubts and fears. But the difference is that even through those doubts and fears, Jeremiah held on tightly to the Lord. King Zedekiah only held onto himself, and as a result in times of turmoil he is shown to be cowardly and powerless. The more difficult the situation is, the more our core values are revealed.
APPLICATION
These days I find myself questioning my own decisions more than ever. How I should parent my son. How I should handle physical and medical issues, both my own and my family’s. How and where to get involved at church. And how I should handle many issues that arise at work. Even how to spend the holidays. There seem to be so many questions to which I lack the answer or where I just can’t decide which direction is right. Yet, as Pastor Nick said this past Sunday, I still try to grab the issue with my hands and solve it on my own. That’s true even though I don’t know the answer. I just don’t trust God enough to follow His advice completely. But God reminds me that when life’s questions become more difficult, I need to grab onto Him. I need to look that much more tightly to His Word. As Pastor Nick said, I don’t know better than God.
PRAYER
Lord, please help me to trust You more when things get difficult or confusing. Help me to rely on You instead of my own strength or mind, both of which are so inadequate. Open my heart so that when I read Your Word, I’m reading it only to try to understand Your intent and purpose, not just to confirm whatever thoughts I have in my own mind. When I look back at the history of my life, I see so many times when You miraculously guided me to a wonderful place even though I resisted You or just didn’t understand. Help me to trust You completely in all circumstances and to simply focus on doing the right thing, what You want me to do.
In Jesus’s name I pray, Amen.
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