Practice Justice

May 17, 2020 Background Scripture: Jeremiah 21 Lesson Passage: Jeremiah 21:8 – 14 Jeremiah had an extremely difficult assignment as a prophet of God. Jerusalem was under siege by King Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian army. Zedekiah had been appointed king in Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar after the Babylonians had captured his nephew, King Jehoiachin, and laid claim to Judah as a Babylonian territory. Rather than fill the role as a puppet king, or governor of the province, King Zedekiah led a rebellion against Babylon. Meanwhile, King Zedekiah did not set the kind of godly example that God expected for the leader of His people, Judah. Because Zedekiah had done evil in the sight of the Lord, God allowed Nebuchadnezzar to besiege the city of Jerusalem, again. Zedekiah responded by sending two of his officers to Jeremiah and requested that he intercede for them by asking the Lord to cause the Babylonians to withdraw from them. No doubt Zedekiah was familiar with how God had responded to the prophet Isaiah during a similar situation in Israel’s past. However, the word the Lord gave Jeremiah to send to Zedekiah was just the opposite of his request. Rather than turn back the weapons of Babylon, the Lord was going to turn back the weapons of war being used by Judah. That’s right! God was not going to fight against the Babylonians on Judah’s behalf. Instead, God was going to use Babylon to fight against Judah! Since Jeremiah was a citizen of Judah, this could not have been a comfortable message for Jeremiah to give the officers of Zedekiah. Yet, Jeremiah knew quite well the evil deeds of Zedekiah and his officers. In fact, because of Jeremiah’s earlier prophecy, he had been tortured severely. Yes, King Nebuchadnezzar was more wicked than King Zedekiah, and the Babylonians were more wicked than the Jews. But God was not grading on the curve. God’s declaration has always called for nothing less than holiness: You be holy because I am holy. On our own merit, we are all doomed. But thanks be to God for His unmerited grace towards those who put their complete trust in Him. And too often, that’s when the water gets a little murky. We recognize and embrace God’s grace without considering that it is not a license to continue living as before. God expects an effort to be made, under grace, whereby we attempt to live up to His standard. Jeremiah’s message to King Zedekiah was not just a cruel cold rejection of his request. There was something else within that message. First, God offered the citizens of Jerusalem an opportunity to preserve their lives by surrendering to the Babylonians. If they stayed within the walls of the city, they would either starve to death or be killed when the walls were broken down by the Babylonians. If they left the city and surrendered, they would be kept alive. Their lives were literally in their own hands. Secondly, God gave instructions to King Zedekiah and his family. God wanted King Zedekiah to practice justice and deliver the oppressed from the oppressor. God was offering the king a reprieve if he would amend his ways by doing the right things. Unfortunately, it sometimes seems impossible to break old habits. An evil king has no earthly authority over him. He has absolute power against people. And it has been said that, Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Practicing the unfamiliar can be very difficult. God was not requiring King Zedekiah to pay for his past deeds, but rather to get his act together and do what is right in God’s presence moving forward. People deserve justice. It is up to civic leaders to ensure that people receive justice, and God demands that godly leaders practice justice. More on this next week. Robert C. Hudson May 5, 2020