October 13, 2020: Day 52 – Jeremiah 52

We find a synopsis of all that has taken place in the Babylonian captivity which is basically identical to the verses which we find in II Kings 24:18-25:21.  If you read that again, as we already have together, it should sound familiar.  Zedekiah is the last king of Judah and his reign ended tragically with his last sight being the death of his children before he had his eyes gouged out.  There were other deportations mentioned into Babylon, which we touched upon in II Kings.

This is also a description of the assured destruction of the temple and the deportation not only of the people but of all the goods and items that were in the temple, probably including the ark of the covenant which Harrison Ford is still searching.  Jehoiachin is mentioned as the king who cozied up to the Babylonians, just like Jeremiah told the people to do, and he was treated as royalty until his death.

There are times that we are called to fight against injustice.  There are also times when we are called to accept our fate because what we are experiencing is a result of our own doing.  There is a necessity to be able to distinguish when we are called to stand up against injustice, and when we are to take our lumps because we deserve what we are getting.  I would guess that being able to distinguish between the two should not be very difficult.  Think about it.  

Israel was disobedient and so God allowed the Babylonians to conquer them.  In our society there should be an opportunity to see those areas where people are historically downtrodden at no fault of their own.  I would define that as an injustice which we ought to stand against.  If we find ourselves in difficult times because of our own poor decisions, we deserve pity, but this is not an injustice.  We are called to rally around all people for all situations and not to pick and choose whom we will have support and whom we will not.  

This ends our time in Jeremiah.  It has been quite a journey, and what I’m hearing from many of you, a difficult one.  I think it is an important one as the people of Israel felt like God had abandoned them in a very difficult time in the life of the nation.  We find ourselves in a difficult time in the life of the nation.  But God has not, and never will, abandon us.  Believe it!