 Thus says the Lord: “Go down to the house of the king of Judah and speak there this word, 2 and say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, who sits on the throne of David, you, and your servants, and your people who enter these gates. 3 Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. 4 For if you will indeed obey this word, then there shall enter the gates of this house kings who sit on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their servants and their people. 5 But if you will not obey these words, I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that this house shall become a desolation. 6 For thus says the Lord concerning the house of the king of Judah:
“‘You are like Gilead to me, like the summit of Lebanon, yet surely I will make you a desert, an uninhabited city. 7 I will prepare destroyers against you, each with his weapons, and they shall cut down your choicest cedars and cast them into the fire. 8 “‘And many nations will pass by this city, and every man will say to his neighbor, “Why has the Lord dealt thus with this great city?” 9 And they will answer, “Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and worshiped other gods and served them.”’” 10 Weep not for him who is dead, nor grieve for him, but weep bitterly for him who goes away, for he shall return no more to see his native land. Message to the Sons of Josiah11 For thus says the Lord concerning Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, and who went away from this place: “He shall return here no more, 12 but in the place where they have carried him captive, there shall he die, and he shall never see this land again.” 13 “Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not give him his wages, 14 who says, ‘I will build myself a great house with spacious upper rooms,’ who cuts out windows for it, paneling it with cedar and painting it with vermilion. 15 Do you think you are a king because you compete in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink and do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. 16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy; then it was well. Is not this to know me? declares the Lord. 17 But you have eyes and heart only for your dishonest gain, for shedding innocent blood, and for practicing oppression and violence.” 18 Therefore thus says the Lord concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: “They shall not lament for him, saying, ‘Ah, my brother!’ or ‘Ah, sister!’ They shall not lament for him, saying, ‘Ah, lord!’ or ‘Ah, his majesty!’ 19 With the burial of a donkey he shall be buried, dragged and dumped beyond the gates of Jerusalem.” 20 “Go up to Lebanon, and cry out, and lift up your voice in Bashan; cry out from Abarim, for all your lovers are destroyed. 21 I spoke to you in your prosperity, but you said, ‘I will not listen.’ This has been your way from your youth, that you have not obeyed my voice. 22 The wind shall shepherd all your shepherds, and your lovers shall go into captivity; then you will be ashamed and confounded because of all your evil. 23 O inhabitant of Lebanon, nested among the cedars, how you will be pitied when pangs come upon you, pain as of a woman in labor!” 24 “As I live, declares the Lord, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off 25 and give you into the hand of those who seek your life, into the hand of those of whom you are afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of the Chaldeans. 26 I will hurl you and the mother who bore you into another country, where you were not born, and there you shall die. 27 But to the land to which they will long to return, there they shall not return.” 28 Is this man Coniah a despised, broken pot, a vessel no one cares for? Why are he and his children hurled and cast into a land that they do not know? 29 O land, land, land, hear the word of the Lord! 30 Thus says the Lord: “Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not succeed in his days, for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah.” Meditation God’s faithfulness is revealed in continuing to offer His ideal for life, continuing to cast vision when we miss the mark. Grace ultimately fulfills God’s ideal! God is faithful from beginning to end. God loves justice and righteousness and His desire is for His steadfast love to cover the earth (Jeremiah 9:23-24). God’s ideal rulers are called to embody God’s character and covenant love in their life and leadership (3). Jeremiah’s message to king Zedekiah makes it clear that God’s ideal has not been met (1-10). Not only Zedekiah, though. Jeremiah goes on to indict other kings who missed God’s ideal, “forsaking the covenant of the Lord to worship other gods and serve them” (9). The catalogue of unfaithful kings reveals “wind shepherding Jerusalem’s shepherds” (22). The kings of Judah fell short of God’s standard and missed the mark of God’s ideal. We need a greater king! Jesus is king of Kings, fulfilling God’s ideal to its fullest. Jesus is the “radiance of the glory of God, the exact image of His nature” (Hebrews 1:3). Jesus lived a totally righteous life, demonstrating justice in His life and satisfying justice through His death, to offer God’s steadfast love to all who believe. Jesus is the greater King we need! Today’s reading leaves us longing for someone to meet God’s standard as both ruler and representative. As the story continues, we know Jesus is that provision from God. God is faithful. God has been faithful. God will continue to be faithful! Richly Dwelling -What stands out to you in this chapter about Judah’s rulers missing the mark of God’s ideal? -How does God’s response reveal a deeper need to have a representative king, one who is faithful and can credit His faithfulness to us? -How does God’s faithfulness in Christ, the giving of His grace, empower your desire to live God’s ideal for God’s glory? Where do you need to respond to His grace by seeking to be more faithful to God? Key Verse 3 Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. Comments are closed.
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