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OT surprisingly, Jeremiah's
prophecies came true. Nebuchadnezzar did conquer Jerusalem. And, not
surprisingly, Zedekiah did not surrender to the Babylonians, he tried to
escape. God had warned him through Jeremiah that an escape would not succeed.
But either he did not believe Jeremiah, or he was stubborn enough to ignore the
prophecy though he actually did know that it was true. So, Zedekiah was forced
to watch as his own sons were executed, then his own eyes were gouged out, his
palace was burned down, and he was hauled off to Babylon in shame. The walls of the city were torn down and the
rest of the city was torched as well. And, the population of Jerusalem was
variously killed, carried away as prisoners of war or left behind to tell the
story to all who came there. Of course,
it was only the poorest of the poor who were left behind.
Now, while Zedekiah was
suffering, there were 2 men specifically who were not. Jeremiah the prophet &
Ebedmelech the Ethiopian eunuch (who had helped Jeremiah out of jail) were both
under God's protecting hand. They were allowed to stay behind in the land. In
both cases, the favor that they enjoyed was a result of their obedient faith.
As those around them suffered in the conquest, these men ended up better off.
This is the strange way of our God. He is able to take the most miserable and
dangerous of circumstances and turn them for the good of His faithful
people. Remember, it was the fires of
Nebuchadnezzar's harshest punishment that set Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
free of the ropes with which they were bound.
That which threatens us most can be the very thing that God uses to save
us, if we will look continually to Him.
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