Tuesday - Jeremiah 52 - The Vindication of a Prophet

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T is fitting that after reading dozens of chapters filled with the prophecies of Jeremiah, we find here in the final chapter of the book of Jeremiah, a brief "Afterward" which vindicates the truth which he preached faithfully during his many years of ministry. Jeremiah had spent so many years and so much energy warning men just like king Zedekiah concerning the coming wrath of God (against unrepentant sinners). Almost without exception, they had refused to heed his warnings.  So, to put it very simply, they paid the price. And, as harsh as it may seem, with each painful fulfillment of Jeremiah's individual prophecies, his many years of ministry were validated over and again. This story of king Zedekiah's demise has got to be the most significant of all of Jeremiah's fulfilled prophecies within his lifetime.  2^nd Kings 25 and Jeremiah 39 both give us adequate accounts of the invasion of Nebuchadnezzar and the subsequent humiliation of Zedekiah. Why would the same story be repeated for third time?  Again, because it vindicated the ministry of the prophet.  God's warnings are never hollow threats.  Someday every single word of God will be validated, and He will be perfectly vindicated.