The small remnant of Jews, facing the threat of a Babylonian reprisal for the assassination of Gedaliah, were about to flee to Egypt. However, they decided to first ask Jeremiah to inquire of God for them. God assured them that they would be safe if they stayed and that it would not go well for them in Egypt. As we saw yesterday, they decided to flee to Egypt anyway and, tragically, they took poor old Jeremiah with them. Jeremiah was forced therefore to witness the results of their decision to follow their intuitions rather than God’s word. They were fleeing to Egypt to escape the Babylonians who they thought were heading back to Jerusalem. In fact, just as God told them, the Babylonians did not return to Jerusalem. Where they did go was Egypt, and here is the tragic irony. They walked right into the path of the ones they were trying to escape from. God knew this of course which is why he told them to stay where they were. The Jews acted out of fear rather than faith and as a result their fear was realised. Think about what it is that you fear most in life. Think also about your own capacity to prevent this. Most of the things we fear we also have little control over. This is why it is only faith that can overcome fear. We have to entrust our lives to God and trust that he will lead us in the pathway that is best for us. It is only in this way that we will ever be able to live in peace and security.
Express your fears to God and reflect on what he might be saying to you in regards to these fears.
Read Jeremiah 43:8-13
