The year is 586BC. If you remember one date from Old Testament history remember this one because everything changed for Israel at this point. The once great kingdom of David and Solomon that stood tall next to the other nations of the ancient Near East was now reduced to a sorry band of captives. The great city of Jerusalem which was a symbol of the security of God’s people was now in ruins and the beautiful temple of God was a pile of smoking rubble. The Jews suffered more horrors during the siege and fall of Jerusalem than I would want to mention here. Zedekiah’s fate is an indication of this. We should remember, however, that, though the conquest of Judah was inevitable by this stage, it did not have to be nearly as bad as this. Jeremiah pleaded with them for years to submit to the Babylonians, and, if they had, their city and their temple would have remained intact and thousands of people’s lives would have been spared. There is no promise that we will never suffer. Some of our suffering may even be intended to discipline us. However, we make our lives so much harder than they need to be because of our failure to trust and obey God. Grief is an inevitable part of life but so much of our grief is caused by our own attempts to live without God. Don’t do it. It isn’t worth it. Put your life in God’s hands and walk with him.
Entrust your future to God.
Read Jeremiah 39
