1
|
|
God protected
Jeremiah until the end
|
2
|
|
Bible verse : Jeremiah 38:6
(NIV)
So
they took Jeremiah and put him into the cistern of Malkijah, the king's son,
which was in the courtyard of the guard.
They lowered Jeremiah by ropes into the cistern;
it had no water in it, only mud, and Jeremiah sank down into the mud.
|
3
|
|
God called Jeremiah, who lived in
Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, to be a prophet. Jeremiah told God he was
too young to do it. It was then that God made this promise to Jeremiah:
¡°Don¡¯t say you are ¡®like a child.¡¯ Go to whomever I send you, and tell them
whatever I command you. Don't be afraid of them.
I will be with you and save you.¡±
|
4
|
|
Believing
in the word of God, Jeremiah preached to people exactly what God commanded
him throughout his life, without adding or subtracting from it.
Even today, Jeremiah preached the word of God to the people.
["This is what the LORD says:
'Whoever stays in this city will die by the sword, famine or plague, but
whoever goes over to the Babylonians will live.
He will escape with his life; he will live.' And this is what the LORD says:
'This city will certainly be handed over to the army of the king of Babylon,
who will capture it.' "(Jeremiah 38:2-3)]
|
5
|
|
The prophet
Jeremiah told the people that the way to survive was to surrender to Babylon,
which had invaded Judah.
The king's officials went to King Zedekiah and told him this. He said,
¡°Jeremiah must be killed. Because of his words, the morale of the soldiers
and all the people remaining in the castle is falling. Jeremiah wants Judah
to be destroyed.¡±
|
6
|
|
King
Zedekiah had no choice but to do as his subjects requested.
¡°Look. Do with Jeremiah as you wish. ¡°I will leave you alone to do whatever
you do.¡± King Zedekiah allowed his servants to deal with Jeremiah.
|
7
|
|
The
servants who received the king¡¯s permission captured the prophet Jeremiah.
They brought him to the cistern of Prince Malchijah in the courtyard of the
guard. The servants used a rope to throw Jeremiah into a puddle.
Jeremiah was stuck in a puddle of mud that contained only mud and no water.
|
8
|
|
They were going to let Jeremiah
die in that mud pit. Ebed-melech, a royal eunuch, heard this news and went to
King Zedekiah.
¡°King, everything these people have done is evil. They did something bad to
the prophet Jeremiah. They threw Jeremiah into a cistern and left him there
to die.
He will starve to death, for there is nothing to eat in the city.¡±
Ebed-melech told the king that he should not leave Jeremiah there to die.
|
9
|
|
After hearing what Ebed-melech
said, Zedekiah thought that what he said was right. So he gave an order to
Ebed-melech.
¡°Take 30 men from the palace to help lift the prophet Jeremiah out of the
cistern before he dies.¡±
|
10
|
|
Ebed-melech took the men to the
royal storehouse and brought back rags and worn-out clothes. He tied the rags
and her worn clothes to a rope and lowered them to Jeremiah, who was drowning
in a puddle of mud.
And he spoke into the pool.
¡°Put rags and worn clothes under your armpits and hang a rope over them.¡±
|
11
|
|
Jeremiah did as
Ebed-melech had said. He took out his tattered and worn clothes under his
armpits and hung them with a rope.
The men pulled the rope and pulled Jeremiah out of the muddy puddle. Jeremiah
was able to get out of the pit safely.
|
12
|
|
King Zedekiah met with Jeremiah to ask what would happen to Judah
in the future. ¡°Tell me honestly and do not hide anything from me.¡±
Jeremiah said to King Zedekiah, ¡°If I tell you exactly what God said, you
will not listen to my advice and will kill me.¡±
|
13
|
|
King
Zedekiah swore to Jeremiah without anyone knowing.
He said, ¡°As Jehovah lives, who gave us life, I will never kill you.
¡°I will not hand you over to those who want your life.¡±
King Zedekiah promised to protect Jeremiah¡¯s life in the name of God.
|
14
|
|
After hearing this,
Jeremiah delivered the word of God to King Zedekiah.
¡°Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ¡®You must surrender to the soldiers
of the king of Babylon. Then your life will be saved, and Jerusalem will not
be burned, and you and your household will survive.¡± Jeremiah reported that
King Zedekiah could only survive if he surrendered to Babylon..
|
15
|
|
Jeremiah also told him what would happen if the king did not
listen to God and surrender to them. ¡°But if you do not surrender to the
servants of the king of Babylon, this city will fall into the hands of the
Babylonian army, and they will burn it down. And you, too, will not be able
to escape from their clutches.¡±
Jeremiah informed the king that if he did not listen to God¡¯s warning and
surrender, Jerusalem would be burned and the king and all his people would be
taken captive to Babylon.
|
16
|
|
King Zedekiah did not kill Jeremiah as he had promised, nor did
he hand him over to his servants, but allowed him to stay in the courtyard of
the guard.
However, Zedekiah did not follow God's warning and surrendered to the king of
Babylon. As God said, Jerusalem fell. Jeremiah had been staying in the
courtyard of the guard until then.
|
17
|
|
Jeremiah preached the word of God as it was, without adding or
subtracting anything. God protected Jeremiah until the end, just as he
promised when he first called him. He almost died in a mud puddle, but he was
saved through Ebed Melech. And he protected him from the hand of King
Zedekiah, and kept him safe from the hand of the king's men who sought to
kill him. Through Jeremiah, we can see that God is a God who keeps and does
what He promises.
God who is with Jeremiah is also with us who have been saved by believing in
Jesus. Like Jeremiah, we must not be afraid or hesitate to preach the word of
God correctly and obey it. We must be people of faith who believe that God
will protect us and act according to the word of God.
|
(This
is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the
conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)
|