Jeremiah 52
The king of Babylon had appointed Zedekiah as king in Jerusalem, and made him solemnly promise to obey him and pay tribute (2 Chron. 36:1313And he also rebelled against king Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God: but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart from turning unto the Lord God of Israel. (2 Chronicles 36:13)). But Zedekiah did not keep his word. so the king of Babylon came to jerusalem with his soldiers, who were from the country of Chaldea, and they camped around the wails, keeping the peopie within from getting food or help, for over a year.
God told Jeremiah to tell King Zedekiah to surrender to the captain of the army, and he would show mercy to him and his family, and would not hurt the city; but if Zedekiah would not give himself up, the captain would do harm to his family and would burn the city.
The king did not obey God’s words; at last the food in the city was gone, and the men, could not keep out the army. The captain came into the city and took command there.
Zedekiah, with his sons and chief men, hurried away from Jerusalem at night, going out a gate of his garden, which probably was small and unguarded by the enemy. But they found he had gone, and followed after and captured the king and his men, taking them to the king of Babylon, who was very cruel to them, killing the king’s sons.
Afterward the captain of the Chaldean army returned to Jerusalem and made the rest of the people there captives, and took the treasures and ail valuable things from the houses, and the gold and silver from the Temple, breaking up the big pillars to take away the brass (or, copper). Then lie ordered the soldiers to set fire to the Temple, the king’s house, and all the best buildings of the city, leaving it in ruins.
All this was what God said would haen if Zedekiah would not obey and keep his promise.
This is the fourth time the sad account of the destruction of the beautiful city of Jerusalem is told in the Bible: it is given in 2 Kings 25, in 2 Chronicles 36, in Jeremiah 39, and this last time in Jeremiah 52. It is surely meant that any who read these should believe that what God says always proves true and right. Jeremiah did not himself write this last account (see Jer. 51:6464And thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise from the evil that I will bring upon her: and they shall be weary. Thus far are the words of Jeremiah. (Jeremiah 51:64)), but it shows he had been a true prophet of God, for all he told the people happened.
The last of this chapter tells of another king, Jehoiachin who had been taken captive from Jerusalem to Babylon when young; after being in prison very many years, a new king freed him and gave him a place of honor, new clothes, and good food as long as he lived. It was a man from the family of this king who afterward led the Jewish people back to Jerusalem (Ezra 1:22Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Lord God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth; and he hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. (Ezra 1:2)).
ML 04/12/1942