Things were about to get worse for Jeremiah. Given what he was preaching this is not surprising. He was telling people to abandon the city and surrender to the Babylonians. This is defeatist talk in normal circumstances and could be punishable by death. When we give the word of the Lord it may sometimes go completely against what is acceptable.
Verse 4 tells us why this is so. Jeremiah's words were claimed to be sowing discouragement among the soldiers who were left to defend the city. The reaction is entirely understandable, except that Jeremiah's words were the word of God. However, the final bit of verse 4, that he was seeking the ruin of the people, was not true. What Jeremiah said was indeed the only way that they could save their lives.
The officials reported Jeremiah to the king. The king was weak and was content to let the officials do whatever they wanted. We need to remember that the city would be in a desperate and chaotic state. So they lowered Jeremiah into a cistern where he sank into the mud and the mire (reminds one of Psalm 40:2, I wonder if he remembered this psalm). They presumably intended that he be left there to die.
A Cushite, however, heard about it and went to the king. The king evidently had not really wanted to hurt Jeremiah but had felt unable to do so. He had probably given up. So when someone else comes to him putting pressure on in a different direction he gives in to that pressure. So Jeremiah was lifted out of the cistern and returned to the courtyard. Presumably he could continue to preach. It is God who decides what happens.
No comments:
Post a Comment