Wednesday, September 22 2010
Jeremiah 52
Verse of the Week: V10 “And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes: he slew also all the princes of Judah in Riblah.”
1. Sins Affects The Children (V1-11)
V2 “And he did that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done.”
King Zedekiah sinned against God and reaped the consequences that he could never have imagined. Before the king of Babylon plucked out his eyes, he witnessed the king killing all his children. When you sin against God, not only do you reap the consequences of your sins but your children will also suffer for it. Just like in the case of a divorce, children suffer the most when they witness the separation of their beloved parents.
V10 “And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes: he slew also all the princes of Judah in Riblah.”
2. Sins Affects The Church (V12-23)
V13 “And burned the house of the LORD, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, and all the houses of the great men, burned he with fire:”
Not only was the children of King Zedekiah affected, even the house of the LORD was affected when it was completely burnt down. When you sin against God, the testimony of the church as well as the Lord’s name will be adversely affected. If you desire the Lord to bless you and the church, then you should live to His praise and glory, and flee from sins.
V14 “And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down all the walls of Jerusalem round about.”
3. Sins Affects The Community (V24-34)
V27 “And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death in Riblah in the land of Hamath. Thus Judah was carried away captive out of his own land.”
Sins also affected the entire community of Judah as Babylon defeated Judah and brought the people of Judah to Babylon to be their slaves. The people of Judah were supposed to be the people of God sharing the glory of God but instead they brought shame to God. In spite of the sins of the King of Judah and his people, the gracious God allowed the king of Babylon to release the king of Judah, Jehoiachin, out of prison and set him above the throne of his kings and even provided great food for him until his death.
V34 “And for his diet, there was a continual diet given him of the king of Babylon, every day a portion until the day of his death, all the days of his life.”
Prayer of the Week
Dearest God, please help me to flee from sins.
