Jeremiah 39
Two year siege of Jerusalem ends verse 1- 3
In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah – in the tenth month
came Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon
and his army against Jerusalem
and they besieged it
In the eleventh year of Zedekiah – in the fourth month
the ninth day of the month
the city was broken up
All the princes of the king of Babylon came in
and sat in the middle gate
EVEN Nergal-sharezer – Samgar-nebo – Sarsechim
Rabsaris- Nergal-sharezer – Rabmag
with all the residue of
the princes of the king of Babylon
King Zedekiah and soldiers run from city verse 4
And it came to pass
that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them
and all the men of war – THEN they fled
and went forth out of the city by night
by the way of the king’s garden
by the gate betwixt the two walls
and he went out the way of the plain
Babylonian troops capture Zedekiah and soldiers verse 5- 7
BUT the Chaldeans’ army pursued after them
and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho
and when they had taken him
they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon
to Riblan in the land of Hamath
where he gave judgment on him
THEN the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah
before his eyes
ALSO the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah
MOREOVER he put out Zedekiah’s eyes – and bound him with chains
to carry him to Babylon
Jerusalem buried verse 8- 10
And the Chaldeans burned the king’s house
and the houses of the people – with fire
and brake down the walls of Jerusalem
THEN Nebuzar-adan – the captain of the guard
carried away captive into Babylon
the remnant of the people that remained in the city
and those that fell away – that fell to him
with the rest of the people that remained
BUT Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard
left of the poor of the people
which had nothing – in the land of Judah
and gave them vineyards and fields
at the same time
Jeremiah treated well by Babylonians verse 11- 14
NOW Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning
Jeremiah to Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard
saying
Take him and look well to him – and do him no harm
BUT do unto him even as he shall say to you
SO Nebuzar-adan – the captain of the guard sent
Nebushasban – Rabsaris – Nergal-sharezer – Rabmag
and all the king of Babylon’s princes
EVEN they sent – and took Jeremiah out of the court of the prison
and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam
the son of Shaphan
that he should carry him home
SO he dwelt among the people
LORD gives message regarding Ebed-melech verse 15- 18
Now the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah
while he was shut up in the court of the prison
saying
Go and speak to Ebed- melech the Ethiopian
saying
THUS says the LORD of hosts – the God of Israel
BEHOLD – I will bring MY words
upon this city for evil
and not for good and they shall be accomplished
in that day before you
BUT I will deliver you in that day – says the LORD
and you shall not be given into the hand of the
men of whom you are afraid
For I will surely deliver you and you shall not fall by the sword
BUT your life shall be for a prey unto you
BECAUSE you have put your TRUST in ME
says the LORD
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 4 So it was, when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, that they fled and went out of the city by night, by way of the king’s garden, by the gate between the two walls. And he went out by way of the plain. The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.
DEVOTION: There is an old saying that goes, “You can run but you cannot hide!” That was certainly true here in this passage as Zedekiah and all the men of war saw the Babylonians in the Middle gate of Jerusalem! As the city was falling the men tried to escape but God had other plans for Zedekiah. When God has plans for an individual no matter how they may try to run He knows their location and is at work. The Babylonians taking seats indicated that they were victorious and judgment was to be administered. In trying to escape the leaders actually brought greater judgment upon themselves. In humiliation and shame the king was shackled and led in to captivity because he ignored the warnings of God’s prophet (38:17-23). Like Jonah the king found that he was unable to run from God and His will.
CHALLENGE: Perhaps today you are trying to run from the clear direction of the Lord for your life. He is patient and longsuffering but eventually it ends and He calls for obedience. Trust that He knows what is best for your life even though it appears that it is contrary to be designs or interests. It is better to live in peace with God in a dungeon then to live in a penthouse of luxury running from Him. Zedekiah found out the hard way, learn from him and submit to the Lord today!
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 11 Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard, saying,
:12 Take him and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto you. (6680 “charge” [tsavah] means command, commandment, give orders, appoint, constitute, instruct, give direction, or decree.)
DEVOTION: Jeremiah was faithful to the LORD throughout his ministry. He had to endure a lot from the people of Jerusalem. He told them the truth but they didn’t want to hear it. He gave them hope if they would repent.
Now the city of Jerusalem was under the control of Nebuchadrezzar. He had put king Zedekiah’s sons to death before his eyes. Then he took out the eyes of king Zedekiah and took him to Babylon.
Zedekiah had a choice to make but he feared the reaction of the people rather than the LORD. His choice was wrong and he paid the consequences of his actions.
Now we see that this foreign king giving honor to Jeremiah. He told his captain of the guard that he was responsible for the care of Jeremiah. He was to treat Jeremiah well. He was to give Jeremiah want ever he wanted. It was an open commitment to honor Jeremiah.
The king of Babylon knew what Jeremiah said regarding the captivity. He knew about the LORD through the ministry of other Hebrews. Daniel was influence later.
God honors HIS servants who are faithful. They will suffer for their faithfulness but never forgotten. Each of God’s faithful servants had to go through a hard time. If we read through Hebrews 11 we see this as fact.
The Christian life is one that includes suffering because this is the way that the LORD chastens for sin or prunes us for more fruit. It is because of HIS love that we suffer.
Christ demonstrated this on the cross and throughout HIS life here on earth. People don’t like the message of commitment. Each of us has to take up our cross and follow HIM. The cross is heavy at times. We are not to be lazy or selfish with our carrying of the cross.
CHALLENGE: Faithfulness as a steward of God while on this earth is necessary to show our genuine commitment to the LORD.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 16 Go and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring MY words upon this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished in that day before you. (2896 “good” [towb] means the condition of prospering in life, kindness, benefit, pleasant, joyous, desirable, festive, pleasing, favor, or prosperity)
DEVOTION: The children of Israel were not obeying the LORD and HE sent judgment through the nation of Babylon. Also, they were not treating Jeremiah good except for this foreigner. Ebed-melich, had treated Jeremiah well and the LORD was going to bless him for his actions.
The LORD blesses those who help HIS people during hard times. HE knows what is going on in the world. HE knows that even those from other nations still helped HIS people during hard times.
Here is a man that was from another nation, Ethiopia, that helped a servant of God during a hard time. He helped Jeremiah when he was down and the LORD was going to bless him for this action.
We need to make sure that we are helping those who need help even if they are not from the right nation or tribe. God looks at hearts and not at the outside appearance of those that help HIS servants.
I have served in a church that had people from many nations and ethic groups. This is what is supposed to happen today. The problem is that there are many who claim Christ who are not willing to help those from different backgrounds or nations. This is not what the LORD wants of those who are HIS servants.
The children of Israel treated HIS servant, Jeremiah, poorly and they were judged for their actions. This man from another nation treated Jeremiah well and the LORD blessed him for his actions.
CHALLENGE: We need to make sure that we treat the servants of God well. Our nationally should make no difference to us when we are serving the LORD. The LORD loves all those who were serving HIM no matter the nation they come from today.
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: 18 For I will surely deliver you, and you shall not fall by the sword, but your life shall be for a prey unto you: because you have put your trust in ME, says the LORD. (7998 “prey” [shalal] means gain, spoil, booty, become safe from danger of death, escape with life or plunder.) Jerusalem is fallen.
DEVOTION: The king tried to run away in the night. The king was caught. He stood before the king of Babylon and watched his children being killed. The king put out his eyes, so that, his last visual memory was of his children dying.
It is sad because Jeremiah told him it would happen if he did not surrender to the Babylonians. He did not and it happened. Jerusalem was burned.
Jeremiah was taken out of prison and given a place of honor by the king of Babylon.
Jeremiah had a message from the LORD before the city was destroyed. It was a message regarding Ebed-melech, the one who had saved him from the dungeon of mud. Ebed-melech the Ethiopian had asked the king to take Jeremiah out of the cistern. He had received the king’s permission to take Jeremiah out of the cistern. He went and took Jeremiah out of the cistern.
The LORD made a promise to him for his help of Jeremiah. He was the only one who was willing to defend Jeremiah against the princes and the king. The LORD’S promise was that he would not go into captivity. He would have his own life as plunder against the enemy army. He had gained his life because he trusted in the LORD.
We have to stand up against great odds at times to do the LORD’S work but we can rely on the LORD to be with us. The promise to this man can be a promise to us if we trust in the LORD against all odds. Do we trust the LORD to take care of us when it seems like everyone is fighting against us? There have been times in my life when it seemed like all were against me but the LORD has carried me through. Does that mean that there will not be hard times ahead still? NO! But we need to trust the LORD in every circumstance.
CHALLENGE: Servants are rewarded for doing what they think is right even when it might cause them heartache. Here we have a man from a different culture helping a servant of the LORD. He was rewarded by the LORD.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Word of the LORD verse 15
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 15- 18
LORD of hosts verse 16
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign, Plural name) verse 16
God of Israel verse 16
Judgment of God (evil) verse 16
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Nebuchadrezzar – king of Babylon verse 1, 3, 5, 6, 11
Nergalsharezer verse 3
Samgarnebo verse 3
Sarsechim verse 3
Rabsaris verse 3, 13
Nergalsharezer verse 3, 13
Rabmag verse 3, 13
Chaldeans verse 5, 8
Nebuzaradan verse 9- 13
Nebushasban verse 13
Ebedmelech the Ethiopian verse 16- 18
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Evil verse 16 Afraid verse 17
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Good verse 16
Deliverance verse 17, 18
Trust verse 18
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Zedekiah- king of Judah verse 1, 2, 4- 7
Jerusalem verse 1, 8, 16
Nobles of Judah killed verse 6
Jeremiah verse 11, 12, 14, 15
Gedaliah verse 14
Israel verse 16
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
39:15–18 Chronologically, these verses belong in the narrative of events before Jerusalem’s fall. They may have been placed at the end of chap. 39 to avoid an interruption in the account of events leading up to the fall of Jerusalem. More likely, they conclude the account to highlight the veracity of God’s word of punishment (i.e., Jerusalem) and salvation for the individual who trusts (e.g., Ebed-Melech). While Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard, the Lord’s word came to him to go and deliver a message to Ebed-Melech. The literalness of “go” need not be pressed since Jeremiah was still confined in the courtyard of the guard. He was to inform Ebed-Melech that God was about to fulfill his threats against Jerusalem through “disaster” and not “prosperity.” At that time they would be fulfilled “before your eyes.”
For Ebed-Melech’s courage in confronting the king with the injustice of putting Jeremiah in the cistern, God promised to reward him. He promised that Ebed-Melech would not be handed over “to those you fear.” The ambiguity of “those you fear” has led some scholars to interpret them as the officials of 38:1. Ebed-Melech did have reason to fear them because it was risky for a palace servant to accuse officials of wicked deeds. Jeremiah 39:18 supports the interpretation that those he feared were the Babylonians. Ebed-Melech’s reward was a promise that “I will save you.” The Lord promised that Ebed-Melech would escape with his life (lit. “your life will be to you for plunder”; cf. 38:2; 45:5 for the same expression). Ebed-Melech’s trust in the Lord saved him from the fate of the rest of the city. God did not commend Ebed-Melech for his compassion or courage but only for his trust in God. His life was saved because he risked it to save Jeremiah’s life (cf. “whoever loses his life for me … will save it,” Mark 8:35).
The passage serves as encouragement that the person who trusts the Lord will experience the Lord’s protection. It also serves as a subtle warning against self-centeredness, only doing what will benefit oneself. (Huey, F. B. (1993). Jeremiah, Lamentations (Vol. 16, pp. 345–346). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
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God had other thoughts, however, and would not thus permit His servant’s martyrdom. The suffering and shame were all part of the discipline His love saw to be necessary, and He would not allow him to be spared the humiliation and anguish they entailed; but, like Job, his life was inviolable. In the prophet’s hour of need a friend is raised up of whom otherwise we might never have heard. He is a colored servant in the king’s household, an Ethiopian eunuch, Ebed-melech—perhaps nameless, so far as our narrative is concerned; for Ebed-melech, translated, is simply “servant of the king,” and may not be a proper name at all. In this dark-skinned servant’s heart glowed a pity and a sympathy, as well as a recognition of the divine office of Jeremiah, to which the four accusers were strangers. Like the young man in Acts 23:16 used for Paul’s deliverance, here also God had prepared this His servant for Jeremiah’s deliverance. Hearing that the prophet had been left to perish in the filthy pit of the prison court, this Ethiopian went boldly to entreat the king’s favor, who was “then sitting in the gate of Benjamin”—the professed representative of the law, in the gate to dispense justice, when this inexcusable injustice had been perpetrated with his consent (vers. 7, 8). Earnestly and faithfully the eunuch presents the cause of the man of God: “My lord the king,” he pleads, “these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city” (ver. 9).
….
He had already received a message for another man whom God had not forgotten. While still in the prison-court, the word of the Lord had come to him bidding him: “Go and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, Thus saith the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring My words upon this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished in that day before thee. But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the Lord … and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee; because thou hast put thy trust in Me, saith the Lord” (vers. 15–18). Thus was the service of the faithful Ethiopian rewarded. God will be no man’s debtor. The last clause gives us the secret of Ebed-melech’s devotion: he had put his trust in the Lord. Though a stranger to the commonwealth of Israel, he was a child of God through faith; and faith in his case worked by love.
Various have been the shifting scenes brought to our notice in this section. May grace be given to lay all to heart and find eternal profit from our meditations upon it. (Ironside, H. A. (1906). Notes on the prophecy and Lamentations of Jeremiah (pp. 225–226). Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers.)
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18 For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the Lord.
For God would deliver him, so as he should not die by the sword; but how little else soever he saved, he should save his life, because he had put his trust in God, not fearing the wrath of men in the doing of what was his duty. We read no more in holy writ of this man, and so cannot tell how otherwise God dealt with him; only may be assured that he was not slain by the Chaldeans. And from this we may observe, 1. How kind God hath always declared himself to those who have showed the least kindness to those that have been his true and faithful ministers. 2. That the root of such good works as God rewardeth must be faith, a trusting in the Lord. 3. That those who do good works out of a principle of faith may yet be encumbered with slavish fears. (Poole, M. (1853). Annotations upon the Holy Bible (Vol. 2, p. 612). New York: Robert Carter and Brothers.)
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Ver. 18. For I will surely deliver thee, &c.] Or, in delivering will deliver thee; this is a repetition and confirmation of what is promised in the preceding verse, and more fully explains it: and thou shalt not fall by the sword: by the sword of the Chaldeans, when the city should be taken, as he feared he should: but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee; shall be safe; be like a prey taken out of the hand of the mighty, and be enjoyed beyond expectation, having been given up for lost; and therefore matter of the greater joy, such as is expressed at the taking of spoils: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the Lord. The Targum is, in my word; what he had done in serving the prophet, and other good actions, sprung from a principle of faith and confidence in the Lord; and this the Lord had a respect unto; without which works are not right; and without which it is impossible to please God with them; and which faith may be, and be true, where fears are. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 5, p. 624). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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EBEDMELECH is a singular anticipation of that other Ethiopian eunuch whom Philip met on the desert road to Gaza. It is prophetic that on the eve of the fall of the nation, a heathen man should be entering into union with God. It is a picture in little of the rejection of Israel and the ingathering of the Gentiles. (MacLaren, A. (2009). Expositions of Holy Scripture: Isaiah 49–66, Jeremiah (p. 374). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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After Jesus rises from the dead, He appears to a number of His disciples.
INSIGHT
The most reasonable explanation for the empty tomb is the Resurrection. If, as some have claimed, Jesus had not been killed but only weakened by the crucifixion, the stone and the soldiers would have prevented His escape from the tomb. If Jesus’ friends had tried to steal the body, the stone and the soldiers likewise would have prevented them. Jesus’ enemies would not have taken the body, since a missing body would only encourage belief in His resurrection. The easiest way to quiet claims of His resurrection would have been to produce the body. This they could not do.
The angel said, “He is not here, for He is risen, as He said” (Matthew 28:6). Since Jesus predicted and experienced His own death, burial, and resurrection, we can trust Him with our lives. (QuietWalk)
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THE CROSS AND THE LOVE OF GOD
God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
The most wonderful thing of all about the cross is that it reveals the love of God to us. It is not surprising that Paul should say to the Romans, “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
How do we see the love of God in the cross? Ah, says the modern man, I see it in this way, that though man rejected and murdered the Son of God, God in His love still says, “All right, I still forgive you. Though you have done that to My Son, I still forgive you.” Yes, that is part of it, but it is the smallest part of it. That is not the real love of God. God was not a passive spectator of the death of His Son. That is how the moderns put it—that God in heaven looked down upon it all, saw men killing His own Son, and said, “All right, I will still forgive you.” But it was not we who brought God’s Son to the cross. It was God. It was the predetermined counsel and foreknowledge of God.
If you really want to know what the love of God means, read what Paul wrote to the Romans: “For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh” (Romans 8:3). God condemned sin in the flesh of His own Son.
This is the love of God. Read again Isaiah 53, that wonderful prophecy of what happened on Calvary’s hill. You notice how he goes on repeating it: “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows….it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief” (verses 4, 10). These are the terms. And they are nothing but a plain, factual description of what happened on the cross.
A Thought to Ponder: It was not we who brought God’s Son to the cross. It was God.
(From The Cross, pp. 79-80, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Occupied Territory
“But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.” (1 Peter 2:9)
In our ongoing struggle for both survival and victory in this world, we do well to recognize that we are in enemy territory. While it is true that our Captain created the world—indeed, “all things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3)—and sacrificed His life to redeem it and will reign over it for eternity, it is also true that “the whole world lieth in wickedness” (1 John 5:19), occupied by “the prince of this world” (John 12:31) who is “the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2).
The fact that we are surrounded by such darkness should come as no surprise, for before we were rescued by His grace, we too were part of the darkness—indeed, we had to be called out of it. John the Baptist came “to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:79). Furthermore, as Christ taught, “men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19).
This confrontation overshadows mere human conflict, however, “for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Ephesians 6:12). But, praise God, we have been called “out of darkness into his marvellous light” as described in our text. Although we may be still in the world, our King has “delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son” (Colossians 1:13). “In him was life; and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). (JDM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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