Jeremiah chapter 38.14-28
interpretation - meaning - commentary - explanation
(14) Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third entry that is in the house of the LORD: and the king said unto Jeremiah, I will ask thee a thing; hide nothing from me. (15) Then Jeremiah said unto Zedekiah, If I declare it unto thee, wilt thou not surely put me to death? and if I give thee counsel, wilt thou not hearken unto me? (16) So Zedekiah the king sware secretly unto Jeremiah, saying, As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.
In the earlier verses, we read that Jeremiah was imprisoned in a dungeon on the king's orders only to be released from it later. In these verses, we read of another meeting between the king and Jeremiah in secret. The reason? Was he afraid of the population? This is somewhat reminiscent of Pilate, who bowed to pressure from the population. Jeremiah rightly said that Zedekiah would not listen to him.
(17) Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah, Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; If thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house: (18) But if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.
Divine love, even then, offered a chance to save the lives of the inhabitants and save the buildings. Recall that the Judeans were so morally corrupt that they burned their own children in sacrifice to foreign gods, were guided by evil in their lives, there was no good in them. God, despite the fact that the enemy was besieging the city, gives you another chance to save your life. It's as if you were falling into an abyss and the Lord stretched out his hand toward you, and instead of grabbing it you flew headlong down hoping to survive.
Zedekiah chose people, not God
(19) And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah, I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me. (20) But Jeremiah said, They shall not deliver thee. Obey, I beseech thee, the voice of the LORD, which I speak unto thee: so it shall be well unto thee, and thy soul shall live. (21) But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me: (22) And, behold, all the women that are left in the king of Judah's house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon's princes, and those women shall say, Thy friends have set thee on, and have prevailed against thee: thy feet are sunk in the mire, and they are turned away back. (23) So they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans: and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon: and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.
One can speak to fools endlessly, and they will still remain fools. The fool was undoubtedly Zedekiah, who just before the destruction of Jerusalem could have saved himself and the city. Zedekiah's weak character is also confirmed, as instead of trusting the Lord he looks at how people will react. He receives God's assurance that he will survive, but rejects it, fear taking precedence over God's word. It is a huge mistake to push God to the background for fear of the reaction of others. God is our Father and Creator, it is with Him that we are to spend eternal life. Most people will be destroyed after 1,000 years anyway, it is not worth it for the sake of apparent respect and in fear of being ridiculed by fools, to give up on the Lord.
(24) Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah, Let no man know of these words, and thou shalt not die. (25) But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee, and they come unto thee, and say unto thee, Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the king, hide it not from us, and we will not put thee to death; also what the king said unto thee: (26) Then thou shalt say unto them, I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan's house, to die there. (27) Then came all the princes unto Jeremiah, and asked him: and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him; for the matter was not perceived. (28) So Jeremiah abode in the court of the prison until the day that Jerusalem was taken: and he was there when Jerusalem was taken.
The conversation may indeed have included words from Jeremiah's mouth directed to Zedekiah not to send him to Jonathan's house. Many times the Bible does not present the full dialogues, but their abbreviations, the most important thoughts. Jeremiah may have told part of the truth, he did not lie, which in some cases can be a lie, for example, a husband says that he was attacked because he helped defend another woman - he will come out as a hero. But what if he adds that he and she were attacked by that woman's husband because they had just committed adultery? In the case of Jeremiah, there is no falsification of information, no misrepresentation of the message. However, let us beware, for fear of our health or life, of denying faith in God. Jesus died for you, suffered because he wanted you to love him, and even in the face of death he did not give up on you.
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