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The Fall of Zedekiah

The Fall of Zedekiah. Jeremiah 52:1-11. Introduction. Many people want to follow God But they want to do so on their own terms They want God to meet them halfway (at best) They think they can change the word of God without fear

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The Fall of Zedekiah

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  1. The Fall of Zedekiah Jeremiah 52:1-11

  2. Introduction • Many people want to follow God • But they want to do so on their own terms • They want God to meet them halfway (at best) • They think they can change the word of God without fear • Perhaps such people could learn a valuable lesson from the downfall of King Zedekiah

  3. The last years of Judah • Josiah was the last good king of Judah • Followed by Jehoahaz (for 3 mos) then Jehoiakim (11 yrs) • Jehoiachin came to rule at age 18 and reigned 3 months (2 Kings 24:8-9) • Then Zedekiah (Jehoiachin’s uncle) was made king by Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings 24:17-20) • His sins are summarized in 2 Chr 36:11-17

  4. Refused to listen to God • God warned him that his only hope was in submitting to Nebuchadnezzar (Jer 27:12-15) • Zedekiah preferred to listen to those who said to rebel against Babylon • Their message conformed to his thoughts • One of the false prophets was killed (Jer 28) to prove Jeremiah spoke truth • But Zedekiah didn’t change • Zedekiah refused to believe a truth that didn’t agree with his own thoughts

  5. Zedekiah’s hope • Jer 21:1-10 • Zedekiah hoped for a miracle • God’s answer was “Surrender” • Zedekiah’s hope remained, he thought he could “patch things up” by doing something right (Jer 34:8-10) • Everyone freed their slaves in accord with the covenant • But look what happened next, after things got better (Jer 34:11-22)

  6. Intimidating the messenger • Zedekiah had Jeremiah arrested • After some time, asked “Now what does God say?” (Jer 37:17) • No change, Jeremiah reimprisoned • Zedekiah then agrees to let Jeremiah be killed, then authorizes a “rescue” (Jer 38) • He then asks again (Jer 38:14-18) • Still no change, Jeremiah reimprisoned

  7. The final siege of Jerusalem • Began in the 9th year of Zedekiah’s reign • Lasted almost 2 years • Famine became severe inside the city • People began to eat their own dead • When the outer wall fell, Zedekiah tried to sneak out of town (Jer 52:7) • Only got about 15 miles away before caught (Jer 52:8-11)

  8. Lessons from Zedekiah • Man cannot change the will of God • Intimidating God’s messengers does not change the will of God • Man can mock the message, but the result will not be changed (2 Pet 3:3-12) • People can ignore God and try to legislate God out of their lives • But they will still be judged by Him

  9. Lessons from Zedekiah • The world can change their message to conform it to the will of the people • They say “No hell”, “No judgment”, “No baptism”, “No sin”, All go to heaven” • But God’s will is not changed. There is a hell, there is judgment, there is sin, and comparatively few will make it to heaven • Pretending to obey God does not fool God • Gal 6:7-8

  10. Conclusion • If we want to follow God • God won’t meet us on our terms • God won’t meet us where we want Him • God won’t accept changes to His word • God won’t accept a pretense of obedience • If we want to follow God • Learn the lesson Zedekiah never learned • God has told us what we must do • The only options from there are Live or Die (Jer 21:8)

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