Today’s passage: Jeremiah 38:1-28
Helpful thoughts:
- When people reject the authority of God and His word, they will call speaking the truth in love, “harm.” (Isaiah 5:20)
- When this man from Africa, Ebed-melech, went to free Jeremiah, he went with thirty other men. This could be an indication of the struggle to free Jeremiah (Being stuck in the mire of the dungeon) or a preparedness to fight against those who had imprisoned him.
- This man from Ethiopia was evidencing a greater faith and respect for the Lord than the Jews. His faith was evidenced by his actions.
- Jeremiah pleads with the king to hear God’s word and obey the Lord. Zedekiah, in a moment of honest clarity, tells Jeremiah his struggle. He fears people more than he fears the Lord (Verse 19).
Questions to consider:
- Why do you think the world looks at submission to God as harmful? What do we have to acknowledge and confess, what do we have to give up, in order to follow Christ? Then…what do we gain?
- If we know that God’s word is truth, and if we know the world will call good “evil”, why do Christians so often go to the world in times of need, such as in counseling, “self-help”, finances, leadership, etc.? If the Bible is not sufficient for these things, what should we make of verses like 2 Timothy 3:16-17 and 2 Peter 1:3?
- Zedekiah heard and understood what the Lord had said and yet, he still wasn’t ready to obey. What was missing? Whom did he fear? How does a healthy fear and loving God take our knowledge of the truth to the next step of obedience and righteous living?