SCRIPTURE: JEREMIAH 34
WARNING TO ZEDEKIAH (vs. 1-7)
The Lord told Jeremiah to say to King Zedekiah these words: “This city will be handover to the king of Babylon. He will burn it down and you will be captured and handed over to him. The king of Babylon will speak to you face to face. But you will die peacefully with honor and lament.”
FREEDOM FOR SLAVES (VS. 8-21)
The Lord made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to proclaim freedom for the slaves. They agreed and set them free. However, they changed their minds and took back the slaves they had freed and enslaved them again. So the Lord was angry. He let the nation fall by the sword, plague and famine. Zedekiah and his officials were handed to their enemies. The enemies will fight the city, take it, burn it down so no one can live there anymore.
THOUGHTS:
The Jews were supposed to free their slaves on the 7th year. The people in Jerusalem obeyed this law during the siege but when the Babylonian army retreated, the people again took their slaves back. The masters obeyed when things were difficult hoping to appease the Lord but when things get better, they changed their minds. As a result, God imposed punishment to them. As children of God, obedience is the key to our devotion to God. Our obedience should not depend on the circumstances around us but we should obey to please the Lord.