Prophets and Kings
by Ellen G. White
Chapter 37: Carried Captive Into Babylon
In the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign "Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem," to besiege
the city. 2 Kings 25:1. The outlook for Judah was hopeless. "Behold, I am
against thee," the Lord Himself declared through Ezekiel. "I the Lord
have drawn forth My sword out of his sheath" it shall not return any more.
. . . Every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and
every spirit shall faint, and all knees shall be weak as water." "I
will pour out Mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire
of My wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, and skillful to
destroy." Ezekiel 21:3, 5-7, 31. {PK 452.1}
The Egyptians endeavored to come to the rescue of the
beleaguered city; and the Chaldeans, in order to keep them back, abandoned for
a time their siege of the Judean capital. Hope sprang up in the heart of
Zedekiah, and he sent a [453] messenger to Jeremiah, asking
him to pray to God in behalf of the Hebrew nation. {PK 452.2}
The prophet's fearful answer was that the Chaldeans would
return and destroy the city. The fiat had gone forth; no longer could the
impenitent nation avert the divine judgments. "Deceive not
yourselves," the Lord warned His people. "The Chaldeans
. . . shall not depart. For though ye had smitten the whole army of
the Chaldeans that fight against you, and there remained but wounded men among
them, yet should they rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with
fire." Jeremiah 37:9, 10. The remnant of Judah were to go into captivity,
to learn through adversity the lessons they had refused to learn under
circumstances more favorable. From this decree of the holy Watcher there could
be no appeal. {PK 453.1}
Among the righteous still in Jerusalem, to whom had been
made plain the divine purpose, were some who determined to place beyond the
reach of ruthless hands the sacred ark containing the tables of stone on which
had been traced the precepts of the Decalogue. This they did. With mourning and
sadness they secreted the ark in a cave, where it was to be hidden from the
people of Israel and Judah because of their sins, and was to be no more
restored to them. That sacred ark is yet hidden. It has never been disturbed
since it was secreted. {PK
453.2}
For many years Jeremiah had stood before the people as a
faithful witness for God; and now, as the fated city was about to pass into the
hands of the heathen, he considered his work done and attempted to leave, but
was prevented by a son of one of the false prophets, who reported [454]
that Jeremiah was about to join the Babylonians, to whom he had repeatedly
urged the men of Judah to submit. The prophet denied the lying charge, but
nevertheless "the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and smote him, and put
him in prison." Verse 15. {PK 453.3}
The hopes that had sprung up in the hearts of princes and
people when the armies of Nebuchadnezzar turned south to meet the Egyptians,
were soon dashed to the ground. The word of the Lord had been, "Behold, I
am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt." The might of Egypt was but a
broken reed. "All the inhabitants of Egypt," Inspiration had
declared, "shall know that I am the Lord, because they have been a staff
of reed to the house of Israel." "I will strengthen the arms of the
king of Babylon, and the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down; and they shall know
that I am the Lord, when I shall put My sword into the hand of the king of
Babylon, and he shall stretch it out upon the land of Egypt." Ezekiel
29:3, 6; 30:25. {PK 454.1}
While the princes of Judah were still vainly looking toward
Egypt for help, King Zedekiah with anxious foreboding was thinking of the
prophet of God that had been thrust into prison. After many days the king sent
for him and asked him secretly, "Is there any word from the Lord?"
Jeremiah answered, "There is: for, said He, thou shalt be delivered into
the hand of the king of Babylon. {PK 454.2}
"Moreover Jeremiah said unto King Zedekiah, What have I
offended against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye
have put me in prison? Where are now your prophets which prophesied unto you,
saying, [455]
The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land?
Therefore hear now, I pray thee, O my lord the king: let my supplication, I
pray thee, be accepted before thee; that thou cause me not to return to the
house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there." Jeremiah 37:17-20. {PK 454.3}
At this Zedekiah commanded that they "commit Jeremiah
into the court of the prison, and that they should give him daily a piece of
bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city were spent.
Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison." Verse 21. {PK 455.1}
The king dared not openly manifest any faith in Jeremiah.
Though his fear drove him to seek information of him privately, yet he was too
weak to brave the disapprobation of his princes and of the people by submitting
to the will of God as declared by the prophet. {PK 455.2}
From the court of the prison Jeremiah continued to advise
submission to the Babylonian rule. To offer resistance would be to invite sure
death. The message of the Lord to Judah was: "He that remaineth in this
city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that
goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey,
and shall live." Plain and positive were the words spoken. In the name of
the Lord the prophet boldly declared, "This city shall surely be given
into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which shall take it."
Jeremiah 38:2, 3. {PK
455.3}
At last the princes, enraged over the repeated counsels of
Jeremiah, which were contrary to their set policy of resistance, made a
vigorous protest before the king, urging [456] that
the prophet was an enemy to the nation, and that his words had weakened the
hands of the people and brought misfortune upon them; therefore he should be
put to death. {PK 455.4}
The cowardly king knew that the charges were false; but in
order to propitiate those who occupied high and influential positions in the
nation, he feigned to believe their falsehoods and gave Jeremiah into their
hands to do with him as they pleased. The prophet was cast "into the
dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison:
and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water,
but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire." Verse 6. But God raised up
friends for him, who besought the king in his behalf, and had him again removed
to the court of the prison. {PK
456.1}
Once more the king sent privately for Jeremiah, and bade him
faithfully relate the purpose of God toward Jerusalem. In response, Jeremiah
inquired, "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?" The
king entered into a secret compact with the prophet. "As the Lord liveth,
that made us this soul," Zedekiah promised, "I will not put thee to
death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy
life." Verses 15, 16. {PK
456.2}
There was still opportunity for the king to reveal a
willingness to heed the warnings of Jehovah, and thus to temper with mercy the
judgments even now falling on city and nation. "If thou wilt assuredly go
forth unto the king of Babylon's princes," was the message given the king,
"then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with [457]
fire; and thou shalt live, and thine house: 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." {PK
456.3}
"I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the
Chaldeans," the king replied, "lest they deliver me into their hand,
and they mock me." But the prophet promised, "They shall not deliver
thee." And he added the earnest entreaty, "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." Verses 17-20. {PK 457.1}
Thus even to the last hour, God made plain His willingness
to show mercy to those who would choose to submit to His just requirements. Had
the king chosen to obey, the lives of the people might have been spared, and
the city saved from conflagration; but he thought he had gone too far to
retrace his steps. He was afraid of the Jews, afraid of ridicule, afraid for
his life. After years of rebellion against God, Zedekiah thought it too
humiliating to say to his people, I accept the word of the Lord, as spoken
through the prophet Jeremiah; I dare not venture to war against the enemy in
the face of all these warnings. {PK 457.2}
With tears Jeremiah entreated Zedekiah to save himself and
his people. With anguish of spirit he assured him that unless he should heed
the counsel of God, he could not escape with his life, and all his possessions
would fall to the Babylonians. But the king had started on the wrong course,
and he would not retrace his steps. He decided to [458] follow
the counsel of the false prophets, and of the men whom he really despised, and
who ridiculed his weakness in yielding so readily to their wishes. He
sacrificed the noble freedom of his manhood and became a cringing slave to
public opinion. With no fixed purpose to do evil, he was also without
resolution to stand boldly for the right. Convicted though he was of the value
of the counsel given by Jeremiah, he had not the moral stamina to obey; and as
a consequence he advanced steadily in the wrong direction. {PK 457.3}
The king was even too weak to be willing that his courtiers
and people should know that he had held a conference with Jeremiah, so fully
had the fear of man taken possession of his soul. If Zedekiah had stood up
bravely and declared that he believed the words of the prophet, already half
fulfilled, what desolation might have been averted! He should have said, I will
obey the Lord, and save the city from utter ruin. I dare not disregard the
commands of God because of the fear or favor of man. I love the truth, I hate
sin, and I will follow the counsel of the Mighty One of Israel. {PK 458.1}
Then the people would have respected his courageous spirit,
and those who were wavering between faith and unbelief would have taken a firm
stand for the right. The very fearlessness and justice of this course would
have inspired his subjects with admiration and loyalty. He would have had ample
support, and Judah would have been spared the untold woe of carnage and famine
and fire. {PK 458.2}
The weakness of Zedekiah was a sin for which he paid a
fearful penalty. The enemy swept down like a resistless avalanche and
devastated the city. The Hebrew armies [459] were
beaten back in confusion. The nation was conquered. Zedekiah was taken prisoner,
and his sons were slain before his eyes. The king was led away from Jerusalem a
captive, his eyes were put out, and after arriving in Babylon he perished
miserably. The beautiful temple that for more than four centuries had crowned
the summit of Mount Zion was not spared by the Chaldeans. "They burnt the
house of God, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt all the palaces
thereof with fire, and destroyed all the goodly vessels thereof." 2
Chronicles 36:19. {PK
458.3}
At the time of the final overthrow of Jerusalem by
Nebuchadnezzar, many had escaped the horrors of the long siege, only to perish
by the sword. Of those who still remained, some, notably the chief of the
priests and officers [460] and the princes of the realm,
were taken to Babylon and there executed as traitors. Others were carried
captive, to live in servitude to Nebuchadnezzar and to his sons "until the
reign of the kingdom of Persia: to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of
Jeremiah." Verses 20, 21. {PK 459.1}
Of Jeremiah himself it is recorded: "Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuchadnezzar-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 unto thee." Jeremiah 39:11, 12.
{PK 460.1}
Released from prison by the Babylonian officers, the prophet
chose to cast in his lot with the feeble remnant, certain "poor of the
land" left by the Chaldeans to be "vinedressers and husbandmen."
Over these the Babylonians set Gedaliah as governor. Only a few months passed
before the newly appointed governor was treacherously slain. The poor people,
after passing through many trials, were finally persuaded by their leaders to
take refuge in the land of Egypt. Against this move, Jeremiah lifted his voice
in protest. "Go ye not into Egypt," he pleaded. But the inspired
counsel was not heeded, and "all the remnant of Judah, . . .
even men, and women, and children," took flight into Egypt. "They
obeyed not the voice of the Lord: thus came they even to Tahpanhes."
Jeremiah 43:5-7. {PK
460.2}
The prophecies of doom pronounced by Jeremiah upon the
remnant that had rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar by fleeing to Egypt were
mingled with promises of pardon to those who should repent of their folly and
stand ready to return. While the Lord would not spare those who turned [461]
from His counsel to the seductive influences of Egyptian idolatry, yet He would
show mercy to those who should prove loyal and true. "A small number that
escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of
Judah," He declared; "and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone
into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose words shall stand,
Mine, or theirs." Jeremiah 44:28. {PK 460.3}
The sorrow of the prophet over the utter perversity of those
who would have been the spiritual light of the world, his sorrow over the fate
of Zion and of the people carried captive to Babylon, is revealed in the
lamentations he has left on record as a memorial of the folly of turning from
the counsels of Jehovah to human wisdom. Amid the ruin wrought, Jeremiah could
still declare, "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not
consumed;" and his constant prayer was, "Let us search and try our
ways, and turn again to the Lord." Lamentations 3:22, 40. While Judah was
still a kingdom among the nations, he had inquired of his God, "Hast Thou
utterly rejected Judah? hath Thy soul loathed Zion?" and he had made bold
to plead, "Do not abhor us, for Thy name's sake." Jeremiah 14:19, 21.
The prophet's absolute faith in God's eternal purpose to bring order out of
confusion, and to demonstrate to the nations of earth and to the entire
universe His attributes of justice and love, now led him to plead confidently
in behalf of those who might turn from evil to righteousness. {PK 461.1}
But now Zion was utterly destroyed; the people of God were
in their captivity. Overwhelmed with grief, the [462]
prophet exclaimed: "How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of
people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and
princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary! She weepeth sore in
the night, and her tears are on her cheeks: among all her lovers she hath none
to comfort her: all her friends have dealt treacherously with her, they are
become her enemies. {PK
461.2}
"Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction,
and because of great servitude: she dwelleth among the heathen, she findeth no
rest: all her persecutors overtook her between the straits. The ways of Zion do
mourn, because none come to the solemn feasts: all her gates are desolate: her
priests sigh, her virgins are afflicted, and she is in bitterness. Her
adversaries are the chief, her enemies prosper; for the Lord hath afflicted her
for the multitude of her transgressions: her children are gone into captivity
before the enemy." {PK
462.1}
"How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a
cloud in His anger, and cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of
Israel, and remembered not His footstool in the day of His anger! The Lord hath
swallowed up all the habitations of Jacob, and hath not pitied: He hath thrown
down in His wrath the strongholds of the daughter of Judah; He hath brought
them down to the ground: He hath polluted the kingdom and the princes thereof.
He hath cut off in His fierce anger all the horn of Israel: He hath drawn back
His right hand from before the enemy, and He burned against Jacob like a
flaming fire, which devoureth round about. He hath bent His bow like an enemy:
He stood with His right hand as an adversary, and slew all [463] that
were pleasant to the eye in the tabernacle of the daughter of Zion: He poured
out His fury like fire." {PK 462.2}
"What thing shall I take to witness for thee? what
thing shall I liken to thee, O daughter of Jerusalem? what shall I equal to
thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion? for thy breach is
great like the sea: who can heal thee?" {PK 463.1}
"Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us: consider, and
behold our reproach. Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to
aliens. We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows.
. . . Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their
iniquities. Servants have ruled over us: there is none that doth deliver us out
of their hand. . . . For this our heart is faint; for these things
our eyes are dim." {PK
463.2}
"Thou, O Lord, remainest forever; Thy throne from
generation to generation. Wherefore dost Thou forget us forever, and forsake us
so long time? Turn Thou us unto Thee, O Lord, and we shall be turned; renew our
days as of old." Lamentations 1:1-5; 2:1-4, 13; Lamentations 5:1-3, 7, 8,
17, 19-21. {PK 463.3}
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"Light Through Darkness"
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