Events unfolded rapidly at this point in Israel’s history. Pharaoh Necho arrived in Judah shortly after Egypt freed itself from Assyrian domination. The Assyrian Empire crumbled as Egypt asserted itself as a world power. After King Josiah died at the hands of Egyptian archers Pharaoh Necho took control of the royal house in Jerusalem.

Jehoahaz succeeded Josiah as king, but after only three months on the throne Necho captured Jehoahaz and sent him to Egypt where he died. Necho chose Eliakim, Jehoahaz’s brother to be king of Judah, and changed his name to Jehoiakim.

Judah had to give Egypt tons of gold and silver every year. King Jehoiakim taxed the Judeans heavily to pay Egypt while he lived a life of luxury in Jerusalem. He remained on Judah’s throne for eleven years and did evil the eyes of the Lord, just as his predecessors had done.

Jeremiah Preaches to Judah’s Kings

Necho appeared to be in control of Judah at this time, but God was still sovereign. He sent the prophet Jeremiah to remind Judah’s kings that they were still responsible to obey God.

“This is what the Lord says: Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place.” Jeremiah 22:3

Of all Judah’s many problems, God was angriest about the sin of injustice. The kings and people of Judah were more worried about personal wealth and security than justice for the poor, but God made it clear that practicing justice was key to receiving his blessings.

“For if you are careful to carry out these commands, then kings who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this palace, riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by their officials and their people. But if you do not obey these commands, declares the Lord, I swear by myself that this palace will become a ruin.” Jeremiah 22:3-5

Thanks to King Josiah’s recent reforms, idolatry had been suppressed in Judah, but injustice and greed were exposed. God told his people to:

• Rescue those who had been robbed
• Stop violence and bloodshed
• Do right by foreigners, orphans and widows.

He called his people to stop focusing on their personal welfare and start caring for the suffering people around them. He promised to restore Judah to its former glory if they obeyed him, but he swore by himself that it would become a ruin if they failed.

A Message for King Jehoiakim

Jehoiakim taxed Judah to pay the levy Egypt imposed upon them, but he also forced his people to work for free to build his palace. God saw what Jehoiakim was doing.

“Woe to him who builds his palace by unrighteousness, his upper rooms by injustice, making his own people work for nothing, not paying them for their labor.” Jeremiah 22:13

Working without wages at the palace kept people from earning wages elsewhere to support their families. The whole economy suffered because the king wanted to glorify himself.

“‘Does it make you a king to have more and more cedar? Did not your father [King Josiah] have food and drink? He did what was right and just, so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?’ declares the Lord.” Jeremiah 22:15-16

King Jehoiakim’s sins reflected the spiritual condition of the Israelites. They didn’t care what Jeremiah said to them about the poor and they didn’t believe there would be consequences if they ignored God.

Jeremiah Confronts the People

God stationed Jeremiah in the courtyard of the temple so everyone who came to worship would hear him. They should have been the most receptive audience in Judah since they came there to honor God.

“Tell them everything I command you; do not omit a word. Perhaps they will listen and each will turn from their evil ways. Then I will relent and not inflict on them the disaster I was planning because of the evil they have done.” Jeremiah 26:2-3

But the people opposed Jeremiah’s prophecies. They treated him like an insurrectionist.

“As soon as Jeremiah finished telling all of the people everything the Lord had commanded him to say, the priests, the prophets and all of the people seized him and said, ‘You must die!’” Jeremiah 26:8

Royal officials came to the temple to hear the case against Jeremiah. The prophet faced a death sentence for prophesying against the city of Jerusalem, but he was undaunted. He was willing to die for the message God had given him.

“Now reform your ways and your actions and obey the Lord your God. Then the Lord will relent and not bring the disaster he has pronounced against you. As for me, I am in your hands; do with me whatever you think is good and right. Be assured, however, that if you put me to death, you will bring the guilt of innocent blood on yourselves and on this city and on those who live in it, for in truth the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.” Jeremiah 26:13-15

Jeremiah is Exonerated

A dispute broke out between people who wanted to kill Jeremiah as a traitor and those who believed God had sent him. Some royal officials stepped forward and presented a different case for consideration.

The prophet Micah had warned Jerusalem of impending doom during King Hezekiah’s reign.

“Did Hezekiah king of Judah or anyone else in Judah put [Micah] to death? Did not Hezekiah fear the Lord and seek his favor? And did not the Lord relent, so that he did not bring the disaster he pronounced against them? We are about to bring a terrible disaster on ourselves!” Jeremiah 26:19

King Hezekiah took Micah’s prophecies to heart and brought about the greatest spiritual revival in Israel’s history. The point was made and Jeremiah’s life was spared.

But the people still didn’t repent and return to the Lord.

Babylon Invades

While all of this was going on, Babylon overthrew Assyria and pushed Egypt back inside its borders. Judah became Babylon’s vassal, but after three years King Jehoiakim rebelled. God was now against Judah, and along with their sins of injustice and idolatry, God planned to punish Jerusalem for the sins of King Manasseh.

“The Lord sent Babylonian, Aramean, Moabite and Ammonite raiders against [Jehoiakim] to destroy Judah, in accordance with the word of the Lord proclaimed by his servants the prophets. Surely these things happened to Judah according to the Lord’s command, in order to remove them from his presence because of the sins of Manasseh and all he had done, including the shedding of innocent blood. For he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the Lord was not willing to forgive.” Jeremiah 24:2-4

In 2 Chronicles 33:10-19 Manasseh actually repented of his sins and God let him end his life in peace, but his deadly influence in Jerusalem continued.

“But the people would not listen. Manasseh led them astray, so that they did more evil than the nations the Lord had destroyed before the Israelites.” 2 Kings 21:9 (July 29 reading).

God finally told Jeremiah to pronounce his judgment against Judah.

Seventy Years of Captivity

“So Jeremiah the prophet said to all the people of Judah and to all those living in Jerusalem: ‘For twenty-three years – from the thirteenth year of Josiah son of Amon king of Judah until this very day – the word of the Lord has come to me and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened . . . Therefore the Lord Almighty says this: ‘Because you have not listened to my words, I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon . . . and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin.’” Jeremiah 25:2,8-9

Punishment finally fell upon Judah.

“This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and this nation will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.” Jeremiah 25:11

God was going to dismantle his beloved Israel – the people of the Promised Land, among whom he dwelt on earth. He was going to make them a displaced people and put them under the domination of the most notorious pagan nation of all time. The day of God’s wrath had finally come.

How terrible this was!

On the other hand, why did it take so long for it to happen?

God was patient with Israel for a very, very long time before he brought the day of wrath.