Lessons From The Pit!

Jeremiah 37; Jeremiah 38; Jeremiah 39; Psalm 79; 2 John 1
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Lessons From The Pit!

Scripture

Jeremiah 38

6 So the officials took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. It belonged to Malkijah, a member of the royal family. There was no water in the cistern, but there was a thick layer of mud at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it.

7 But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, an important court official, heard that Jeremiah was in the cistern. At that time the king was holding court at the Benjamin Gate, 8 so Ebed-melech rushed from the palace to speak with him. 9 “My lord the king,” he said, “these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah the prophet into the cistern. He will soon die of hunger, for almost all the bread in the city is gone.”

10 So the king told Ebed-melech, “Take thirty of my men with you, and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.”

11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to a room in the palace beneath the treasury, where he found some old rags and discarded clothing. He carried these to the cistern and lowered them to Jeremiah on a rope. 12 Ebed-melech called down to Jeremiah, “Put these rags under your armpits to protect you from the ropes.” Then when Jeremiah was ready, 13 they pulled him out. So Jeremiah was returned to the courtyard of the guard—the palace prison—where he remained.

Jeremiah 39

11 King Nebuchadnezzar had told Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, to find Jeremiah. 12 “See that he isn’t hurt,” he said. “Look after him well, and give him anything he wants.” 13 So Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard; Nebushazban, a chief officer; Nergal-sharezer, the king’s adviser; and the other officers of Babylon’s king 14 sent messengers to bring Jeremiah out of the prison. They put him under the care of Gedaliah son of Ahikam and grandson of Shaphan, who took him back to his home. So Jeremiah stayed in Judah among his own people.

Jeremiah 39

5 But the Babylonian troops chased the king and caught him on the plains of Jericho. They took him to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who was at Riblah in the land of Hamath. There the king of Babylon pronounced judgment upon Zedekiah. 6 He made Zedekiah watch as they slaughtered his sons and all the nobles of Judah. 7 Then they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon.

Observation

God’s servant Jeremiah endured a lot of suffering as he served the Lord but God protected him and delivered him from his enemies. Zedekiah, Jeremiah’s king could have lived out his life and could have saved his family if he would have just acted on what Jeremiah told him. He refused to listen to God’s servant and you see what happened to him.

As we serve Christ we may think that sometimes we are having it too difficult or too hard, but may I remind you that if you and I are serving Christ then we will be delivered and rescued. Life may be difficult and tough and we may go through persecution and we may go through extreme adversity, but…we will come out victorious! We will not be destroyed.

I wonder what was going through Jeremiah’s mind when they lowered him down into the pit. He was down in a dark pit and possibly up to his armpits in mud so what could be worse than that? I will tell you something a lot worse than that, how about what happened to Jeremiah’s king Zedekiah who had to watch his sons and his friends be slaughtered in front of his eyes and then had his own eyes gouged out. I would say that was worse punishment than being dropped in a pit and soaked in mud.

Zedekiah possibly remembered Jeremiah’s words as he watched the destruction of his family, the destruction of the city, and may have thought to himself, “If only I had listened to God’s warning that He tried to give to me through His prophet Jeremiah.”

God will allow us to go through trials and suffering here on earth, but He walks with us through those difficult times. He wants us to trust Him during the times of trials. He wants us to depend on Him.

Are you going through a trial today? Look up! Trust Your Heavenly Father to take care of You. Cast all your cares on Him because He cares for You! 1 Peter 5:7

Application

I am the Lord’s servant. I will trust Him today. I will depend on Him to get me through. How about you?

Prayer

Heavenly Father, I know that You care about me. You cared about Your Prophet Jeremiah and he was a lot better off than the king that he served. You provided and cared for him and You will provide and care for my family and me. You always have since the very first day that I began to trust You. You have never let me down. You have always been with me through every trial and through every victory You have been at my side. The best days are ahead of us. Even if my health fails, even if my body wears out … I will still trust in You.

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