Pharaoh Necho made Eliakim king in place of his father Josiah and changed his name to Jehoiakim. [2] For eleven years, the prophet Jeremiah spoke God’s Word to King Jehoiakim directly and at other times only to his people. At one point, Jehoiakim burned Jeremiah’s writings in fire. He wanted to kill Jeremiah, but the Lord hid him. Sadly, Jehoiakim did not listen to the Lord. He ended up in a Babylonian prison. Why did this father not listen to the Lord?
After imprisoning Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon made his brother Zedekiah the king. [3] Jeremiah also brought God’s Word to Zedekiah for eleven years. Nine years into Zedekiah’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem. A year and half after that, he conquered the city. [4]
Nebuchadnezzar killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes along with all the nobility of Judah. Then, he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, and bound him with bronze fetters for transfer to Babylon. The Babylonians burned down the king’s palace along with all the houses of the people. He also broke down the walls of Jerusalem.” [5] Why did this father not listen to the Lord?
How terrible to disregard God’s Word and to discover too late that you made a monumental mistake! One that impacted the lives of your family, your city, and your nation! The sons and the people of kings Josiah, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah paid dearly for these fathers not listening to the voice of the Lord through His prophets. I wonder how many people today are paying a dear price because someone they trusted to make good decisions ignored the voice of God’s Word.
It is one thing to lose an earthly temporary kingdom and quite another to lose a heavenly eternal one. “Dear Heavenly Father, I pray for earthly fathers that they will make the right decision to listen to Your voice and obey You. In Jesus’ Name, I pray. Amen.”
[1] 2 Kings 23:29
[2] 2 Kings 23:34
[3] 2 Chronicles 36:10
[4] Jeremiah 39:1-2
[5] Jeremiah 39:6-8
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