Hope Lost

18 The commander of the guard took as prisoners Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah the priest next in rank and the three doorkeepers. 19 Of those still in the city, he took the officer in charge of the fighting men and five royal advisers. He also took the secretary who was chief officer in charge of conscripting the people of the land and sixty of his men who were found in the city. 20 Nebuzaradan the commander took them all and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21 There at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, the king had them executed.

So Judah went into captivity, away from her land.

22 Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon appointed Gedaliah son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to be over the people he had left behind in Judah. 23 When all the army officers and their men heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah as governor, they came to Gedaliah at Mizpah–Ishmael son of Nethaniah, Johanan son of Kareah, Seraiah son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite, and their men. 24 Gedaliah took an oath to reassure them and their men. “Do not be afraid of the Babylonian officials,” he said. “Settle down in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it will go well with you.”

25 In the seventh month, however, Ishmael son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, who was of royal blood, came with ten men and assassinated Gedaliah and also the men of Judah and the Babylonians who were with him at Mizpah. 26 At this, all the people from the least to the greatest, together with the army officers, fled to Egypt for fear of the Babylonians. (2 Kings 25:18-26)

The city of the Jerusalem had been destroyed, its royal palace, houses, important buildings (including the temple of the Lord) had been burned and its king blinded after seeing his sons killed in front of him. But what about the national leaders?

The highest officials including the chef priest and the next in rank together with the temple doorkeepers were arrested by the commander of Nebuchadnezzar’s imperial guard. He also arrested the officer in charge of the fighting men and the officer in charge of conscripting people together with sixty of his men (2 Kings 25:18-19). These men were taken to Nebuchadnezzar in the city of Riblah, about sixty miles (100 kilometers) north of Damascus. There they were executed (2 Kings 25:20-21). As for the other people, expect for the poorest, they were taken into captivity in Babylon.

But there seemed to be hope. After all the destruction of Jerusalem, instead of appointing a Babylonian official to be over the remaining people of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar chose Gedaliah (2 Kings 25:22). It seemed a good choice. Gedaliah’s father, Ahikam, had held a high position in Jerusalem during the time of King Josiah (2 Kings 22:12) and has saved the life of Jeremiah during the time of King Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 26:24). Gedaliah advised the people of Judah to not be afraid of the Babylonian officials but to settle down and serve the king of Babylon (2 King 25:24).

But the hope was short-lived. Gedaliah was killed by Ishmael, a man of royal blood. With his death, the remaining leaders fled to Egypt.

The Jews had reached their lowest point. Where could they turn? The answer has to be God. When everything has been taken away, He is still there and He still loves us. It is in the darkest night that the candle of God’s hope shines the brightest.

Prayer:
• Do you rely on people instead of God?
Pray for our earthly leaders, that God will give them humility and a teachable heart.
Pray for yourself that you will always trust in God.