Jeremiah 21:1-7. As Jerusalem is threatened by the Babylonians, King Zedekiah asks Jeremiah to inquire of God on the Jews behalf. "[P]erhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all his wonderful deeds, and will make them withdraw from us." To the contrary, God tells Zedekiah that He Himself will fight against them. He will give the city over to the Babylonians and will cause a great pestilence to come upon the people. Anyone who survives will be given to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, who will show them no compassion.

God is angry with his people. They have fallen into such a sin and depravity and, even after the many warnings and many sufferings they have been given, they persist in it. Not only do they persist, they do not even see it! Here Zedekiah has the nerve to hope that God might deal with them "according to his wonderful deeds." There is no repentance, no acknowledgment of what they've done, no sorrow for having ignored God, no intention to change, just an unwarranted expectation of God's mercy. That is not how this works.

God's mercy is wondrous, indeed, but it shows itself in just punishment when we refuse to repent. That is the only way, sometimes, that God can get our attention.