‹ Back

Jeremiah 32:28 "Therefore, thus says the Lord: Behold, I am giving this city into the hands of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it."

 

I am sure when he took Jerusalem Nebuchadrezzar thought it was due to his own power and might, little did he know that it was really because God allowed it to happen for His own purposes. Nothing happens without God's permission, whether in is His perfect will or His permissive will. God's plan has been playing out since the beginning of time. It is outside of time and beyond our comprehension, but everything that happens inside of time is part of it, and working towards God's ultimate goal. If God did not want Jerusalem to fall to Nebuchadrezzar, it would not have fallen.

 

At the same time, the people of Jerusalem contributed to their own destruction by turning away from God. Evil cannot conquer God, there is absolute safety in Him. If the people of Jerusalem had been in right relationship with God, Nebuchadrezzar would have failed. This doesn't mean that God's plan is predestination, leaving no room for our free will. It is, rather, Him taking into account all of the things we will do with our free will, allowing us to suffer the consequences of our choices when necessary, allowing us to go through trials we need in order to grow in holiness, and eventually welcoming us home, as He promises Jeremiah He will do for His people: "Behold, I will gather them from all the countries to which I have driven them in my anger and my wrath and in great indignation; I will bring them back to this place and I will make them dwell in safety. And they shall be my people and I will be their God." (Jeremiah 32:37-38). 

 

We cannot understand God's plan, and often resist it, but we can know, trust, and remember its ultimate goal: God wants to bring us home to Him. Anything and everything He allows to happen is in furtherance of that goal. And that is a sublimely comforting thought.