Jeremiah 21:1-10. The kingdom of Judah is about to be attacked by Babylon, which will be the beginning of the Babylonian exile. This is after Jeremiah, reluctantly and at great personal cost, had been warning the king and the people over and over again, through the reins of three kings, that if they did not amend their ways and turn back to God, there would be a reckoning. So now, the reckoning is knocking on the door, and now King Zedekiah of Judah sends messengers to Jeremiah to ask him to ask God to protect Judah and have Babylon withdraw. God is having none of it at this point. He tells Jeremiah that he is going to instead turn back all of Judah's weapons, and that he himself will fight against Judah "with outstretched hand and strong arm, in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath." God also promises that after the battle, he will bring a great pestilence on Jerusalem. Anyone who survives the fighting, the disease, and the resulting famine, including King Zedekiah, will be delivered into the hands of Nebuchadrezzar, the king of Babylon. Jeremiah is told to warn the people that this destruction is coming. He is to tell them that their only chance of survival will be to surrender and be taken as prisoners. Anyone who resists and remains in the city will die, because God has set his face against Jerusalem and will allow King Nebuchadrezzar to destroy the city with fire.

I often wonder how people today are not seeing all the warnings that God is giving us right now. So, so many people, just like the people of Judah during Jeremiah's time, are completely ignoring the signs, or even attacking the messengers who try to tell them about them (just as the Jews attacked Jeremiah). It just boggles my mind. But then I read Jeremiah (I have gained quite an appreciation for the Book of Jeremiah of late😬), and I realize that people hear what they want to hear, and see what they want to see. They convince themselves they are the good guys, and God will protect them, and they forgive all sorts of bad behavior in themselves and others, and everything goes along, and along, until it is just too late. Here, Zedekiah has ignored all of Jeremiah's warnings, as did his father and grandfather before him. Jeremiah has been ignored, belittled, and almost killed for speaking God's warnings to the people. But now that the foretold destruction threatens, Zedekiah's like "Hey, I know! I'll ask Jeremiah to put in a good word for us with God, he's got his ear!" WUT? It's the same mind-boggling inability or unwillingness to see the truth that I see in people today. It's what makes me realize that things are really, really bad.

When people won't even acknowledge that they are sinners, and might be wrong, but instead convince themselves of their moral superiority while all kinds of evil is going on, there has to be a reckoning. The answer God gives Zedekiah shows the same level of exasperation - like "Seriously, dude?! Ummm, no - you are all in for a mighty hard time, because you would not heed my warnings."

I hope we still have time, and I hope people wake up and listen, soon, today, now!