6 “Flee for safety, O sons of Benjamin,
From the midst of Jerusalem!
Now blow a trumpet in Tekoa
And raise a signal over [a]Beth-haccerem;
For evil looks down from the north,
And a great destruction.
2 “The comely and dainty one, the daughter of Zion, I will cut off.
3 “Shepherds and their flocks will come to her,
They will pitch their tents [b]around her,
They will pasture each in his [c]place.
4 “[d]Prepare war against her;
Arise, and let us [e]attack at noon.
Woe to us, for the day declines,
For the shadows of the evening lengthen!
5 “Arise, and let us [f]attack by night
And destroy her [g]palaces!”6 For thus says the Lord of hosts,
“Cut down her trees
And cast up a siege against Jerusalem.
This is the city to be punished,
In whose midst there is only oppression.
7 “As a well [h]keeps its waters fresh,
So she [i]keeps fresh her wickedness.
Violence and destruction are heard in her;
Sickness and wounds are ever before Me.
8 “Be warned, O Jerusalem,
Or [j]I shall be alienated from you,
And make you a desolation,
A land not inhabited.”
As Jeremiah continues to foretell the coming destruction, we have this little sidebar where God warns his tribe (Benjamin) to flee the coming judgment. Their land was just north of Jerusalem, a thin strip in between Judah and the rest of Israel. Since Israel had already fallen, it is not surprising that many had fled to the safety of a more fortified city like Jerusalem.
But God tells them not to trust in its fortified walls, but to take refuge in Tekoa, which was about 12 miles south of Jerusalem. It’s unlikely that Tekoa was much of a refuge, so God was effectively asking them to put their trust in Him instead of man-made designs. God furthers this message in v. 6 when He tells them of the siege weapons that will be used to breach the walls in which they trusted.
So it is with us, we like to take refuge and put our trust in things we can see and touch. Yet God alone is our refuge, and all on this earth is “shifting sand”. Whether it be finances, a house, cars, or even each other, these can all let us down. God should be our source of security, and we need to listen for what He tells us to do.
Take inventory of your life today, are you in Jerusalem, hiding behind the walls, crossing your fingers and hoping they won’t fall down? That’s a poor way to live life when God offers us hope and freedom. We ought to often check our hearts and see if we are trusting in earthly possessions, or the God who provided them. Only He can, and will, save us, protect us, and keep us.