39 [a]Now when Jerusalem was captured [b]in the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it; 2 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, in the ninth day of the month, the city wall was breached. 3 Then all the officials of the king of Babylon came in and sat down at the Middle Gate: Nergal-sar-ezer, Samgar-nebu, Sar-sekim the [c]Rab-saris, Nergal-sar-ezer the [d]Rab-mag, and all the rest of the officials of the king of Babylon. 4 When Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, they fled and went out of the city at night by way of the king’s garden through the gate between the two walls; and he went out toward the [e]Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and they seized him and brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he passed sentence on him. 6 Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes at Riblah; the king of Babylon also slew all the nobles of Judah. 7 He then blinded Zedekiah’s eyes and bound him in fetters of bronze to bring him to Babylon. 8 The Chaldeans also burned with fire the king’s palace and the houses of the people, and they broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 9 As for the rest of the people who were left in the city, the [f]deserters who had gone over to him and the rest of the people who remained, Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard carried them into exile in Babylon. 10 But some of the poorest people who had nothing, Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard left behind in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and fields [g]at that time.
In a moment of shock and surprise, the Babylonians breached the city wall in the eleventh year of Zedekiah. In case you haven’t been following along, it was completely expected, for Jeremiah had been delivering God’s messages of impending judgment since the reign of Zedekiah’s nephew–more than a decade earlier. Even after Zedekiah’s private meeting with Jeremiah, the king still refused to submit to God’s plan, and this was the sad and terrible result.
As Zedekiah ran for his life (v. 4), it reminds me of what had happened to Jonah a century or so earlier–though the story of Jonah is placed after that of Jeremiah in the scriptures, it happened long before the northern kingdom of Israel fell. At any rate, Jonah had prophesied some great things, he was doing well and so was Israel. Then God asked Jonah to do something he didn’t like–preach repentance to their enemies–and he ran.
Jonah got swallowed by a massive fish, and Zedekiah was carried off blinded to Babylon, but only after witnessing incredible tragedy. But the biggest tragedy of all was that they both knew what God had asked, as clear as you could wish for, and they ran. The Bible is full of such examples, and we would do well to heed their warning. Moses struck the rock for water, and never entered the promised land. Barak refused to go into battle without Deborah and all the glory went to a woman (gasp), Jael the Kenite.
What is your rock, your battle? Don’t ignore the voice of God, but lean in, even when it doesn’t make sense. Let Him do what He wants in your life. Rather than run away, chase after Him with your whole heart, and let God lead you where you need to go.