Shepherds False and True (3)

Pray Psalm 2.7-10.
“I will declare the decree:
The LORD has said to Me,
You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.
You shall break them with a rod of iron;
You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel.’”
Now therefore, be wise, O kings;
Be instructed, you judges of the earth.

Sing Psalm 2.7-10.
(Agincourt: O Love, How Deep, How Broad, How High )
Proclaim the message far and wide, that God has exalted the Crucified!
From heav’n He sent us His only Son, Who has for us salvation won.

To Christ the Lord be given all Who humbly embrace Him and on Him call.
Be wise, be warned: His judgment comes to break the prideful, sinful ones.

Read and meditate on Jeremiah 22.18-30.

Prepare.
1. Read 2 Kings 23.33-24.11. What happened to these kings? Why?

2. Read 2 Kings 24.12-20. How did Zedekiah become King of Judah?

Meditate.
Jeremiah’s history lesson continues as he recalls the two kings who immediately preceded Zedekiah, Jehoiakim and Coniah (Jehoiachin). Each had succumbed to the power of Nebuchadnezzar and the forces of Babylon.

Jehoiakim would be utterly forgotten by God’s people (Jer. 22.18, 19). The reason? He and the people he led refused to forsake their false deities and return to the Lord (vv. 20-23).

Enter Jehoiachin (Coniah). He was so awful – “a despised, broken idol” (v. 28) – that the Lord would not even acknowledge him as a signet on His hand (v. 24). God had “no pleasure” in this vessel (v. 28); He cast him and his descendants out of Jerusalem and into the hands of the Babylonians. Coniah would be without a child to inherit the throne of David (v. 30). Was the promise of Psalm 132 being forfeited?

No, it was being fulfilled, both by the Lord setting aside those descendants of David who refused to serve Him, and by leaving the throne of Israel vacant for more than 400 years. Thus God created anticipation for a coming King of Israel, and Jesus would claim that throne by His life, death, and resurrection.

The false kings were being taken out of the way. The true King was yet to come. God Himself would enthrone Him at His own right hand, the true Signet of the Lord (Dan. 7.13, 14; Ps. 110). And He would give Him the true Kingdom of David, to administer and advance through His faithful saints (Dan. 7.18).

Reflect.
1. What should we learn from Jeremiah’s lesson about the four kings who preceded Zedekiah (Josiah, Shallum, Jehoiakim, and Coniah)?

2. God has called us to His Kingdom and glory (1 Thess. 2.12). What does this mean for us?

3. What must we do to remain faithful to our calling from the Lord?

Since they did not imitate the piety of their ancestors though taking pride in their kinship with them—making much of Abraham, Isaac, Israel, David, Hezekiah and Josiah, men conspicuous for their virtue—for this reason the God of all rejects the arrogance of Jeconiah in these words: Even if he were a ring and were placed on my right hand, I would pull it off and hand it over to the enemy. Theodoret of Cyr (393-466), On Jeremiah 22.24025

Use me today, Lord, as a vessel of grace so that I…

Pray Psalm 2.9-12.
Praise God that He has exalted Jesus as King! Commit yourself this day to seeking Him and His Kingdom in all you do.

Sing Psalm 2.9-12.
Psalm 2.9-12 (Agincourt: O Love, How Deep, How Broad, How High)
To Christ the Lord be given all Who humbly embrace Him and on Him call.
Be wise, be warned: His judgment comes to break the prideful, sinful ones.

Rejoice with fear in Jesus’ grace, and worship before His exalted face!
Beware His anger and judgment grim: How blessed are all who rest in Him!

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006). All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (available by clicking here).