Judah's Remnant - The Book of Jeremiah - Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let us pray yet a small number that escaped the
sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into
the land of Judah. And all the remnant of Judah
that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn
there shall know whose words shall stand mine or theirs
Jeremiah forty four twenty eight. Dear God, as you continue

(00:26):
to elevate me to places of influence and leadership, I
ask that you give me a heart and ears to
hear and heed when a man or woman of God
has been sent into my life to protect me from
the attack of the enemy. Unlike those in today's reading,

(00:46):
I confess that my desire is to be in the
complete and unwavering plan of the Lord. I confess that
when I am given a word of warning or correction,
I will not allow pride and ego to respond in me.
I will not run in the direction of what you

(01:07):
freed me from in previous years. Instead, I will plant
my feet firmly on the words of your prophets and
watch my life flourish and grow. Because I've learned to
move and act at the sound of your voice. I
decree and declare that I am no longer a slave

(01:30):
to my past, but a servant to my future. In Jesus' name, Amen,
thank you for making prayer a priority in your day.
To learn more about the Bible, stay tuned for today's story,
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Speaker 3 (02:25):
Slash Prey, Judah's Remnant and Our Last Story.

Speaker 4 (02:40):
Jeremiah witnessed the downfall of Judah. King Nebuconezza used the
county and army to lay waste to all of Jerusalem.
Hundreds of thousands of people were taken captive, and the
remaining rulers of Judah were beheaded and trampled. Jeremiah, however,
was spared from the Babylonians. He was given a choice

(03:01):
to go to Babylon and live comfortably or remain with
his people. Now we see the remaining Judeans trying to
rebuild their city. However, even in the tragedy of loss
and tyranny, there still remains greedy people hungry for power.
Inspired by the Book of Jeremiah.

Speaker 5 (03:21):
Hello, this is Jack Graham with today's episode of the
Bible in a Year. In our last episode, we heard
of the demise of Zedekiah, who resisted God's will and
the Babylonian army to the bitter end. We saw the
contrast between his attitude and arrogance and that of the
great prophet Jeremiah, who obeyed God's will and even sacrificed

(03:43):
his own comforts for the safety and the sake of others.
Today we'll hear how the remnant of Judah, who remained
after the Babylonian conquest, will attempt to rebuild a broken city.
God will bless the efforts of those who sought to
live peacefully with their oppressors. But yet we'll see how
the desire for power and control still overshadows the attempts

(04:05):
to put the city back together again. Let's listen now
to God's word.

Speaker 4 (04:12):
Judah had been captured King Nebuconezzer demolished Jerusalem's defenses and
reduced the Holy Temple into a pile of rubble. The
wealthiest and most educated of Judah were carted off to Babylon.
There they were forced to contribute to the Babylonian economy.
Jeremiah remained in Judah at Mitzpah, along with the poorest

(04:33):
of the country who were left to remain there. They
were governed by a man by the name of Gedeliah.
He swore to the remnants, saying, we must not be
afraid to serve the Chaldeans and Babylonians. I will represent
us to them and plead for their favor day and night.
Gedaliah led the remaining Hebrews as they worked the fields,

(04:55):
rebuilt homes, and stored up food for themselves. Each few
weeks tribute would be required of them, and Ghedaliah would
deal with their oppressors peacefully. Gadalia desired for the remaining
survivors of the Babylonian conquest to survive. Not only did
they survive, but the Lord blessed their hand and their
crops grew in great abundance. However, there were some who

(05:19):
were determined to fight against the Chaldeans. Ishmael, a man
of royal blood, hated that Gheddealaiah would submit to Babylon
with such ease, so he conspired against him to assassinate him.
Gedealiah slept in his home soundly after a hard day
at work. A shadow moved across the room towards his bed.
As the shadow grew larger over his bed, Ghedelia drew

(05:42):
his sword and caught the figure off guard. It was
not Ishmael, but his friend Johanan. Gheeddelia put down his
sword and took a deep breath. Both men were silent
for a moment. Let me defend you, Johannin whispered to
his friend. If you die, all the Judeans will be scared. Mattered,
let me go and assassinate him before he does so

(06:03):
to you. Gededealaiah was old friends with Ishmael. He could
not believe he would do such a thing. No, he replied,
we cannot be killing one another. Too many have been lost.
Weeks later, Gheteliah traveled to each village to check up
on the people. As he was walking, Ishmael and a
group of his men ambushed him. There was no time

(06:25):
to react. Geddealiah was struck down with one swipe of
Ishmael's blade. Over the next week, Ishmael began a tirade
of killing. He slaughtered priests and servants that were loyal
to Gheddealaiah. All those he did not kill he took captive,
and Ishmael assumed governance of the judee In remnant. However,
Johanin would not allow his friend's death to go unpunished.

(06:48):
He rallied the leaders of the remaining forces and marched
against Ishmael. There at the pool of Gibeon, Johanin led
a rescue mission to save Ishmael's captives. Johanin fought with
the rage of a man who had just lost his front.
He wept as he swung his sword. Eventually, he backed
Ishmael into a corner and the captives were released. However,

(07:10):
Ishmael and eight of his men escaped to the Ammonites.
Johanna knew that punishment awaited the Remnant since Gedaliah had
been killed, so he gathered the remaining women and children
and fled to Egypt to seek refuge. As Johanan and
his people were making plans to leave, Jeremiah stopped them.
He stood before the people and begged them not to go.

(07:32):
He knew that only slavery awaited them in Egypt. The
Lord has blessed our work here thus far. Our crops
are steady, and our relationship with Babylon is mending. Do
not leave, Jeremiah implored. But the people were still unsteady.
They began to clamor and grumble. Jeremiah lifted his voice

(07:53):
for all to hear and said, if you leave, famine
and sword will follow you. The Lord desired for this
remnant to build Jerusalem back to its former glory. Fear not,
for there are great things ahead. As Jeremiah was speaking,
Johannan's fist blew through his jaw. He fell to the
floor disoriented. He looked to see Johanan's angry and worried face.

(08:18):
You are a liar, Johannan's spat. You are a tool
of the Chaldeans and Babylonians. Nothing more so. Johanan bound
Jeremiah up and took him and the rest of the
people out of Judah towards Egypt. Little did they know
that the Lord had set in motion plans for Nebukenezzer
to overtake Egypt as well, there would be no escaping

(08:40):
God's will.

Speaker 5 (08:44):
In today's reading, Judah has been decimated by Babylonian forces.
Most of the Judeans who were left alive were taken
to Babylon as captives. The wealthiest were to integrate into
Babylonian society and contribute to the nation's economy. But there
was a remnant. The poorest population of Judah left in

(09:04):
their land to rebuild, and Jeremiah, the great prophet of God,
remained as well. The Babylonians allowed a Judeon to rule
the people and ensure that they served Babylon and paid
tribute when it was required. This duty was given to
a man named Gheddaliah. He was wise and wanted to
see Judah rebuild and experience relative peace despite their terrible condition,

(09:29):
so he resolved to deal peaceably with the Babylonians and
the Chaldeans, making the best of a bad situation. Jeremiah
was there to support him. God blessed the efforts of
those who remained, and the land prospered. It was a
glimmer of hope for Judah, a sign that God was
still with them. But there were those who opposed Gheddealiah

(09:50):
and hated the foreign invaders. They didn't want to keep
the peace, but continued to war against Nebucanazar, just as
foolishly as Zadekiah had done. One such person was Ishmael,
and he planned to kill Gedaliah and seize power. One night,
Gettaliah was surprised in his room by a man he
thought was there to kill him, but he was ready

(10:12):
with his sword. As it turned out, however, it was
a friend by the name of Johannan. Johannan cared a
great deal for Geeddalaiah and did not want to see
him fall to Ishmael, so he suggested they strike first,
killing Ishmael before he could get to Ghetalaiyah. Here we
have two men, Ghetialaiyah and Johannan, who both want the

(10:32):
same thing but have different approaches. Johannan is quick to
turn the violence to defeat opposition from within, but Ghetealiyah
wisely knows that if they begin war with each other,
killing those who oppose them, Judah would be far worse off,
so he lets Ishmael live. It was an honorable choice,

(10:53):
but it didn't work out, as one day Ghetialiah was
ambushed and killed by Ishmael. Judah was under the leadership
of a very cruel man, who quickly went about killing
those who opposed him, including priests and servants who had
shown loyalty to Getaliah. Johannan will not stand for this,
and once more he responds in anger with more violence.

(11:16):
He attacks Ishmael's men and nearly defeated him, but Ishmael
escaped at the last moment, knowing there would be retribution
for his attempt. Johannan gathers women, children and all those
not following Ishmael, making plans to flee to Egypt. It's
an understandable impulse, but Johannan wants to know it is
the right one, so he inquired of Jeremiah. The prophet

(11:39):
goes to the Lord for guidance, and we hear God's
response in Jeremiah forty two, verses eleven and twelve. Do
not fear the King of Babylon, of whom you are afraid.
Do not fear him, declares the Lord, for I am
with you to save you and deliver you from his hand.
I will grant you mercy that he may have mercy
on you, and let you remain in your own land.

(12:03):
So what was the answer. Don't go to Egypt, God says,
trust me, your life will go from bad to worse
if you run away. Johannan had a choice, just like
so many to whom Jeremiah had spoken before. Trust God
and do his will, or take matters into your own hand.
Johannan chose the latter, and once more Jeremiah suffers beatings

(12:28):
and imprisonment from those who refuse to listen to God's word.
The people fled to Egypt, not knowing that soon that
land too would fall to Babylon. If only if only
they had obeyed God and trusted him, life would have
been so much different. It's so important that we learn
from mistakes, including the mistakes of others, and we always

(12:51):
must remember and reflect daily on the fact that God
can be trusted, that His word is sovereign and secure
and supernatural, and that our future is secure because we
live with the promises of God, and it is always
right to run to the will of God and never
away from the will of God. Dear God, we always

(13:11):
thank you for the scripture which teaches us how to
live our lives. We know that even when things seem lost,
you are faithful, and you preserve a remnant of people
for your glory. Help us always to listen to your counsel,
wise counsel that comes from you, to seek peace rather
than war, and that we would trust you for your

(13:32):
provision for every need. In Christ's name. Amen, thank you
for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. We
are so glad that you have joined us. I'm pastor
Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. You can download the Prey
dot com app and join millions of people who are
listening daily to the Bible in a Year. I want

(13:53):
to encourage you to make prayer and Bible study a
priority in your life, that you would seek first the
Kingdom of God and his righteousness. If you enjoy this broadcast,
let me encourage you to share it with others, people
that you love, people that you know, people in your church,
because we believe the Word of God makes an eternal
difference in people's lives. If you want more resources as

(14:16):
to how you can live the Christian life, be sure
to visit Jack Graham dot org. That's Jack Graham dot org.
God bless you

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Judah's Remnant - The Book of Jeremiah

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Jack Graham

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