Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Aug 24th, 2022 God Remembers

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 37 – 40 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – click here to view the text from the Blue Letter Bible website)

(Second Milers also read – Romans 1 – 4; Psalms 116 – 118; Proverbs 24)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – *1 Timothy 1:17*

Read the “0824 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.

Read a previous post from this passage – The Truth Sometimes Hurts

“Now when Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, one of the eunuchs which was in the king’s house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the dungeon; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; Ebedmelech went forth out of the king’s house, and spake to the king, saying, My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the dungeon; and he is like to die for hunger in the place where he is: for there is no more bread in the city. Then the king commanded Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the dungeon, before he die. So Ebedmelech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took thence old cast clouts and old rotten rags, and let them down by cords into the dungeon to Jeremiah. And Ebedmelech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah, Put now these old cast clouts and rotten rags under thine armholes under the cords. And Jeremiah did so. So they drew up Jeremiah with cords, and took him up out of the dungeon: and Jeremiah remained in the court of the prison.” (Jeremiah 38:7-13)

“Now the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, while he was shut up in the court of the prison, saying, Go and speak to Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring my words upon this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished in that day before thee. But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the LORD: and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid. For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the LORD.” (Jeremiah 39:15-18)

In our reading today, the prophet Jeremiah was speaking the Word of the Lord pretty much to deaf ears. He was trying to get the people to do what God wanted them to do, but they were not listening. At the this particular point in Jeremiah’s ministry to the nation of Judah, God told him to tell the people of Judah to submit to the will of King Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. At one point, had the people of God repented from their idolatry and wickedness, God would have spared them completely from the Babylonian army, but they did not listen to God then either. Now, the the judgment of God through the Babylonians was coming, and God was warning the people of Judah to submit to them, but He also promises that if they do that, He will be merciful to them, cause them to be treated well, and not allow the city of Jerusalem to be completely destroyed.

The people, however, are convinced that they know better, and that they should resist. Keep in mind, during this whole time the people are still living in rebellion against God, there has been no repentance on their part, and they are certainly not listening to God’s prophet Jeremiah. In fact, they get so upset with what Jeremiah is saying that they throw him in jail. This particular dungeon is so bad that there is no water, just a filthy mire for a floor that Jeremiah sinks into when they lower him down into it.

One of the eunuchs that was in the king’s house, an Ethiopian man named Ebedmelech, realizes that what they are doing to Jeremiah is wrong and he goes to the king to intercede on Jeremiah’s behalf, and the king then sends Ebedmelech with a small army to rescue him and pull him up out of the mire.

Fast forward now to chapter thirty-nine. Babylon has arrived, and judgment is falling on all who refused to listen to Jeremiah, but Jeremiah himself is treated well by the Babylonians and is actually given his choice about whether to stay in Jerusalem or go with the rest of the captives to Babylon. Either way, he would be a free man. Notice in vs. 15 – 18 that Ebedmelech also is promised by God that he will be treated well. God remembered the kindness that Ebedmelech showed Jeremiah when he was in the prison.

Jesus said something very similar in Matthew 25:

“Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” (Matthew 25:37-40)

Did you notice that one of the things that Jesus will reward (besides the cup of cold water pictured above) is visiting one of His brethren in prison. That’s exactly what Ebedmelech did. His visited Jeremiah and He interceded to the king on his behalf. And, God remembered him. God stated the same thing in Jeremiah 39 that He states in Matthew. He told Ebedmelech that what he did for Jeremiah was just the same as doing it for God.

Ebedmelech was not a prophet, He wasn’t even a Jew, but He demonstrated faith in God by what he did for Jeremiah, God’s man. Not everybody today is a preacher or teacher of the Word of God, but if they faithfully serve God in whatever capacity God has given them and equipped them for, they will also be remembered by God. God remembers.