Jerusalem falls.
Zedekiah wants to know what God’s will is as Jerusalem falls to the Babylonians. Jeremiah tells him to surrender and things will go as well as possible. Zedekiah worries that the Babylonian army will turn him over to Jewish malcontents who will kill him. Jeremiah assures him that God will protect him. Jeremiah elaborates that failure to surrender will result in great dishonor and shame. Zedekiah refuses to surrender. Why seek an audience with Jeremiah and not obey the word of God? There are times when we want things to be different but are not willing to do what is required. We want to change habits but we don’t want to pay the price of change. Change is rarely easy. Zedekiah talked about change; started the process for change; but in the end would not humble himself for change. God wants spiritual change. His desire is that our hearts be open to change so that we can be more like Jesus. While change may not be easy, being more like Jesus makes such change worthwhile. Let’s be humble in seeking to follow God.