7/1/2011 9:08:56
AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus:
The
lost their city and temple
Bible Reading
& Meditation Reference: 2Ki. 24:18-25:21; 2Chron. 36:11-21
Message of the verses: “18
Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned
eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of
Jeremiah of Libnah. 19 He did evil in
the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 20 For through the anger of the LORD this came
about in Jerusalem and Judah until He cast them out from His presence. And
Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
“1 ¶ Now in the ninth year of his
reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, camped against it and built a
siege wall all around it. 2 So the city
was under siege until the eleventh year of King Zedekiah. 3 On the ninth day of the fourth month the
famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the
land. 4 Then the city was broken into,
and all the men of war fled by night by way of the gate between the two walls
beside the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were all around the city. And
they went by way of the Arabah. 5 But
the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of
Jericho and all his army was scattered from him. 6 Then they captured the king and brought him
to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and he passed sentence on him. 7 They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before
his eyes, then put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him with bronze fetters
and brought him to Babylon.
“8 ¶ Now on the seventh day of
the fifth month, which was the nineteenth year of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of
Babylon, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of
Babylon, came to Jerusalem. 9 He burned
the house of the LORD, the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; even
every great house he burned with fire. 10
So all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard
broke down the walls around Jerusalem. 11
Then the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters
who had deserted to the king of Babylon and the rest of the people, Nebuzaradan
the captain of the guard carried away into exile. 12 But the captain of the guard left some of the
poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen. 13 Now the bronze pillars which were in the
house of the LORD, and the stands and the bronze sea which were in the house of
the LORD, the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried the bronze to Babylon.
14 They took away the pots, the shovels,
the snuffers, the spoons, and all the bronze vessels which were used in temple
service. 15 The captain of the guard
also took away the firepans and the basins, what was fine gold and what was
fine silver. 16 The two pillars, the one
sea, and the stands which Solomon had made for the house of the LORD-the bronze
of all these vessels was beyond weight. 17
The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and a bronze capital
was on it; the height of the capital was three cubits, with a network and
pomegranates on the capital all around, all of bronze. And the second pillar
was like these with network. 18 Then the
captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah the second
priest, with the three officers of the temple. 19 From the city he took one official who was
overseer of the men of war, and five of the king’s advisers who were found in
the city; and the scribe of the captain of the army who mustered the people of
the land; and sixty men of the people of the land who were found in the city.
20 Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard
took them and brought them to the king of Babylon at Riblah. 21 Then the king of Babylon struck them down and
put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was led away into
exile from its land.”
“11
¶ Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when
he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. 12 He did evil in the sight of the LORD his God;
he did not humble himself
before Jeremiah the prophet who spoke for the LORD. 13
He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swear
allegiance by God. But he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against
turning to the LORD God of Israel. 14
Furthermore, all the officials of the priests and the people were very
unfaithful following all the abominations of the nations; and they defiled the house
of the LORD which He had sanctified in Jerusalem. 15 The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent word
to them again and again by His messengers, because He had compassion on His people and on His
dwelling place; 16 but they
continually mocked the messengers of God, despised His words and scoffed at His
prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, until there was
no remedy. 17 Therefore He brought up
against them the king of the Chaldeans who slew their young men with the sword
in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion on young man or virgin,
old man or infirm; He gave them all into his hand. 18 All the articles of the house of God, great
and small, and the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the
king and of his officers, he brought them all to Babylon. 19 Then they burned the house of God and broke
down the wall of Jerusalem, and burned all its fortified buildings with fire
and destroyed all its valuable articles. 20
Those who had escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon; and they
were servants to him and to his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia,
21 to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah,
until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths. All the days of its desolation it kept
sabbath until seventy years were complete.”
I
have read that the fall of Jerusalem was on August 14, 586BC, and I also have
read that this was the holiday Rosh Hashanah when it seems that many difficult
things happened to the Jewish people throughout their history. One author that I read that was a novel about
the end times had the Rapture take place on Rosh Hashanah because this would be
the beginning of the worst times for the children of Israel.
Jeremiah
wrote in his book in 25:11 the prophecy that would be fulfilled in verse twenty-one
of 2Chronicles 36. The Sabbath’s that
are spoken of here are the sabbatical years that took place every seven years
and are spoken of in one of the books of the Law. The land was to have rest every seven years
and during that time the people were to trust the Lord to provide for them, but
they did not trust the Lord to provide for them and did not keep any of these
sabbatical years and so the Lord would have the land rest for seventy straight
years.
Ezekiel
who was alive in Babylon during the time of the siege that took place from Jan.
of 587 until Aug. of 586 wrote that King Zedekiah would be captured and taken
to Babylon, but would not see Babylon, and this took place because even though
he saw Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon he then watched as the king had his
sons killed and then his eyes were blinded before he was taken to Babylon.
There
were many prophecies given by the Lord through His prophets telling the people
of Israel what would happen to them because of their sin of worshiping idols and
they all came true because the people of Israel did not repent and turn to the
Lord (2Chron. 7:14).
Spiritual meaning for my life today: As I read about the soldiers of Babylon
tearing down the temple and taking away all of the articles that were in it to
Babylon I could not help but think of the time it took Solomon to build this
great temple. This then made me think of
myself as the temple of the Holy Spirit and how I do not want to spiritually
defile and tear down this temple that the Lord has chosen to dwell in at this
time in history. I must keep myself
clean in order to serve the Lord in this body.
My Steps of
Faith for Today:
1.
Psalm 139:23-24
2.
Romans 12:1-2
3.
Proverbs 3:5-6
4.
Ephesians 6:10-18
5.
Philippians 4:11-12
7/1/2011 9:45:07
AM
