With the death of Josiah, the kingdom of Judah proceeded to undergo God’s judgment. We read these events with sadness. Although the details are not graphically portrayed we can assume that the land was wracked by great violence and bloodshed. Eventually all the people were uprooted from their land and their homes and sent into exile in Babylon, hundreds of miles to the east. The innocent and the righteous people were carried off as well as the idolaters. Among these were Daniel and his friends and Ezekiel. The prophet Jeremiah remained in Judah until he was taken to Egypt by those who had rebelled against Gedaliah, the puppet ruler enthroned by the Babylonians.
The kings of Judah and some of the elite families are mentioned by name but from the greatest to the least all suffered extreme hardship. The loss of a King upon the throne of Judah was probably the worst of all the trials they endured. It meant the loss of hope, of any possibility of the kingdom being restored. It also seemed to indicate that the Lord had deserted them, that He had abrogated the covenant in which He had established the line of David to last forever. These feelings were shared by those who returned from the exile many years later. Yet the end of the book served to dispel their doubts and fears. A descendant of David still lived to carry on his name. God had kept His covenant after all. Eventually a Messiah would spring forth from David’s line to liberate them.
Often we undergo such great trials and suffering that we feel as if God has deserted us, that our lives have fallen apart, that there is no hope. At such times we ought to recall the promises God made to the Jews and how He always fulfilled them in unexpected ways. This should give us the strength to endure and persevere.
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