Shed Prison Clothes and Dine at the King’s Table

Neither prison itself nor the clothes prisoners must sport appeal to this girl. And no doubt the entire experience proves undesirable. 

Like confinement to a small space, lack of freedom, prison food or no food, missing my family and friends, and dreaming of a future.

Likewise, Jeremiah 52 recounts this kind of story with an evil king of Jerusalem, Zedekiah, who rebelled against God, and also rebelled against the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar (don’t see those names listed in baby-name books).

So, as a result, Nebuchadnezzar sieged Jerusalem; its king, city, and people fell to this utter destruction and despair:

• Imprisoned King Zedekiah until his death.
• Burned down houses and the house of the Lord.
• Broke down all the walls of Jerusalem.
• Plundered items from the temple.
• Killed the chief priest, keepers of the threshold, and men from the king’s council.
• Took thousands of captives from Jerusalem as exiles to Babylon (seventh and eighteenth years of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign). Then, hundreds of captives from Judah (twenty-third year of his reign).

Yet, when we arrive at the final four verses of this last chapter of Jeremiah, we meet Jehoiachin, king of Judah. Exiled to Babylon and imprisoned when he was a young (Matthew Henry Commentary suggests at eighteen-years-old).

Captivity Turned to Freedom

But here’s the rest of the story in God’s Word when despair turned to joy, and captivity turned to freedom. It’s also my story.

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