JUDAH TAKEN CAPTIVE
LESSON FOR THE JUNIOR CLASSES
STUDY SCRIPTURE:
2 KINGS 24 : 18-25:9
Key Verse
“For it was due to the anger of the Lord that this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until He cast them out of His presence. And Zedekiah revolted against the king of Babylon”. 2 Kings 24: 20
INTRODUCTION.
Our Study is a study of what happens when believers in God continue to do what they know they should not be doing. When a person is warned over and over again that they are not doing the right thing and they casually ignore the warnings it means that there is something seriously wrong with them. Sadly some people behave that way.
But we know there are consequences for wrongdoing. The people and the leaders of Judah continued to do everything God did not want them to do. For over 40 years the prophet Jeremiah warned them to stop sinning. He wept over their behaviour. But it made no difference to the rulers. Two times their disobedience resulted in their enemies invading their country and taking away some of their treasures and some of their skilled people. They were steadily been reduced deeper and deeper into poverty but they did not get the message that they should turn around and begin behaving so that God would now protect them from their enemies and prosper them.
The kings and leaders were evil and would not obey God. So then on schedule came the unpleasant consequences. The king of Babylon came and conquered the nation. He destroyed the city of Jerusalem, destroyed the Temple, and took the king Zedekiah and all the royal family and the other leading citizens into captivity in Babylon. Sadly the nation appointed by God as His special treasure came to an end. The end came because of their refusal to obey God. That is a powerful lesson for us today. God loves us and cares for us as He cared for the people of Judah. He was patient and kind to them just as He is patient and kind to us. God is good and is always there to help us when we are weak. So we do not need to fear. Trust God and lean on Him.