Then the officials said to the king, “This man should be put to death. He is discouraging the soldiers who are left in this city, as well as all the people, by the things he is saying to them. This man is not seeking the good of these people but their ruin.”
Jeremiah 38:2-4 NIV
The Babylonian army had besieged Jerusalem, and the outlook was bleak. Jeremiah delivered God’s message to the people during this time, encouraging them to surrender to the Babylonians. If they did, they would live. But if they remained in the city, they would die or be enslaved.
But this was not a popular message. And some of the nation’s officials reported Jeremiah to the king, seeking to have him killed. The charge they leveled against him was that he was not seeking the good of the people but their ruin. Their perspective was the opposite of what God had Jeremiah telling them.
Opposing views of what is good are all around us today. In particular, views about the Bible. Some argue that what the Bible teaches is not for the good of society. But that it is the enemy of an enlightened and advanced social order. And, as these officials sought to silence God’s word through Jeremiah, many people today seek to silence or distort God’s message to us through the Bible. And, in the process, they are bringing ruin to the nation.
Regardless of what many are saying, the Bible, if understood correctly, will lead us to the one who gives life. It is God’s inspired word and is just as applicable today as when it was written. Heeding its message will be for your good. Turning away from it will only lead to ruin. Prayerfully seek to understand God’s message for you through the words of the Bible. And then be willing to apply it to your life.
