Day 21! You made it! I hope you've enjoyed the devotionals and they have brought perspective and action into your walk with Jesus!

Day 21 – To exile and back!

Well, here we are on the final day of our 21 Days of Fasting and Praying. I have received many reports of people growing closer to God and learning more and more scripture over the last 21 days. Honestly, if you were all-in with this season of praying and fasting, you probably felt better in the last few weeks than you have in a long time, holistically. I hope you understand that this is what we were created for, to commune closely with the Lord. Knowing His word and seeking His presence is one of the great true joys of life! I pray that you will continue a disciplined spiritual life far after today is done, and that you will reap the spiritual, emotional, and physical benefits!

Today we wrap up our journey through the Kings and Prophets, for our devotionals anyway. We will be in this series for a little while longer on Sunday mornings. I want to cover the end of Josiah’s reign and then you will quickly see the steep decline of Judah and you will see my favorite non-Hebrew king show up! Let’s look at the end of 2nd Chronicles 35.

2 Chronicles 35: 20 After Josiah had finished restoring the Temple, King Neco of Egypt led his army up from Egypt to do battle at Carchemish on the Euphrates River, and Josiah and his army marched out to fight him. 21 But King Neco sent messengers to Josiah with this message:

“What do you want with me, king of Judah? I have no quarrel with you today! I am on my way to fight another nation, and God has told me to hurry! Do not interfere with God, who is with me, or he will destroy you.”

22 But Josiah refused to listen to Neco, to whom God had indeed spoken, and he would not turn back. Instead, he disguised himself and led his army into battle on the plain of Megiddo. 23 But the enemy archers hit King Josiah with their arrows and wounded him. He cried out to his men, “Take me from the battle, for I am badly wounded!”

24 So they lifted Josiah out of his chariot and placed him in another chariot. Then they brought him back to Jerusalem, where he died. He was buried there in the royal cemetery. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for him. 25 The prophet Jeremiah composed funeral songs for Josiah, and to this day choirs still sing these sad songs about his death. These songs of sorrow have become a tradition and are recorded in The Book of Laments.

26 The rest of the events of Josiah’s reign and his acts of devotion (carried out according to what was written in the Law of the Lord), 27 from beginning to end—all are recorded in The Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

Wow. That is an unceremonious ending to the reign of a king who 2nd Kings 23 defines this way:

2 Kings 23: 25 Never before had there been a king like Josiah, who turned to the Lord with all his heart and soul and strength, obeying all the laws of Moses. And there has never been a king like him since.

I believe God would have allowed Judah safety and prosperity until the day Josiah died of natural causes, but Josiah wanted to fight a battle that was not his. God had ordained Neco and Egypt to march on another nation and as they passed through Judah, Josiah got in the way of God’s will. It was not intentional, but still yet he did not believe Neco when he said God had spoken to him, and this cost Josiah his life. I’ll tell you what, I never want to be on the wrong side of God! Josiah should have asked Huldah what to do, she would’ve straightened him out! Let’s make sure that we are always in God’ will for us and our family. Just because something looks like a blessing up front, or it seems to be a fight we should enter, it might not be God’s will in our lives.

Now, let me give you a short run down of the rest of the Kings of Judah from 2nd Chronicles 36.

2 Chronicles 36: 2 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. 3 Then he was deposed by the king of Egypt, who demanded that Judah pay 7,500 pounds of silver and 75 pounds of gold as tribute.

4 The king of Egypt then installed Eliakim, the brother of Jehoahaz, as the next king of Judah and Jerusalem, and he changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim. Then Neco took Jehoahaz to Egypt as a prisoner.5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God.

(Nebuchadnezzar shows up and deposes Jehoiakim and takes him to Babylon.)

9 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem three months and ten days. Jehoiachin did what was evil in the Lord’s sight.

(Nebuchadnezzar did it again with Jehoiachin)

11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eleven years. 12 But Zedekiah did what was evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and he refused to humble himself when the prophet Jeremiah spoke to him directly from the Lord.

Zedekiah was the last king of Judah before God exiled them completely to Babylon. Here’s how that went:

14 Likewise, all the leaders of the priests and the people became more and more unfaithful. They followed all the pagan practices of the surrounding nations, desecrating the Temple of the Lord that had been consecrated in Jerusalem.

15 The Lord, the God of their ancestors, repeatedly sent his prophets to warn them, for he had compassion on his people and his Temple. 16 But the people mocked these messengers of God and despised their words. They scoffed at the prophets until the Lord’s anger could no longer be restrained and nothing could be done.

17 So the Lord brought the king of Babylon against them. The Babylonians killed Judah’s young men, even chasing after them into the Temple. They had no pity on the people, killing both young men and young women, the old and the infirm. God handed all of them over to Nebuchadnezzar.18 The king took home to Babylon all the articles, large and small, used in the Temple of God, and the treasures from both the Lord’s Temple and from the palace of the king and his officials.19 Then his army burned the Temple of God, tore down the walls of Jerusalem, burned all the palaces, and completely destroyed everything of value. 20 The few who survived were taken as exiles to Babylon, and they became servants to the king and his sons until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

21 So the message of the Lord spoken through Jeremiah was fulfilled. The land finally enjoyed its Sabbath rest, lying desolate until the seventy years were fulfilled, just as the prophet had said.

There is so much powerful theology and life lessons to be learned in the study of the rise and the fall and the restoration of Israel. There is so much compassion and grace in the Lord, but there are also consequences to sin and disobedience. In the Exile we see prophets like Jeremiah, Ezechiel, and Daniel. We see God moving despite the scattered nature of His people! And in 2nd Chronicles 36 it makes the exile seem like a blink of an eye, which we know 70 years is a lifetime!

22 In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, the Lord fulfilled the prophecy he had given through Jeremiah. He stirred the heart of Cyrus to put this proclamation in writing and to send it throughout his kingdom:

23 “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says:

“The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Any of you who are his people may go there for this task. And may the Lord your God be with you!”

Folks, if you get anything from our devotional time together, get this: Our God is in charge, He is in control, He is in command, and He cares for you. Being in charge, God has the final say. Being in control, God has a grip on our future. Being in command, God is working in all things. And despite that total authority, He loves us! Let me close by calling your attention to 1 Peter 5. Peter tells us how we should respond to this realization of God.

6 So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.7 Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.

8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 9 Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.

10 In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. 11 All power to him forever! Amen.

Our God is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He is the beginning and the end. Yet, even with the infinite power and majesty, He cares for you, and He cares for me. Even if we go through suffering, He is faithful to restore! Let this give you confidence even when the nations rage, and the politicians lie, or the French make fun of us. Just take it with a graceful smile, because our God who knows our name has the final say! I pray God gives you His grace, love, and mercy. I pray that He gives you confidence to face everything life will throw your way!