But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shewed me:
Jeremiah's words here were part of a tearful and anguished plea and warning to King Zedekiah, telling him what the Lord had shown would happen if he refused to go forth, surrender, and obey the voice of the Lord. To go forth in obedience would save Zedekiah himself, his people, his possessions, and the city from the king of Babylon and preserve him from the coming calamities, while to refuse would cost him his life, hand all his possessions to Babylon, and leave the city to fire and carnage and famine. Zedekiah was convicted that the warning was truth already half-fulfilled, yet he would not retrace his wrong course or change his course to place himself under God's protection. He followed the counsel of false prophets and men he despised, yielding his manhood to fear of man, fear of ridicule, and slavery to public opinion, with no fixed purpose of evil yet with no resolution to stand boldly for the right, and he was even unwilling to let his courtiers and people know he had conferred with Jeremiah.
Courageous open obedience that declared love for truth, hatred for sin, and purpose to follow the Mighty One of Israel would have averted desolation, won respect and support, and turned those wavering between faith and unbelief to a firm stand for the right. Because he refused, Zedekiah was captured, blinded, and taken in chains to Babylon. His fate warns those who harden themselves against reproof and refuse to repent that rejecting God's expressed will brings calamity.
Jeremiah's words here were part of a tearful and anguished plea and warning to King Zedekiah, telling him what the Lord had shown would happen if he refused to go forth, surrender, and obey the voice of the Lord. To go forth in obedience would save Zedekiah himself, his people, his possessions, and the city from the king of Babylon and preserve him from the coming calamities, while to refuse would cost him his life, hand all his possessions to Babylon, and leave the city to fire and carnage and famine. Zedekiah was convicted that the warning was truth already half-fulfilled, yet he would not retrace his wrong course or change his course to place himself under God's protection. He followed the counsel of false prophets and men he despised, yielding his manhood to fear of man, fear of ridicule, and slavery to public opinion, with no fixed purpose of evil yet with no resolution to stand boldly for the right, and he was even unwilling to let his courtiers and people know he had conferred with Jeremiah.
Courageous open obedience that declared love for truth, hatred for sin, and purpose to follow the Mighty One of Israel would have averted desolation, won respect and support, and turned those wavering between faith and unbelief to a firm stand for the right. Because he refused, Zedekiah was captured, blinded, and taken in chains to Babylon. His fate warns those who harden themselves against reproof and refuse to repent that rejecting God's expressed will brings calamity.