Jeremiah 52:1-5: a reflection

1Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign. He reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 2He did that which was evil in the LORD’s sight, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 3For through the LORD’s anger this happened in Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 4In the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it; and they built forts against it round about. 5So the city was besieged to the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.

As Jeremiah recounts the last days of Judah, he notes something telling about King Zedekiah: He did that which was evil in the LORD's sight, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. Zedekiah had before him the example of his predecessors, whose evil had already brought disaster on the land; and rather than learn from it, he repeated it, doing all that Jehoiakim had done. He failed to learn from the bad example set before him, and so the disaster came again.

Notice Zedekiah's failure: he repeated the evil that had already brought disaster, rather than learning from it. The example of Jehoiakim's evil and its consequences was before him; he could have learned from it, turned from that path, spared himself and his people. Instead he did all that Jehoiakim had done, following the bad example rather than heeding its warning. He did not learn from the failures of those before him, and so he brought the same ruin on himself. The bad example that should have warned him was, instead, simply repeated.

That failure to learn from others' bad example is one we can share, for the failures of those before us are meant to teach us. We have before us, in others and in history, examples of paths that led to ruin; and these are meant to warn us, to teach us not to walk the same way. But we can, like Zedekiah, ignore the warning and repeat the very evil we have seen bring disaster on others. When you see the bad example of others, and the harm their path brought, do not simply repeat it as Zedekiah repeated Jehoiakim's evil; learn from it, and turn from that path before it brings you the same ruin. The failures of those before you are set before you as warnings; heed them rather than repeating them, learning from others' bad example instead of following it into the same disaster, as Zedekiah followed Jehoiakim into ruin he could have avoided.

Lord, as Jeremiah recounts the last days of Judah, he notes something telling about King Zedekiah: he did that which was evil in your sight, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. Zedekiah had before him the example of his predecessors, whose evil had already brought disaster; and rather than learn from it, he repeated it. He failed to learn from the bad example set before him, and so the disaster came again. Show me his failure: he repeated the evil that had already brought disaster, rather than learning from it. The example of Jehoiakim's evil and its consequences was before him; he could have learned from it, turned from that path, spared himself and his people. Instead he followed the bad example rather than heeding its warning. That failure is one I can share, for the failures of those before me are meant to teach me. I have before me, in others and in history, examples of paths that led to ruin; and these are meant to warn me, to teach me not to walk the same way. But I can, like Zedekiah, ignore the warning and repeat the very evil I have seen bring disaster on others. When I see the bad example of others, and the harm their path brought, keep me from simply repeating it; help me learn from it, and turn from that path before it brings me the same ruin. The failures of those before me are set before me as warnings; help me heed them rather than repeat them, Lord, learning from others' bad example instead of following it into the same disaster.