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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Friday, 24 October 2025:
2 Kings 25:1-2 — And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it. So the city was besieged till the eleventh year of King Zedekiah.
The final chapter of 2 Kings opens with a date of devastation. “This is the first time in Kings that an event in the history of Israel is dated by a foreign era.” (Dilday) God’s warnings through His prophets have come to full fruition. The siege of Jerusalem marks the closing act of Judah’s rebellion. For two long years the city endures starvation, fear, and despair, all the inevitable outcomes of resisting God’s Word. The precision of the date shows that judgment is not random but appointed. As Lamentations 2:17 declares, “The LORD has done what He purposed; He has carried out His word, which He commanded long ago.” When people reject His counsel, they will live under the consequences of their own defiance. God’s patience had delayed judgment, but now His justice demands it.
2 Kings 25:3-4 — On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was so severe in the city that there was no food for the people of the land. Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, by the king’s garden, though the Chaldeans were around the city.
The famine within the walls fulfills the covenant curses warned of in Deuteronomy 28:52-53, where God told Israel that disobedience would lead to siege and starvation. What once was a city of feasting now becomes a place of starvation. The soldiers’ secret escape attempt symbolizes leadership’s failure, seeking survival rather than repentance. Zedekiah had the chance to humble himself before God’s Word through Jeremiah’s counsel, yet he chose self-preservation over surrender to divine authority. The result is humiliation and destruction. Those who run from God’s discipline only find deeper ruin.
2 Kings 25:5-7 — But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army was scattered from him. Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they passed sentence on him. They slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains and took him to Babylon.
Godless people are cruel for cruelty’s sake. There is no limit to the evil a godless person might do.
The capture and blinding of Zedekiah stand as one of the most tragic scenes in Scripture, fulfilling Ezekiel’s prophecy (Ezekiel 12:13-14). He sees his sons executed, his lineage and legacy cut off, then loses his sight, leaving that image burned into his final memory. Jeremiah 39:6-7 records this same moment, underscoring that the Word of the Lord came true exactly as spoken. Rebellion against God always leads to loss of vision, both physical and spiritual. Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no prophetic vision the people cast off restraint.” Zedekiah’s blindness is a symbol of Judah’s spiritual darkness; they had refused to see truth, and now they are left in darkness.
- Ezekiel 12:13-14 — And I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare. And I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, yet he shall not see it, and he shall die there. And I will scatter toward every wind all who are around him, his helpers and all his troops, and I will unsheathe the sword after them.
2 Kings 25:8-10 — In the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month… Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem. And he burned the house of the LORD and the king’s house and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down. And all the army of the Chaldeans… broke down the walls around Jerusalem.
The burning of the temple is the devastating climax of Judah’s fall. The house built for God’s name, the place of His presence, goes up in flames. Yet even this act is not evidence of Babylon’s triumph, but of God’s holiness. He had warned, “If you forsake Me… I will cast this house out of My sight” (2 Chronicles 7:19-20). The destruction of the temple is divine discipline, not divine defeat. Earthly empires may think they have conquered, but God alone ordains when His glory departs. The physical walls fall because the spiritual walls had long since crumbled through sin.
2 Kings 25:11-12 — And the rest of the people who were left in the city and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, together with the rest of the multitude, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile. But the captain of the guard left some of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and plowmen.
Judah’s elite, its leaders, warriors, and artisans, are carried away, while only the poor remain. In the eyes of the world, these leftovers seem insignificant, yet God often works through the remnant. From this remnant will come the line of restoration. The land, ravaged and humbled, begins its Sabbath rest, just as God had decreed in Leviticus 26:34-35. What man calls ruin, God calls reset. His plans are redemptive, even in judgment.
2 Kings 25:13-17 — And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the LORD, and the stands and the bronze sea… the Chaldeans broke in pieces, and carried the bronze to Babylon. And they took away the pots and the shovels… and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service.
The sacred vessels of worship are desecrated and carried off, just as Isaiah had prophesied to Hezekiah a century earlier (Isaiah 39:6). Every ornament and implement once dedicated to the service of God now becomes spoil for pagans. Yet, even in exile, these same vessels later reappear—returned under Cyrus’s decree in Ezra 1:7-11. What is taken is not lost forever; God’s purpose endures beyond the moment of defeat. His redemptive timeline cannot be broken by the failures of man.
2 Kings 25:18-21 — And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest and Zephaniah the second priest and the three keepers of the threshold… and the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at Riblah.
God’s judgement holds both political and religious leaders accountable.
The execution of the priests and officers completes the judgment on corrupt leadership. Those who once stood in the courts of the Lord now fall under His justice. Their deaths testify that spiritual compromise among leaders brings destruction to nations. As James 3:1 warns, “Not many of you should become teachers… for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” Leadership without righteousness is a liability, not an asset.
2 Kings 25:22-26 — And over the people who remained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, he appointed Gedaliah…. But when all the captains and their men heard… they came to Gedaliah…. Then Ishmael struck down Gedaliah… and all the people… departed and went to Egypt, for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.
Through devastating judgment, God leaves a remnant and hope.
Even after judgment, chaos reigns. Gedaliah’s assassination and the people’s flight to Egypt show that fear, not faith, still governs Judah’s heart. Egypt, once their false refuge, becomes their destination again, closing the circle of disobedience that began in Exodus. Jeremiah 42-43 records this tragic choice: God commanded them to stay in the land and trust Him, but they fled to Egypt instead. Unbelief always drives people back to bondage. The lesson is clear — until the heart submits, history repeats.
In Christ, we are set free from sin’s dominion, but not from its appeal. We are no longer captive to sin (Romans 6:6-7), yet we can still become captivated by it if we cease walking in daily obedience. Sin has a long history with us — it knows our weaknesses, our impulses, and our desires. Like Israel’s familiarity with Egypt, it always whispers an invitation to return. That’s why Scripture warns so strongly, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12). The danger of overconfidence in our spiritual maturity is that we underestimate the persistence of the flesh. Proverbs 26:11 paints it vividly: “Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly.” The image is graphic because sin is grotesque — yet our hearts, if left unchecked, can still crave what once poisoned us.
God warned Cain in Genesis 4:7, “Sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.” The same is true for us. Sin never stops waiting for an opening — it crouches patiently, hoping we’ll let down our guard through fatigue, complacency, or pride. A moment of fear led the remnant of Judah back into Egypt, and that one decision erased years of endurance. We can build a life of faith brick by brick, but compromise can destroy it in a single choice. What Egypt represents, a return to bondage, comfort, and control, will always tempt us to abandon the hard road of daily trust.
Human nature resists permanent change. Diets prove it — people can endure restriction for a time, but most eventually relapse into old habits, often worse than before. That’s the flesh’s default mode: temporary reform without true transformation. The same principle applies spiritually. Without abiding in Christ, old appetites resurface stronger than ever. Jesus said in John 15:4-5, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me… apart from Me you can do nothing.” Our victory over sin is not achieved by willpower but maintained by relationship, staying connected to Christ moment by moment.
Don’t destroy the life God has built in you through compromise. Don’t return to the Egypt of your past. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you to give power over sin (Romans 8:11). But that power operates through constant dependence, not occasional devotion. The lesson of 2 Kings 25:22-26 is that fear and familiarity can undo even the most miraculous deliverance if faith is not continually exercised. The Christian life isn’t about one-time decisions, it’s about daily devotion and direction. Keep walking forward with Christ; never look back to the old master who once enslaved you.
2 Kings 25:27-30 — And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon… graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah from prison. And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon… and he dined regularly at the king’s table.
The book closes with a glimmer of grace. Jehoiachin, long imprisoned, is suddenly released and honored in Babylon. After all the darkness, this small act of mercy hints at the dawn of restoration. God has not forgotten His covenant with David (2 Samuel 7:16). Even in exile, the royal line is preserved, preparing the way for the coming of Christ — the true Son of David, who would bring redemption not through power, but through suffering. The final verses of Kings point forward to hope: though man’s kingdom has fallen, God’s kingdom is still unfolding.
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 24 October 2025: When everything collapses, God’s Word still stands. The fall of Jerusalem teaches that rebellion always ends in ruin, but also that grace never ends where faith begins. Examine your heart: are there walls of pride, compromise, or disobedience that need to fall so that His presence can be restored? Surrender now, before loss forces surrender later. What seems like devastation may be God’s discipline preparing you for deliverance.
Pray: “Righteous Lord, even in judgment You are merciful. When my world shakes, remind me that Your kingdom cannot be moved. Break every wall of resistance in my heart and rebuild me upon Your Word. Teach me to see hope beyond hardship, and to trust that even my failures can become the soil of Your redemption. Keep me faithful in obedience and patient in affliction. Let me rise from the ruins with my eyes fixed on Christ, the true King who reigns forever. In His name I pray, Amen.”
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