Two Paths for Prophets, Two Paths for Kings Text: Jeremiah 26:16-24
Introduction: A Tale of Two Responses
We live in an age that despises ultimatums, particularly when they come from God. Our culture wants a therapeutic deity, a divine butler who affirms our choices and never, ever speaks a hard word. But the God of the Bible is not safe; He is good, but He is not safe. He is a consuming fire. And when He sends His prophets, He sends them with words that divide, words that demand a response, words that will either lead to life or to a swifter judgment. There is no middle ground, no polite negotiation. You either bend the knee to the Word of the Lord, or the Word of the Lord will break you.
In our text today, we are presented with a dramatic courtroom scene. Jeremiah has just delivered a blistering prophecy against the Temple and the city of Jerusalem, declaring that God would make it like Shiloh, a heap of ruins. The priests and the false prophets, whose living depended on the religious status quo, have seized him and are demanding his execution. They are the religious establishment, the tenured professors of apostasy, and they will not tolerate a threat to their corrupt institution. They wrap their murderous intent in pious language, accusing Jeremiah of blasphemy for speaking in the name of Yahweh.
But then something remarkable happens. The civil magistrates, the officials and elders, step in. And in this moment of crisis, we are shown two starkly contrasting case studies. Two historical precedents are brought to the floor of the court. One involves a faithful prophet and a repentant king, Micah and Hezekiah. The other involves another faithful prophet and a murderous king, Uriah and Jehoiakim. These are not just interesting historical anecdotes. They are presented as the two options, the two paths that lay before the leaders of Judah. They could respond to God's Word with humility and fear, like Hezekiah, and find mercy. Or they could respond with arrogant defiance, like Jehoiakim, and bring innocent blood upon their own heads. These are the same two paths that lie before every person, every church, and every nation that hears the Word of the Lord today.
This passage is a master class in the nature of true and false leadership, the cost of faithfulness, the sovereignty of God, and the absolute necessity of heeding the prophetic word. It forces us to ask ourselves: when God's Word confronts us, which king are we? Hezekiah, or Jehoiakim?
The Text
Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets, “No judgment of death for this man! For he has spoken to us in the name of Yahweh our God.” Then some of the elders of the land rose up and spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying, “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spoke to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘Thus Yahweh of hosts has said, “Zion will be plowed as a field, And Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins, And the mountain of the house will become the high places of a forest.” ’ Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear Yahweh and entreat the favor of Yahweh, and Yahweh relented of the evil demise which He had spoken against them? But we are committing a great evil against ourselves.” Indeed, there was also a man who prophesied in the name of Yahweh, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim; and he prophesied against this city and against this land words similar to all those of Jeremiah. And King Jehoiakim and all his mighty men and all the officials heard his words. So the king sought to put him to death; but Uriah heard it, and he was afraid and fled and went to Egypt. Then King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: Elnathan the son of Achbor and certain men with him went into Egypt. And they brought Uriah out from Egypt and led him to King Jehoiakim, who struck him down with a sword and cast his dead body into the burial place of the common people. But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that he was not given into the hands of the people to put him to death.
(Jeremiah 26:16-24 LSB)
The Hezekiah Precedent (vv. 16-19)
We begin with the surprising intervention of the civil authorities.
"Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets, 'No judgment of death for this man! For he has spoken to us in the name of Yahweh our God.'" (Jeremiah 26:16)
Notice the alignment here. It is the religious leaders, the priests and prophets, who are baying for blood. It is the secular leaders, the officials, who inject a note of sanity and justice into the proceedings. This is a recurring pattern in Scripture. It was the Sanhedrin that condemned Jesus, and a Roman governor who washed his hands. It was the Judaizers who hounded Paul, and the Roman authorities who repeatedly, if imperfectly, protected his civil rights. This is a stinging rebuke to a corrupt church. When the state is more concerned with due process and justice than the self-proclaimed men of God, the church is in a catastrophic state of decay.
The officials recognize a fundamental principle: the man has spoken in the name of Yahweh. They are not yet judging the content of the prophecy, but they understand the office. To kill a man for delivering a message from God, even a harsh one, is to pick a fight with God Himself. Then, to bolster their case, the elders of the land appeal to history. They appeal to precedent.
"Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah... 'Zion will be plowed as a field, And Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins...' Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear Yahweh and entreat the favor of Yahweh, and Yahweh relented...?" (Jeremiah 26:18-19)
This is a direct quotation from Micah 3:12. Micah's prophecy was every bit as severe as Jeremiah's, if not more so. He didn't just say the Temple would be destroyed; he said the entire city would become a plowed field, a heap of rubble. And how did the reigning king, Hezekiah, respond? Did he convene a committee to protect the national morale? Did he arrest Micah for sedition and treason? No. Hezekiah feared Yahweh. That is the key. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and it is the beginning of national reformation.
Hezekiah's fear was not the craven terror of a slave before a tyrant. It was the reverential awe of a son before his holy Father. This holy fear led him not to despair, but to action. He "entreated the favor of Yahweh." He led the nation in repentance. And what was the result? "Yahweh relented." God changed His declared course of action in response to their repentance. This is crucial. God's prophetic warnings are not fatalistic predictions of an unchangeable future. They are covenantal summonses. They are invitations to repent and live. The threat is designed to avert the threat. The elders understand this. They see that killing Jeremiah would not save the city; it would only seal its doom. They conclude their argument with a sober warning: "But we are committing a great evil against ourselves." They recognize that persecuting the prophet is not just an attack on the man; it is national suicide.
The Jehoiakim Precedent (vv. 20-23)
But the court is not done hearing evidence. Another case is brought forward, a more recent and chilling one. It serves as the dark shadow, the cautionary tale standing in stark contrast to Hezekiah's wisdom.
"Indeed, there was also a man who prophesied in the name of Yahweh, Uriah the son of Shemaiah... and he prophesied against this city and against this land words similar to all those of Jeremiah." (Jeremiah 26:20)
Here is another man, Uriah, who was a true prophet. His message was not different from Jeremiah's. He spoke the same hard words because he was sent by the same holy God. The truth is not a smorgasbord where you can pick the prophecies you like and leave the rest. God's truth is a seamless garment. And King Jehoiakim, the current king's father, heard these words. His reaction is a case study in tyrannical impiety.
"And King Jehoiakim... sought to put him to death; but Uriah heard it, and he was afraid and fled and went to Egypt." (Jeremiah 26:21)
Uriah was a faithful prophet, but he was also a man. He was afraid. We should not be too quick to judge him for this. Elijah fled from Jezebel. Fear is a natural human response to a credible death threat. But Uriah's fear led him to flee his post. And he fled to Egypt, of all places, the historical symbol of compromise and worldly refuge for Israel. He ran from the covenant land to the land of bondage.
Jehoiakim's response shows the lengths to which a wicked ruler will go to silence the truth. He doesn't just fume; he acts. He mounts an international extradition. He will not suffer a prophet of God to live, even in another country.
"Then King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt... And they brought Uriah out from Egypt and led him to King Jehoiakim, who struck him down with a sword and cast his dead body into the burial place of the common people." (Jeremiah 26:22-23)
This is the act of a despot. Jehoiakim murders a man of God and, to add insult to injury, denies him an honorable burial. He treats the prophet's body like common refuse. This is what happens when a ruler does not fear God. He becomes a law unto himself. He believes he can kill the messenger and thereby nullify the message. But all he does is fill up the measure of his guilt. Jehoiakim thought he was solving a problem, but he was signing his own nation's death warrant.
God's Providential Hand (v. 24)
The chapter concludes with a summary statement that reveals the true actor behind the scenes. The debate was compelling, the historical precedents were powerful, but Jeremiah's deliverance did not ultimately depend on the wisdom of the elders or the fickle mood of the crowd.
"But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that he was not given into the hands of the people to put him to death." (Jeremiah 26:24)
Here we see the hidden hand of God's providence. Ahikam was a man of influence, from a prominent family that had served King Josiah faithfully. His father, Shaphan, was the scribe who had read the discovered Book of the Law to Josiah, sparking a great revival. This family had a legacy of faithfulness. And at the critical moment, God used this man to protect His prophet. The Lord always has His remnant, His key people in key places. While kings rage and corrupt priests plot, God moves His chess pieces. He positions an Ahikam to shield a Jeremiah.
Why was Jeremiah spared while Uriah was killed? They both spoke the same message. They both faced a wicked king. The answer is not found in their relative courage or faithfulness, but in the sovereign purpose of God. God had more work for Jeremiah to do. His ministry was not yet complete. Uriah's ministry, which included his martyrdom, was complete. Both men were faithful, and both are honored by God. One was delivered from death, the other was delivered through death. God's ways are not our ways. Our job is not to secure our own safety, but to discharge our duty. We are to speak the truth God has given us, and leave the consequences, whether it be a king's repentance or a king's sword, in His sovereign hands.
Conclusion: Your Verdict
This chapter lays a choice before us, and it is the same choice that faced the court that day in Jerusalem. We have all heard the Word of the Lord. The gospel comes to us with the same force as the prophecies of Jeremiah and Micah. It tells us that our own righteousness is as filthy rags, that our religious institutions are often corrupt, and that without repentance, a judgment is coming that will make the fall of Jerusalem look like a minor skirmish.
So what is our response? Do we react like the priests and the false prophets, seeking to silence the message because it offends our sensibilities and threatens our comfortable arrangements? Do we say, "This preacher is too harsh, too political, too negative. Sentence him to death. Cancel him."
Or do we respond like Hezekiah? Do we hear the threat of judgment and allow it to produce in us a holy fear? Does it drive us to our knees, to "entreat the favor of Yahweh?" Do we see the warning as a mercy, an opportunity to turn and be healed? This is the path of wisdom, the path of life.
And what about when we are the ones called to speak? We see two models. Uriah spoke faithfully, but faltered in fear. Jeremiah spoke faithfully, and was delivered by God's hidden hand. The call is not to be fearless; the call is to be faithful even in our fear. God knows we are dust. But He calls us to trust Him with the outcome. Some of God's servants are called to be martyrs, and their blood is the seed of the church. Others are called to be long-haul prophets, protected by unseen Ahikams for a lifetime of service. We don't get to choose our assignment. We only get to choose our allegiance.
The ultimate Hezekiah is the Lord Jesus Christ, who heard the judgment of God against our sin, and instead of merely entreating God's favor, He bore the full measure of that plowing, that heap of ruins, in His own body on the cross. And the ultimate Jehoiakim is every man who rejects Him, who seeks to kill the Word, and in so doing, brings a great evil upon himself. The precedents have been laid before you. The evidence has been heard. Now you must render a verdict.