What can we possibly learn from such a depressing passage? After all, we modern Christians don’t bow down before carved images like those Ancient Israelites did. And we know that Jesus has fulfilled all the meaning of the Temple and its sacrifices. So why should it matter to us that the Israelites were carried off into exile because of their idolatry?

Well, in the first place, this passage should remind us that social sin always has consequences. No, our modern American sins may not be exactly like those of wicked King Manasseh, who practiced witchcraft and burned up his children alive as sacrifices to false gods (II Kings 21:6). But we can’t pretend that we don’t have innocent blood on our hands (24:4): after all, more than 4700 people were lynched in America between 1882 and 1968, many of them for purely racist reasons. And over 60 million American babies have been killed in the womb since 1973.

And aren’t we finally seeing some of the consequences of all those deaths? Much of our modern politics continues to be poisoned by racial divisions. And we’ve all heard that there just aren’t enough workers these days to pay all the pensions of those who wish to retire. And where are the doctors and nurses and airline pilots who suddenly seem to be so scarce? Why are our colleges having a hard time filling their dormitories and our armed services having a hard time meeting their enlistment quotas? Could it be that the people who would have done those jobs and filled those roles and paid those taxes never had a chance to be born?

Yes, the idolatry of the Ancient Israelites was so deeply ingrained that it took the destruction of their capital city and their Temple, not to mention the loss of their political freedom to root it out of their society. One only wonders what it will take to rid us Americans of our racial divisions and our idolatry of sexual freedom – as well as the untold poverty, misery and death that they have produced.

But there is some good news in today’s passage as well. For verses 2 and 13 remind us that even the severest of consequences are still under the sovereign control of our God: after all, everything that happened to the ancient Israelites had first been predicted by the prophets God had sent to warn them and to urge them to turn back to Him. Just so, we can trust the promises of our Lord to forgive us and cleanse us, if we will repent of our sin, accepting our Savior’s pardon and surrendering to Him as our King. Will heed His Word and answer His call – before it’s too late?

II Kings 24:1-16 (NASB)

In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years; then he turned and rebelled against him.
2 And the LORD sent against him bands of Chaldeans, bands of Arameans, bands of Moabites, and bands of Ammonites. So He sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which He had spoken through His servants the prophets.
3 Surely at the command of the LORD it came upon Judah, to remove them from His sight because of the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he had done,
4 and also for the innocent blood which he shed, for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; and the LORD would not forgive.
5 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
6 So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers, and Jehoiachin his son became king in his place.
7 And the king of Egypt did not come out of his land again, for the king of Babylon had taken all that belonged to the king of Egypt from the brook of Egypt to the river Euphrates.
8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem.
9 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done.
10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon went up to Jerusalem, and the city came under siege.
11 And Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came to the city, while his servants were besieging it.
12 And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he and his mother and his servants and his captains and his officials. So the king of Babylon took him captive in the eighth year of his reign.
13 And he carried out from there all the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king’s house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, just as the LORD had said.
14 Then he led away into exile all Jerusalem and all the captains and all the mighty men of valor, ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. None remained except the poorest people of the land.
15 So he led Jehoiachin away into exile to Babylon; also the king’s mother and the king’s wives and his officials and the leading men of the land, he led away into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.
16 And all the men of valor, seven thousand, and the craftsmen and the smiths, one thousand, all strong and fit for war, and these the king of Babylon brought into exile to Babylon.