In Jeremiah, chapter twenty-seven, verse eight, “And it shall come to pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.” Jeremiah’s prophetic counsel to Judah was to submit to Babylon’s dominion and not resist God’s will for them. However, if they rebelled and fought against Babylon, Jeremiah warned that they would encounter great suffering and defeat.
Nebuchadnezzar was an arrogant ruler of Babylon. So why did God want the nation of Judah to submit to the king of Babylon? To know the will of God, a believer must obey and do the things of God for Him to share what He has in store for them. However, if not, then how could they know? Jeremiah had spoken to the people of Judah for twenty-three years, as in chapter twenty-five, verse three. Yet, the people had not listened; they worshipped their idols and continued living their sinful ways.
The nation of Judah saw the king of Babylon as ungodly. Still, the people of Judah were not doing godly things. Therefore, God’s will was for them to be ruled by ungodly people. There was no other alternative for their situation. Romans twelve, verse two, declares, “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed to the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
Those who will not serve the God who made them shall justly be made to serve the enemies that seek to ruin them.
Jeremiah urges them to prevent their destruction by submission. To make the best of what is bad.