Theme: THE SIN OF DISOBEDIENCE
Text: “But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command thee this day; that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee: The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.” – Deuteronomy 28:15, 36
Comment: God Almighty warned the Jews that they would be carried into exile by their enemies if they disobeyed His commandments. When Manasseh and the people of Judah became disobedient to God, they were carried away to captivity by the King of Assyria. It was in exile that the king humbled himself and God caused him to be brought back to his throne at Jerusalem – 2 Chronicles 33:1,2,9-13.
The Jews also were carried into captivity in the days of Zedekiah the last King of Israel, in that he “…hardened his heart from turning unto the LORD God of Israel”. (2 Chronicles 36:11-13) The people even despised the words of the prophets. Hence, Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon carried them into captivity in Babylon where they suffered for about 70 years before God allowed them to be released by Cyrus King of Persia. (2 Chronicles 36:14-23) We should not disobey the word of God else we shall find ourselves in spiritual captivity. Our Saviour warns: “When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out. And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.” – Luke 11:24-26.