Today's Scripture Reading (May 23, 2020): Jeremiah 24
Once upon a time, there was a boy who was placed in charge of keeping the sheep safe in the pasture, not far from a small town. But the task was a lonely one, and the boy longed for company or even some kind of excitement. And so, one night, he struck on an idea. With the loudest voice that he could muster, the boy cried out, “Wolf!” The message was not lost on those who heard the boy’s cry. A wolf had found itself among the sheep, and unless something were done, there would be no flock left for which to care. The men stormed toward the pasture, armed with whatever weapons were at hand, ready to take care of the wolf. But when they arrived at the field, they only found a bored boy and some safe sheep. The boy seemed amused that his call had brought the adults running.
The next night, the boy, still lonely and bored, cried out one more time, “Wolf!” As had happened the night before, the men of the village stormed the pasture ready to dispatch the wolf from among the sheep, but once again, there was no wolf, only some sheep and a lonely and bored boy smiling back at them as they arrived.
On the third night, a wolf showed up among the sheep. The boy was terrified. There was nothing that he could do to protect the sheep or even to defend himself. He needed help. And so, he cried, “Wolf!” once again. And then he waited for the armed men of the village to come over the hill to the pasture, but this time no one came. The wolf had his way with the sheep and the little boy. No one believed that the boy was telling the truth, when the previous nights, he had been telling a lie.
“The Boy Who Cried Wolf” is a cautionary tale that tries to teach moral behavior. In this case, the teaching is don’t lie, because if you do, people won’t believe you when you are telling the truth. It is a dilemma that most of us have experienced in some way. One of the most fundamental questions that we ask ourselves is, “who is it that we can believe?” Most conspiracy theories that circulate through our social media pages argue that most people are lying to us and that there is no one left to trust. Of course, the irony is that most of those conspiracy theories are also trying to peddle a lie.
God tells Jeremiah that he has divided Israel into two. Some, he has sent out of the nation for their protection. But Zedekiah and his court, he will deal severely with, and his name will become a cautionary tale of what happens to evil people who believe that they are self-sufficient and have no need for either advisors or God. The name of Zedekiah would become a curse word in Israel. The king would be remembered as the one who lost the kingdom. After Zedekiah, there would be no Israel, and no Judah, left in the world.
Just a note on dating, Jeremiah's prophecies are chronologically mixed up. This prophecy would seem to date to a time before Judah fell to the Babylonians and suffered their third and final exile. Jeremiah appears to have intended that these words would be a warning to Zedekiah and his court and that there was still time for the King to change the nation’s direction. If that change does not come, Jeremiah argues that God will deal with Zedekiah and his officials “whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt” (Jeremiah 24:8). We know that Zedekiah did neither; he was blinded and then taken captive to live out his days in Babylon. Zedekiah died as a pauper and a prisoner, instead of the King that he once had been. A fitting ending to an extraordinary cautionary tale.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 25
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