This is the message Jeremiah the prophet gave to the staff officer Seraiah son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went to Babylon with Zedekiah king of Judah in the fourth year of his reign. – Jeremiah 51:59

 Today's Scripture Reading (August 3, 2023): Jeremiah 51

As someone who enjoys geopolitical intrigue, watching the events in Russia is always an interesting task. I must admit that I can say it is interesting because I am not part of the intrigue. I don't have to worry about some Secret Service officer coming to my home in the middle of the night and taking me away to some secret place where no one can find me. As bad as we think things are, we don't have to worry about government detractors and critics disappearing in the middle of the night. Chris Christie will still be around tomorrow regardless of what he says about President Biden or King Trump. And sometimes we forget that that isn't the way it is in other places in the world.

For instance, GOP Congressional Leader Kevin McCarthy seems to consistently be putting his foot in his mouth when talking about Donald Trump. After some of these instances, he has made a pilgrimage to Maro Lago to pay tribute to Republican Leader. But it is just a political pilgrimage. There is no worry that one of these times, he might show up to talk with President Trump and simply disappear, never to be seen again. And we get that. But in Russia, such things are not as obvious. And sometimes, people do disappear, either for a time or permanently.

Jeremiah writes this message during the fourth year of Zedekiah's reign. That means that this message was not written in the year that Babylon invaded and destroyed Jerusalem. It was written in 593 B.C.E., seven years before the destruction of the Judean capital. It was the year that Zedekiah participated in an ill-considered rebellion against Babylon. After the rebellion, Zedekiah traveled to Babylon to try to mend his relationship with Nebuchadnezzar.

At that time, Jeremiah sent a copy of this prophecy with a Jewish official named Seriah, the son of Neriah. Seriah had a vital connection with Jeremiah. He was the brother of Jeremiah's secretary, Baruch. And as such, he may have held some sympathies regarding Jeremiah, enough of a connection that Jeremiah could request him to take the copy to the Babylonian overlords and exiles in Babylon. Did the copy ever reach its intended audience? And what was the purpose of Jeremiah sending this message? Was it simply an encouragement to the exiles, or was it possible that Jeremiah wanted to send a warning to Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians? We don't know the answer to those questions, but if the writing was intended to be a warning, it didn't seem to affect the Babylonian masters.   

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Lamentations 1