That’s kind of what it was like for the prophet Jeremiah during the reign of King Zedekiah. According to Legends of the Jews, he was facing opposition from pretty much everyone. Think about it – the people, the royal court…even some of the high priests! Ginzberg, drawing on a wealth of sources, paints a picture of a society in deep spiritual crisis. He even mentions that these priests weren't even following the basic commandment of circumcision!
Jeremiah was stirring up trouble because he was against an alliance with Egypt against Babylonia. He felt the right move was to make peace with Nebuchadnezzar. Now, on the surface, siding with Egypt seemed like the smart play. They looked like they could offer some real muscle against the Babylonians.
In fact, Pharaoh Necho’s army actually set sail from Egypt to help the Jews. But then, a strange thing happened.
God, seeing this, commanded the seas to be covered in corpses. Imagine the scene! The Egyptians, sailing along, suddenly confronted by this macabre sight. "Where did all these bodies come from?" they wondered.
Then, the realization dawned. These were the bodies of their ancestors, drowned in the Red Sea because of the Israelites’ liberation from Egyptian slavery! “What?” they exclaimed. “Shall we help the descendants of those who drowned our fathers?” It just didn’t sit right.
And so, they turned their ships around and sailed back to Egypt. Just as Jeremiah had warned, Egyptian promises turned out to be worthless.
It makes you wonder, doesn’t it? How often do we ignore the wisdom of those who see the bigger picture, blinded by short-term gains or fleeting alliances? And how often does history – even ancient history, perhaps especially ancient history – have a way of repeating itself? Maybe the story of Jeremiah isn’t just a tale from the past, but a lesson for us today.