# Judah's Chaos - The Book of Jeremiah, 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles

An episode of [Kids Bible in a Year with Julia Jeffress Sadler](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1696638708), 15 Jan 2024, 12 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/f8ddd7fd-69c6-48d0-804f-b4d6010c327c/b9cceed0-54c0-44b1-9b76-b4d60188eb38/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=14e8ed60-20b2-4d5c-a832-b4d6010c3283

Join Julia Jeffress Sadler as she takes us on an incredible adventure in Episode 131. Learn about King Nebuchadnezzar's appointment of Gedaliah as governor over the remnants in Judah and Jeremiah's liberation by the Babylonian commander. Jeremiah is offered a choice: go to Babylon for safety or stay in Judah under Gedaliah's governance. Despite warnings of a plot against his life, Gedaliah's trust leads to his assassination by Ishmael, causing chaos and fear among the survivors. The Jewish captain and his men rescue the captives from Ishmael, but he escapes. The survivors seek guidance from Jeremiah, who, after praying to God, advises them to stay in Judah and obey God. However, the people disregard Jeremiah's warning and flee to Egypt, facing the consequences of their disobedience. Sign up to receive Kids Bible in a Year devotionals in your inbox every weekday: https://www.kidsbibleinayear.com/ Get ready to experience the Bible designed specifically for children with the official KidsBibleinaYear.com podcast, led by Julia Jeffress Sadler. This captivating audio series presents the age-old wisdom of the Bible in an engaging format that will captivate your kids. Each episode Julia translates biblical teachings into real-life applications, making Bible comprehension a breeze for young minds. And if you want more Christian resources and content, you can download the Pray.com app. Pray.com is the digital destination for faith, offering over 5,000 daily prayers, meditations, bedtime Bible stories, and cinematic stories inspired by the Bible. For more resources on how to live a successful Christian life, visit Julia Jeffress Sadler's website at https://ptv.org/julia/. This episode is sponsored by Little Passports. Visit LittlePassports.com/blessed and use promo code BLESSED to receive 20% off. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:00] Speaker 1: When Jeremiah had finished speaking to all the people, all
[0:04] Speaker 1: the words of the Lord their God, then Azariah and
[0:08] Speaker 1: all the proud men spoke, saying to Jeremiah, You speak falsely.
[0:13] Speaker 1: The Lord our God has not sent you to say,
[0:16] Speaker 1: You shall not go into Egypt to live there. Jeremiah 43,
[0:20] Speaker 1: 1-2 Dear God, thank you that you always speak truth
[0:25] Speaker 1: to us. Please give us ears to hear you and
[0:28] Speaker 1: a heart to respond to you. as we learn how
[0:31] Speaker 1: you spoke to Gedalia and the people of Judah. Teach
[0:36] Speaker 1: us to listen and trust you with our whole hearts.
[0:39] Speaker 1: We love you so much. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
[0:45] Speaker 2: Thank you for praying with us today. The Kids Bible
[0:47] Speaker 2: in a Year podcast is sponsored by Little Passports, delivering
[0:51] Speaker 2: monthly activity kit subscriptions that help kids explore the world,
[0:55] Speaker 2: cultivate curiosity, and discover new interests. With hands-on crafts and
[0:59] Speaker 2: activities in cooking, science, crafts, and more. All with a
[1:03] Speaker 2: unique cultural twist. Visit littlepassports.com slash blessed to learn more.
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[1:18] Speaker 3: Judah's Chaos In our last story, Nebuchadnezzar came and destroyed Jerusalem.
[1:25] Speaker 3: Jeremiah was protected and stayed in Judah with Baruch. In
[1:29] Speaker 3: this story, the rest of God's people will be taken
[1:32] Speaker 3: into captivity as the remnant of Judah will ask Jeremiah
[1:37] Speaker 3: to pray for them, and they will not listen to
[1:40] Speaker 3: his words. As inspired by Jeremiah 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles.
[1:50] Speaker 1: Well, hi, it's Joya Sadler with the Kids Bible in
[1:53] Speaker 1: a Year podcast. I'm so glad you're here today. In
[1:57] Speaker 1: this story, we get to hear what happened to the
[1:59] Speaker 1: people left behind in Judah after King Nebuchadnezzar carried everyone
[2:05] Speaker 1: else off to Babylon and one crazy problem they all shared.
[2:10] Speaker 1: Let's find out what happened.
[2:15] Speaker 3: King Nebuchadnezzar. led the Babylonians into battle against Judah, the
[2:20] Speaker 3: southern kingdom of Israel. The Babylonians annihilated Judah. Only a
[2:26] Speaker 3: remnant of the people remained in Judah. The rest of
[2:29] Speaker 3: the people were exiled and taken into captivity. King Nebuchadnezzar
[2:34] Speaker 3: appointed a governor over Judah. The new governor went by
[2:37] Speaker 3: the name of Gedaliah. Meanwhile, there was a group of
[2:41] Speaker 3: captives traveling to Babylon. There was a captive man by
[2:44] Speaker 3: the name of Jeremiah. A commander of the Babylonians found
[2:48] Speaker 3: Jeremiah and said to him, Your God, Jeremiah, did what
[2:53] Speaker 3: he said he would do. The people of Judah did
[2:56] Speaker 3: not obey him and were sinning. Then the commander said
[3:00] Speaker 3: something surprising. He continued to say to Jeremiah, Today, Jeremiah,
[3:05] Speaker 3: you are being set free. You have two options. You
[3:09] Speaker 3: can either come with me to Babylon and I will
[3:11] Speaker 3: take care of you, Or your other option is you
[3:14] Speaker 3: can go anywhere you want in the country. Before Jeremiah
[3:18] Speaker 3: could answer, the commander added, Go to the new governor
[3:22] Speaker 3: of Judah. His name is Gedaliah. You can live with
[3:25] Speaker 3: him and the remaining people, or you can still choose
[3:28] Speaker 3: to go anywhere you want. There were some army officers
[3:33] Speaker 3: and other men who heard that Gedaliah was the new
[3:36] Speaker 3: governor of Judah. So they traveled to meet him. Gedaliah
[3:39] Speaker 3: took an oath and reassured them. As long as you
[3:42] Speaker 3: obey the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, you do not need
[3:45] Speaker 3: to worry or be afraid. You will all live well.
[3:50] Speaker 3: I myself will protect you and be your representative to
[3:53] Speaker 3: the Babylonians. Other Jews from around the land heard that
[3:57] Speaker 3: Gedaliah was the new governor of Judah, and they came
[4:01] Speaker 3: to him to obey and help him. Later, a Jewish
[4:04] Speaker 3: captain and all the army officials had a warning for Gedaliah.
[4:09] Speaker 3: They came to him and said, A man by the
[4:11] Speaker 3: name of Ishmael has been hired to assassinate you. When
[4:15] Speaker 3: the Jewish captain realized that Gedaliah did not believe them,
[4:19] Speaker 3: he said to him privately, Gedaliah, allow me to kill Ishmael.
[4:25] Speaker 3: Nobody will know, and that will be better for everyone.
[4:28] Speaker 3: If Ishmael kills you, all the remaining people following you
[4:32] Speaker 3: will scatter and die. Gedaliah did not like what the
[4:36] Speaker 3: Jewish captain said to him. Gedaliah rejected the captain's warning
[4:40] Speaker 3: and suggestion. Finally, the day came where Ishmael and Gedaliah met.
[4:46] Speaker 3: Ishmael brought ten men with him, and they ate with Gedaliah.
[4:50] Speaker 3: While they were all eating, Ishmael and the other ten
[4:53] Speaker 3: men attacked Gedaliah. They killed him with a sword, and
[4:57] Speaker 3: they killed the Jews who were with Gedaliah, as well
[5:00] Speaker 3: as some Babylonian soldiers. Ishmael and the other men killed
[5:05] Speaker 3: more people. Eventually, they took some people captive and set
[5:09] Speaker 3: out to return to the nation called Amon. The Jewish
[5:13] Speaker 3: captain and all the army officials who had warned Gedaliah
[5:17] Speaker 3: set out to kill Ishmael. When they caught up to
[5:20] Speaker 3: Ishmael and the other men, the captives were joyful. They
[5:24] Speaker 3: returned to the Jewish captain and the other army officials.
[5:28] Speaker 3: But Ishmael escaped with some of his men to the
[5:31] Speaker 3: nation called Amon. As the Jewish captain was leading the
[5:35] Speaker 3: remaining people, they came to Jeremiah. The remaining people asked
[5:40] Speaker 3: Jeremiah to pray to God for them, to ask him
[5:44] Speaker 3: what to do. Jeremiah listened to them and prayed to God.
[5:48] Speaker 3: Ten days later, Jeremiah told them all that God had said.
[5:53] Speaker 3: Jeremiah said, God said to stay in this land and
[5:58] Speaker 3: obey him. If you do not obey him, your enemies
[6:01] Speaker 3: will overtake you. and more of you will perish. Only
[6:05] Speaker 3: a smaller amount of people will remain alive. The people
[6:10] Speaker 3: did not believe Jeremiah, and instead returned to Egypt. What
[6:15] Speaker 3: God said became true, and the people were punished.
[6:25] Speaker 1: Oh no, it sounds like all those people King Nebuchadnezzar
[6:28] Speaker 1: left behind in Judah... had a really hard time understanding
[6:33] Speaker 1: what was true. And that still happens today, where people
[6:37] Speaker 1: have trouble understanding what's true and then obeying accordingly. And
[6:43] Speaker 1: then they make unwise choices that have terrible consequences. That
[6:49] Speaker 1: happened in today's story. Do you remember what happened? God's
[6:54] Speaker 1: people have been worshiping worthless idols, and disobeying him for
[6:59] Speaker 1: a long time. They had a really bad situation where
[7:04] Speaker 1: they were making choices to disobey God and not listen
[7:09] Speaker 1: to what he says. How many times had God sent
[7:13] Speaker 1: prophets like Jeremiah to tell them they needed to change
[7:17] Speaker 1: their behavior, but they just wouldn't listen. So to help
[7:21] Speaker 1: get them cured and help change their hearts and bring
[7:25] Speaker 1: him back to himself, God allowed King Nebuchadnezzar to come
[7:29] Speaker 1: to Judah, conquer Jerusalem, and take most of the people
[7:33] Speaker 1: away to live in Babylon. God knew that if they
[7:37] Speaker 1: had to trust him more, they might start listening with
[7:42] Speaker 1: their ears and take his messages to heart. Then they
[7:46] Speaker 1: could finally start making some wise decisions. But even though
[7:51] Speaker 1: the people left in Judah also had to trust God,
[7:55] Speaker 1: They didn't think they had a problem, so they didn't
[7:58] Speaker 1: think they needed a cure. In fact, since everything Jeremiah
[8:03] Speaker 1: had predicted had come true, you would think they would
[8:07] Speaker 1: want to listen to him. And that everything that had
[8:12] Speaker 1: happened would make sense. But instead, everything just got worse.
[8:18] Speaker 1: Like in Gadaliah's case, Nebuchadnezzar had appointed him governor over Judah.
[8:25] Speaker 1: And because he was in charge, he thought he knew best.
[8:29] Speaker 1: He didn't really want to listen to anyone else. When
[8:33] Speaker 1: his wise army captain warned him about a guy who
[8:36] Speaker 1: was bad news, Ishmael, Gadaliah did not listen. Ishmael, no,
[8:42] Speaker 1: I don't think he's that bad, Gadaliah said. I can
[8:45] Speaker 1: handle him. Ishmael was from a royal family, and Gadaliah
[8:50] Speaker 1: wanted to have friends who were important. So they can
[8:53] Speaker 1: make him look important. Gadaliah didn't listen to his army
[8:58] Speaker 1: captain at all. And when Ishmael came to dinner with
[9:01] Speaker 1: ten friends, Gadaliah unwisely welcomed him in. And then he
[9:07] Speaker 1: suffered terrible consequences. Now you might think Gadaliah was being foolish.
[9:13] Speaker 1: But it's easy to make friends with people who might
[9:15] Speaker 1: be bad news. If someone you trust, like your mom
[9:19] Speaker 1: or your dad, tells you to be careful about hanging
[9:23] Speaker 1: around someone who might lead you away from God's best
[9:26] Speaker 1: for you, make sure that you listen. Listen to wise
[9:31] Speaker 1: people and you will be glad that you did. I
[9:35] Speaker 1: think the other people left living in Judah wished they
[9:39] Speaker 1: had listened to wise Jeremiah. They wanted to leave and
[9:43] Speaker 1: go down to Egypt, so they asked Jeremiah to ask
[9:47] Speaker 1: God what they should do. But I don't think they
[9:50] Speaker 1: really wanted to know God's answer. I think they'd already
[9:54] Speaker 1: made up their minds what they wanted to do, and
[9:58] Speaker 1: they just wanted God to agree with them. with them
[10:01] Speaker 1: this kept them from being truly open to listening to
[10:05] Speaker 1: the Lord and obeying him because when Jeremiah told them
[10:10] Speaker 1: God said no stay here they didn't like that answer
[10:14] Speaker 1: their heart said I'll do what I want not what
[10:18] Speaker 1: you say And they made the unwise decision to go anyway.
[10:23] Speaker 1: And then they suffered terrible consequences. Today, God wants you
[10:28] Speaker 1: to listen to his message to your heart to help
[10:33] Speaker 1: spare you and protect you from bad consequences. So when
[10:38] Speaker 1: you hear his words with your ears, think about his
[10:41] Speaker 1: message in your head. And then say with your heart, yes, Lord,
[10:46] Speaker 1: I'll do what you say. You'll be so glad you did.
[10:50] Speaker 1: I'm so happy you joined me today. Come back next
[10:53] Speaker 1: time to hear about a special vision the prophet Ezekiel
[10:57] Speaker 1: had about a whole bunch of bones. Remember, the Bible
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