PRAYER instead of bitterness and resentment
There are two ways of covering our sins: man’s way and God’s way. If you seek to hide them, they will have a resurrection sometime; but if you let the Lord cover them, neither the devil nor man will ever be able to find them again.
As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
Most of our problems, especially relational ones, stem from the issue of unforgiveness. We harbor resentment. We won’t let go of our hurts or the misdeeds that people have committed against us. When our hearts are so full of bitterness, we don’t experience the blessings of God. The Bible says, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matt. 6:14-15).
God is not pleased when we harbor an attitude of bitterness, resentment or judgment. An unforgiving heart runs contrary to the very nature of God. Does God hold back His forgiveness when we sin or do something stupid? Does God tear us down when we mess up? No. God forgives us, takes care of us, and builds us up. If we are to be like Christ—if we have His life in us—then we are called to be an extension of who He is: forgiving, loving, gracious, merciful and kind. People are often turned off by professing Christians who do not reflect God’s character in these ways. Bottom line, if a person is overwhelmed by bitterness and resentment, he or she needs to forgive; the best way to do that is to be overwhelmed by God’s forgiveness.
Sometimes we say we forgive people, but we still feel that they have some type of deserved punishment coming to them. What a gift to us that Jesus never treats His children that way. Jesus freely, lovingly and unconditionally forgives. The Scriptures contain multiple illustrations of this truth. For example, when Jesus healed the paralytic, He said to him, with no qualifications, “Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven” (Matt. 9:2). And when Peter denied the Lord, Jesus didn’t say, “I told you so!” He had, in essence, communicated to Peter, “You’re going to be hassled. Satan is going to mess with you, but I have prayed for you, and when you get done messing up, go strengthen your brothers” (see Luke 22:32).
When Jesus was on the cross, He said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34). It’s downright amazing that there was no resentment or bitterness in Jesus’ statement, and no anger in His heart—just love—as He was being murdered on the cross. Jesus is our role model when it comes to forgiving people—no anger, no bitterness or resentment, and no sarcastic remarks. He just loved them.
Jesus’ love and forgiveness know no boundaries. On one occasion, He opened up to a Roman centurion, a Gentile, who had asked Jesus to heal one of his servants. Even though the Romans were hated by the Jews at the time, Jesus accepted this “enemy” and healed his servant. God’s forgiveness extends to every race, every culture, every country and every walk of life. I’m reminded of the thief who hung on the cross next to Jesus. In our human nature, we would probably think, Well, he did something wrong; he deserved to be there. But Jesus didn’t think or communicate that. Rather, when the thief asked Jesus to remember him, Jesus kindly and graciously said, “Today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). Truly, we humans would leave the thief on the cross, but Jesus wouldn’t—and didn’t—do that. In fact, the Bible says very clearly that God’s thoughts for you are not of evil but for peace, to give you a future and a hope (see Jer. 29:11).
Throughout His time on earth, Jesus loved people and forgave them their sins. Whether it was lepers, demon-possessed people, adulterers, tax collectors, fishermen, the lame or those in high positions—He forgave them all. There are no boundaries on God’s forgiveness. So no matter where we look in the Bible, our God is always forgiving, reaching out, and moving in the hearts of His people.
We are told in Isaiah 53:6 that “all we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way,” yet in beautiful forgiveness, our iniquities have been taken away, because “the Lord has laid on [Jesus] the iniquity of us all.” God doesn’t just bury our sins; He gets rid of them. How? By laying them on Jesus.
Isaiah 43:25 says that the Lord “blots out your transgressions,” and Psalm 85:2 tells us, “You [God] have forgiven the iniquity of Your people; You have covered all their sin.” What amazing truths! We have a God who covers our sins—He isn’t willing to expose us. When we forgive people, however, what do we do? We bring up what they did again and again, especially when we are mad. We don’t bury the sins; we remember them. We say we have forgiven those who have wronged us, but then we tell others all about what they did to us. We expose their sins time and again. Filled with bitterness, we refuse to even look at the people we supposedly forgave.
Bottom line, we have a God—modeled in Christ—who has completely forgiven us of our sins. He has buried them, washed them away, covered them and thrown them into the deepest sea. We are called to forgive others just as Christ has forgiven us. Moreover, the more we really allow ourselves to be overwhelmed by God’s forgiveness of our sins, the more we will forgive others in the same way.
The Bible contains many incredible stories of forgiveness; one of them is found in the final chapter of the book of Jeremiah. This chapter details the fall of Jerusalem; in its final verses, it describes an incredible episode from the life of King Jehoiachin, who was the second-to-last king of Judah. Previously, when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon annihilated Jerusalem, he took many of Israel’s prophets and spiritual leaders captive, including King Jehoiachin. Nebuchadnezzar put Jehoiachin in prison, and he stayed there for 37 years.
During this time, Nebuchadnezzar walked out among his kingdom and asked, “Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty?” (Dan. 4:30). While the words were yet in his mouth, God drove him out of the kingdom and gave him the mind and heart of a beast. This mighty king, humbled by God, spent seven subsequent years living as a beast of the field. Nebuchadnezzar’s son, Evil-Merodach, took over the kingdom’s rule.
At the end of seven years, Nebuchadnezzar lifted his hands and began to praise the Most High God. He came back to the throne and upon discovering the horrible things his son had done in his absence, Nebuchadnezzar, in his anger, threw him into prison. Just a few years later, however, Nebuchadnezzar died, and once again Evil-Merodach was made king over Babylon. This is where our story of incredible forgiveness begins.
Jeremiah 52:31-34 lays out the facts:
Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a more prominent seat than those of the kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiachin changed from his prison garments, and he ate bread regularly before the king all the days of his life. And as for his provisions, there was a regular ration given him by the king of Babylon, a portion for each day until the day of his death, all the days of his life.
So, right off the bat, the new king of Babylon pulled King Jehoiachin out of prison and gave him a kingship higher than all the ones in the Babylonian kingdom. What? Imagine rotting away in prison for 37 years and then instantly being given a kingdom again. That’s what happened to King Jehoiachin. I have to wonder if Jehoiachin felt a little out of his element when he was freed. He had been king of Judah, yes, but he had spent the last 37 years in a prison cell. Is it logical to think he just picked up where he left off?
As a pastor, I have found that some people get used to their captivity. I am not just referring to an actual jail sentence, obviously. I have counseled many people over the years who, although they were saved, were not enjoying the freedom that Christ gave them at salvation. They had become used to their captivity. They were comfortable with their bad attitudes, their bitterness and their resentment. They were used to their criticism and selfishness. Sadly, some people would rather stay in their captivity or their feelings of being overwhelmed than enjoy the freedom of Christ and all that He has to offer.
What about you? Do you want to stay where you are? Are you going to remain inside the dark prison instead of being used by God? Are you going to be miserable for the rest of your days, protecting yourself from getting hurt again instead of reaching out and being a blessing to others?
Remaining in captivity is not what Christianity is about. Christianity is about newness and forgiveness. If we can’t forgive, we can’t move on.
Speaking personally, I had to forgive the man who molested me when I was in junior high. There was also the guy who shot me—I had to forgive and move on. Today, no matter what occurs in my life, I have to accept it and move on. Holding on to bitterness will destroy my ministry, destroy my marriage and destroy the message that God has given me to share.
So here in this small yet powerful story from the Scriptures, we observe a king of Babylon (not even one of God’s people) showing more forgiveness than most of us give to others. In this story of Jehoiachin, we will examine six important lessons that demonstrate a picture of God’s actions of forgiveness toward us.
Let’s go back to the beginning of the story: “Now it came to pass in the thirty-seventh year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, that Evil-Merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison” (Jer. 52:31).
What strikes me most about this verse is that it was the king himself who led Jehoiachin out of captivity. The king of Babylon didn’t send a servant or a soldier to set Jehoiachin free, which is what we would naturally expect; instead, he chose to do it himself. Imagine sitting in prison, with no hope of release, when all of a sudden the president of the United States shows up at your cell, unlocks the door, and says, “Come with me. I’m setting you free!”
The beauty of this story is that it parallels what God has done for us. The Creator of the universe—the God who made you and me—has Himself forgiven us and set us free. That’s just how special we each are to God. He loves us so much that He has taken our sins upon Himself and set us free. We are forgiven by God Himself. Think about that for a moment. All those rotten words said, nasty attitudes held and sinful actions taken have been buried, washed away, blotted out and covered by the God of the universe.
In the book of Romans, Paul shares how grateful he is that Jesus rescued him from sin and death, given his own wretchedness:
For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.
I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin (Rom. 7:19-25).
It’s obvious in these verses how trapped Paul felt, even though he hadn’t been imprisoned for 37 years, as Jehoiachin was. We also can feel trapped in our sin—who is going to set us free? Who is willing to come help us? The good-news answer: Jesus Christ. No matter how long you have been in captivity, and no matter what you have done, Jesus Christ will set you free.
Notice also in Jeremiah 52:31 that the king lifted up Jehoiachin’s head. In other words, he encouraged him and lifted his spirit. No doubt Jehoiachin, having been in captivity for so long, was depressed and without hope. It was the king of Babylon himself who encouraged him and gave him hope. In the same way, God lifts up our heads and gives us hope. We are forgiven by Him. We are set free. We no longer have a reason to be downtrodden and without hope, for God has rescued us and lifted us up.
Never underestimate the power of a kind word. The Bible tells us that the king of Babylon spoke kindly to Jehoiachin when he released him from prison (see Jer. 52:32). I love this. The king didn’t release Jehoiachin and then barrage him with insults, questions or accusations. Perhaps you have had someone say they forgive you but then lay into you with a slew of statements that boil down to, “You don’t deserve forgiveness after what you did to me.” Or perhaps you have apologized to someone and then they communicate what they really think of you.
On the other hand, God speaks kindly to us. Psalm 3:3 says, “But You, O Lord, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head.” He is our comforter and our encourager. When we are hurting, we seek a kind word, don’t we? We need a true friend who will understand what we are going through and will lift us up. Jesus is that Friend. He cares when we feel overwhelmed. He cares when we are downcast. And He speaks kindly to us—beckoning for us to rest in His loving care. Solomon wisely shared that “a soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Prov. 15:1).
No doubt Jehoiachin had not heard a kind word during his 37 years in prison, but now the king of Babylon was encouraging him through his kindness. In fact, when the king came to the prison cell to let Jehoiachin out, it’s quite possible that this former king of Judah feared he would be killed. In contrast, Evil-Merodach, by his kind words, reassured Jehoiachin that he was indeed being set free and that he had found favor with the king of Babylon.
The last part of Jeremiah 52:32 says, “And [Evil-Merodach] gave him a more prominent seat than those of the kings who were with him in Babylon.” Not only did the king of Babylon speak kindly to Jehoiachin after releasing him from prison, but he also restored his life to what it had been before the enemy took it away. Evil-Merodach exalted Jehoiachin back into a position of authority, making him the most powerful person in Babylon besides himself.
Listen, are you overwhelmed by resentment or bitterness? Do you think your life is over—that it’s impossible to rebound from the mess in which you find yourself? I want to remind you that not only does God forgive you, but He also restores you. That is why His forgiveness is so overwhelming and breathtaking. He forgives us, and then He restores our lives. He gives back to us what the enemy has taken. He restores a position of fellowship. He puts us back in a place of leadership—a position of authority. He puts the pieces of our lives back together.
The king of Babylon restored Jehoiachin—and the King of heaven and earth restores us. God’s forgiveness brings emotional, mental and even physical healing. He can take us out of that prison, overwhelm us with His forgiveness, and make us new men and women.
Jeremiah 52 continues to describe this amazing story: “So Jehoiachin changed from his prison garments” (v. 33). The king of Babylon did not leave Jehoiachin in his prison clothes. He had released him from prison, spoken kindly to him and given him a royal throne—the highest in the kingdom besides his own; thus he could not leave him in prison garb. So the king clothed Jehoiachin in a royal robe—one befitting his new life and position.
That is a picture of what God does for us. He restores our nature, our integrity and our character. He takes away our garment of sadness and gives us a garment of praise. He takes away our garment of darkness and gives us a garment of light. He takes away our filthy rags and gives us a garment of righteousness and purity.
As the scriptural text describes the next act of mercy on the part of Evil-Merodach, we read that Jehoiachin “ate bread regularly before the king all the days of his life” (Jer. 52:33).
Jehoiachin was favored by the king. When Evil-Merodach set Jehoiachin free and gave him a throne, he didn’t say, “Well, it was nice knowing you. Good luck; I hope everything turns out well.” Instead, the king communicated, “You are coming with me. You are sticking by my side, and you will eat at the king’s table the rest of your life.” Evil-Merodach did not abandon Jehoiachin; in fact, by his invitation to eat at his table, Evil-Merodach wanted Jehoiachin to know that they would be friends for the long haul, and that this king of Babylon would be at the one-time king of Judah’s side through thick and thin.
When God forgives us—when He takes us out of our pit—He draws us toward Himself. He doesn’t let go of us but instead draws us into His presence, into His Word, and into a loving relationship with Him.
You, my reader, are favored by God. He invites you to feast with Him. He invites you to sit with Him. He invites you to be in His presence and hear His voice. To have God’s forgiveness overwhelm you means you will find yourself sitting with the King of kings, your life transformed.
Finally, Jeremiah 52:34 summarizes the final gift that Evil-Merodach lavished upon Jehoiachin: “And as for his provisions, there was a regular ration given him by the king of Babylon, a portion for each day until the day of his death, all the days of his life.”
Jehoiachin’s future was secured by the king. He had nothing to worry about. Evil-Merodach assured him that he would be taken care of for the rest of his days. What a switch from languishing in prison for 37 years, constantly worrying about whether he would even live another day. Our God has secured our future as well. We have been given the promise of eternal life with Him. Furthermore, we have been given the assurance that we are secure in this life as well—that He will provide for our needs out of the riches of Christ (see Phil. 4:19), and that absolutely nothing will come our way that He doesn’t use for our good (see Rom. 8:28).
This is forgiveness. Can you apply forgiveness to your children? Will you apply forgiveness to your spouse? How about to your enemies? It was God’s forgiveness that transformed me from a troubled, drug-addicted, angry young guy into a man who many years later would be having dinner with the Supreme Court justices, teaching congressmen and diplomats at the United Nations, and speaking at the White House for the National Day of Prayer.
For you, my friend, the greatest gift in your life is that God has forgiven you. If you will allow yourself to be overwhelmed by this marvelous and astounding truth, you will never be overwhelmed by resentment or bitterness.
1. Christ is our example and model of forgiveness. Describe how Jesus forgives us for our sins. What prevents us from forgiving others as Christ has forgiven us?
2. How does the story about Evil-Merodach and Jehoiachin parallel God’s amazing forgiveness toward us?
3. After 37 years of captivity, Jehoiachin was lifted out of prison by the king of Babylon. How does God lift us out of our captivity and set us free?
4. Jehoiachin was exalted by the king and was given a position of authority. In what ways does God exalt us?
PRAYER
Thank You, Lord, that Your work is never incomplete. Thank You that You not only forgive me, but also restore me and replace my filthy rags with Your royal robes of righteousness. You take my broken life and broken dreams and make me new. Help me to be overwhelmed with Your forgiveness today. Help me to be faithful and obedient to then extend that lavish forgiveness toward others. Help me to remember that those who are forgiven much, love much. Fill my heart so completely with Your love that the fragrance of Your Son, Jesus, just oozes from my life. Overwhelm me again, I pray. Amen.