Warnings

“’Do you know that Baalis the king of the Ammonites has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take your life?’ But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam would not believe them.” (Jeremiah 40:14, ESV)
“Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men with him rose up and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan, with the sword, and killed him, whom the king of Babylon had appointed governor in the land.” (Jeremiah 41:2, ESV)

Sometimes the ones you least suspect will turn on you. When I was a young child, we had a dog that my dad named Lady. I was in the kitchen and Lady had a bone that she was chewing. As she chewed on the bone, it slipped under the stove. Since the she could not get the bone out from under the stove, I thought I should get it for her. However, when I reached down to get the bone from under the stove, Lady instinctively bit my hand to keep me from getting her bone. This shocked me more than it hurt, but I cried and my dad, who did not spare the rod, disciplined the dog. Often in life we are shocked when a trusted friend bites us.

In this passage of Scripture we see a man named Gedaliah, whom Nebuchadnezzar had appointed as governor over Judah. A man named Ishmael murdered Gedaliah. Ishmael was a descendant of the royal family of Zedekiah, Judah’s last king. Johanan and other military leaders who had been dispersed due to the Babylonian conquest joined with Gedaliah. These leaders got wind of a threat against Gedaliah’s life and came to him with a warning. They heard that Baalis the king of the Ammonites was sending Ishmael to kill him. However, he would not believe them.

There is a lot of history behind why Gedaliah’s disbelief of this threat. It began years earlier as Judah and Ammon were part of a strategic alliance against Babylon. Both Judah and Ammon were still allies at the time of Jerusalem’s fall. Moreover, Ishmael was of the royal line of Zedekiah. Thus, Gedaliah could not or would not believe the report of Johanan and the other military leaders. This refusal to heed the warning led to his death at the hand of Ishmael.

It is unfortunate, but often the ones we trust will betray us. This can happen in any walk of life and very often in the church. It is not unusual for pastors to experience this with trusted members or even fellow staff personnel. Many church splits have occurred when a prominent person decided to take a group away, often without even speaking with the pastor. How many pastors have been victims of one person who created an uprising in a congregation?

These types of things are all the result of spiritual warfare. The point here is that we need to be wise to the ways of the world and not be shocked about betrayals by even our closest of allies. Thus, we must be constant in prayer and in the word. Above all we must keep trusting the Lord in the midst of these types of trials.

Moreover, we should heed the warnings, counsel, and criticisms of others. Remember, for every piece of advice or criticism given there is generally a percentage of truth. So take heed to the criticisms and warnings you receive, because there just might be something important for you to understand.