Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Scripture Readings

There was Jesus. He was born in time, lived, was killed, but rose from dead. And then there are the gospels. The gospels tell us how he was born, how he lived, the cause of his death, and even though they do not describe the actual resurrection, reports that Jesus was raised from the dead. So, then, there was Jesus and there are the Gospels. From the time of Jesus’ resurrection, a minimum of 40 years had passed before the first gospels were written.   

Besides the primary message of all the four gospels, there is one other reality that is common to them – persecution. Not only was Jesus persecuted but early Christians faced persecution. All the gospels are written in the context of persecution. In fact, passages like the ones we have in today’s gospel can only be understood in the context of persecution. Jesus says, “Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.”

Now, we know that Jesus did not come to cause division. Rather, at his birth the choirs of angels sang, “Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to people of goodwill!” Jesus did not come to cause division. He was a peacemaker. 

Today, without ignoring the theme of persecution, I am going to emphasize a very different part of today’s scripture readings. As I read them, I was drawn to a little-known character in today’s first reading – Ebedmelech. Neither was he a persecutor nor was he persecuted. Rather, Ebedmelech stood between the persecutors and the persecuted and played a heroic role in saving Jeremiah. He drew my attention because, like Jesus, he was a peacemaker. Let me tell you his story. 

Ebedmelech only makes a brief appearance in the book of Jeremiah. We do not know too much about him except that he was a Cushite (from the land of Cush). He comes into the picture at a very critical time in the history of Judah, the Southern Kingdom. The Northern Kingdom of Israel had already been destroyed by the Assyrian in 722 BC. When Zedekiah was king of Judah (597-586 BC), the Babylonians had laid siege over Jerusalem. It was a horrific siege. There was total chaos. People were rationed food and soon they even ran out of that. People were so desperate that they even resorted to cannibalism for survival.  

Zedekiah was a weak and cowardly king. God had appointed Jeremiah as a prophet and instructed him to proclaim God’s impending judgement upon Judah. Jeremiah was faithful to his calling against great opposition by the ruling class. Jeremiah tried to counsel Zedekiah. Unfortunately, Zedekiah was also ill-advised by some nobles of Jerusalem who opposed Jeremiah. There were four of them in particular who are important to our story - Shephatiah, Gedaliah, Jucal, and Pashhur. They saw Jeramiah as a threat and condemned his prophecies. 

During the siege, Jeremiah advised Zedekiah to surrender to the Babylonians and live, or face death by sword, famine, and pestilence. The nobles advised Zedekiah to the contrary. They belittled Jeremiah and ridiculed him. Not only did they fail to recognize Jeremiah as a prophet but they accused him of treason, of discouraging the soldiers and of not seeking the people’s welfare. They demanded death for Jeremiah. 

Zedekiah caved in. He handed Jeremiah over to the evil and malicious nobles. The four nobles took Jeremiah to a water well that bottomed out into a mire and threw him into it. Jeremiah would suffer starvation, exhaustion, suffocation, and a slow death. 

When Ebedmelech heard that the nobles had put Jeremiah in a well, he approached Zedekiah. This probably happened at a routine meeting of the king with his subjects. Ebedmelech gathered courage to bring Jeremiah’s case before the king and inform him of the wicked plot of the nobles against the prophet! Ebedmelech was tactful. He asked Zedekiah, “Do you want the death of this prophet attributed to your reign?” The king understood Ebedmelech’s implications. He commanded Ebedmelech to take his men and rescue Jeremiah. 

Ebedmelech arrived with his men at the well, where Jeremiah was nearing death, and pulled him to saftey. Thanks to Ebedmelech, the life of God’s faithful prophet was saved. 

Whereas Zedekiah heard Ebedmelech about Jeremiah, the nobles prevailed over Zedekiah about the siege. Jerusalem fell and as Jeremiah prophesied, great destruction fell on the inhabitants of Jerusalem. As usual, Zedekiah acted like a coward. He sneaked out of Jerusalem with his soldiers and his sons. They were eventually captured.  He was taken before Nebuchadrezzar, the Babylonian king. Zedekiah watched the slaughter of his sons and then his eyes were gouged out. Bound in fetters, he was taken in exile to Babylon (Jeremiah 39:5–7). Zedekiah’s life ended pitiably. 

Ebedmelech, on the other hand, showed himself to be a man of great character. He put his life at risk by standing in the gap and speaking up for an innocent man. He showed forethought and compassion. We see him as a man of courage, honor, wisdom, and integrity.

As I said earlier, Ebedmelech drew my attention as I read today’s readings. Even though the scripture readings intend to create a parallel between Jeremiah and Jesus, between Jeremiah and the persecuted followers of Jesus, I want to create a parallel between Ebedmelech and Jesus. Ebedmelech and Jesus are people who stood in the gap. Ebedmelech stood between Zedekiah and Jeremiah and saved innocent life. Jesus stood between heaven and earth and saved humanity. Ebedmelech stood in the gap and became a peacemaker. Jesus stood between heaven and earth and reconciled us to the Father. They both risked their lives, showed great courage, and became peacemakers. 

Practical Implication

We will always find ourselves standing between two impossible situations, two feuding people, two opposing realities. It happens in families, at work places, in our neighborhoods, in politics, and in the church. We will also find ourselves among people who are oppressed, persecuted, treated unjustly, and suffering innocently. We can play different roles when we encounter these situations. We can fuel the fire, make the situation worse, be uncaring about those who suffer, manipulate the situation to our advantage, or even be dishonest. Or we can show great courage, be men and women of character, take the risk, stand in the gap as reconcilers and peacemakers. 

There is always a need of contemporary Ebedmelechs. Today more than ever, we need more people who think, talk, and act like Jesus. 

Will you be one of them? 

Fr. Satish Joseph