URIJAH THE PROPHET - BIBLICAL PEOPLE I'M CURIOUS ABOUT (PART 3 OF 6)

The Murder of Zwingli by Karl Jauslin

I'm sure there's several questions about this entry. Such as "Who is Urijah the Prophet?" "Is this the same as Urijah the Hittite?" "Why does he have a picture of a Reformer when the blog's about a Biblical character, and why does it have to be a depressing one at that?"

I'll start with the last question first. You know I usually include at least one picture, but when you're dealing with obscure people as this series is, you'll find there aren't many artists painting these. I was surprised and pleased to find an artistic rendition of Naamah (two weeks ago). So I'll have to go with loose connections, but by the end of the blog, you'll know the connection.

Urijah the Prophet is my moniker for him - he's not called a prophet, though he does what prophets do. And no, it's not Urijah the Hittite, Bath-sheba's first husband. But let me give the immediate context.

Jeremiah 26 starts with Jeremiah, as usual, warning of God's judgment. I've noticed that people love hearing about God judging others for their sins, but it's a different story when the spotlight shines on them. And the people were not happy with Jeremiah's gloom and doom, and wanted to kill him. 

One unique thing that happened here is that the princes came to Jeremiah's rescue (not so later in Jeremiah's ministry). They told the people that Micah son of Moresheth (the minor prophet) gave a similar message a century or so earlier and he wasn't executed. So they spared Jeremiah.

Then, we get to verses 20 - 23 of that chapter:

"Now there was also a man who prophesied in the name of the Lord, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath Jearim, who prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah. And when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty men and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Urijah heard it, he was afraid and fled, and went to Egypt. Then Jehoiakim the king sent men to Egypt: Elnathan the son of Achbor, and other men who went with him to Egypt. And they brought Urijah from Egypt and brought him to Jehoiakim the king, who killed him with the sword and cast his dead body into the graves of the common people." Jeremiah  26:20-23, NKJV

No, we don't know more about this Urijah than this. Did God call him as He did Jeremiah? It doesn't say. Was his fleeing to Egypt a lack of faith? Maybe, but we have no record that his fear was disobedience to God. 

That is why I felt the painting of the murder of Zwingli the Reformer was appropriate for this blog. Not completely: Zwingli went into battle and was killed in the fighting. But we need to remember that obedience to God is not a guarantee that we won't face the consequences from an ungodly King.