EBED MELECH - BIBLICAL PEOPLE I'M CURIOUS ABOUT (PART 4 OF 6)

Ebed-Melech telling the king about Jeremiah, Lifeway Collection

I'm guessing that Ebed-Melech may be the best known individual in this six part series... okay, one of the two best known (next week will be another you may have heard of. I remember as a child reading two versions of Ebed-Melech's first of two appearances in Scripture.

Like last week's subject, Urijah, Ebed-Melech is mentioned solely in the book of Jeremiah. That's probably the main thing they have in common. In Jeremiah 26 where Urijah mentioned, it was the people wanting to kill Jeremiah and the princes who defended him. In Jeremiah 38, the princes wanted to kill the prophet and Ebed-Melech was the rescuer. Urijah fled the king of Judah in fear, Ebed-Melech boldly implored the king of Judah to intervene. 

For those unfamiliar with the story, the princes asked permission of King Zedekiah to throw Jeremiah in a pit. This was when Jerusalem was beseiged by Babylon and Jeremiah probably would not survive. Ebed-Melech went before the King, told him that Jeremiah's life was at stake, and asked permission to pull him out. He not only tossed Jeremiah the rope to tie underneath him, but also rags to put under his armpits to protect him. 

The NKJV calls him a eunuch, with a note that the word can be translated as "official." In From Every People And Nation: A Biblical Theology of Race, author J. Daniel Hays points out that translators and commentators incorrectly consider the dark skinned Cushites like Ebed-Melech as servants when the text does not require that interpretation. In this case, he states the Scripture implies that Ebed-Melech was someone King Zedekiah would listen to, more so than if he was someone's servant. 

Likewise, the picture above of Ebed-Melech makes him look someone who could have used physical help in pulling Jeremiah out of the pit. The drawing I saw in the Bible Story made him look more like he could have played football, as well as a cheerful smile on his face.

This is one of my favorite stories, because it does not end here. The next chapter tells of the fall of Jerusalem. During that tumult, God sent Jeremiah with this message: 

"Go and speak to Ebed-Melech the Ethiopian, saying, 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: "Behold, I will bring My words upon this city for adversity and not for good, and they shall be performed in that day before you. But I will deliver you in that day," says the LORD, "and you shall not be given into the hand of the men of whom you are afraid. For I will surely deliver you, and you shall not fall by the sword; but your life shall be as a prize to you, because you have put your trust in Me," says the LORD.' " Jeremiah 39:16-18, NKJV 

I love the love God shows to Ebed-Melech in this passage, enough for Him to send His prophet in a time of calamity to give him a message of encouragement.

 

SUNDAY HYMNS, PART 13 OF 22: STAND UP, STAND UP FOR JESUS

At Faith Family Church, Cookeville, TN

Stand up! Stand up for Jesus, Ye soldiers of the Cross!

Lift high His royal banner, It must not suffer loss. 

From victory unto victory, His army shall He lead

Till every foe is vanquished And Christ is Lord indeed.

 

Stand up! Stand up for Jesus, The trumpet call obey.

Forth to the mighty conflict In this His glorious day.

Ye that are men, now serve Him Against unnumbered foes;

Let courage rise with danger And strength to strength oppose.

 

Stand up! Stand up for Jesus, Stand in His strength alone;

The arm of flesh will fail you, Ye dare not trust your own.

Put on the Gospel armor, each piece put on with prayer;

Where duty calls or danger, be never wanting there.

  

Stand up! Stand up for Jesus, the strife will not be long:

This day the noise of battle, The next the Victor's song.  

To him that overcometh, A crown of life shall be;

He with the King of Glory Shall reign eternally. 

 

NOTES ON THIS HYMN

• For those paying attention: Yes, I did deviate from my original format of going in alphabetic order for the first 16 installments. Why? Well, those who know me know two of my favorite holidays are Reformation Day (Oct. 31) and All Saints Day (Nov. 1). (You probably know some other holiday I won't name that shares the date with Reformation Day is one of my least.) Out of the songs on my list, I thought this was most fitting for Reformation Day and All Saints Day. I'll resume in alphabetic order where I left off next week.
  
• In the hymnal I grew up with, the lyrics were included to two different tunes. Hymn #459 is to the tune Geibel, which had the words to verses 1, 2, and 4, and included a chorus (which lyrically consisted of the first two lines); this was the newer tune. #460 is to the tune Webb, which I hear more often and is the tune I normally see in hymnals, which included all four verses, but no chorus.
• You can call the meter of this hymn either 7, 6, 7, 6 doubled or 13, 13, 13, 13. 
• I know I have no role in planning my funeral, but if you asked me what songs I'd like sung at my funeral, this would be one.