Thirty-second Sunday.
JEHOIAKIM'S CRUELTY.
FIRST READING.
"I speak unto thee in thy prosperity; but thou saidst, I will not hear."—Jer. 22:21.
JOSIAH was the last good king. In his time God called Jeremiah, when he was only a young boy about twelve years old, to be His prophet; and all the time Josiah reigned Jeremiah was teaching the people God's will, while Josiah was doing all he could to help them to do right and serve the Lord.
But the Jews did not heed either the king or the prophet—they only longed after their idols. Even Josiah's own sons would not be good, after they had been brought up by such a holy father; but no sooner was he killed in battle, than they went back to all the bad ways that he had put an end to.