Damp.

Dark.

Sinking into the mud of an empty cistern.

The adversaries of the prophet Jeremiah had persuaded the king to silence his voice.  The city of Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonians.  False prophets were predicting victory and deliverance, but not Jeremiah.  The word of Lord that Jeremiah boldly proclaimed was an unpopular message – a word of impending disaster and defeat, not of victory and deliverance.

Furious, the court officials decided to silence Jeremiah’s voice by lowering him into a deep cistern without food or water.  Left in the sinking mud to die, their plan was to silence his voice forever.

Yet there was one court official, Ebed-Melech, who believed the words of Jeremiah.  Certain that he was a true prophet, Ebed pleaded with the king for Jeremiah’s release. The king relented, authorizing Ebed to rescue the prophet.

With thirty of the king’s men and sturdy ropes in hand, Ebed had what he needed to pull Jeremiah to safety.  But even in his haste, he thought of one more thing:

“But before he left the palace, he went to a room under the treasury. There he found some rags and old clothes that he lowered with the ropes to Jeremiah in the cistern.”  (Jer. 38:11 Voice)

Then Ebed called down into the cistern and told Jeremiah,

“Put these rags and old clothes under your armpits so the ropes won’t hurt you as we pull you up.” (Jer. 38:12 Voice)

Ebed knew it would not be easy to haul Jeremiah out of the miry clay.  It would take the strength of thirty men.  He knew the roughness of the rope would mean a painful rescue for Jeremiah.  So out of compassion, Ebed did something he didn’t have to do.  Something many others would never have thought to do.  After all, he was saving Jeremiah’s life – certainly that was enough.  But not for Ebed.  He did more than enough.  He went out of his way and made the extra effort to get rags for the ropes.

Ebed’s actions remind me of those of the Good Samaritan.  He didn’t just dress the wounds and take the injured man to an inn where he could convalesce.  The Good Samaritan also paid for the man’s room and board until he fully recovered.  The Samaritan didn’t do just enough.  Like Ebed, he did more than enough – he got “rags for the ropes.”

My prayer:

Oh Lord, open my eyes to see the needs of others and be compelled to do more than enough.  Not just what is expected.  Not just enough.

Let my heart be filled with the compassion of Ebed, the compassion of the Good Samaritan, and above with all the compassion of our Savior.

Let me be one who meets the needs of others with more than enough – with “rags for the ropes.”  Amen.