God Will Bring You Up from the Pit

Devotional

Day 1: Muddy Pits and Divine Padding

When life sinks us into circumstances thicker than expected, God provides unexpected padding for the climb out. Jeremiah’s rescuers used old rags to protect his wounded body from fresh harm during extraction. This mirrors how God cushions our vulnerable places even amid deliverance—not erasing scars, but ensuring survival doesn’t deepen wounds. Deliverance often requires practical grace: torn cloths for frayed ropes, human hands for holy work. The mud that threatened to drown became the ground where mercy knelt. [01:38:43]

“So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the palace wardrobe room. There he found some old rags and discarded clothing. He carried these to the cistern and lowered them to Jeremiah.”
(Jeremiah 38:11, ESV)

Reflection: When has God used an unexpected “rag”—a person, resource, or moment of care—to protect you during a difficult transition? How might this memory help you trust His padding in current struggles?

Day 2: One Advocate Against Four Enemies

Four officials demanded Jeremiah’s death; one foreigner dared to plead for his life. Divine rescue often arrives through lone voices who reject consensus cruelty. Ebed-melech—a marginalized Cushite—modeled holy dissent by appealing to the king’s buried conscience. God empowers unlikely advocates to disrupt systems of abandonment, proving majority opposition cannot outweigh singular obedience. When outnumbered, remember: heaven’s arithmetic favors faithful ones over hostile crowds. [01:31:13]

“If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”
(Romans 8:31-32, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you seen “minority report” faithfulness shift an outcome in your life or community? How does Ebed-melech’s courage challenge your view of speaking truth to power?

Day 3: From Cisterns to Courtyards

Jeremiah emerged from the pit only to be confined again—this time under guard with daily bread. Deliverance isn’t always total escape but often graduated mercy. The courtyard became a holding space where prophetic ministry continued despite partial freedom. Our “after-pit” seasons may feel like sideways moves, but God uses interim spaces to sustain purpose. Wherever bread still arrives, trust the process: muddied prophets become guarded witnesses. [01:39:58]

“He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.”
(Psalm 40:2, ESV)

Reflection: What “courtyard season” have you experienced—a partial deliverance that still required patience? How did God sustain your purpose in that intermediate space?

Day 4: Evaporated Waters in Prepared Pits

The cistern’s mud perplexes—how decay without water? God sometimes dries up expected dangers to reveal hidden ones, proving His sovereignty over both. Evaporated waters left Jeremiah sinking in sludge, a paradox showing human plans cannot predict divine methods. What looks like abandonment (a dried cistern) becomes the setup for unexpected rescue (mud requiring rags). God authors plot twists in our pits. [01:28:01]

“You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
(Genesis 50:20, ESV)

Reflection: When has a situation’s “dried-up” danger (like the cistern’s missing water) confused you, only to later reveal God’s unconventional strategy?

Day 5: Thirty Hands for One Life

Ebed-melech didn’t hoist Jeremiah alone—he mobilized thirty helpers. Divine rescue often involves teams: the advocate who speaks, the workers who pull, the king who permits. Our pits connect us to communities of extraction. Whether receiving or participating in rescue, we learn salvation is communal. God’s deliverance squad operates through human hands holding holy ropes. [01:47:19]

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
(Galatians 6:2, ESV)

Reflection: Who has been part of your “thirty hands”—the often unseen supporters in your deliverance story? How does this challenge you to join someone else’s rescue team?

Sermon Summary

Jeremiah’s pit is not the result of abandoning God. It is the cost of speaking the word of the Lord when people do not want to hear it. Jerusalem faces Babylon, and Jeremiah’s call to surrender brings the officials against him. They have him lowered into a cistern, where he sinks into the mud. The pit is one problem; the mud is another. Yet neither puts Jeremiah beyond the delivering power of God.

God raises up Ebed-Melech, a Cushite servant in the king’s household, to stand against what others in that household have done. Being part of a group does not require going along when that group handles things the wrong way. Ebed-Melech risks his own life to call wickedness what it is and plead for Jeremiah’s rescue. Four officials demand Jeremiah’s demise, but one advocate seeks his release. Advocates do not have to outnumber adversaries when God gives them power to act.

God’s deliverance also overturns the king’s earlier permission. The same king who allowed Jeremiah to be thrown down now orders him pulled out. What looks like a permanent burial becomes a pit stop. God remains the God of the discarded.

Ebed-Melech’s care reaches beyond getting Jeremiah out. Old rags pad the ropes so that rescue does not add fresh wounds. Deliverance has tenderness in it, not merely strength. Jesus brings that hope into sharper view as the advocate who brings sinners out of the mud and mire.

Believers are called to praise God even before the rescue is complete. After deliverance, they also bear responsibility for getting the mud off rather than carrying the pit everywhere they go. What happened to them need not remain all over them.

Key Takeaways

1. Faithfulness Can Lead Into The Pit. Jeremiah lands in the mud because he continues speaking God’s word, not because he has deserted it. A low season is not, by itself, proof that a believer has taken the wrong road. Even when trouble becomes deeper than expected, the pit does not place God’s servant beyond God’s reach. [1:23:19]
2. Belonging Does Not Require Going Along. Ebed-Melech belongs to the king’s household, but he refuses to side with its wicked actions. His faith takes the shape of costly advocacy for someone others have thrown away. Loyalty to a group must not become an excuse for silence when that group is doing wrong. [1:24:08]
3. Deliverance Takes Care With Wounded People. Ebed-Melech gathers old rags to keep the rescue ropes from hurting Jeremiah’s body. Getting someone out of trouble does not excuse roughness in the process. The padded ropes give a concrete picture of help that attends to wounds rather than adding to them. [1:38:06]
4. Advocates Need Not Outnumber The Adversaries. Four officials stand against Jeremiah, but one advocate secures permission to gather a rescue squad. The strength of God’s help cannot be measured by counting how many people oppose it. Deliverance also brings responsibility: those brought out of the mud are called to stop carrying it as the lasting mark of their lives. [1:45:35]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[1:14:04] - Life Through The Blood Of Jesus
[1:17:39] - Jeremiah 38: Ebed-Melech Seeks A Rescue
[1:19:53] - Up From The Pit
[1:23:30] - An Advocate Within The King’s House
[1:25:36] - No Pit Beyond God’s Power
[1:30:00] - One Advocate Against Four Adversaries
[1:33:23] - The God Of The Discarded
[1:34:32] - The King Reverses His Permission
[1:37:40] - Old Rags And A Tender Rescue
[1:40:12] - Jesus Brings Sinners Out
[1:42:21] - Praise Before The Battle Is Over
[1:45:35] - God’s Rescue Squad And Leaving The Mud
[1:48:47] - Receiving Christ And Joining A Church Family

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Jeremiah 38:7-13
“But Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, a eunuch who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah into the cistern—the king was sitting in the Benjamin Gate— so Ebed-melech went from the king's house and said to the king, 'My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they did to Jeremiah the prophet by casting him into the cistern, and he will die there of hunger, for there is no bread left in the city.' Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, 'Take thirty men with you from here, and lift Jeremiah the prophet out of the cistern before he dies.' So Ebed-melech took the men with him and went to the house of the king, to a wardrobe in the storehouse, and took from there old rags and worn-out clothes, which he let down to Jeremiah in the cistern by ropes. Then Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said to Jeremiah, 'Put the rags and clothes between your armpits and the ropes.' Jeremiah did so. Then they drew Jeremiah up with ropes and lifted him out of the cistern. And Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.” [01:17:39]

Psalm 40:2
“He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure.” [01:40:12]

Isaiah 54:17
“No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.” [01:28:49]

Observation questions

What message brought opposition against Jeremiah, and how did the pit and the mud add to the danger he faced? [01:21:33]
In Jeremiah 38:7–10, what did Ebed-Melech tell the king about Jeremiah’s situation, and how did the king respond? [01:18:05]
What steps did Ebed-Melech take between receiving the king’s permission and pulling Jeremiah out? Which details show attention to Jeremiah’s physical needs? [01:18:56]
How did Ebed-Melech’s actions differ from those of the other officials in the same royal household? [01:24:13]

Interpretation questions

Jeremiah suffered because he remained faithful to God’s word. How does his experience challenge the idea that hardship always means a person has done something wrong? [01:23:30]
Ebed-Melech belonged to the king’s household but challenged its wrongdoing. What does his example reveal about the difference between loyalty to a group and loyalty to God? [01:24:13]
Why are the old rags an important part of this rescue rather than an unimportant detail? What do they suggest about how believers should help someone who has already been hurt? [01:38:29]
Ebed-Melech acted as an advocate for someone who could not free himself. How does this rescue help illustrate the hope sinners have in Jesus as their advocate and deliverer? [01:40:35]

Application questions

Have you ever tried to do what was right and found that life became harder rather than easier? What helps you remain faithful when obedience brings a cost? [01:23:30]
Where do you feel pressure to go along with a group even when something is wrong—at work, in your family, among friends, or in church? What might a respectful but courageous response look like? [01:24:13]
Is there someone you know who is being overlooked or treated unfairly? What is one practical way you could stand beside that person this week, even if others do not join you? [01:45:53]
Think of someone you are trying to help. What would “padding the ropes” look like for that person—listening first, asking permission, protecting their privacy, or offering practical support? [01:38:29]
What are you still waiting for God to bring you through? How could you praise him for his goodness this week without pretending that the pain or uncertainty is gone? [01:42:31]
Painful experiences can leave bitterness, fear, or shame behind even after circumstances change. If you feel comfortable sharing, what “mud” still affects how you see yourself or treat others? What next step toward healing could you take, and what support would help? [01:47:30]

Sermon Clips

68s

#GodIsOnYourSide

“Can I tell you something? And it's it's right there in the language of the text. And this is a message for all of us. And it is this, your advocates never have to outnumber your adversaries. You can have more against you. All you need is one on your side. Fighting your battle, pleading your case, and handling the situations that you find yourself in because greater is the power of God in, through, and for you than all who stack their selves against you.”

37s

#StandForWhatsRight

“Because just because you are a part of a group doesn't mean you have to act like the folk who you are a part of when the folk who you are a part of are not handling things the right way. Ibed Melek does not choose to side with the four officials who want to leave for dead in this pit. As a matter of fact, Ebed Melech puts his own life on the line.”

43s

#JesusShowsUp

“Here's what I'm trying to tell y'all, and I hope y'all get it. All it takes one man on your side when everybody else may be against you. Oh, I guess I shouldn't spoil the message and just say, I thank God for Jesus. Because whenever the enemy has a plan, I'm so glad the Lord shows up and he sends an angel to care for us in the midst of it.”

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