What Looks Like Failure to Us Is Never Failure to God

II Kings 24:10-13 – “And at that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzer king of Babylon came up to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged…and Jehoiachin the king of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon, himself and his mother and his servants and his officials. The king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign and carried off all the treasures of the house of the Lord and the kings house…AS THE LORD HAD FORETOLD.”

Wow! This passage records one of the darkest moments in Judah’s history. Babylon’s armies marched on Jerusalem. The city was surrounded. Escape was impossible. And then, in a moment of national humiliation, King Jehoiachin did the unthinkable—he surrendered. Not just himself, but his mother, his household, his officials, and the leadership of the nation. Nebuchadnezzar took him captive, stripped the temple and the palace of every treasure, and hauled it all back to Babylon—exactly as the LORD had foretold.

This was not merely a military defeat. It was a collapse. Judah bore no resemblance to the kingdom David and Solomon had built. Once strong, it was now fragile and plundered—easy prey for every raiding power that passed through. The cause was not Babylon’s strength alone, but Judah’s long history of rebellion, corruption, and disastrous leadership.

Years earlier, King Hezekiah had foolishly displayed Judah’s treasures to Babylonian envoys. Now Babylon returned—not as guests, but as conquerors. Judah, weakened beyond resistance, had only two options: be slaughtered or surrender.

Jehoiachin chose surrender, and the cost was staggering. Over 10,000 captives were dragged away—royal officials, warriors, craftsmen, and smiths—stripped from the land to serve Babylon’s empire. Only the poorest remained. Nebuchadnezzar installed Jehoiachin’s young uncle as a puppet king, renamed him Zedekiah, and left Judah hollowed out and humiliated.

Its actually going to get worse. In II Kings 25, foolish King Zedekiah rebels again and is completely crushed by Babylon, the temple will be burned, and the walls of Jerusalem will be torn down. The destruction of the Kingdom of Judah and the great city Jerusalem as well as all of its leaders is thorough and complete. It is really hard to even read this chapter. In the book of Jeremiah, we find out that even the poorest of the poor who are left behind rebel against Babylon and God and are eventually wiped out in Egypt. It’s awful!

From every human perspective, this was the end. God’s people enslaved. God’s city plundered. God’s temple emptied. Leading to more rebellion, destruction, fire, and rubble. Jerusalem’s walls would fall. The temple would burn. Surely this was the failure of God’s promises. Surely this was the death of the covenant.

But it was nothing of the sort.

God’s purposes were not crushed; they were intentionally relocated. His plan was not derailed; the scene simply changed. Among the captives taken to Babylon were young men whose names would echo through history—Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Mordecai, or his family line, was there as well. While wicked kings were removed from power, God quietly positioned His servants at the very heart of the world’s greatest empire.

What looked like defeat was divine strategy. What appeared to be judgment was also preparation. God does not measure success the way we do. He is never reacting, never scrambling, never surprised.

The same is true in our lives. Our failures, losses, foolish choices, and apparent disasters do not interrupt God’s eternal purposes. We may not clearly see the victory He is working toward, but it is real nonetheless. And as followers of Jesus, our part in it remains. Christ’s call to us is unchanged: “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life” (Revelation 2:10).

Be encouraged! God is all powerful, He is faithful, and He’s still working His plan through His followers—even when we can’t see it.