In the closing years of Judah's apostasy the exhortations of the prophets were seemingly of but little avail; and as the armies of the Chaldeans came for the third and last time to besiege Jerusalem, hope fled from every heart. Jeremiah predicted utter ruin; and it was because of his insistence on surrender that he had finally been thrown into prison. But God left not to hopeless despair the faithful remnant who were still in the city. Even while Jeremiah was kept under close surveillance by those who scorned his messages, there came to him fresh revelations concerning Heaven's willingness to forgive and to save, which have been an unfailing source of comfort to the church of God from that day to this.

Profeternes formaninger var tilsyneladende næsten frugtesløse i de sidste år af Judas frafald, og da kaldæernes hære kom og belejrede Jerusalem for tredje og sidste gang, mistede alle håbet. Jeremias forudsagde, at det ville ende med en katastrofe. Han blev jo netop kastet i fængsel, fordi han blev ved at opfordre nationen til at overgive sig. Men Gud overlod ikke de få trofaste, som stadig var i byen, til fortvivlelsens mørke. Selv da Jeremias blev holdt under opsyn af mennesker, som foragtede hans budskab, fik han stadig nye åbenbarelser om Himmelens villighed til at tilgive og frelse, og disse budskaber har været en aldrig svigtende kilde til trøst for Guds menighed fra den dag til nu.