Jeremiah 29:4-7 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”
Throughout the book of Jeremiah, the prophet repeats the same message to God’s people over and over again. Basically he’s saying, your punishment is coming, and the best you can do is to humbly accept it… lean in even. And those that instead fight against God’s punishment end up tortured or dead. But of those that submit to their punishment, some get to remain in Israel and some are taken away to Babylon. And among those that are taken away, the prophet again said, “Go with it, dudes. Lean in.”
Another way of looking at it is that Babylon had a job to do – it had to punish Israel and Judah for all the pride, arrogance, and self-serving that they had been doing. But by being taken into Babylon, and becoming active members within her, the people of God could become a blessing to those around them. But they had to humble themselves, submit to the situation God had put them in, and see God’s plans through, the plans to prosper us and not to harm us. We need to see our time in Babylon as our time to see God prosper us, despite our circumstances. And we need to do our part, seeking the good of the people among whom we live.