Milo

JUNE 7

Reading 158

AGAINST ALIEN NATIONS Jeremiah 46–52

“That day belongs to the Lord, the Lord Almighty—a day of vengeance, for vengeance on His foes” (Jer. 46:10).If judgment truly begins at the house of God, as Hebrews suggests, how will God’s enemies escape? In these chapters Jeremiah directed his message of impending judgment to the nations that had mistreated God’s covenant people.

Overview

A collection of oracles condemning foreign enemies concludes the book. Jeremiah described judgment about to fall on Egypt (46:1–28), Philistia (47:1–7), Moab (48:1–47), Ammon (49:1–6), Edom (vv. 7–22), Damascus [Syria] and others (vv. 23–39), but especially on Babylon (50:1–51:64). The book concludes by recapping Jerusalem’s fall (52:1–34).

Understanding the Text

“Concerning Egypt” Jer. 46:1–28.

For over a thousand years Egypt had tried to extend its sphere of influence to include Canaan—and had often succeeded. Godly King Josiah fell in 605 G.p. fighting Pharaoh Neco, and Judah’s last kings had been encouraged to rebel against Babylon by empty promises of Egyptian aid. Egypt had proven herself a brutal overlord and a deceptive ally. Thus Jeremiah portrayed Egypt as a warlike nation intent on conquest (vv. 1–9). But the day of battle belongs to the Lord. Pharaoh was only a “loudmouth” (v. 17): the sword will “devour till it is satisfied” (v. 10). There is irony in verses 11 and 12. From the third millennium G.p. Egypt was renowned for her physicians, medicines, and books on healing. But now for Egypt herself “there is no healing.” While verse 28 makes it clear that Jeremiah is speaking of a contemporary defeat of Egypt by the Babylonians, the Lord intends events to convey a timeless message. God is in charge of history. The defeat of Egypt is evidence that the Lord can—and one day will-deliver His people and return them to their land (vv. 27–28). History still witnesses to the moral nature of our universe and conveys a message of hope. Nations built on evil, as was Nazi Germany, carry the seeds of their own destruction. God values righteousness and peace, and one day will give His people both. “Concerning the Philistines before Pharaoh attacked Gaza” Jer. 47:1–7. The chronological note is obscure but suggests that Jeremiah focused on current events. The Egyptians were about to crush the remnants of Judah’s ancient enemies, so terrifying them that fathers would not even turn back to help their own children (v. 3). Note that God used the agency of one of His people’s enemies to bring ruin to another. You and I don’t need to take revenge on those who mistreat or harm us. Such people have plenty of other enemies God can and will use to repay them! “Concerning Moab” Jer. 48:1–47. The Moabites originally occupied the high plains east of the Jordan River. Moab had tried to seduce the Israelites into immorality and idolatry on their journey from Egypt (Num. 25:1–3), and the two peoples were generally hostile to each other after that time. The prophecies in this chapter seem to summarize the oracles other Old Testament prophets directed against this people (cf. Isa. 15–16; Ezek. 25:8–11; Amos 2:1–3; Zeph. 2:8–11). The destruction described here is merited, for in her complacency (Jer. 48:11–15) and conceit (vv. 26–34) Moab “defied the Lord” (v. 42). Despite this the Lord lamented over Moab (v. 36), and in the future will “restore [her] fortunes” (v. 47). One of the most significant features of biblical prophecies of judgment is that they typically conclude just like the oracle against Moab. Sins are exposed, judgment is decreed, and yet, always, God expresses His love and promises that after necessary discipline His people will be restored. Even foreign nations, with no claim to a covenant relationship with the Lord, are to be justly punished for their sins but, in the end, their fortunes too will be restored. We can understand such promises made to Israel and Judah. After all, God by a formal, legal covenant committed Himself to bless Abraham’s children. But He has no such obligation to foreign nations that not only fail to know Him, but are even enemies of His chosen people. Yet again and again we see that God intends to bless all peoples—not because He has to, but simply because He cares. Theologians speak of a doctrine called “common grace.” Somehow God has chosen to bless all human beings in many ways, whether they know and trust Him or not. Reading the oracle against Moab we sense, despite its theme of judgment, a strong current of very uncommon grace! God’s love will leap over every obstacle. He will find a way to redeem His enemies as well as His own. “Concerning” others Jer. 49:1–39. Several hostile peoples are dealt with in this chapter. Again the focus is on the contemporary historical setting rather than the “last days.” Babylon, the agent God will use to discipline His people, will also strike the Jews’ enemies. In one act God will both discipline His own people, and punish those historically hostile to them. The message of these chapters must have been encouraging to the exiles once they were in Babylon. When they struggled to understand why, as we all do when tragedy strikes, the revelation of God’s purpose to punish the nations as well as Judah would help His people sense the consistency and fairness of the Lord. God is a moral judge, who will punish all sin. Yes, He disciplines us. But He is evenhanded in His acts. He disciplines us. And He punishes those who are not His own. And, most wonderful of all, He offers pardon to all. “Concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians” Jer. 50:1–51:64. Jeremiah’s major oracle against foreign nations was reserved for Babylon. The spectacular rise of this Chaldean power would be matched by a sudden fall (50:1–20). God would call other nations against her, for “the Lord has opened His arsenal and brought out the weapons of His wrath” (vv. 21–27). The exiles of Judah would return triumphantly to their homeland (vv. 28–40) after God called up an army from the north to crush Judah’s conqueror (vv. 41–46). Amid further descriptions of Babylon’s doom (51:1–5, 11–19), the prophet added a warning to the people of Judah. Babylon was beyond healing. When the time came to return home, the people of Judah should “flee from Babylon.” This lengthy prophecy carries a postscript. Seraiah, an official who accompanied Zedekiah to Babylon in 594/3 G.p. (cf. v. 59), was to read these prophecies against Babylon to the captives already there, and then sink his copy in the river, to symbolize the impossibility of Babylon arising again. “All this happened to Jerusalem and Judah” Jer. 52:1–34. Jeremiah had written in most passionate language about Judah’s sins, and about impending judgment. But now, in a brief appendix, there is only a blunt, straightforward account of Jerusalem’s fall. It is almost as if all emotion has been exhausted, all passion drained. There is hardly even a capacity to feel horror, for the terrible has become commonplace. Zedekiah rebelled. The Babylonians finally took the city from starving defenders. The king’s children were executed and he was blinded. The temple was burned and its holy vessels cut up for transportation to Babylon. Key spiritual and military leaders left alive were executed. The few thousand survivors were then transported to Babylon. It’s left for us to read between the lines, if we wish. To feel the hunger and fear; the anguish of watching loved ones die. To sense the anger and hatred that surged—often against Jeremiah—as the futility of resistance became more and more clear. But all that was past now. It was over. And, in Babylon, the remnant of the people of Judah would be given a fresh start. Judgment never is pleasant. But the historical accounts of Scripture remind us that judgment is sure.

DEVOTIONAL

Babylon Must Fall(Jer. 50–51)

The awesome specter of Babylon dominates many chapters of the historical and prophetic books of the Old Testament. The impression made on God’s people by this ancient kingdom is so great that the name has been transformed into a symbol. The symbol is seen most clearly in Revelation 17 and 18, where Babylon stands first for humanistic religion, and then for materialistic human society. All man’s achievements, all that human beings strive and hope for in this world, is summed up in that one word, Babylon. I’m not an exponent of allegorical interpretation of Scripture. Or of spiritualizing the Old Testament. Yet in these chapters describing the coming destruction of historic Babylon, something more than history is at stake. The prophet says, “Babylon must fall because of Israel’s slain, just as the slain in all the earth have fallen because of Babylon” (Jer. 51:49). And somehow, in those words, I hear a message for me today. Babylon, with its worldly hopes and worldly ways, with its focus on wealth and power, with its pride in human achievement, is responsible for so much spiritual deadness. The excitement of hitching a ride to Babylon, of making it big in the Big City, has made God’s priorities and His ways seem dull and even foolish to many. Yes, Babylon must fall, because so many are slain by her superficial attractiveness. And the very first place Babylon must fall is from my heart.

Personal Application

Only a heart fixed on God will have no room for love of the world.

Quotable

“Worldliness is a spirit, a temperament, an attitude of the soul. It is a life without high callings, life devoid of lofty ideals. It is a gaze always horizontal and never vertical.”—J. Henry Jowett

JUNE 6

Reading 157

FLIGHT TO EGYPT Jeremiah 40–45

“You made a fatal mistake when you sent me to the Lord your God and said, ’Pray to the Lord our God’ “ (Jer. 42:19–20).Knowing the will of God obligates us to do it. Better not to ask God’s will unless you intend to do it!

Overview

Brisk narrative chapters tell of the assassination of the Babylonian-appointed governor, Gedaliah (40:1–41:15), and the Jewish remnant’s hasty flight to Egypt despite Jeremiah’s warnings (v. 16–43:13). Now destruction faced the fleeing population, which persisted in idolatry (44:1–30). A footnote contains God’s promise to, and rebuke of, Baruch (45:1–5).

Understanding the Text

“You people sinned against the Lord” Jer. 40:1–6.

Jeremiah was found chained with other captives due to be sent to Babylon. We do not know whether or not the Babylonian commander truly believed what he said to Jeremiah when he set the prophet free (vv. 1–3). But his words show that the enemy was well acquainted with the prophet’s message. We never know how far our words carry when we witness to our faith in God or share His message with others. “Gedaliah . . . took an oath to reassure them” Jer. 40:7–41:15. Gedaliah is one of Scripture’s least-known but most attractive figures. When he was appointed to govern Judah, he took pains to reassure the remaining population. He promised to represent their interests to the Babylonians, and settled them on productive land where they would have food and ultimately prosper. At first all went well. Reassured by Gedaliah’s appointment, Jews who had fled to neighboring countries returned, and the initial harvest was abundant. When warned of a plot to assassinate him, Gedaliah brushed it aside, refusing to believe the worst of a person he thought of as honorable and a friend. In all this Gedaliah showed himself to be a truly good man. But Gedaliah was an exception, and good men do not prosper in the land of the wicked. He was murdered, along with the small garrison of Babylonian soldiers left in Judah. Perhaps only the words of Isaiah provide insight when a person like Gedaliah dies before his time, and the wicked seem to prosper. “The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death” (Isa. 57:1–2). “Please hear our petition” Jer. 41:16–42:3. The murders terrified the Jewish population. Surely the Babylonians would avenge this terrorist act! All the remaining Jews, under discharged army officers led by Johanan son of Kareah, assembled and begged Jeremiah to ask God what they should do. On the surface this step seems a pious and wise one. But, as noted earlier, it is dangerous to ask God for guidance unless we fully intend to do as He directs. “May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act in accordance with everything [you] tell us” Jer. 42:4–22. After a 10-day delay, Jeremiah brought the anxious remnant God’s answer. The message was unequivocable and clear. The Jews were to remain in the land; God would see to it that Nebuchadnezzar dealt kindly with them. They were definitely not to go to Egypt. If the people did try to flee to Egypt, “not one of them will survive or escape the disaster I will bring on them.” As the men of Jeremiah’s day were about to discover, it’s not what we don’t know of God’s will that may be our problem. Knowing God’s will carries the obligation to do God’s will. Failure to do what we know is right is far more serious than not understanding what the Lord requires. One of the most exciting finds by archeologists in Jerusalem is the bullae (seal) used by Baruch, the scribe to whom Jeremiah dictated this Old Testament book. The seal, illustrated here, was used as an authenticating stamp and reads “to/from Baruch // son of Neriah // the scribe.” “They entered Egypt in disobedience” Jer. 43:1–13. The people of Jeremiah’s time had decided beforehand what they wanted God to say. When Jeremiah’s message disagreed with their expectations, they accused Jeremiah of lying! It seems like such an easy way out. You don’t like what the Bible says? Well then, just decide not to believe it! You feel uncomfortable about this or that passage? Then just ignore it, or revise it to suit. A contemporary paraphrase by Shirley Maclaine, the New Age Version, renders Romans 3:23 as: “For all have experienced momentary lapses and have come up a tad shy of the Divine Entity’s absolute idea, but hey, nobody’s perfect. So don’t worry. Be happy!” Nice try, Shirley. But this admittedly more cheery phrasing does not change the truth affirmed in the original. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And it has no impact on the fact that “the wages of sin is death” (6:23). One can choose to deny, ignore, or reinterpret the Word of God. But nothing a person does can change the fact that what God says is true and binding. “To this day they have not humbled themselves or shown reverence” Jer. 44:1–30. Rebelliously the leaders and remaining people of Judah announced that they were going to Egypt anyway. What’s more, “We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and will pour out drink offerings to her just as we and our fathers . . . did in . . . the streets of Jerusalem.” This defiance of God and His Word was the final demonstration of the attitude which cost the people of Judah their kingdom. Now the remaining few trudged into Egypt, terrified of the Babylonians behind them, but blind to the destruction that God assured them lay ahead. And so the remnant disappeared into the desert, as the focus of God’s plans for His people shifted to highlight the captives in Babylon.

DEVOTIONAL

Seeking Great Things (Jer. 45)

Baruch was a frustrated man. His confrontation with Jehoiakim over the words Jeremiah dictated to him had ruined his prospects! He saw a bright career going down the drain. We know from the text of Jeremiah that Baruch was a member of a respected Jerusalemite family (36:4), and that his brother was an official in the royal court (51:59). He was trained as a scribe, very likely in order to serve in government. Everything about Baruch—background, education, connections—suggests that he could normally expect to gain a high-status, high-paying position in the local aristocracy. And then somehow Baruch got mixed up with Jeremiah, was linked with that unpopular prophet in the mind of King Jehoiakim—and that was it! No high pay. No fancy chariot. No job with the king. Kaput! And so Baruch pouted, and complained, “Woe to me.” I suppose we can identify with Baruch to some extent. He had great plans for himself, and a real prospect of making it big. When his plans crashed down around him, he became despondent, “worn out with groaning” and finding “no rest.” Life didn’t seem worth living to Baruch unless he achieved his goals, and made it in the big city. It was then God spoke to Baruch, and rebuked him. God was about to bring the whole society crashing down! “Should you then seek great things for yourself?” Bluntly God told Baruch, “Seek them not.” And then God made a promise. In the coming disaster the Lord would give Baruch something more precious than position—God would let Baruch “escape with your life.” Sometimes we need to be reminded, as Baruch was. We may not see the realization of our dreams. We may not reach the potential we think we have. We may never take our place among the rich and famous of this world. But compared to the gift that God has given us, the gift of life, these things mean little. “Seek them not,” is still some of the best advice Scripture has for the godly. Instead of wanting what we do not have, let’s be grateful for God’s gift of life. And use our lives to serve Him.

Personal Application

Satisfaction is not found in getting what you want, but in wanting what you get.

Quotable

“Greatness after all, in spite of its name, appears to be not so much a certain size as a certain quality in human lives. It may be present in lives whose range is very small.”—Phillips Brooks

JUNE 5

Reading 156

UNDER SIEGE Jeremiah 34–39

“You will see the king of Babylon with your own eyes. . . . And you will go to Babylon” (Jer. 34:3).Jerusalem was under siege. Jeremiah was imprisoned, the king powerless—and the people unrepentant.

Overview

Jeremiah warned Zedekiah to surrender (34:1–7). Judah’s disobedience to God (vv. 8–22) was contrasted with the Recabites’ obedience to an ancestor’s command (35:1–19). Jehoiakim’s destruction of an early Jeremiah scroll is recalled (36:1–32). Returning to Zedekiah’s day, Jeremiah was imprisoned and thrown into a muddy cistern to die (37:1–38:13). The powerless Zedekiah questioned Jeremiah privately (vv. 14–28) just before the city was finally taken (39:1–18).

Understanding the Text

“Go to Zedekiah king of Judah” Jer. 34:1–7.

In a final effort to spare the city God sent Jeremiah to Zedekiah. Only a few pockets of resistance to the invading Babylonians remained in Judah (v. 7); it was clear that further resistance was hopeless. Yet even now if Zedekiah would surrender, God promised to spare his life and give him an honorable burial. The incident reminds us of the two thieves on the cross. All hope of living is past. Death stares grimly from the doorstep. Even then, God gives sinners a chance to repent. “Proclaim freedom for the slaves” Jer. 34:8–22. This passage suggests that Zedekiah did make some effort at reform. In hopes of winning God’s favor he led his officials and Jerusalem’s citizens to free their Hebrew slaves. Old Testament Law required that Hebrew slaves be freed after just a few years of service (Deut. 15:12–18). But the wealthy of Jerusalem violated this law and kept fellow Jews in perpetual servitude. This the people now pledged to correct, and released their Hebrew slaves. But when the feint of an Egyptian army caused a temporary lifting of the siege of Jerusalem (cf. Jer. 37:4–5), “they changed their minds and took back the slaves they had freed and enslaved them again.” In this they not only disobeyed the Lord, but also violated a most solemn “covenant of blood,” made by walking between halves of a slain calf. This act symbolized the punishment they merited if they broke the covenant promise, made “before the Lord.” Now God would impose just this penalty. The problem with many “deathbed conversions” is that when death seems imminent, almost any promise will be made. But when the danger recedes, people revert to their old ways. The reality of repentance and faith can never be verified by mere words. True repentance and faith can only be displayed by a lifetime of obedience to God’s commands. “You have obeyed the command of your forefather Jonadab” Jer. 35:1–19. The Recabites were a family of nomadic tribesmen who had carefully followed the instructions of a forefather not to drink wine and not to live in houses or take up agriculture. God pointed out this obedience, and contrasted it with Judah’s persistent refusal to obey One far greater than Jonadab, the Lord Himself. Judah would be punished for her refusal to obey God. As for the Recabites, they were rewarded with the promise that “Jonadab son of Recab will never fail to have a man to serve Me.” It is not emotional protestations of faith, or sudden deathbed conversions, that count with God. These may or may not be real. What pleases God is the believer’s persistent, consistent life of simple obedience to His Word. “The king burned the scroll containing the words that Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation” Jer. 36:1–32. The contrast between the Recabites and the people of Judah continued with this story from the time of Jehoiakim, about 15 years before the other incidents reported in these chapters. The Recabites had remembered the words of Jonadab: God caused His words through Jeremiah to be written in ink, an unforgettable testimony. What had happened? King Jehoiakim had actually burned the manuscript, a futile attempt to blot out the Word of God! The attempt was futile indeed. Jeremiah simply dictated another copy—with added text—to his secretary Baruch, while the prophet and his scribe hid from Jeiakim. And what did this attempt to blot out Scripture gain Jehoiakim? Complete rejection by God. He and his family would be set aside, and David’s royal line would be traced through a brother, not the apostate king. People still try to ignore or discredit the Word of God. But their efforts are just as futile as Jehoiakim’s—and have the same consequence of rejection by the Lord. “Please pray to the Lord our God for us” Jer. 37:1–10. Zedekiah completely ignored God’s word (v. 2), but he wanted Jeremiah to pray for him! How typical of the unconverted. God doesn’t merit their attention—unless they want something from Him. God did respond to Zedekiah’s request. He sent Jeremiah to tell the king that the withdrawal of the Babylonian forces to meet an Egyptian threat was temporary. The Babylonians would return, resume their attack, and burn Jerusalem down. Yes, anyone can pray. But like Zedekiah, those who have ignored God all their lives might not like the answer they receive. “You are deserting to the Babylonians” Jer. 37:11–21. During a break in the siege, Jeremiah tried to leave Jerusalem on business, but was stopped at the gate and accused of deserting to the Babylonians. Jeremiah’s constant urging of surrender clearly had antagonized “patriots.” In their anger they and the king’s officials had Jeremiah beaten and imprisoned. In the first of several private interviews with Zedekiah, Jeremiah again urged surrender. Rather than being returned to a prison where he was in danger of dying, Jeremiah was kept in the “courtyard of the guard” and fed daily. The reaction of the “patriots” is typical. In the stress of the siege the people blamed Jeremiah, who had warned them for years of what must happen if they continued to disobey God. They struck out at him, rather than accepting responsibility for the situation. Blaming others is one of the most useless and destructive of all possible responses in any situation. The only positive response is to look honestly at causes, to accept responsibility for our own role, then to take any appropriate action. In Judah the people still refused to accept responsibility for the actions that brought the Babylonians down on them. The people of Judah simply blamed Jeremiah, and directed their frustration and anger at him. The same trait is common in spouse and child abusers, and in alcoholics. They refuse to accept responsibility for their actions, and instead blame their victims! Until a person accepts responsibility for his own acts, there is no hope of change. Such people will continue to victimize the innocent, just as the officials of Judah victimized righteous Jeremiah. “This man should be put to death” Jer. 38:1–13. The compulsive anger of guilty men who deny their responsibility is further shown in the reaction of high officials to Jeremiah’s continued preaching. The prophet again warned that only those who left Jerusalem would survive to go into Captivity. This additional “treasonous” preaching, which no doubt threatened the morale of the defenders, led to demands that Jeremiah be put to death. Zedekiah, unwilling to resist their pressure, shrugged and turned Jeremiah over to them. Jeremiah was then placed in an empty city cistern, a giant water-storage pit. He sank deep into the muck, and was left there to die. Don’t ever think, if you are in a relationship with an abuser or alcoholic, that things will somehow get better. Even if you do what’s right, as Jeremiah did, you can count on more intense persecution. Only when the abusing individual accepts responsibility for the sinfulness of his own acts is there any hope of change. Until then you can expect more hostility, more anger, and more abuse. Jeremiah’s situation, however, was not hopeless. God sent another official, named Ebed-Melech, to help him. Jeremiah was lifted out of the cistern, and returned to the courtyard of the guard. A neighbor of ours, seriously abused by her husband, prayed desperately that God would send someone to counsel her. That day my wife met her at our community pool, and spent an hour sharing with her. Three weeks later the neighbor, feeling desperate again, uttered the same prayer. Again she “just happened” to meet my wife, who again spent several hours talking with her. God has an Ebed-Melech for you when you are desperate too. Pray, as our neighbor did, and ask God to send someone who can help. Jeremiah was placed in a cistern much like this one, and left to die. “Then he put out Zedekiah’s eyes” Jer. 39:1–10. Jerusalem fell, as Jeremiah had predicted. Zedekiah tried to flee, but was captured. His sons were slaughtered as he watched, and then his own eyes were gouged out, so that the last sight the king saw was the murder of his family. Then Zedekiah, and all but a few of the poorest in Judah, were taken into Captivity, as the smoke of burning Jerusalem rose behind them. The king had refused to heed the word of the Lord. The responsibility for what happened to him was his own. The blinded, childless king, being dragged away in shackles, is a graphic reminder of a basic spiritual truth. Anyone can choose to ignore the Word of God. But no one can avoid the consequences of that choice. “Go and tell Ebed-Melech” Jer. 39:11–18. The Babylonians cared for Jeremiah, whom they must have viewed as an asset. Given the choice, Jeremiah chose to remain with the little group of Jews left in the land rather than to accompany the captives to Babylon. After all, Ezekiel and Daniel were both in Babylon. The exiles would not be without guidance. But who would care for the poor remnant remaining in Judah? Jeremiah’s first mission was one of comfort. Ebed-Melech, who had earlier saved the prophet, was told that though the city must be destroyed, he would be saved, “because you trust in” the Lord. This man’s rescue of Jeremiah had been an act of faith. The incident encourages us. Just as there were consequences to Zedekiah’s disobedience, so there were consequences to Ebed-Melech’s act of faith. God does, as Hebrews says, “reward those who earnestly seek Him” (Heb. 11:6).

DEVOTIONAL

Pity the Poor, Powerless King(Jer. 38)

TV found a winner when it decided to feature “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.” Ah, how the average person envies them. Wealth! Power! What more could a human being want? But Jeremiah gave a totally different notion of the “rich and famous” of his time. His portrait of Zedekiah, the King of Judah, takes us behind the scenes, and reveals a man more to be pitied than envied. For this king was powerless! When officials demanded the death sentence for Jeremiah, Zedekiah shrugged and said, “He is in your hands. The king can do nothing to oppose you” (v. 5). After Jeremiah was rescued by the bold Ebed-Melech, Zedekiah went to Jeremiah alone, to ask what was to happen to him in the future (vv. 14–16). The king was told that if he surrendered he and his family would live (vv. 17–18). Zedekiah hesitated, and shared his fears. The Babylonians might hand him over to the Jews who had deserted to them, and he might be mistreated (v. 19). Again Jeremiah urged surrender (vv. 20–23), but the king only begged that Jeremiah not tell his officials what either of them had said, but simply to say that Jeremiah had begged for his life (vv. 24–28). What a portrait of a king! Afraid of the future. Terrified of his own officials. Knowing what was right, but totally unable to do it, even if he wanted to. The most powerful man in Judah was the least free to act; the least able to do what was wise and right. Oh, yes, we should pityäthe poor, helpless king. And we should learn from him. The greatest gift that God can give us is freedom—the freedom to do what we believe is right. Often the rich are too concerned for their wealth to do what they believe is right. They are captives of what they possess. Often the famous are too concerned about what others will think to do what they believe is right. They are captives of their fame. And often the powerful are too concerned about maintaining their position to act on what they believe is right. They are captives, not wielders, of their own power. Only those who care supremely about doing God’s will are truly rich, for they alone are truly free.

Personal Application

Do God’s will, and you will be greater—and happier—than any king.

Quotable

Whenever Richard Cory went down town, We people on the pavement looked at him: He was a gentleman from soul to crown, Clean favored, and imperially slim. And he was always quietly arrayed, And he was always human when he talked; But still he fluttered pulses when he said, “Good morning,” and he glittered when he walked. And he was rich—yes, richer than a king -And admirably schooled in every grace: In fine, we thought that he was everything To make us wish that we were in his place. So on we worked, and waited for the light, And went without the meat, and cursed the bread; And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head.-Edward Arlington Robinson

JUNE 4

Reading 155

NEW COVENANT PROMISES Jeremiah 30–33

“I will put My Law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be My people. . . . For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more” (Jer. 31:33–34).The key to understanding God’s work in believers today is to understand the impact of the New Covenant, and to realize that this covenant was instituted in the death of Jesus Christ.

Overview

A collection of sermons focused on the restoration (30:1–11) and healing (vv. 12–24) of the Old Testament faith community. God’s everlasting love guaranteed future blessedness despite present mourning (31:1–30). But to accomplish His purposes God had to make a New Covenant with His people (vv. 31–40). Jeremiah bought a field occupied by the enemy to demonstrate his personal confidence in God’s promises of restoration (32:1–44), which he repeated despite being imprisoned (33:1–26).

Understanding the Text

“I will bring My people . . . back” Jer. 30:1–11.

The messages in these chapters are unified by the theme of restoration. While they may be drawn from different periods of Jeremiah’s ministry, they most likely are set, as the incidents in chapters 32 and 33, in Judah’s last days, with Jerusalem about to fall. These messages underline a peculiar characteristic of prophetic preaching. When God’s people are prosperous and comfortable, the prophets thunder against their sins and predict judgment. Yet when judgment comes, and God’s people tremble with fear, the same prophets comfort with promises of forgiveness and restoration. There is no conflict between the two themes. The predictions of punishment are intended to bring repentance and, if there is no repentance at the warning, the punishment itself will bring repentance later. What we do see is that God is always careful to communicate just the message His people need for their particular situation. One modern pulpiteer observed that his calling was to “afflict the comfortable, and comfort the afflicted.” If you and I are too comfortable in this world, we need the stern words of God to remind us that we are to remain committed to justice and holiness. If we suffer, we need loving words of promise, that remind us of God’s love and His commitment to do us good. “I will restore you to health and heal your wounds” Jer. 30:12–24. Here the “wound” God speaks of is spiritual. His people are “beyond healing” because their “guilt is so great, and your sins so many.” Before God can restore the material prosperity of His people, He must restore their spiritual health. This is impossible for the people of Judah: their wound is “incurable” and “beyond healing.” But God will devise a way, and then He will restore them to relationship with Him (v. 22) and to national prosperity. The order here is important. God is eager to bless us. But first we must be healed within, and in right relationship with Him. As Jesus put it, our first concern is to seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness. Then “all these things will be given to you as well” (Matt. 6:33). “I have loved you with an everlasting love” Jer. 31:1–14. If we search for any reason for God’s promise of restoration in the people of Judah themselves, we’ll be disappointed. Nothing in their character or actions was attractive. Nothing merited God’s consideration. Instead the reason Jeremiah gave was simply that God had chosen to love His people “with an everlasting love.” It is the overflow of His “loving-kindness,” a term that speaks of God’s compassionate commitment to His covenant promises, which lies at the root of His actions. It is the same with us today. When God sent His Son into the world, it was to save His enemies! He saved us despite, not because of, what we are. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). Let’s never fall into the error of thinking that God saved us, or will save another person, because we are “good” or “nice” or somehow deserve His favor. And what a blessing this is! The nicest of us are flawed, and if we had to depend on our own works, would be uncertain about gaining God’s gift. But since all depends on the love of God, we can be confident and sure. God’s love is boundless, and as Jeremiah says, “everlasting.” Only because we rely completely on the love of God can we say with confidence that we have been, are being, and surely will be “saved.” No wonder Jeremiah called on Judah to “sing with joy” and “make your praises heard.” Trust in the love of God will turn our “mourning into gladness,” and will give us “comfort and joy instead of sorrow.” “Mourning and great weeping” Jer. 31:15–30. The saying is quoted in Matthew’s Gospel (2:17–18), and applied to the slaughter of innocent babes at Herod’s order, in that king’s futile attempt to kill the Christ Child. Yet here the reference clearly is to Rachel, the ancestress of the northern tribes, weeping over the deportation of Israel to Assyria in 722B.C Her tragic figure also weeps at Ramah, the very site where exiles were gathered before being deported to Babylon (Jer. 40:1). God told her to stop weeping, for He would restore her banished offspring, making them again a source of joy rather than grief. The Matthew quote is not intended as direct fulfillment, but as an application. In both cases, God will overrule. Tragedy will give birth to blessing; grief will give birth to joy. “I will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel” Jer. 31:31–40. A covenant was a formal, legal promise or commitment. Jeremiah predicted that a “time is coming” when God would make a New Covenant with Israel, to replace the “old” Mosaic Code under which the Jews lived. Note that God did not “make” that covenant in Jeremiah’s time, but rather promised to replace the old with a new agreement at some future date. The New Testament makes it clear that the promised “New Covenant” was formally instituted by the death of Christ. That covenant took the most binding of all Old Testament forms: it was a “covenant of blood,” formalized by the offering of a blood sacrifice. How Jeremiah would have wondered, and bowed his head in awe, if he had known that the sacrifice necessary to keep the promises imbedded in the New Covenant would be the very Son of God. Jeremiah did describe the nature of the New Covenant. It is “not like” the Mosaic Code, which recorded God’s Laws in stone and failed to offer complete forgiveness. Through the New Covenant, God would “put My law in their minds and write it on their hearts.” The New Covenant offers inner spiritual renewal and transformation. Through the New Covenant, God would “be their God,” united by a bond which nothing in heaven or hell can break. And through the New Covenant, God would “forgive their wickedness” and “remember their sins no more.” Today you and I enjoy the spiritual benefits of this New Covenant through our faith in Jesus Christ. One day, according to Jeremiah, a restored Israel will dwell again in Judah and Jerusalem, secure in the ancient Promised Land. Then Israel too will recognize her Messiah, and the spiritual benefits you and I now enjoy will belong to this people whom God chose to love with an “everlasting love.” “Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know” Jer. 33:1–26. Jeremiah was in prison, held for his “treasonable” advice that Judah surrender to the Babylonians. God spoke to him again, and revealed the “unsearchable.” Here is God’s plan for the future of His people: a future no one could imagine then apart from divine revelation. What is the outline of that future? Judah would be carried into Captivity (vv. 1–5). They would be brought back to the land, and its fortunes would be restored (vv. 6–13). The complete fulfillment of this promise awaits the appearance of a Descendant of David, who may rightly be called “the Lord Our Righteousness.” Until that time comes, there will always be a descendant of David qualified to sit on Israel’s throne (vv. 14–18). And, Jeremiah announced, this salvation intention of God is as firm as the Creation intention, which set the stars in their courses and established the rhythmic cycle of day and night (vv. 19–26). Of one thing we can be sure. God has not rejected His people Israel. And He will not reject us.

DEVOTIONAL

Money Where Your Mouth Is (Jer. 31–32)

“I do! I do! I know you can!” The little fellow jumped up and down when the tightrope walker asked who believed he could carry a man on his shoulders as he walked his tightrope over Niagara Falls. But when told, “OK, brother. You’re first,” you couldn’t see the little fellow for dust! It’s an old story, but it surely illustrates the point. If you really believe something, you should be willing to display your faith by your actions. This is what God asked Jeremiah to do. The prophet had boldly announced a future restoration and blessing of Jerusalem (chap. 31). Now he was told to buy a field, wrap the deed up carefully, and bury it where it could be found 70 years later when a remnant of Jews returned from Babylon. There was only one catch. The field Jeremiah was told to buy was outside of Jerusalem, occupied by the Babylonian army that was even then besieging the city walls! And Jeremiah was even told to pay full price, in silver, for what everyone then must have considered worthless land (32:6–15). Jeremiah was stunned. After obeying the Lord, he voiced his surprise in prayer (vv. 16–25). God reminded His prophet, “I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for Me?” (v. 26) What a word for us. We believe, but sometimes when led to what seems a risky or costly act, we hold back. Like the little boy who fled the tightrope walker when invited to take the first ride, we tend to flee when challenged to put our faith into action. When the temptation to flee comes, how good to remember God’s command to Jeremiah to buy a seemingly worthless field. That “foolish” act echoes down to our own day as evidence of the prophet’s faith—and evidence of the wisdom of obeying even “foolish” and seemingly costly commands of God.

Personal Application

The answer to God’s question, “Is anything too hard for Me?” is still “No!”

Quotable

“I was a free man in a worldly position; my father was a decurion, indeed, I bargained away my aristocratic status—I am neither ashamed nor sorry—for the benefit of others. In short, I am a slave in Christ to an outlandish nation because of the unspeakable glory of eternal life which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”—Patrick of Ireland

JUNE 3

Reading 154

JUDGMENT DAY TODAY Jeremiah 21–29

“Inquire now of the Lord for us because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is attacking us” (Jer. 21:2).The scene now shifts to the final years of Judah’s existence. Jeremiah’s predictions were coming true: the land was under siege. These chapters report a series of incidents, in no special chronological order, from Judah’s last frantic months of independence.

Overview

Zedekiah was refused divine aid against Babylon (21:1–14), and Jeremiah condemned Judah’s evil kings (22:1–30). In the distant future Messiah will restore a scattered Israel (23:1–8), but the immediate future holds judgment, despite the lies of Judah’s prophets (vv. 9–40). God would bless those who went into Captivity (24:1–10), and in 70 years restore Judah to her land (25:1–14). Later He would punish her pagan persecutors (vv. 15–38). Jeremiah was viewed as a traitor and threatened with death (26:1–24). Yet he did not stop calling on Judah to submit to Babylon and God’s will (27:1–22). His words are authenticated by the predicted death of the false prophet Hananiah (28:1–17), but a letter to Jewish captives already in Babylon sparks a new charge of treason against Jeremiah (29:1–32).

Understanding the Text

“Perhaps the Lord will perform wonders for us” Jer. 21:1–14. With the city under siege, King Zedekiah at last turned to Jeremiah and the Lord for help. Grimly the prophet repeated the message he had given faithfully for so many years. God would not fight for, but against, His people. Jeremiah did offer one hope. Those who left the city of Jerusalem and surrendered to Nebuchadnezzar would survive. Those who stayed in the city to resist him would die. It was this call to surrender that aroused so much fury, and led to accusations of treason against Jeremiah. “My country, may she ever be right; but right or wrong, my country,” was clearly the sentiment in Judah. This popular patriotic slogan is just as wrong today as it was then. In a conflict between right and country, or God and country, we must choose as Jeremiah did. We must take our stand for God and right. “Does it make you a king to have more and more cedar?” Jer. 22:1–30 The king of this passage is Jehoiakim, who earned Jeremiah’s rebuke by tyrannically forcing unpaid labor to expand his palace while the land groaned under tribute demanded by Egypt’s Pharaoh Neco (cf. 2 Kings 23:34–35). This was a direct violation of Old Testament Law (cf. Lev. 19:13; Deut. 24:14–15), and marked Jehoiakim as a user, rather than a servant, of his people. Jeremiah’s question, quoted above, focuses our attention on the nature of all spiritual leadership. In his denunciation of Jehoiakim, he contrasted this wicked king with his godly father Josiah. Josiah was a true king: a true servant of his people. This description of Josiah might well serve as a motto and guide for anyone in a position of spiritual leadership: “He did what was right and just, so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know Me?” declares the Lord (vv. 15–16). “I will raise up to David a righteous Branch” Jer. 23:1–8. Wicked Jehoiakim, who abused his power, was to be carried away to Babylon and have the “burial of a donkey” (22:19), without honor or regret. Now the prophet drew the ultimate contrast. One day the deposed king will be replaced by another from David’s royal line, a righteous Person who will “do what is just and right in the land,” and provide a restored Judah with salvation and safety. The Messiah, who we realize today is Jesus Christ, truly stands in contrast with Judah’s flawed kings. In order to provide His people with salvation and safety, King Jesus willingly suffered a criminal’s death. And, in dying, He demonstrated once and for all that what qualifies a person to rule—what marks a person off as a true leader—is the readiness to serve others at personal cost. “They commit adultery and live a lie” Jer. 23:9–40. Once again contrast catapults us into a new but related topic. Judah was filled with prophets: professional religious leaders who claimed to be channels through whom God communicated His word. Unlike Josiah, who was committed to doing good, and unlike the Messiah, who was both righteous and just, these prophets were false prophets. Jeremiah said that these godless men “follow an evil course and use their power unjustly.” What was it that marked them off as false prophets? The same traits that mark off godly from ungodly ministers today. One: “They commit adultery and live a lie” (v. 14). Their personal lives do not display the moral purity that the ministry of the Word of God requires. Two: “They strengthen the hand of evildoers” (v. 14). There is no emphasis on holiness in their ministry: no call to complete commitment to God. Three: “They fill you with false hopes” (v. 16). They preach popular messages; messages that people want to hear. Their promises of peace, health, and prosperity are “visions from their own minds.” Four: “The dreams they tell one another will make My people forget My name” (v. 27). They mouthed God’s name when giving messages that were supposedly from Him. But because the messages are actually only dreams stolen from one another, the result is that their hearers know less and less about God, and thus “forget” His name. We should not judge any modern preacher, or publicly tag any individual with the label “false prophet.” Yet we should use these criteria to evaluate whom to listen to—and whom to support financially. “For twenty-three years . . . I have spoken to you again and again” Jer. 25:1–38. The message of those 23 years was the same: “Turn . . . from your evil practices, and you can stay in the land.” But Judah refused to listen to the words God spoke through His prophet. Twenty-three years! We can appreciate the frustration of the prophet, as again and again he uttered warnings and invitations—and again and again was ignored or persecuted. Twenty-three years. We can understand more of God’s grace, when we realize that it was really He who was ignored and rejected. And when, as the predicted invasion was taking place and Exile was certain, God added another note of promise. The Captivity was to last only for “seventy years.” Then, “when the seventy years are fulfilled,” Babylon will be repaid. Indeed, all the nations that were enemies of God’s people will be punished. Three themes are linked in this chapter. (1) God brings disaster on His own in order to discipline them. (2) Discipline is intended to restore God’s own to right relationship. (3) If God is willing to so punish sin in His own, how will the rest of mankind escape judgment? There is another significance to the prophecy of the 70 years. In Babylon the people of Judah would look back, and in anguish wonder if God had deserted them forever. There they would consider their desolated land and the ruins of the temple, and wonder if by their sin they had forfeited their ancient relationship entirely. Then they would recall Jeremiah’s prediction, that after 70 years a remnant would return. And, in that prophecy, the exiles would find hope. “This man should be sentenced to death” Jer. 26:1–24. This chapter jumps back, near the beginning of Jeremiah’s public ministry. It gives details about the reaction to Jeremiah’s “temple sermon,” which is recorded in chapter 7. It is placed here to demonstrate the consistency of Judah’s response to Jeremiah’s message, from the beginning on through the decades of rejection and frustration. That initial reaction was intense, and the religious leaders were the first to call for Jeremiah’s execution (26:7–12). At that time the royal officers and the people resisted, pointing out that speaking a message in the name of the Lord was not a capital offense (vv. 16–18). It would surely be dangerous to kill a prophet (v. 19). Did Jeremiah’s release after being threatened with death suggest any openness to God’s word? Not at all. It only showed that God was guarding Jeremiah, for another prophet who preached the same message was executed by the reigning king, Jehoiakim (vv. 20–24). Some ignore God’s messages; some react with anger; some believe. Some messengers are protected by God; some are killed by God’s enemies. The only guarantee anyone has when he takes the role of a Jeremiah is that God is sovereign, and that His Word must be heard. “Serve the king of Babylon, and you will live” Jer. 27:1–22. The scene shifts back to the time of Zedekiah, with Babylonian invasion forces threatening the kingdom. Jeremiah announced that God the Creator had chosen to give Judah and the other nations of Syria-Palestine over to the Babylonians. If Zedekiah surrendered the nation to Nebuchadnezzar, he and his people would live. At this time a number of Judah’s best families had already been deported to Babylon, in 605B.C It was then 597B.C, and within a year the Babylonian forces would be outside the city gates. There was no basis for hope, and yet Zedekiah would not listen to Jeremiah. Revelation describes a similar irrational response at history’s end. The earth itself will be rocked by disaster after disaster; so much so that the supernatural origin of the judgments will be plain to all. Observing this in a vision, John said that all mankind “hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, ’Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?’ ” (Rev. 6:15–17) Even the certainty of judgment cannot turn a man from his sins. Only the message of God’s saving love in Jesus can reach and melt the hardened human heart. Jeremiah was called to proclaim judgment, and his generation was unmoved. You and I are called to share the Gospel’s Good News, and this message is still “the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes” (Rom. 1:16). “I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon” Jer. 28:1–17. Jeremiah was constantly opposed by false prophets, who loudly proclaimed messages that contradicted his own. At the time Jeremiah was urging Zedekiah to surrender to the Babylonians, a false prophet named Hananiah announced that God would free Judah from Babylon’s power and would bring back the captives already in that land. He then broke the wooden yoke Jeremiah wore to symbolize submission to Babylon. Jeremiah was then told to forge a yoke of iron. And to announce that because Hananiah claimed to speak in God’s name when God had not sent him, that Hananiah would die before the year was out. Within two months, Hananiah was dead! In Old Testament times prophets were authenticated as God’s messengers by making predictions that would soon be fulfilled, or by performing some miraculous sign. That way there could be no mistake about who God’s spokesmen really were. Despite the fact that Hananiah died as Jeremiah predicted, the people of Judah still refused to listen to him. Today too there is an authenticating work of God that helps us recognize His spokesmen. This is a work of the Holy Spirit performed within believers. Jesus spoke of this work when He said, “I know My sheep, and My sheep know Me” (John 10:14–15). We need to authenticate modern teachings, first by the objective standard of the Word of God, and then by the subjective standard of the Spirit’s inner voice.

DEVOTIONAL

Bad Good News (Jer. 29)

It almost seems a contradiction in terms. “Bad” good news? But this is just what Jeremiah 29 is about. Read the chapter, and you and I can see only good news. It contains a letter that Jeremiah wrote to instruct and encourage the Jews who had already been transported to Babylon. In it Jeremiah encouraged the captives to settle down, build houses, enjoy life, and prosper in that great world capital (vv. 4–9). Jeremiah also conveyed God’s promise to bring His people back to their own land after 70 years. “I know the plans I have for you,” God said through His prophet, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (vv. 10–14). You can hardly imagine better news than that! You’d think the exiles would jump up and down with excitement, or at least settle back with a sigh of relief and thank God. Instead, the leaders in exile sent a missive to Judah’s ruling priest, demanding in God’s name that Jeremiah be put in stocks and neckirons! Jeremiah was a madman, who should be shut up once and for all! To the exiles in Babylon the good news that Jeremiah conveyed seemed to be bad news. They didn’t want to hear it! They wanted to come home, now. The other day I listened to a “Crossfire” program on CNN. The debate was between a little-known media evangelist and a man promoting a book in which he labels every radio and TV preacher a crook. And the very worst charge that the author hurled against the evangelist was, “You believe that everyone who doesn’t believe in Jesus is going to hell, don’t you?” What a case of “bad” good news. The Gospel message is that everyone deserves hell. Yet in love God sent Jesus to die for us, so that through faith in Him human beings might be forgiven and receive eternal life as a free gift. Somehow that critic of evangelists turned the whole message around, and made it appear that God condemned people for not believing in His Son, ignoring the fact that all mankind is lost and condemned without Him. Well, don’t be too surprised if what happened to Jeremiah, and what happened on TV, happens to you sometime. People have an amazing capacity to twist God’s good news and make it appear to be bad news. But if it does happen to you, don’t let your critic succeed. Keep the focus on the “good” of the good news, and rejoice in what the Lord means to you.

Personal Application

Arguing with folks determined to make good news appear bad is about as productive as trying to make hay grow on the moon.

Quotable

“As Tennyson passed the cottage of an aged lady, he asked, ’What news this morning?’ Replied the old lady, ’Lord Tennyson, I know only one piece of news—that Jesus Christ died for all mankind.’ ’Madam,’ said Tennyson, ’that is old news and new news and good news!’ “—Howard A. Banks