Jeremiah 15:1-4 – The dangers of resisting God’s kind overtures.

Continuing in His response to Jeremiah’s intercession for Judah, God in Jeremiah 15:1-4, told him that no amount of prayer could move Him. Even if Moses or Samuel whom God had responded positively to their intercession in the past were to pray for them, God would still not be moved. Judah had gone beyond the limit of God’s extended mercies. He was bent on doing what He said He would do. So thoroughly disappointed with them, God told Jeremiah to send the people away from His presence and to dismiss them.   

God even told Jeremiah what to say to the people when they asked “where should we go?  He was to tell them how they would either end in death, war, famine, and captivity. Verse 3 was exactly what Jeremiah was to tell them: “Thus says the Lord,

‘Those destined for death, to death;
And those destined for the sword, to the sword;
And those destined for famine, to famine;
And those destined for captivity, to captivity.’”

Besides God said there would be four kinds of catastrophe they would experience. They would be dragged away by dogs, and they would be devoured and destroyed by all kinds of birds of prey and beasts. God would make an example of them. They would be an object of horror to the nations and earthly kingdoms.  God was put off by their perpetuation of what Manasseh did. What exactly did Manasseh do?  Fundamentally, Manasseh violated both the Mosaic and Davidic covenants.

Seven things Manasseh did that were offensive to God are described in 2 Kings 21:1-9. Firstly, he led the nation back into the abominable idolatrous worship of the foreign nations which God had Israel gotten rid of.  Secondly, he allowed the high places which his father had removed to thrive again. Thirdly, he adopted Baal and Asherah worship like King Ahab of Israel. Fourthly, he indulged in the worship of the starry hosts. Fifthly, 2 Kings 21:5 said, “…he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD.” He had violated God’s plan for establishing His own name in Jerusalem. Sixthly, he made his son pass through the fire, and seventhly, he practiced all sorts of witchcraft by consulting mediums and spiritists.

Judah had reached a point where God could no longer tolerate her. No intercession could alleviate their situation. God refused to hear even if the best of  intercessors should intercede for them. We learn that even as believers, our resistance to God’s kind and loving overture  could lead us to a point where no amount of prayer can move the heart of God. We need to seize the moment and swiftly return to God at the first instance. Don’t procrastinate. The longer we resist the grace of God, the harder it will be for us to respond to God’s gracious goading. Today, if you hear the voice of God do not harden your heart!

 

Jeremiah 14:19-22 – The dangers of testing God

Jeremiah had pled with God on Judah’s behalf twice already but all to no avail. God  remained unmoved. Yet, persistently, the prophet came for the third time. Described in Jeremiah 14:19-22 was how Jeremiah framed his third petition. He began in verse 19 by asking three questions. His intention was to move God to intervene in the drought they were experiencing. His three questions were: Has God completely rejected Judah? Does he really loathe Zion? And  why would  He deal so severely with the nation till they are beyond healing?

Jeremiah saw the people’s dilemma of listening to false prophets and being baited by false hope. They were expecting peace but only experienced ills. They expected to be healed but had terror instead. On his part, Jeremiah acknowledged the sin of the people of Judah and identified himself with their sin. While he acknowledged that Judah deserved God’s harsh  dealing yet he pled for mercy. Firstly he asked God not to despise His own people  for His own name’s sake.  Secondly, He asked God not to bring disgrace to His own throne. In this, Jeremiah was referring to Jerusalem, God’s dwelling place. Thirdly, he reminded God that they were His covenant people and urged Him not to annul the covenant.  

 

The prophet vehemently acknowledged that God was the only one that could bring them relief from the drought.  He told God so in a series of rhetorical questions arguing that God alone could end the drought. Hence, they were placing their hope in God, trusting that He alone could end their misery.

 

What practical lessons can we learn from these verses? Firstly, we learn never to test God by persisting in our waywardness. While God is patient, He will have to deal with our sins. Don’t test Him beyond His endurance.  Secondly, we need to be careful that we are not wrongly influenced. Be careful who we listen to in life. Persuasive messages are not necessarily good messages. A good and godly message will always direct us to please God and not lead us to act erroneously to disappoint Him. Hence, be careful with the subtle and deviant nuances in a message. Thirdly, we must place our hope in God alone. He alone has the perfect solution to all our ills in life.   

Jeremiah 14:13-18 – Beware of false prophets

In Jeremiah 14:12, God told the prophet that He would bring an end to Judah with the sword, famine, and pestilence. To this Jeremiah, in verse 13, responded by pointing out to other prophets who were giving false hope to the people. They were proclaiming that they would not face war, famine, or pestilence. In verses 14-16, God then revealed that those were false prophets spouting out falsehood in His name. Those false prophets would give false visions, predict futility, and deception of their own minds.

The people that were hoodwinked by the false prophet would go on living as if there would be no war, famine, or pestilence. They were deluded into a false assurance that no calamity would happen to them. Thus they pursued their sinful lifestyle with increased intensity. God assured Jeremiah that those false prophets and all who took their bait and trusted in their false messages and lured into sinful living would all perish in shame. The devastation would be widespread. Verse 16 reveals the divine judgment that would come upon them. God said categorically that “…they will be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword, and there will be no one to bury them—neither them, nor their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters—for I will pour out their own wickedness on them.”

To make His point more poignant, God directed Jeremiah into a lament.  The suffering that was coming upon them would be devastating. To show the intensity of the suffering Jeremiah was to cry day and night for the people, “the virgin daughters of Jerusalem,” people whom God Himself had once dearly guarded and protected. The terrible suffering that would fall on them would be widespread. The war, famine, and pestilence would leave them in wreckage and a state of devastation. And their prophets and priests would end up ministering in a foreign land.  

 

False prophets are not new things. They existed in the days of the Old as well as the New Testament. It should not surprise us to run into some in our day.  Just go into the internet you will find a proliferation of them. Their messages are usually from the imagination of their deluded mind spoken in the name of God. They will do it for personal gain, either for popularity or for financial prosperity. We are admonished by the Word of God to judge or discern every prophecy.  Take the words of 1 John 4:1 to heart so that we will not be deceived. Here we are told, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God because many false prophets have gone out into the world.” So take heed!

Jeremiah 14:7-12 - Keep short accounts with God

Jeremiah took it upon himself to intercede with God on behalf of the people. He identified with their sin and pled with God to come to their rescue. Captured in Jeremiah 14:7-9 was how he pled with God. He asked God to come to their rescue for His own name’s sake. Here, he was imploring God to consider His own reputation. He was certain that God was their only hope but He was totally uninterested in Judah’s plight. God was like a stranger that was merely visiting their land temporarily.

Yet Jeremiah was sure that God was in their midst but was nonchalant about what they were going through.  Feeling the people's desperation, Jeremiah felt as if God was like a man in distress and unable to fight. Bewildered, he wondered why God would not come to the rescue of the people who were called by His name and belonged to Him.

God in Jeremiah 14:10-12 then explained to the prophet why he was not responding to his plea. God explained that He had abandoned His people. He was only doing what they did to Him. It was they who had first left Him and did not keep their feet in check. For their waywardness and persistent sin God was calling them to account. God even told Jeremiah to stop praying for them. Now even if they should come before Him fasting, bringing their sacrifices of burnt offering, He would not be moved to come to their rescue. Nothing was going to save them from the judgment. God had made up His mind to come to them with the sword, famine, and pestilence. In other words, they would have to face war, shortage of food as well as strange diseases.   

There was nothing else they could do when God gave up on them. They had tested God’s patience for far too long. They had shown their disrespect for God one time too many. It behooves us to act and not procrastinate just because God is patient. He will allow condone our wrongs and allow us to perpetuate them. So we must heed His call and act the moment He speaks.  God expects us to follow through. The best thing to do in our journey with God is to keep a short account with Him.  

Jeremiah 14:1-6 – Time for introspection

Jeremiah 14:1-6 describe a severe drought that had come upon Judah. The Egyptians had the Nile to go to for their water. Here in Judah, the people needed to depend on rain for water.  When the Sovereign Lord withheld the rain there was nothing anyone could do.    

 

Drought meant deprivation of water. Because of Judah’s refusal to repent from their rebelliousness, God withheld rain and precipitated a drought.  Verse 2 depicts the severity of the drought.  So severe was the drought that Judah was driven to distress that the whole city gathered to mourn, weep, and wail.  Verse 3 went on to show us how acute the drought was. Everyone from rich to poor, and infant to adult were all badly affected. No one was exempted. From all walks of life, whether a noble or a farmer, none was spared the agony of the lack of water. The nobles sent their servants to look for water everywhere, even from broken cisterns. But they all returned with empty vessels, dejected, and humiliated.

 

Verse 4 said that farmers who needed water for their farming were gravely affected. They were in distress and greatly dejected too. Their grounds were dry and cracked due to the absence of rain. Thus it was impossible to plow the hardened ground. Then verses 5-6 tell us that even the animals were badly affected.  Even doe (female or mother deer) had to abandon their young because they had no milk because they had been deprived of grass due to the drought. Other animals such as the wild donkeys and jackals also suffered from diseases because of the lack of vegetation.

 

The physical drought the people of Judah experienced had spiritual causes. It was God’s dealing with them for their waywardness. God brought a drought to help them see how flawed they were to deflect from Him to trust in false gods. In much the same way, when things go wrong for us naturally and we are driven into distress, the first place we should deal with is our relationship with God. Our struggles in life signal a call for us to return to God. Like the Psalmist, we can come before Him and do a self-introspection.  Like David, we must pray Psalm 139:23-24:-

“Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way.”    

   

Jeremiah 13:24-27 - Keep short accounts with God

The horrendous outcome Jerusalem was to experience was their own making. Their sin against the Lord was so deeply ingrained. They had misbehaved and yet refused to change despite God’s many kind overtures. Here in the last four verses of Jeremiah 13, God  described the doom of Jerusalem.  

Verse 24 said that she would first be like chaff tossed by the desert wind, meaning they would be driven into captivity.  And what they would experience was designed by the Lord Himself. It was the portion that the Lord would measure to them for their forgetfulness. Judah had chosen to forget the Lord and went trusting in falsehood.

 

Like an unfaithful loose woman who went flirting with her lover, Judah was described in verse 27 as flirting with false gods. The word “neighings” was used to show how passionate she was in their craving after false gods. She was like an uncontrollable adulteress yearning for illicit sexual intimacy. These imageries of lewdness were used because idols worship often included sexual orgies with temple prostitutes at high places. Despite all the dire warnings, Judah remained unmoved.  

 

The last line of verse 27 leaves her with a haunting question “how long will you remain unclean?” In much the same as Judah, we will remain unclean as long as we also insist on our own way. Are there areas in our lives that God has been speaking to us that we must quickly deal with? We need to be careful about taking sins in our lives lightly.  If we will deal with them swiftly, we will fall to it little by little. Knowing where we are wrong will be pointless if we will not take action to make it right  

 

 

 

Jeremiah 13:20-23 – Live with the end in mind

In 2 Kings 20, we read of how King Hezekiah had a remarkable healing. At that point, Judah and Babylon were on good terms with each other. Berodach-baladan, the king of Babylon, sent emissaries to Hezekiah with a letter and gifts to inquire about his condition. Pride took the better of Hezekiah and he ended up showing the visitors all that Judah had. That was an unwise move. Through Isaiah, God then prophesied Judah would suffer at the hand of Babylon. Second Kings 20:16-17 captured for us what Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord. ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and all that your fathers have laid up in store to this day will be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. 

Years later, God through Jeremiah was telling the people in more detail what would happen to Judah. In Jeremiah 13:20-27,  the people of Judah, referred to here as daughters of Zion, were instructed to lift up their eyes and see Babylon their adversaries coming down on them from the north.  Here we see a series of questions asked. The prophet was showing them the plight that was coming upon Jerusalem.

 

Firstly, Jerusalem would not be able to account for her people. Like a shepherd that had lost control, the lovely sheep would be taken away from her. The enemy would overrun Jerusalem and take over her cities. Secondly, that Jerusalem would be greatly embarrassed that her once friend and ally,  Babylon would be their oppressor. Thirdly, that Jerusalem’s capture would cause so shocking that she would be seized with intolerable pain much like a pregnant woman in labor and travailing in birth pangs. Fourthly, that Jerusalem would be so bewildered that left wondering what led to all these predicaments. Then the answer would be made known to them. It was because of the intensity of Jerusalem’s iniquity. She was caught in adultery with her nakedness exposed and would be led into captivity in that state. Fifthly, Jerusalem was so steeply into sin.  Practicing evil had become such a deeply ingrained habit that like that Ethiopians whose skin color could never be changed or like the unchangeable spots of a leopard’s skin.  

 

Don’t live life as if there is no tomorrow. The Bible reminds us that to whom much is given much will be expected and required. We must live responsibly knowing that there will be a day when we will have to give an account of how we live our lives. The greater the privilege we have, the greater will be God’s expectation of us. Remember the journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. Be proactive and live life with the end in mind.

 

 

Jeremiah 13:18-19 – The dire consequence of disobedience

Jeremiah was told to address the royalty in Judah. So in Jeremiah 13:18, God told the prophet to say to the king and the queen mother to descend from their throne. God’s message was that they were about to be dethroned and humiliated. Besides, the land would be overrun. God warned of the impending invasion of the Babylonians. The fleeing refugees would not be about to seek shelter in cities in the Negev situated in the south because their gates would be locked. All of Judah would succumb to the invasion and be carried into exile.

Historically this could have happened when King Jehoiachin succeeded his father Jehoiakim. Second Kings 24:10-16 describe what occurred during Babylon’s second siege of Judah. Nebuchadnezzar personally came to the city. 2 Kings 24:12 tells us that  “Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he and his mother and his servants and his captains and his officials. So the king of Babylon took him captive in the eighth year of his reign.” His short three months reign would be the last of the Davidic dynasty that had ruled Judah.

No one was immune from the judgment of God. From royalty to commoners, all had to face divine discipline because of disobedience. It's sad that Judah should degenerate into such a state. That’s the lesson of what would happen when disobedience takes the better of God’s people. Whether we are leaders or followers, a wise move to escape divine judgment is to walk in obedience to God.   

Jeremiah 13:15-17 – Don’t be stubborn toward God

Jeremiah was sure of the certainty of God’s warning. He knew that the impending judgment was inevitable. Even though he knew the outcome, yet he could not remain  idle and do nothing. He challenged the people to give heed to God’s Word and not to remain haughty. In Jeremiah 13:15-17, he told the people of Judah that God had spoken and what would soon be, would happen. So while there was still the slightest possibility to avert the coming calamity he urged them to take it and give glory to God.

To walk safely, divine light was important. Hence, he warned that once the darkness of God fell on them it would be impossible to walk securely. They would be stumbling in pitch darkness and end in deep disaster.  He was sure that nothing could avert the disaster because the people would not heed his plea for repentance. There was nothing much that he could do. So the last part of verse 17 said that he grieved over the obstinacy and pride of the people. He turned to weep in silence over the horrendous captivity that would certainly come upon them.  

The Bible makes it clear that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.  The stubbornness of the people of Judah was their own undoing. If they were humble and willing to heed the warning of Jeremiah, their judgment would be more bearable if not averted. We learn from these few verses that God wants us to relate rightly with Him. He wants us to have the right attitude toward Him. A right relationship with Him and the right attitude toward Him will bring us to a place that enables us to listen to him. We are not to be haughty and stubborn like a mule that needs to be curbed with bits and bridles.   

Jeremiah 13:12-14 – Joy or bitterness dealing, which do we prefer?

In the first eleven verses of Jeremiah 13, the prophet was instructed by God to share an illustrated message with Judah. Illustrating with a linen apron, he showed that Judah was acquired by God to share a close relationship with Him and should demonstrate moral purity but she did not. Her disobedience to His instructions resulted in her becoming a piece of rotten, worthless, and useable apron.

   

Here in Jeremiah 13:12-14, the prophet was instructed to give Judah a second sermon warning them of God’s impending unrestraint wrath. The wine was a symbol of pleasure and joy and Judah’s wineskins should be filled with them. They were supposed to have joy in abundance. And since it was common knowledge that wineskins were made to contain wine, so the people were puzzled that Jeremiah should ask them to fill it with wine to the brim.

 

So in verse 13, Jeremiah gave them God’s response. He told them that God was about to fill Judah's wineskin, not with the wine that brings joy but with wine that brings bitterness. For no one would be spared the wrath of God. Kings from the line of David, the priests, and the prophets of Jerusalem would be intoxicated with God’s wine of wrath till everyone would be reeling in deep distress. Everyone from father to son would be buffeted and destroyed by divine judgment. No one would be spared as God would not be restrained by pity or compassion. Judah would not be able to save herself from the impending disaster.

 

When God judges no one would be able to escape it. Hence it is wise to choose a life of faithfulness and obedience to His Word. we must heed the call of the author of the book Hebrews. So in chapter 12 and verses 28-29, he exhorts us saying, “Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.   

 

 

  

Jeremiah 13:1-11 – Stay true to God to the very end

In Jeremiah 13:1-11 we see an illustrated sermon, a message which the prophet was instructed to act out. Verses 1-7  describe what Jeremiah was instructed to do. He was to first purchase a linen waistband and wear it around  his waist. That waistband was not to be kept dry and not soaked in water. After it had been worn for a while, Jeremiah was instructed to take it out and hide in a crevice in a rock near the Euphrates. Being the obedient prophet that he was, he did exactly as he was told. Then after several days had lapsed, God told him to go to the place where he had hidden the waistband and had it dug out. And lo and behold, the waistband had become rotten and ruined, and totally worthless.

What was the message that God intended for Judah to hear? Verses 8-11 convey the lesson of the illustrated sermon. What Jeremiah did was to illustrate that Judah as a nation was God’s very own. Out of the nations, He chose and acquired them to be His. When they were brought into the promised land, they were expected to remain as God’s set-apart community. And due to their close relationship with God, they were expected to display moral purity. However, they became contaminated. They had refused to take heed to the instruction of God. In walking after the stubbornness of their hearts, they pandered after other gods to worship and serve them. Instead of living to the praise and honor of God’s name and becoming a model of God’s renowned people, they became worthless. Their pandering to those false gods had made them rotten and worthless much like the linen waistband dug out from where it was hidden.

The lesson: Like Judah, God’s acquired people, we believers whom God has acquired through Christ are expected to cling to God and display moral purity. We must heed His Word and live to the praise and honor of His name. Our relationship with Him must be seen in the moral purity and upright character we display. Like Paul, we must  be “the fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing…”  (2 Corinthians 2:15). Make sure to finish well and strong with God! Don’t end up becoming a castaway.     

Jeremiah 12:14-17 – God’s blessing is determined by one's relationship with Him

Here we see God calling foreign nations He would use to judge Judah His people as My wicked neighbors. We know from history that God used the Assyrians to deal with While God would use Babylon to judge His people in Judah. Here in Jeremiah 12:14-15, God promised that they would also punish them for the way they would treat Judah. Like Judah, those adversaries would also be uprooted from their homeland, just like Judah would be uprooted. However, they like Judah would also experience God’s compassion and each would return to their inheritance.   

However, In Jeremiah 12:16-17, God promised those nations if they would convert and give their allegiance to Him with the same kind of rigor they once had in serving Baal, He would build them up in the midst of His people.  If they would not take up the offer and harken to God, He would uproot them and destroy them too.

 From these four verses, we learn that the blessing of God is equally available to all who would give their lives to Him ad be committed to honoring only Him.  The blessings of God are not based on racial lines or one’s ethnicity. It is based on one’s faithful relationship with Him. God is no respecter of persons. Regardless of our race, if we give ourselves to know, honor, and serve Him, He will make us His and bless us abundantly.          

 

Jeremiah 12:11-13 – Choose wisely

In Jeremiah 12:10, we saw how God grieved over the impending desolation of Judah. Why did she end up in that condition? Because her leaders instead of leading her in a godly way, misled and trampled on her and caused her to become a desolate wasteland. Continuing to grieve about the impending desolation of Judah, Jeremiah 12:11 tells us that none of the leaders had any concern for what was upon Judah and did not put the matter in his heart.

Jeremiah 12:12-13 then proceeded to describe the extensiveness of the judgment God would bring upon the land. The Lord’s sword would do its deadly work and come upon them everywhere even to the remotest corner of the land. No place would be able to shield them from judgment. They would have to face the harsh reality of the wrathful hand of God from one end of the land to the other.

Peace would escape everyone till none would be able to experience it. The reason was that they thought they had sown wheat, but instead of harvesting wheat, they ended up harvesting thorns. What they thought would benefit them would become a curse. They would all end up in humiliation, total ruin, and death because of the Lord’s fierce anger.

Divine favor is life and peace in abundance whereas divine wrath would mean desolation and utter ruin. One or the other can be a person’s experience depending on what he or she so chooses. Walking with God in obedience ensures that favor will follow but unfaithfulness and rebelliousness toward Him will lead one to reap the curse. While choosing divine favor should be one’s obvious choice, making a bad decision and choosing divine wrath instead is a possibility. So choose wisely!    

Jeremiah 12:7-10 – Be watchful, don’t take God for granted

God made Israel His covenant people. Beginning with the Patriarch Abraham, God raised a family and through his son Israel and his descendants, a nation slowly took shape. But it was not until they were in Egypt that the foundation for them to be a nation was laid. In Egypt, they were organized into slavery, and God called and used Moses to deliver them out of slavery and the land of bondage. Then at Mount Sinai, they were formalized and made His covenant people with the giving of the Ten Commandments and other covenant stipulations. Then they were brought into Canaan, their promised land.

As God’s people, Israel had been a disappointment to Him time and again. He had graciously and lovingly granted many of their requests, but they spurned His love repeatedly. They had emulated the pagan so much and were wayward one time too many. There was also so much infighting among them till the nation was divided into two. The north comprising ten tribes of the sons of Israel became Northern Israel and the southern two tribes became Judah. 

Persisting in their waywardness, the northern Kingdom of Israel fell to Assyria in 722 BC. Instead of learning from Israel’s fall, Judah followed in their northern brethren's footsteps. Despite God raising godly prophets to coax them to walk in the rightly, they persist in their wrong.  They kept testing God till their defiance had wearied them. Hear what God said of them in Jeremiah 12:7-10.    

 

In verse 7 God began by telling Judah that He had forsaken them. And that He would discard them as His inheritance and give their souls over to their adversaries. He then followed up in verses 8-10, using three figures, to depict them negatively. Firstly God said that they had become like a hostile lion in the forest that had the audacity to roar at God. In defying God, they had become an object of His loath. Secondly, Judah was like an unusual, off-colored bird of prey. The other nations were likened to other species of birds of prey that would gather, come, peck, and break her into pieces and devour her. Thirdly, Judah would become a destroyed vineyard that was spoilt by the many shepherds. Kings were raised to be Judah’s shepherds but instead of leading the people to God. they led them away from Him. Instead of making Judah God’s glorious vineyard, they had trampled on her and caused her to become a barren desolation.   

From Judah’s experience, we learn that we must not take God for granted. Personally, each of us must not spurn His loving overtures continually and expect Him to condone our waywardness. Continuing in our rebelliousness one time too many will weary God and lead us needlessly to unwarranted consequences. And those called into leadership roles must shepherd God’s flock rightly. Leaders must always have the interest of the people at heart. No self-centredness must not be allowed to cause God’s community to become barren and devoid of blessings. 

Jeremiah 12:5-6 – Every pain helps us to develop fortitude for the future

In Jeremiah 12:5, the two questions God asked were meant to tell Jeremiah that the road ahead for him was going to be even more difficult. So much so that his present difficulties with the men of Anathoth would be pale by comparison. If he could not endure running with footmen how could he compete with horses. And if he could so easily falter in seemingly peaceful places, how would he be able to overcome the complication of going through the thick grove and undergrowth of  the Jordan.

In the following verse, God points out that his own natural brothers had conspired against him. They had dealt treacherously with him. What they were doing to the prophet was not even done covertly but openly and blatantly.  Hence Jeremiah was not to believe whatever they might tell him even though what they would say to him was nice and pleasant.

 

One key lesson we can take away from these two verses is to learn from the adversity of life. Know it or know not every trial in life we endure will help to shape our strength and enable us to face even tougher ones in the future. If we cannot take lesser difficulties in life we will not be able to face the tougher ones. Sometimes the people that are closer to us are the people that are hard to trust. They could say nice things about you in your presence but nasty things in your absence. In every circumstance we encounter, we must remember that God is glooming us to face tougher challenges ahead 

 

All of us must learn to cultivate r the right attitude in times of trial. we are exhorted in James 1:2-4  to count it all joy when we encounter various trials. For everyone we face has the capacity to strengthen our faith. We will be made mature and more complete through trials. Therefore, we must cultivate an attitude of thanksgiving in difficulties. It is true that the pain we feel and endure today will be the strength we get for tomorrow. 

Jeremiah 12:1-4 – A righteous life is certainly more advantageous

One thing that puzzled Jeremiah greatly as he endured and suffered at the hand of those who walked wickedly. So he reasoned with the LORD in Jeremiah 12:1-4. He was sure that God could stand to reason thus he dared to reason with Him. Addressing the Lord, Jeremiah acknowledged that He the righteous God would deal righteously. But what did not make sense to him was why did He allow the wicked to continue in their prosperity?

In verse 2, Jeremiah felt as if it was the Lord who had planted them. Like fruitful trees, those wicked people were not only fruitful but seemed to be firmly and securely planted and continue to bear fruit. In the second part of verse 2, Feeling that God was being tolerant and lenient with them, Jeremiah pointed out that they were hypocrites that would talk as if they were very intimate with God but their hearts were miles apart from Him. Whereas Jeremiah was sure that God knew everything about him perfectly and could read him like an open book.  He was sure God could see His heart and attitude.

 

Verse 3 seems to hint that the wicked people, especially those from Anathoth, his hometown was persecuting him. Feeling the intensity of the persecution of the wicked people, he then pled that God would quickly deal with them. He asked God to “drag them off like sheep to the slaughter” and earmark them for the day of destruction. The prophet in verse 4 then wondered how long would God endure the wicked adversaries, when they were truly the cause of Judah’s predicament. Because of them, the vegetation withered suggesting that there was a famine. Besides that, the animals were also suffering. Those whose hearts were for God were left wondering how long they would have to endure suffering at the hand of these recalcitrant.

 

One question had long been asked. The question is  Why do the wicked seem to prosper and the righteous seem to suffer? Asaph the Psalmist answered this question ably in Psalm 73. He was affected by what he saw as the prosperity of the wicked. When he thought of how the wicked had prospered, he wondered if it would be advantageous in being righteous or living righteously. As he contrasted the seemingly good and rich lives of the wicked with that of the righteous, he became self-absorbed and started to pity himself. But then, as he encountered the Holy and Sovereign God and factored Him into his life, he had a change in attitude. From that perspective, it dawned on him that being righteous and living righteously certainly had more advantages than being wicked and living wickedly.   

       

In Psalm 73:23-26, everything clicked for the Psalmist when he encountered God. That connection led him to a deeper hunger and desire for God. He knew that nothing could truly and deeply satisfy him outside of God. He realized that a departure from God would spell death, but drawing near to Him would be life indeed.   The temptations we face in life are real and enticing. Humans, even saints, face the common temptation to envy the well-off. But this Psalm tells us that when we place God in focus, we will be fortified against the temptation of the wicked. When we resolutely take our stand with God, we will find the strength to resist the temptation and enticement of the world and evil. His Spirit will help us to stay the course of life and find our ultimate reward in Him. Life will never be lived in vain when God is at the center of our life. Let us serve Him and take heed of His instruction!   

 

Jeremiah 11:18-23 – Vengeance is the Lord’s

In Jeremiah 11:18-23, God was said to have revealed to the prophet a plot that was devised against His life. While the prophet suspected that would happen, he did not know the extent of the plot. The Lord revealed to him that he would be like a lamb being led to the slaughter. And like a tree and its fruit that would be destroyed, so would Jeremiah and the people who listened and accepted his message. Furthermore, verse 19 made known the ruthlessness of the plot. They wanted to kill Jeremiah, “to cut his name off the land of the living” and to make sure that his name would no longer be remembered.  

Encountered by the intense danger, Jeremiah turned to the Lord. He was fully  assured that God who knew the heart and feelings of men was the only one who could judge righteously. The prophet knew that vengeance belongs to the Lord, so he committed to Him the threat he was  facing.

Verse 21  revealed that the people who were plotting against Jeremiah were from Anathoth, the hometown where he hailed from. Those conspirators warned Jeremiah not to prophesy in the name of the Lord and that they would spare his life. How dare they threaten God’s brave messenger? Since they had the gall to do it, God pronounced what He would do to those who were plotting against Jeremiah. The description of God’s judgment on Anathoth was given in verses 22-23. God said, “Behold, I am about to punish them! The young men will die by the sword, their sons and daughters will die by famine; and a remnant will not be left to them, for I will bring disaster on the men of Anathoth—the year of their punishment.”

In servicing the Lord, don’t be surprised that we will face opposition from those who will embrace His message of truth. However, serving God requires that we trust Him absolutely. Nothing can happen to us outside of His knowledge. The wonderful truth is that He can see what’s happening to His servants and will be their protector. Let us boldly serve the Lord and trust He would come to our rescue at the right moment. Hear what the Psalmist has to say in Psalm 56:4 and be assured:

“In God, whose word I praise,
In God I have put my trust;
I shall not be afraid. 
What can mere man do to me?”  

Jeremiah 11:14-17 - Be sure to have an undivided affection for God

In Jeremiah 7:16, we learned that God already told the prophet not to pray for Judah saying, “As for you, do not pray for this people. and do not lift up cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with Me; for I do not hear you.” Here in Jeremiah 11:14, God reiterated his call again and stated vehemently that He will not hear any cry for deliverance from the impending disaster.

God was greatly disappointed. Because Judah His beloved had shown herself unfit to come to the temple, His house.  They had persisted in their waywardness pandering to the idols and yet refused to repent, they had disappointed Him. For their gross misbehavior,  God told them that they no longer had any right  to be in the house.  The deeds they had done to their covenant Lord were vile. No amount of sacrifices they would make could make them rejoice for they were scheduled to be severely dealt with for their sins.   

Judah was once  “A green olive tree, beautiful in fruit and form.”  She was God’s delight. But she had become a worthless tree with barren branches ready to be burnt. They were planted by God but now together with their northern brethren, they had turned evil. They chose to pursue vain idols and worthless gods. And had provoked God by offering sacrifices to Baal.  

What a travesty for God’s people to expect Him to come to their rescue when they were in trouble of their own making. It was not as if God had not warned them, He had. But they chose not to show Him any regard. Yet they had the audacity to expect Him to deliver them from their trouble. God expects us to be congruent people. Our actions must be consistent with our commitment. We would be inconsistent when we say we love God and yet show greater affection for other things. Loving God means we put Him first in life and we guard that relationship carefully by not dabbling with things that will put us away from our affection for Him. We love God with all our heart, mind, and soul and have no other competing love.  

Jeremiah 11:9-13 – Be steadfastly committed to God

In Jeremiah 11:9, the Lord found a conspiracy among the men of Judah and the people who dwelt in Jerusalem. These people  were probably going against the rigorous reform that King Josiah had brought. This was likely to take place immediately after Josiah’s death. They were quickly turning their back on God. Refusing to listen to His word, they went after other gods to serve them. Returning to the stubborn ways of their ancestors, they chose to break their covenant with God just like the people of Israel.  

For their defiance, God said in verses 11-13 that He was going to bring an inescapable calamity upon them. They could come crying to Him, but He would not listen to their cries. They would also turn to the idols that they served and burned their incense to, but all their cries would be futile because they would have no power to save them. It was appalling to learn that God’s people had a whole load of idols. Every city had its own favorite idol. Besides the streets in Jerusalem were filled with altars which they had set up to burn their incense of Baals shamefully.     

God desires steadfastness in our allegiance to Him. He expects us not to be vacillating people. Once we have made up our minds to follow Him, we must stay focused and not be upended by anyone or any circumstance. Jesus said that if we have set our hand on the plow and then look back longingly for the things of the past, then we are not worthy to be His disciples. We must make up our minds not to behave like the wavering people of Judah and never deflect to serve meaningless idols. Let us heed the call of Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:58 and “…be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”    

Jeremiah 11:6-8 – Faithfully hear and apply God’s Word

The covenant  God with His people had both blessings and curses. When kept faithfully blessings would be experienced, if not obeyed curses would ensue.  God one’s deep desire was for His covenant people to walk in step with the covenant. Hence   Jeremiah’s assignment was to call God’s covenant people to stay faithful to that covenant.

The prophet in Jeremiah 11:6-8 was instructed to proclaim and call the people to obey the covenant God had made with them. He was to go out into the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem to call the people to listen to the word of the covenant and to do them. Notice that they not only had to listen but also to do them. Throughout the course of the history of the covenant people since Mount Sinai, God’s constant and persistent message to them was “listen to My voice.” The people, however, had not been faithful in this regard. They did not obey nor set their hearts and ears to stay faithful. They were stubborn and persisted in their stubbornness. Hence God had to face the harsh dealing of God which He had stipulated in the covenant concerning their unfaithfulness.

God values faithfulness. A faithful person is unwavering, steadfast, and reliable. They seek to listen to God, know His instructions, and obey them. Such a person will be blessed. Psalm 1 has this to say about such a person whose delight is in the law of the Lord and upon then he meditates day and night. Hence  this person would have a flourishing life just like a tree planted by the streams of living water with flourishing leaves. And he will prosper in whatever he does. In contrast, the wicked are not so. They would be unstable and reliable. Like useless chaff, they are light and easily blown away by wind and good for fueling the fire. Such people will perish at the judgment.

In Psalm 1 we are given a definition of a godly person. He is defined by the time he spends in the Word of God. He has great delight in the Word that God has given to us, His children. His Bible is not sitting somewhere on his shelf only. He takes the time to read it and reflect on it. He does not just do it occasionally. He meditates on the Word continuously. He meditates in the morning, and he muses over it at night. He won’t start the day without it and he would end the day with it. He allows the principle of the written word to saturate his mind and fills his heart. He has deep consideration for the counsel of God’s Word. His principles in life are all derived from the Word. He spends time reading the Word, reflecting on its implication and He then acts on the derived divine principles.  Are we such a person God is looking for?  Let us be the blessed man described in Psalm 1:1-2. Don’t just listen to the word, faithfully do what it prescribes!      

 

Jeremiah 11:1-5 – We demonstrate our love for God through obedience

In 2 Kings 22, we learned about the reform of King Josiah.  The priest while carrying out his commission to repair the temple found the book of the Law. When the discovered book was read to Josiah, verse 11 said, “…he tore his clothes to show he was sad and upset.” Then in verses 12-13, he convened a commission to investigate this. He told them to “Go and ask the Lord what we should do. Ask for me, for the people, and for all of Judah. Ask about the words of this book that was found. The Lord is angry  because our ancestors did not listen to the words of this book. They f did not obey all the commands that were written for us.”  

Second Kings 22:14 tells us that the council went and consulted with the prophetess Huldah. Her evaluation and word from the Lord to King Josiah were recorded in 2 Kings 22:15-16. She declared, “The Lord says this: I am bringing trouble on this place and on the people who live here…. The people of Judah have left me and have burned incense to other gods. They made me very angry. They made many idols. That is why I will show my anger against this place. My anger will be like a fire that cannot be stopped!” For detail read 2 Kings 22 and 23.  

 

Why was Jeremiah not consulted? It was probably because he was not as readily available as prophetess Huldah who was the wife of the wardrobe keeper of the priests. However, we must note that Jeremiah was used by the Lord to enforce the importance of paying attention to the Law to the people of Jerusalem. He was personally instructed in Jeremiah 11:1 to  “Hear the words of this covenant, and speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

 

In the message to the people, Jeremiah emphasized the things God had said to the people of Israel when He delivered them from the fiery furnace of Egypt. The message emphasized by Jeremiah was captured here in verses 3-5. He said, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Cursed is the man who does not heed the words of this covenant which I commanded your forefathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the iron furnace, saying, ‘Listen to My voice and do according to all which I command you; so you shall be My people, and I will be your God,’ in order to confirm the oath which I swore to your forefathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as it is this day.’” Jeremiah responded to what Word of the LORD with an affirmative “Amen.”  In so doing, he showed that he concurred with the terms of the covenant and was prepared to preach it.

 

The implicit lesson is this: God’s promises are conditional. His blessings will assuredly come to pass for those who will stay faithful to His instruction. Consequences will follow those who will not obey or keep His instruction. We must make obedience one of the hallmarks of our walk with God. We obey not to make God loves us more, but we obey to show that we love and delight in Him. George Muller said: “Every instance of obedience, from the right motive strengthens us spiritually. In contrast, every act of disobedience will weaken us.” We love Him because He first loved us.   

 

Jeremiah 10:23-25 – Have a heart for God

Jeremiah, the prophet showed how deeply he knew the fallen nature of man. So in Jeremiah 10:23, he states the obvious. He said that a man in himself has no capacity  to live a God-pleasing life. It’s true that mankind since Adam’s fall had inherited a nature that’s not only self-centered but also self-serving nature. His fallen tendency is to take the path of least resistance and cannot count on himself to take the right step. Jeremiah knew that well. Without the help of God, the fallen man would only gravitate toward his fallen propensity.  

In Jeremiah 7:16 God was so disappointed with Judah that He instructed Jeremiah not to pray them. His words to the prophet were, “As for you, do not pray for this people, and do not lift up cry or prayer for them, and do not intercede with Me; for I do not hear you.”  Think of how sad the day would be if God would give up on us? Let’s never allow our life to come to that moment.  We must be tender-hearted toward God always.

 

In verses 23-265, we see Jeremiah found a way to intercede with the merciful God. While praying for himself, he was also vicariously interceding for the people of God. He identified with his people and acknowledged that as weak human beings, they did not have the ability to live an orderly and God-pleasing life. Isn’t this also how David prayed in Psalm 103:13-16? 

Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.
For He Himself knows our frame;
He is mindful that we are but dust.

As for man, his days are like grass;

As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.

When the wind had passed over it, it is no more,

Ans its place acknowledges it no longer. 

 

Jeremiah acknowledged that if God were to give Judah what they deserved they would be destroyed and reduced to nothing. In verse 25, he cleverly slipped in a prayer asking God to redirect His wrath on Babylon, Judah’s enemy instead. For they were people who did n0t know or acknowledge God. Besides, they had devastated Judah and laid waste to her habitation.

 

These verses in Jeremiah 10:23-25 tells us that Jeremiah was a person with a heart and passion to please God despite the hard time he was going through. He showed us that God was everything to him in life. The only desire he had was to have what God had installed for him. What about us? Like Jeremiah, let’s rightly appraise ourselves and seek to live a life in total alignment with God.   

Jeremiah 10:17-22 – Living responsibly for God

Judah would not be spared. Too much-invited damage had been done. They had provoked God by going after the false gods of the land. They had broken the covenant with the  LORD their God and had wandered far from Him. The Babylonian siege was inevitable, and their captivity and exile would follow soon. So Jeremiah 10:17 told them to pick up their bundle from the ground they would not be remaining long in their promised land. God was sending them a distressing time.

Being a member of the community, Jeremiah had to suffer with his people. So he described three things that he was going through in Jeremiah 10:19-21. Firstly, in verse 19, he said had a serious affliction. He was injured. We are not told how he was injured and according to him, the wound was incurable. So he had to accept his portion and would bear with it. Secondly, in verse 20. He was affected domestically as well. His dwelling place and his tent was destroyed, and his family gone from him. There was no indication that he was married. Perhaps he was talking vicariously about what the people of Judah would have to go through.  Since the people would be carried away and there would no longer be people available to put up his tent. Thirdly, he and the nation had to suffer because of poor leadership. In referring to the shepherds, Jeremiah was referencing the leadership. Many of them had turned stupid. Prophets, priests, and kings alike, all did not seek the LORD and had to suffer lack. Hence the sheep were all scattered. In the Babylonian invasion, verse 22 indicates that this enemy from the north would come with great commotion to empty the land. The cities in Judah would be left desolate and become a haunt for jackals.

 

What lessons can we learn from what the people of Judah had gone through? Our safety is in walking with the LORD faithfully. We must take our commitment to Him seriously. Do not be provocative like the people of Judah. Hence, we must seek to conduct our lives in line with all that He had stipulated. As a community, we may have to share the suffering of the people. It behooves that everyone in the community from leaders to members should be circumspect and live responsibly. Let us do our part! 

 

Jeremiah 10:14-16 – Is God the strength of our hearts and our portion?

The Prophet Jeremiah in chapter 10 verses 14-16, reveals to us how useless those man-made idols are. Firstly, we are told that everyone who makes or worships them is dumb and stupid. Such a person is devoid of any knowledge. Each will be put to shame by their man-made idol. Secondly, we learn that those idols the pagans worship or make are worthless and a work of mockery. If they are not made from wood, then they are silver or gold molten images. In fact, in our days, many of them are made of lesser materials like porcelain. What’s even more foolish is that none of those man-made idols can breathe like a human being. In saying that idols are deceitful, Jeremiah was pointing to the fact idols are merely handmade stuff that cannot give a person what he or she seeks or needs. So pathetic are those idols that on judgment day none of them can save itself and will perish.

In contrast, Jeremiah 10:16 said that Yahweh the LORD God of Israel is not like those dumb idols. He is the portion of Jacob. He is also the Maker, the creator of everything and Israel is His inheritance. His name is the LORD of Hosts. What is the meaning of this name? It means He is the supreme, supernatural, and transcendent being who alone commands and controls the universe and all the planetary bodies. Isaiah 40:26 affirms this. Besides, the Bible also constantly reveals that He commands countless and myriad angels who are always ready for His order. Furthermore, none of the armies of the world has any power to resist Him.  

 

It is so plain and obvious which of these two any wise person would want to serve and worship. No wonder the Psalmist in Psalm 73:25, declares affirmatively saying, “Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.” What about us? And it is true that our flesh and hearts will fail us, but God will never fail us. We must let Him be the strength of our hearts and our portion forever!

Jeremiah 10:11-13 – Our Awesome Creator God

Jeremiah 10:11-13 is a declaration that every created god will perish. Why? None of them made heaven or the earth. Unlike the Creator God, every idol is crafted by men and the product of their hands. It was the Creator God who had made the heaven and the earth. Hence every one of those idols will perish.

In contrast, Yahweh the Lord God of Judah is the Creator God. It was He who had made heaven and the earth with His wisdom and power.  He alone had the knowledge and understanding to stretch out the heavens. The water, clouds, lightning, and rain that the land needed and depended on are all under the control of Yahweh the Creator God. He is the one responsible for nature and not Baal which the pagan had long believed. How dare man attributes such marvelous works of His hand to man-made idols? No wonder God guarantees that every one of them shall perish from earth!    

Let us briefly revisit Genesis 1:1-5 so that we will never attribute and relegate His work to handmade gods and lesser beings. Only our logical Creator God has the wisdom to create the world and universe in such a logical fashion. From the creation account, we can see that only the  Creator God who creates the heavens and the earth has the capacity to create everything in such a marvelous way. The Triune God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -  collaborated and brought about creation. God, the Father is the key component in creation. The other two are the Spirit and Jesus the Spoken Word. In a collaborative effort, the Triune God created space and matter out of nothingness. Heaven is the space and earth is the matter. And both are bought into time at a point in time and continue to be. “In the beginning” signifies time, “heaven’ signifies space, and “earth” signifies matter.

This Creator God did not only make matter and space and brought them into time, He also brought orderliness out of chaos and formlessness. Remember before the Triune God went into action, the earth was just a chaotic mass. It was without form and was empty. God initiated it, the Holy Spirit hovered over it and Jesus, the Spoken Word of God brought order and form on earth to pass. From this, we recognize the ability of our Trinitarian Almighty to bring orderliness and effectiveness into our listless life easily. He wants to do that for each of us so that we can have orderliness in daily living.

From all these, we cannot but see that our God has a plan and purpose. He knew that the life forms He would bring about would need living space, so He had them put in place first. If God thought about such minute details, dare we think that He is oblivious to our needs? God thinks of us all the time. He has plans installed for us beyond our wildest dreams. He challenges us to unlock His plan and the dreams He has for us. Let’s unlock the dreams that God has for each of us!