Continuing with the message of judgment on Moab, Jeremiah 48:11-12 reckoned Moab to be wine that had been untouched. Why? All because she had not been taken into exile before. And like untouched wine, Moab had not lost its flavor or aroma. But now her destiny had changed. Babylon was coming to take them into captivity. She would be like wine emptied from the shattered decanter. And Chemosh, the god whom they had long trusted would prove to be powerless and incapable of rescuing them from this predicament. The Moabite's confidence in this god would be shaken just as Israel's whose trust was in Bethel, was shaken.
Jeremiah
48:14-20 showed why Moab could no longer boast of her might. In verse 14 God derided
her and sarcastically implied that her army could no longer claim to be “mighty
warriors, and men valiant for battle.” The Lord
declared her total defeat. Their best fighting men would be dreadfully slaughtered,
and widespread mourning in the desolate nation would be experienced. Mockingly,
in verses 18 -20, Moab was told that her power would be broken, and she no longer
could sit comfortably and securely perched on her high mountainous throne. Instead,
she would be brought low to grovel on parched earth and all her defenses be brought
to ruin.
In
these verses, we cannot get away from seeing Moab as a symbol of pride and arrogance.
With Moab firmly sitting on high ground, the people must have mistakenly presumed
that they were impenetrable. Like them, we too can mistakenly presume that we
are safe and secure because we have wealth and position. But we need to realize
that our knowledge of God should guide us to place our trust in Him and not in whatever
we think can ensure our security, be it wealth or position.
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