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Jeremiah 39-43
Fall of
Jerusalem :(
Psalm 90:1-17 Life's Short, Use It Well
1.(A Prayer by Moses, the man of God) “Lord, you have been our dwelling place for all generations.2.Before the mountains were brought forth, before you had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, you are God.3.You turn man to destruction, saying, "Return, you children of men."4.For a thousand years in your sight are just like yesterday when it is past, like a watch in the night.5.You sweep them away as they sleep. In the morning they sprout like new grass.6.In the morning it sprouts and springs up. By evening, it is withered and dry.7.For we are consumed in your anger. We are troubled in your wrath.8.You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.9.For all our days have passed away in your wrath. We bring our years to an end as a sigh.10.The days of our years are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty years; yet their boast is but TOYL and sorrow, for it passes quickly, and we fly away.11.Who knows the power of your anger, your wrath according to the fear that is due to you?
12.So teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.13.Relent, Yahweh! How long? Have compassion on your servants!14.Satisfy us in the morning with your hesed/loyal love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.15.Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, for as many years as we have seen evil.16.Let your work appear to your servants; your glory to their children.17.Let the favor of the Lord our God be on us; establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hands.“
Observations
90:1-6.Moses reflects on the everlasting nature of God and the finite, temporal nature of man. Such perspective is appropriate for the most humble guy on earth.
90:7-11.
Man is finite as a consequence of sin, which God exposes and judges. Our brief sojourn on earth is filled with TOYL and sorrow from our sin, which should result in fear of displeasing God.
90:12-17.
Knowing that life is short, and then you die, Moses seeks to get the most out of the experience, in pleasing God for both eternal and temporal blessings, rather than judgment. Numbering our days, and realizing they're limited, leads us to choose the right objectives for them, which is the first aspect of wisdom. The second aspect is to choose the right means of attaining those objectives. The right objectives, and the right means are those that please God, so we can experience His favor rather than anger.
See Time of Your Life Seminar booklet on Truthbase.net for how to live so as to please God.
Application
Work each day to please God, and reap the benefits of His favor.
Prayer
Lord of life, thanks for creating me with the capacity to know and do what You want, which will benefit me and cause me to rejoice in You. Amen.
Proverbs 21:17-21 Don't Give Up the Pursuit
17.“He who loves pleasure shall be a poor man. He who loves wine and oil shall not be rich.18.The wicked is a ransom/substitute for the righteous; the treacherous for the upright.19.It is better to dwell in a desert wilderness, than with a contentious and fretful/vexing woman.
20.There is precious treasure and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man swallows it up.21.He who follows after righteousness and hesed/loyal covenantal love finds life, righteousness, and honor.“
Observation
21:17-21. This section has a couple of parallel couplets sandwiching one the the “betters,” perhaps dealing with home life, but the overall meaning is elusive until one understands that “ransom” is used as “substitute” (as in Pr 11:8), and even then the connections are a little tenuous.21:17&20 The one who loves pleasure and immediate gratification will consume all they have without restraint, and not save. You can't have your wine and drink it. Note that the wise have savings and treasures of which they must be a good steward. Major marital problems arise over finances. There can be unity if both seek the Lord's will and budget. Unless the Lord's will is clear about what He wants you to do with what He's entrusted to you, save it, until it becomes obvious. If shopping til you drop is your passion, or if your stewardship becomes your security, you've missed the Lord's will.
21:18&21 He who pursues righteousness...finds it. Imagine that! You go for it...and you get it. And following after hesed yields honor. I guess it isn't some random thing, but a result of wise planning and pursuit. Don't give up the chase. Judgments and difficulties come upon the wicked and treacherous, not the righteous and upright.
Application
For peace and prosperity, pursue God's will in both relationships and riches.
Prayer
Lord, thanks that You honor those who loyally seek You; may You be my source of delight and the one who meets my needs, rather than imperfect people and perishable things. Amen.
Jeremiah 39-43 Fall of Jerusalem :(
These chapters record the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians as God had promised for their disobedience. The ensuing chapters show how God orchestrated events to remove all the Israelites from the Promised Land, as the predicted curse for their sin.Dt 28:45 "Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the voice of the LORD your God, to keep His commandments and His statutes which He commanded you. 47 "Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49 The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 52 "They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the LORD your God has given you.”
Jeremiah 39 The Fall of Jerusalem
1.It happened when Jerusalem was taken, (in the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem, and besieged it;2.in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, a breach was made in the city),3.that all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, Nergal Sharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergal Sharezer, Rabmag, with all the rest of the princes of the king of Babylon.4.It happened that, when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, then they fled, and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king’s garden, through the gate between the two walls; and he went out toward the Arabah.5.But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho: and when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath; and he gave judgment on him.6.Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes: also the king of Babylon killed all the nobles of Judah.7.Moreover he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, and bound him in fetters, to carry him to Babylon.8.The Chaldeans burned the king’s house, and the houses of the people, with fire, and broke down the walls of Jerusalem.9.Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive into Babylon the residue of the people who remained in the city, the deserters also who fell away to him, and the residue of the people who remained.10.But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poor of the people, who had nothing, in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and fields at the same time.11.Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon commanded Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard concerning Jeremiah, saying,12.Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do to him even as he shall tell you.13.So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushazban, Rabsaris, and Nergal Sharezer, Rabmag, and all the chief officers of the king of Babylon;14.they sent, and took Jeremiah out of the court of the guard, and committed him to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, that he should carry him home: so he lived among the people.15.Now the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah, while he was imprisoned in the court of the guard, saying,16.Go, and speak to Ebedmelech the Ethiopian, saying, Thus says Yahweh of Hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring my words on this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished before you in that day.17.But I will deliver you in that day, says Yahweh; and you shall not be given into the hand of the men of whom you are afraid.18.For I will surely save you, and you shall not fall by the sword, but your life shall be for spoil to you; because you have put your trust in me, says Yahweh.Observations
39:1-10.God gives Jerusalem to the Babylonains (cf Isa 52; 2Kg 25; 2Chron 36) after a year and a half siege, and the Babylonian leaders/princes sit in the middle gate as Jeremiah predicted in 21:4. Zedekiah, to whom God offered protection and honor in chapters 34 and 39, refused to submit and go willingly, so he was blinded and carried off to Babylon, just as God had said through Jeremiah many, many times. The last thing he saw was the execution of his children. The city was burned because of his stupid and stubborn disobedience, and the nobles who afflicted Jeremiah were slaughtered. God is just, and fulfills His promises to discipline the disobedient.
39:11-18.
God is also gracious, and fulfills His promises to bless those loyal to Him; the two good guys get good treatment. Jeremiah is released from prison and is a VIP, whom God sends to Babylon to continue to minister to His people. The Ethiopian eunuch who risked his neck to rescue Jeremiah (38:7-13) is saved, because he put his trust in God in saving His prophet. Jeremiah records more detail in chapter 52, and laments the fall of Jerusalem in the next book, Lamentations.
Application
God always fulfills His promises to discipline the disobedient and bless the faithful with His hesed/loyal covenantal love.
Prayer
Gracious and just God, may I always trust You, particularly in the midst of calamity, for You are always loyal to protect and bless Your faithful servants. Amen.
Jeremiah 40 The “Resistance” Returns
1.The word which came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, after Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah, who were carried away captive to Babylon.2.The captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said to him, Yahweh your God pronounced this evil on this place;3.and Yahweh has brought it, and done according as he spoke: because you have sinned against Yahweh, and have not obeyed his voice, therefore this thing has come on you.4.Now, behold, I release you this day from the chains which are on your hand. If it seems good to you to come with me into Babylon, come, and I will take care of you; but if it seems bad to you to come with me into Babylon, don’t: behold, all the land is before you; where it seems good and right to you to go, there go.5.Now while he had not yet gone back, Go back then, he said, to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon has made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people; or go wherever it seems right to you to go. So the captain of the guard gave him food and a present, and let him go.6.Then went Jeremiah to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah, and lived with him among the people who were left in the land.7.Now when all the captains of the forces who were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and had committed to him men, and women, and children, and of the poorest of the land, of those who were not carried away captive to Babylon;8.then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men.9.Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan swore to them and to their men, saying, Don’t be afraid to serve the Chaldeans: dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.10.As for me, behold, I will dwell at Mizpah, to stand before the Chaldeans who shall come to us: but you, gather wine and summer fruits and oil, and put them in your vessels, and dwell in your cities that you have taken.11.Likewise when all the Jews who were in Moab, and among the children of Ammon, and in Edom, and who were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan;12.then all the Jews returned out of all places where they were driven, and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah, to Mizpah, and gathered wine and summer fruits very much.13.Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah,14.and said to him, Do you know that Baalis the king of the children of Ammon has sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take your life? But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam didn’t believe them.15.Then Johanan the son of Kareah spoke to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying, Please let me go, and I will kill Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it: why should he take your life, that all the Jews who are gathered to you should be scattered, and the remnant of Judah perish?16.But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said to Johanan the son of Kareah, you shall not do this thing; for you speak falsely of Ishmael.Observations
40:1-6.The Babylonian leadership had a better understanding of God's word and ways than the Israelites. It looks like Jeremiah had been mistakenly put in chains with the other Judeans and is re-released and offered freedom, protection and care, anywhere he wants. The captain suggests that he go back to his people and Jeremiah does so, staying with the newly appointed governor, Gedaliah.
40:7-16.
The leaders of the Jewish “resistance” come to Gedaliah who encourages them to serve the king of Babylonian (as God wanted Israel to do). He might have checked with God about this, because the Jews weren't supposed to return for about 40 years. Gedaliah is warned of a plot against him, yet refuses to believe it nor take preemptive action. He should have sought Yahweh's direction through Jeremiah. However, God is going use Ishmael to accomplish His purposes.
Application
Those who don't seek God's will wind up wishing they had.
Prayer
God, thanks that You protect Your servants who do Your will; may I know and do what pleases You today. Amen.
Jeremiah 41 Killer Angel
1.Now it happened in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal and one of the chief officers of the king, and ten men with him, came to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they ate bread together in Mizpah.2.Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men who were with him, and struck Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword, and killed him, whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land.3.Ishmael also killed all the Jews who were with him, with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans who were found there, the men of war.4.It happened the second day after he had killed Gedaliah, and no man knew it,5.that there came men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even eighty men, having their beards shaved and their clothes torn, and having cut themselves, with meal offerings and frankincense in their hand, to bring them to the house of Yahweh.6.Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went: and it happened, as he met them, he said to them, Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.7.It was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah killed them, and cast them into the midst of the pit, he, and the men who were with him.8.But ten men were found among those who said to Ishmael, Don’t kill us; for we have stores hidden in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey. So he stopped, and didn’t kill them among their brothers.9.Now the pit in which Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had killed, by the side of Gedaliah (the same was who which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasha king of Israel), Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled it with those who were killed.10.Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people who were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters, and all the people who remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the children of Ammon.11.But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done,12.then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon.13.Now it happened that, when all the people who were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, then they were glad.14.So all the people who Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah turned about and came back, and went to Johanan the son of Kareah.15.But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the children of Ammon.16.Then Johanan took all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael17.and they departed, and lived in Geruth Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt,18.because of the Chaldeans; for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had killed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor over the land.Observations
41:1-10.Evil Ishmael, a Davidic descendent, assassinates Gedaliah, and murders a number of Jews (including “pilgrims” bound for Jerusalem), and Chaldeans/Babylonians. God's purposes of cleansing the land from His defiled people make progress, through the agency of evil Ishmael.
41:11-18.
Ishmael starts to take the remaining people captive to Ammon, but Johanan overtakes him and rescues them. The group travels south toward Bethlehem, apparently headed to Egypt to avoid the retaliatory wrath of Babylon.
Application
God can use good or evil messengers to accomplish His purposes.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, may I be living so that I don't experience the madness of evil people, but rather Your protection and goodness. Amen.
Jeremiah 42 Flip Flop
1.Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even to the greatest, came near,2.and said to Jeremiah the prophet, Please let our supplication be presented before you, and pray for us to Yahweh your God, even for all this remnant; for we are left but a few of many, as your eyes do see us:3.that Yahweh your God may show us the way in which we should walk, and the thing that we should do.4.Then Jeremiah the prophet said to them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray to Yahweh your God according to your words; and it shall happen that whatever thing Yahweh shall answer you, I will declare it to you; I will keep nothing back from you.5.Then they said to Jeremiah, Yahweh be a true and faithful witness among us, if we don’t do according to all the word with which Yahweh your God shall send you to us.6.Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of Yahweh our God, to whom we send you; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of Yahweh our God.7.It happened after ten days, that the word of Yahweh came to Jeremiah.8.Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces who were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest,9.and said to them, Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, to whom you sent me to present your supplication before him:10.If you will still live in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I grieve over the distress that I have brought on you.11.Don’t be afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom you are afraid; don’t be afraid of him, says Yahweh: for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand.12.I will grant you mercy, that he may have mercy on you, and cause you to return to your own land.13.But if you say, we will not dwell in this land; so that you don’t obey the voice of Yahweh your God,14.saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we dwell:15.now therefore hear the word of Yahweh, O remnant of Judah: Thus says Yahweh of Hosts, the God of Israel, If you indeed set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to live there;16.then it shall happen, that the sword, which you fear, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt; and the famine, about which you are afraid, shall follow close behind you there in Egypt; and there you shall die.17.So shall it be with all the men who set their faces to go into Egypt to live there: they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring on them.18.For thus says Yahweh of Hosts, the God of Israel: As my anger and my wrath has been poured forth on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall my wrath be poured forth on you, when you shall enter into Egypt; and you shall be an object of horror, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach; and you shall see this place no more.19.Yahweh has spoken concerning you, remnant of Judah, Don’t you go into Egypt: know certainly that I have testified to you this day.20.For you have dealt deceitfully against your own souls; for you sent me to Yahweh your God, saying, Pray for us to Yahweh our God; and according to all that Yahweh our God shall say, so declare to us, and we will do it:21.and I have this day declared it to you; but you have not obeyed the voice of Yahweh your God in anything for which he has sent me to you.22.Now therefore know certainly that you shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place where you desire to go to live there.Observations
42:1-6.The survivors decide to seek Yahweh's will about their plans to go to Egypt. Having seen and experienced God's wrath for disobedience, they promise to obey whatever God says through Jeremiah.
42:7-22.
Ten days later God gives Jeremiah a gracious answer. God grieves over the necessity of disciplining the disobedient, but His holiness and justice require it. If they commit to totally obey, then He will not send them into exile, but will protect them from Babylon. They will dwell in the land and He will bless them, just as He desired for the nation originally. But if they go to Egypt, and violate their commitment to obey, He will totally destroy them.
Application
If we promise to obey God, He expects us to keep our promise, and obey; or else.
Prayer
Gracious God, You are so good to offer the opportunity to have a relationship with You and be blessed, may I accept it every day, on Your terms, and reap every benefit You have in store for me. Amen.
Jeremiah 43 Inescapable Conclusion
1.It happened that, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking to all the people all the words of Yahweh their God, with which Yahweh their God had sent him to them, even all these words,2.then spoke Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying to Jeremiah, you speak falsely: Yahweh our God has not sent you to say, you shall not go into Egypt to live there;3.but Baruch the son of Neriah sets you on against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may put us to death, and carry us away captive to Babylon.4.So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, didn’t obey the voice of Yahweh, to dwell in the land of Judah.5.But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the remnant of Judah, who were returned from all the nations where they had been driven, to live in the land of Judah;6.the men, and the women, and the children, and the king’s daughters, and every person who Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan; and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah;7.and they came into the land of Egypt; for they didn’t obey the voice of Yahweh: and they came to Tahpanhes.8.Then came the word of Yahweh to Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying,9.Take great stones in your hand, and hide them in mortar in the brick work, which is at the entry of Pharaoh’s house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah;10.and tell them, Thus says Yahweh of Hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will set his throne on these stones that I have hidden; and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them.11.He shall come, and shall strike the land of Egypt; such as are for death shall be put to death, and such as are for captivity to captivity, and such as are for the sword to the sword.12.I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captive: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd puts on his garment; and he shall go forth from there in peace.13.He shall also break the pillars of Beth Shemesh, that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of Egypt shall he burn with fire.Observation
43:1-13. So God uses Johanan to clean house, removing the last survivors out of Israel, even those who had returned there from other lands. Then God has Jeremiah give another object lesson, placing stones at the entrance to Pharaoh's house where Nebuchadnezzar would spread his royal pavilion when he comes as Yahweh's servant to judge Egypt and her false gods.Jeremiah 13:19 The cities of the South shall be shut up, and no one shall open them; Judah shall be carried away captive, all of it; It shall be wholly carried away captive.
Application
We cannot escape God's sovereign plan to bless those who obey, and discipline those who don't; we can only determine which group we'll be part of.
Prayer
God, please spare me the folly and deception of thinking I can void Your sovereign justice; help me see clearly the way You want me to go each day, and clearly see the consequences of doing things Your way or my way. Thanks. Amen.
Digging Deeper
God in a nutshell: God means what He says, and will fulfill all His promises. He uses both good and evil people to accomplish His purposes. He graciously offers people a relationship with Himself, if they will totally obey Him. God's Plan A was to bless His people in the land. Plan B was for them to go to Babylon. Plan C was to bless the remnant who promised to obey and pledged total loyalty to Him. Plan D was destroy by Babylon those who again disobeyed and fled to Egypt.Us in a nutshell: We inevitably reap the consequences of our actions, for good or evil. We can be incredibly self-deceived, in vowing to obey God and then reneging. We will reap horrible discipline and destruction for such folly. If we faithfully serve God, He will protect us when He judges those who don't obey Him.