Be sure, God is speaking (Jeremiah 34)

Truth and Consequences: 

A study in the prophecy of Jeremiah

Chapter 34

By Bob Mendelsohn

Given 19 August 2022

 

Lesson Thirty-four:   Be sure, God is speaking 

 

INTRODUCTION

Some words have snuck into our daily vocabulary when no one seemed to notice. And then, by convention and ordinary custom, we are all consigned to use them. I listened to an audio book this week by one of my favourite authors, Jeffrey Archer. He didn’t read the book, but he wrote it. And the characters were perfect in their speech and in their speeches. No one speaks the Queen’s English as well as QCs at the Old Bailey in an Archer crime-solving novel. 

I guess while I was pondering both the characters and their language, I thought of more word concepts, like the idea of colloquialism. That led me to words like jargon and slang and such, and I guess I had too much time on my hands this week, but that will come clear as we read the text today. 

You see, in chapter 34 of the prophet Jeremiah, God speaks. Again. And his iterations and reiterations should have caused King Zedekiah to repent, to lead the Jewish people to repent, to follow what God was saying, to the letter. No matter what convention said, or what his being on a power trip meant in that day. God speaks, and we listen, and we follow the plan. That’s how the Kingdom really works. Or in this case, how the Kingdom doesn’t work. 

I have some friends who end a meeting they attend with “It works if you work it.” I suggested they add a tag line, “It doesn’t work if you don’t work it.” They liked that. That’s what I read in this chapter and honestly, in this whole prophecy of Jeremiah. Let’s listen to God’s word, whether colloquial, jargon, slang, or eternal, and let’s do what he says. It works if you follow him, you know?

The setting is 587 BCE, as the marauding armies of Nebuchadnezzar are invading from Babylon along with all their previously conquered foes. Did you ever play the board game RISK? In that game, you start attacking neighbouring countries with a certain number of armies you already own. When you conquer a territory, their armies are now yours. That’s what I imagined as I read this opening. “Nebuchadnezzar, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth that were under his dominion and all the peoples were fighting against Jerusalem.” (verse 1) Not much hope for the Jewish people. A steamrolling conquest took place and I would say, the war was almost over before it began. 

So in verse 2, God tells Jeremiah to go to the king and inform him, in case his watchmen on the walls were asleep or Zedekiah had missed the previous messages already delivered, yes, one more time, go to the king and let him know that he has a final chance to make this right. Verse 2, the Babylonians will come and wipe out and burn Jerusalem and in verse 3, you will not escape, you will see him personally, eye to eye and mouth to mouth and you will go to his country. Captured. Get it? 

He says, 

תָּפֹ֣שׂ תִּתָּפֵ֔שׂ

The repeated verb is capture, meaning you will certainly be captured. In capture you will be captured. No escape. 

By the way, a colloquial phrase slips in. The English is face to face, but the Hebrew is 

וּפִ֛יהוּ אֶת־פִּ֥יךָ

That is, mouth to mouth. I thought of boxers who stand jaw to jaw and chest to chest in the run up and promotion of their boxing match. It’s part of the mechanism of advertising for that sport, and Jeremiah seems to use that colloquialism. 

In chapter 39 we will see that confrontation as we have already told you, and it won’t be a pretty sight. 

The promise of God’s word is that Zedekiah will go to the dark side, that is, to Babylon. 

Then a twist seems to pop in, in verse 4. 

Remember what God had told Zedekiah about how to respond to this attack? It was in chapter 27, and the yoke Jeremiah carried to the king, indicated that the king should simply submit to the conquerors and go to Babylon in peace. As a result, the city would be spared, probably meaning the Temple itself and maybe even houses, but Zedekiah was reluctant to follow this advice. Shame. 

So here in verses 4 and 5 we hear a reminder of that promise. But there’s no ‘if…then’ and has led many to miss this. Verse 4 says the king will die in peace. But I hear it as a colloquial expression. If you do what I tell you, you will live long in the foreign land. And I guess, the inverse is true as well, if you don’t do what I tell you, you won’t live long in the foreign land. And sure enough, as we will read in chapter 39, it doesn’t go well for the last king of Judah. No spices for him; no lament for him. 

4 times in this chapter the word Sh’ma is used and usually doesn’t only mean to listen or to hear; rather to obey. Then 10 times in either verb or noun form in this chapter alone, the word DAVAR is used, meaning the Word, like The Word of God. But get this, 11 times the word AMAR is used meaning to speak or say. Please don’t miss it, the idea of covenant which again is highlighted in this and the next chapter is based on relationships between the Lord and his people. It requires listening to God’s word, and what he has to say matters more than the ideas of men. I am more and more struck by the usage of this conversational aim of Jeremiah. He declares; yes, I get that. And he proclaims the Words of the Lord. OK. But it’s more than all that. It’s about the tender words of the Lord. In this chapter it has to do with slaves and freedom. In the next chapter it’s about the Rechabites and their keeping a family tradition that’s very old. They heard the words of their parents and they kept them. (See 35.8) No matter what. That’s part of covenant as well. 

I guess for me my takeaway in chapter 34 is that no matter the end result which might come my way, if I hear a conversation, be it colloquial or jargon or even slang, and it’s from heaven, I want to comply. We in these last days are learning from any and every source except the Almighty. Our ears have to be attuned to the One above, and then we get to obey him. 

Verses 6 and 7 tells us the setting. Jeremiah again approaches the king. The assault has begun in Jerusalem. I hear the appeal of Jeremiah. His jeremiad nature is showing. He is weepy. He is passionate. He cares for the king. 

Verses 8 and following showcase one example of many, no doubt, of the failures of the king to follow Torah and to bring freedom to his people. The irony is apparent as the people have only one way to escape and that’s to submit to the conquerors. For that, they must be free to choose to lay down their arms and go with the Babylonians. What’s ridiculous is the image of landowners and slaves, all the while both in danger of conquest, and the landowners are dominating the slaves. It feels like the upper class on the Titanic demanding their tea be served precisely at 4 pm. It feels like the Southern plantation owners in the US Civil War expecting the slaves to bring in the cotton while Sherman is marching to the Sea, burning every farm en route from Atlanta to Savanna. 

In this battle with the armies of Babylon, playing the part of the armies on the Risk board in full steam ahead motion, the members who are to-be-conquered are pretending that everything is just fine, thank you. Oblivious to reality, or dismissive and hopeful that the prophet is wrong. Which of course, he is not. 

Yeshua said much about the last days as well. Some believe that this ending will never come. Yeshua will not return. Nothing will be different than it ever has been. I honestly don’t believe those folks. The world is ending; the world as we know it is moving in a direction from which it cannot return. 

Listen to how Yeshua said what would happen, from Luke chapter 17:

²⁶ “And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: ²⁷ they were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. ²⁸ “It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; ²⁹ but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. ³⁰ “It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed. ³¹ “On that day, the one who is on the housetop and whose goods are in the house must not go down to take them out; and likewise the one who is in the field must not turn back. ³² “Remember Lot’s wife. ³³ “Whoever seeks to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it.”

There are those who imagine yesterday and today and tomorrow will always be here. But real problems will come; real events will mark endings as well as beginnings. Wars will continue with or without provocation. And the weapons of our warfare are increasing in power and destruction. Natural disasters will continue to increase. But the unbelievers in the story will eat and drink, which isn’t about fasting or dining. It’s about normal, even settled, living. They will go on about their lives as if nothing will ever change. They need not look up to heaven. They don’t have to worry. They have their superannuation settled; they know whom they will marry and they have the lives of their children all sorted. Life goes on. She’ll be right, mate. 

Yeshua says more in that chapter in Luke. “³⁴ “I tell you, on that night there will be two in one bed; one will be taken and the other will be left. ³⁵ “There will be two women grinding at the same place; one will be taken and the other will be left.”

Drastic wake up calls will be made, and only those who are tuned in to the words of God will hear them. 

Noah, Lot, last days… all are on the edge of destruction. 

The irony of the keeping of slaves rather than obeying the Words of Torah (Lev 25.9-10) highlights the everything-will-be-just-fine thinking of the elite. And what Yeshua clearly wants us to learn in both Jeremiah and in Luke 17 is that everything is NOT just fine. That’s rather odd, isn’t it, after the last four weeks, the study of the Book of Consolation as it’s often titled. (Chapters 30-33) But here we have to learn how to read the Bible more clearly. Every book is not a simple progression from cradle to grave, from darkness to light, from sadness to victorious gladness. There are ups and downs in each book of the Bible, so it seems, and Jeremiah is certainly no different. Yes, there will be consolation, we learned, but not for the people of 586 BCE. It will be another 70 years before that consolation actually takes place. 

And what do we hear here? A reminder of the breaking of covenant. Now, before you miss it, think again of chapter 31. God uses Jeremiah to teach the people that although we broke the covenant which he made with us in Egypt (really at Sinai), that he would make a new covenant with us. That was enacted and made possible in Yeshua, the messiah. 

When Jeremiah indicts the people for covenant breaking, they should have remembered that a new one is on its way. Yes, they should feel badly. The animal was cut in half and all Israel, alive in the loins of our father Abraham, made covenant with the Almighty. But now, we have broken it. Remember, if you break one law it’s as if you have broken the entire Law. (James 2.10)

So here we end the story today with some notes of sadness and ruin. We missed the mark. We failed. There is therefore now, no hope. Our destiny is in conquest, not we conquering, but being conquered. We have no more armies on the Risk board. 

Colloquial terms like our dead bodies being food for the birds don’t sit well with our people, ever. But I’m wondering if you and I had been there, hearing Jeremiah’s words, what would we have done? Yes, the captivity was coming and it was doubly sure. But would we have released our slaves? Would we have laid down our sword and shield? Would we have gone willingly to Babylon and saved the people of God for the future? 

Today’s choices are different of course. We are not living in Israel and living with armies ready to conquer us. And if either of those statements were true of us, the simple if, then hypothesis would not be able to be applied to our situation. 

But what IS our situation is that the world is going mad, ugliness defines how we mistreat others. We expect and demand and deserve and push others down that we might advance and get up. No one wins in those situations. 

Yeshua taught us that the world would end, and it won’t be business as usual when it does. We must keep our ears to his word; we have to listen as he speaks and honestly, as others speak. Zedekiah missed it; don’t you miss it. Hear the word of the Lord. Comply with what he says, and you will have a life of peace. Now and forevermore.  

----------------- 

(There are several different styles of informal speech, including colloquialisms, slang, and jargon. While colloquial expressions are used by people within a geographic region, slang and jargon are specific to certain groups.

·       1. Slang words are unique expressions created by a specific culture or social group that often gain traction and become widely used. Slang can be new words, a shortened or modified word, or words that take on a meaning other than their original definition. Some examples of slang terms are “hip,” which means trendy, and “throw shade,” which is to lob an insult at someone.

·       2. Jargon refers to technical lingo—words and expressions created within a specific profession or trade. Jargon is most often used in formal writing. For example, the word “affidavit” is a term specific to the legal profession, also known as legalese. “Bull market” is investment banking jargon.

·       3. If slang and jargon are used in language regularly outside of their subgroups, they can become colloquialisms)

 

CONCLUSION

God is calling each of us to know him and to walk with him, today and throughout our days. Have you received Yeshua as your messiah and Lord? He is risen from the dead! Have you renounced your sin, your idolatry, your forsaking God and given him First Place in your life? If not, please, do so now, just now, as we pray together. Use your own words, if you want, but yield, surrender, to the Lord of life. 

 

PRAYER

Then please write us (admin@jewsforjesus.org.au) to tell us what you have just done, and we will send you literature and encourage you. You are part of our family; we love and appreciate you. And we want you to enjoy the presence of the Lord who calls, who knows, who blesses and builds us up. 

We hope to see you again next week as we study chapter 34. Until then, Shabbat shalom!

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barnes, Albert, Commentary on the Old Testament. (Published by many, from 1880 on)

Henry, Matthew, Commentary.

Keown, Gerald, Scalise, Pamela, Smothers, Thomas, Word Biblical Commentary. Book of Jeremiah (Part 2).  1995. 

McConnville, Gordon, Jeremiah, New Bible Commentary. 

Wright, Christopher, The Message of Jeremiah, The Bible Speaks Today. Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois, 2014.

 

For other links:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/jewsforjesusau

The videos, especially the Bible teachings are always free. However, if you are enjoying and learning from them, and would like to share in the costs $ of putting them together, to donate use this link:  https://www.jewsforjesus.org.au/giving 

T: http://www.twitter.com/jewsforjesusau

I: https://www.instagram.com/jewsforjesusau

If you haven’t yet done so, please click the red box to the right which says ‘SUBSCRIBE’ and you will be notified of any new content on our channel. Thanks!

 

ACTUAL TEXT

er. 34:1   The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, when ^aNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army, with ^ball the kingdoms of the earth that were under his dominion and all the peoples, were fighting against Jerusalem and against all its cities, saying, ² “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘^aGo and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah and say to him: “Thus says the LORD, ‘Behold, ^bI am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and ^che will burn it with fire. ³ ‘^aYou will not escape from his hand, for you will surely be captured and delivered into his hand; and you will ^bsee the king of Babylon eye to eye, and he will speak with you ¹face to face, and you will go to Babylon.’”’ ⁴ “Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah! Thus says the LORD concerning you, ‘You will not die by the sword. ⁵ ‘You will die in peace; and as spices were burned for your fathers, the former kings who were before you, so they will ^aburn spices for you; and ^bthey will lament for you, “Alas, lord!”’ For I have spoken the word,” declares the LORD.

 

Jer. 34:6   Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke ^aall these words to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem ⁷ when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against all the remaining cities of Judah, that is, ^aLachish and ^bAzekah, for they alone remained as ^cfortified cities among the cities of Judah.

 

Jer. 34:8   The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD after King Zedekiah had ^amade a covenant with all the people who were in Jerusalem to ^bproclaim ¹release to them: ⁹ that each man should set free his male servant and each man his female servant, a ^aHebrew man or a Hebrew woman; so that ^bno one should keep them, a Jew his brother, in bondage. ¹⁰ And all the ^aofficials and all the people obeyed who had entered into the covenant that each man should set free his male servant and each man his female servant, so that no one should keep them any longer in bondage; they obeyed, and set them free. ¹¹ But afterward they turned around and took back the male servants and the female servants whom they had set free, and brought them into subjection for male servants and for female servants.

 

Jer. 34:12   Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, ¹³ “Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘I ^amade a covenant with your forefathers in the day that I ^bbrought them out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, saying, ¹⁴ “^aAt the end of seven years each of you shall set free his Hebrew brother who ¹has been sold to you and has served you six years, you shall send him out free from you; but your forefathers ^bdid not obey Me or incline their ear to Me. ¹⁵ “Although recently you had turned and ^adone what is right in My sight, each man proclaiming ¹release to his neighbor, and you had ^bmade a covenant before Me ^cin the house which is called by My name. ¹⁶ “Yet you ^aturned and ^bprofaned My name, and each man ¹took back his male servant and each man his female servant whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them into subjection to be your male servants and female servants.”’

 

Jer. 34:17   “Therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming ¹release each man to his brother and each man to his neighbor. Behold, I am proclaiming a ¹release to you,’ declares the LORD, ‘to the sword, to the pestilence and to the famine; and I will make you a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth. ¹⁸ ‘I will give the men who have transgressed My covenant, who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts — ¹⁹ the officials of Judah and the officials of Jerusalem, the court officers and the priests and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf — ²⁰ I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life. And their dead bodies will be food for the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth. ²¹ ‘^aZedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their life, and into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon which has ^bgone away from you. ²² ‘Behold, I am going to command,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will bring them back to this city; and they will fight against it and ^atake it and burn it with fire; and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without inhabitant.’”

 

The king of love my shepherd is (A study in Jeremiah 33)

 Truth and Consequences:    

A study in the prophecy of Jeremiah

Chapter 33

By Bob Mendelsohn

Given 12 August 2022

 

Lesson Thirty-three: The King of love my shepherd is

 

INTRODUCTION

  Springtime is a time of great hope and beauty; the winter’s chills and snow and ice are melting and the sun is lingering longer. For many, this is their favourite season. It won’t be long as summer’s heat will soon be on us, and the buds on the bushes and trees will soon be blossoming. Sheep have plenty of good grass to eat, and Bondi Beach is booming again with tumbling children and splashing surfers. The world will be wonderful for many; the promise of spring and thus summer was in us last week. We had temps in the 20s and the sun shone relentlessly. I thought winter was over; winter was not complete as this week has evidenced. 

Why am I giving you this meteorological report? That you and I might think thoughts of the promise of sunshine when the sun is not shining. We need to think of promises of warmth when baby, it’s cold outside. Promises are not to be held onto when they are fulfilled; you have to hold onto promises when they are oh, so far, far away.

That said, in today’s chapter, we hear a repeat of many of the promises God made to the Judeans in chapters 30 and 31, with a new promise about King David and about Levites. Stay tuned to hear what God will say, and remember, it’s not when they are fulfilled that you ponder them. 

Let’s hear what God is saying to us in this messed up and darkening world from chapter 33 of Jeremiah. 

Verse 1 tells us the timeline of this chapter, the same as last chapter. Jeremiah is still in prison, again, like house arrest, and in this whole chapter we don’t hear anything about his prayers or his response at all. It’s all “THUS SAYS GOD” and as such is a litany of God’s thoughts, not those of the prophet. 

Verse 2, God self-introduces as is his custom, as the God who created the world, and everything in it. And that would include Babylonians and Judeans and even Kiwis. 

Verse 3, call to me, and I will answer you. It’s particular. It’s personal. God is inviting us to listen and to pray and his promise is immediate. I will answer you, he says. Can you take comfort in that promise? Today? Are you currently asking God to accomplish something? He promises to hear us. Do you believe that?

What will he tell us, great and mighty things we don’t already know. Awesome, we will have wisdom granted. We will be alerted to his plans for our neighbours and our children. Things we do not know. Like the timing of his provision. Like the times he will answer in the affirmative and times in the negative. 

Verse 4, second time, “Thus says the Lord.” And what’s the subject of this word? The houses where we live and the houses of the leadership. The defences are broken down and the enemy will enter to ruin. God says that he is open to listen to us. There are walls around the city-- they are down; there are walls around God. They are also down, but open to us! It’s a brilliant image.

Verse 5, God has hidden himself, due to our sinfulness. Our ra’ah. Listen hell may well be defined as the ultimate isolation and loneliness, far not only from the madding crowd, but also far from the Living God. If heaven is relationship and fellowship and belonging, then hell is lack of relationship and loneness and not belonging. 

Verse 6 HINEY, Behold, don’t miss this. ‘Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them; and I will reveal to them an abundance of peace and truth. God will heal, three times in this one verse, healing is coming. Yes, admit you are sick and go to the doctor of life (God) so that your healing comes. No one gets well without such an admission. 

Arucha means ‘health’ and it comes from the root ERECH, like in Erech Apayim, long or slow to anger, and I’m glad God is perhaps slow to bring healing, but it will surely come. Also I cannot get away from the last word. Truth. Telling the truth about God. About you. About your relationship or lack of one. This promise is worth writing on a post, or on a post it, or on your wall in bright colours… God will reveal an abundance of peace and truth. 

Verse 7, we’ve seen this phrase before several times…

וַהֲשִֽׁבֹתִי֙ אֶת־שְׁב֣וּת

I will restore the fortunes. Restore the captivity (that is, to erase the captivity) Not in a permanent or conclusive way, but reset factory settings, take us back to where we were before we fell. Before we were tainted by idolatry in Judah and before we were taken into captivity. 

Verse 8, God says he will both make us pure (Taher) and forgive us (Salach) for both our sins and our transgressions. Look, so many of us use different words either to soften the reality of our sin or to excuse it, but 

“The three most familiar Hebrew terms for sin occur in this verse. The verbs ‏חטא‎, “sin” (twice), and ‏פשׁע‎, “rebel,” take singular and plural forms of the noun ‏עון, “iniquity,” as their objects (cf Hos 12:9). Every indictment in the book of Jeremiah contributes to the description of Israel’s and Judah’s iniquity.”

 

And don’t miss this object word “LI” in the text. 

מִכָּל־עֲוֹנָ֖ם אֲשֶׁ֣ר חָֽטְאוּ־לִ֑י

You sinned li, that is, against me. God takes our sins against people and against nature and against our families and against ourselves… he takes those sins personally and says you sin against me. That’s why fixing problems people-to-people is useful in social circumstances, but it doesn’t fix our lives. Only in repairing our relationship with God, in atonement, in blood-for-blood atonement, is our relationship fixable. Our lives are restored if we get right with God, and it won’t be good until then. 

“It will be to Me a name of joy, praise and glory before all the nations of the earth which will hear of all the good that I do for them, and they will fear and tremble because of all the good and all the peace that I make for it.’” (verse 9)

What is the ‘it’? It’s Jerusalem. That tells me that this is a prediction that will not take place until at least 70 years hence. And what are the three characteristics that define that new city? Joy, praise, and glory. Remember those from Jer. 13.11 and from Deuteronomy 26.19, God will fulfil his promises to make Jerusalem glorious, but not from military victories. Rather, this is from God being good to the peoples of the earth. Good is used twice in this sentence. God’s goodness leads people to repentance. God’s goodness leads us to thankfulness. 

Verse 10, Another “Thus says the Lord.” Third time. And through verse 11, the misfortunes of lack and of famine will be replaced with merriment and restoration. And the standard “Hodu” is sung, and is probably inserted by later authors to remind the people (“Sing God’s thanks as usual here.”)

Verses 12-13, there are five images of sheep and shepherds and if you think that’s about pastoral situations you are very close to right. It’s about the leadership of the ‘sheep of his pasture” namely the people of Israel and the kings. God will make those relationships back to ‘as in the beginning’ before the current kings had ruined things.

The verb ‘count’ surprised me, but when I think of the Lost items parables of Luke 15, that’s the only way the shepherd would know if there were 99 + 1. Only in counting his sheep did the shepherd know the flock. John 10 is where the apostle listed his “Jesus is the Good Shepherd” speech. And there we see that Jesus ‘knows his sheep’ and they ‘hear his voice and follow him.’ I identify with this notion. God made me one of his sheep and he loves and cares for me as a shepherd. The king of love, my shepherd is. No one “can take us out of his hand.”

Verse 14 introduces the promise he already gave us in chapter 23. The righteous branch, this one who is coming, will execute justice and that sounds royal and like a good king rather than the ones we’ve recently had to lead us. He will lead us to good, to holiness and purity. And in verse 15, another direct quote from the earlier chapter, the one who is born to us is named “Jehovah our righteousness.” Whoever this one is, he’s not only the rep of God; he IS God and that’s a massive surprise, eh?

Then verses 16 and 17, another Thus says the Lord (#4) the double surprise that only makes sense in terms of Yeshua, the greater Son of David. We read that there will never be a time without a Davidic king and without priests to perform sacrifices. This clearly is not fulfilled and we have an enigma.

Listen how Barnes solves this: “Read literally, these verses promise the permanent restoration of the Davidic throne and (of the Levitical priesthood. As a matter of fact Zedekiah was the last king of David’s line, and the Levitical priest-hood has long passed away. Both these changes Jeremiah himself foretold (Jeremiah 22:30; 3:16). In what way then is this apparent contradiction (compare Isaiah 66:20–23; Ezekiel 40–48) to be explained? The solution is probably as follows. It was necessary that the Bible should be intelligible to the people at the time when it was written, and in some degree to the writer. The Davidic kingship and the Levitical priest-hood were symbols, which represented to the Jew all that was most dear to his heart in the state of things under which he lived. Their restoration was the restoration of his national and spiritual life. Neither was so restored as to exist permanently. But that was given instead, of which both were types, the Church, whose Head is the true prophet, priest and King.”

Christopher Wright comments about Horizon 2 and 3. He says something similar to Barnes. “The NT affirms that the eternal nature of both the throne of David and the Leviti al priesthood was taken up and fulfilled by Jesus Christ. The angel declared the former (Luke 1.32-33) and Hebrews declares the latter (Heb. 8-10)”

This makes sense and we addressed it last week with the whole David restoration. It won’t be David himself, but the Greater Son of David who will make this happen and the priesthood of the Levites and their work in the Temple will terminate in 70 CE, BUT the Great High Priest Yeshua will take their place in substitution. 

Verse 20, Thus says the Lord, again. #5 in this chapter alone. If it’s possible that the sun and moon stop shining, then my covenant is breakable, BUT IT IS NOT. This will not happen as sure as I’m the Creator and SUSTAINER. Again the promises of God to Abraham and David are now reiterated and God will make this happen, for HIS NAME’s sake and in Yeshua they are fulfilled. 

Verse 24-26, people’s sins are apparent, AND YET, there it is…the interrupting grace of Almighty God. But I will ^crestore their ³fortunes and will have ^dmercy on them

God does this. Then. And in 70 years. And in Yeshua and in our lives. 

אָשׁוּב אֶת־שְׁבוּתָ֖ם וְרִחַמְתִּֽים

God, full of mercy and compassion. The Good Shepherd. Restoring the lost son to the Father, saving the 100^th sheep and bringing him back to himself. God doesn’t want any of us lost. He wants us restored. And he will do it. 

Have you encountered him yourself? Have you been born again?

 

CONCLUSION

God is calling each of us to know him and to walk with him, today and throughout our days. Have you received Yeshua as your messiah and Lord? He is risen from the dead! Have you renounced your sin, your idolatry, your forsaking God and given him First Place in your life? If not, please, do so now, just now, as we pray together. Use your own words, if you want, but yield, surrender, to the Lord of life. 

 

PRAYER

Then please write us (admin@jewsforjesus.org.au) to tell us what you have just done, and we will send you literature and encourage you. You are part of our family; we love and appreciate you. And we want you to enjoy the presence of the Lord who calls, who knows, who blesses and builds us up. 

We hope to see you again next week as we study chapter 34. Until then, Shabbat shalom!

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barnes, Albert, Commentary on the Old Testament. (Published by many, from 1880 on)

Henry, Matthew, Commentary.

Keown, Gerald, Scalise, Pamela, Smothers, Thomas, Word Biblical Commentary. Book of Jeremiah (Part 2).  1995. 

McConnville, Gordon, Jeremiah, New Bible Commentary. 

Wright, Christopher, The Message of Jeremiah, The Bible Speaks Today. Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois, 2014.

 

For other links:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/jewsforjesusau

The videos, especially the Bible teachings are always free. However, if you are enjoying and learning from them, and would like to share in the costs $ of putting them together, to donate use this link:  https://www.jewsforjesus.org.au/giving 

T: http://www.twitter.com/jewsforjesusau

I: https://www.instagram.com/jewsforjesusau

If you haven’t yet done so, please click the red box to the right which says ‘SUBSCRIBE’ and you will be notified of any new content on our channel. Thanks!

 

ACTUAL TEXT

Restoration Promised

 

Jer. 33:1   Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the second time, while he was still confined in the court of the guard, saying, ² “Thus says the LORD who made the earth, the LORD who formed it to establish it, the LORD is His name, ³ ‘Call to Me and I will answer you, and I will tell you great and mighty things, which you do not know.’ ⁴ “For thus says the LORD God of Israel concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah which are broken down to make a defence against the siege ramps and against the sword, ⁵ ‘While they are coming to fight with the Chaldeans and to fill them with the corpses of men whom I have slain in My anger and in My wrath, and I have hidden My face from this city because of all their wickedness: ⁶ ‘Behold, I will bring to it health and healing, and I will heal them; and I will reveal to them an abundance of peace and truth. ⁷ ‘I will restore the ¹fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel and will rebuild them as they were at first. ⁸ ‘I will cleanse them from all their iniquity by which they have sinned against Me, and I will pardon all their iniquities by which they have sinned against Me and by which they have transgressed against Me. ⁹ ‘It will be to Me a name of joy, praise and glory before all the nations of the earth which will hear of all the good that I do for them, and they will fear and tremble because of all the good and all the peace that I make for it.’

 

Jer. 33:10   “Thus says the LORD, ‘Yet again there will be heard in this place, of which you say, “It is a waste, without man and without beast,” that is, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast, ¹¹  the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who say, 

            “Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, 

            For the LORD is good, 

            For His lovingkindness is everlasting”; 

            and of those who bring a thank offering into the house of the LORD. For I will restore the fortunes of the land as they were at first,’ says the LORD.

 

Jer. 33:12   “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘There will again be in this place which is waste, without man or beast, and in all its cities, a habitation of shepherds who rest their flocks. ¹³ ‘In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, in the cities of the Negev, in the land of Benjamin, in the environs of Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah, the flocks will again pass under the hands of the one who numbers them,’ says the LORD.

 

The Davidic Kingdom

 

Jer. 33:14   ‘Behold, days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will fulfil the good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and the house of Judah. ¹⁵ ‘In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth. ¹⁶ ‘In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will dwell in safety; and this is the name by which she will be called: the LORD is our righteousness.’ ¹⁷ “For thus says the LORD, ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; ¹⁸ and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man before Me to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to prepare sacrifices continually.’”

 

Jer. 33:19   The word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁰ “Thus says the LORD, ‘If you can break My covenant for the day and My covenant for the night, so that day and night will not be at their appointed time, ²¹ then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant so that he will not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levitical priests, My ministers. ²² ‘As the host of heaven cannot be counted and the sand of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who minister to Me.’”

 

Jer. 33:23   And the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁴ “Have you not observed what this people have spoken, saying, ‘The two families which the LORD chose, He has rejected them’? Thus they despise My people, no longer are they as a nation ¹in their sight. ²⁵ “Thus says the LORD, ‘If My covenant for day and night stand not, and the fixed patterns of heaven and earth I have not established, ²⁶ then I would reject the descendants of Jacob and David My servant, not taking from his descendants rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy on them.’” 

 

 

Jailhouse Rock and prayer (Jeremiah 32)

  Truth and Consequences: 

 

Lesson Thirty-two: Jailhouse Rock

To watch this as a video: use this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJYBMJa2zBQ

 

 

INTRODUCTION

         Generally speaking jail and Jewish people, well it’s a recipe for problems. In fact, jail for everyone is problematic, isn’t it? I’ve spent time in jail in Washington, DC and again in Florida, and it’s no picnic, I’ll confirm that. We are now 32 chapters into the story of Jeremiah, the weeping prophet and his pronouncements of woe and starting a couple of chapters ago, his pronouncement of hope for the Jewish people. 

And when you think of prophets and hopefulness, you would not usually include a jail sentence, would you? Probably a sunshine coast holiday with a lovely beach scene, but a prison? Not a chance. 

Even so, today’s chapter begins with such incarceration and yet…there it is again, the words of hope that we keep finding throughout this book, the book of Truth and Consequences, but even so, there is a “And Yet…” when God himself intervenes to make his name known and his glory shown even in the midst of judgment on his Jewish people. 

The chapter divides into two major sections: Jeremiah in jail and Jeremiah’s prayer with God’s answer. Let’s dig in.

1.   Jeremiah incarcerated

At a specific time, again, Jeremiah is put in jail. He’s been in stocks before and now it’s another visit to the pen. The king is in his last days and wants to get things in order. But do you remember what God had told him some 11 chapters earlier?

⁴ ‘Thus says the LORD God of Israel, “Behold, I am about to turn back the weapons of war which are in your hands, with which you are warring against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the wall; and I will gather them into the center of this city. ⁵ “I Myself will war against you with an outstretched hand and a mighty arm, even in anger and wrath and great indignation. ⁶ “I will also strike down the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they will die of a great pestilence. ⁷ “Then afterwards,” declares the LORD, ^“I will give over Zedekiah king of Judah and his servants and the people, even those who survive in this city from the pestilence, the sword and the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their foes and into the hand of those who seek their lives; and he will strike them down with the edge of the sword. He will not spare them nor have pity nor compassion.”’ (Jer. 21.4-7)

Zedekiah had been forewarned and knew full well what Jeremiah had predicted. Yet he disregarded the entire scenario. Kings and military men have a hard time admitting defeat even before the battles have begun. But a wise king listens to the voices of his advisors and when they are right, and he knows they are right, he has little choice. He needed to agree, but he didn’t. He lost as a result. What a sad figure he remains in Jewish history.

Look at verses 3-5. “Why do you prophesy, saying…” What’s ironic and painful about this is that Zedekiah well knew why Jeremiah predicted and announced the way to go. And he knew the sins of the Jewish people. And he knew what he needed to do, but he refused. And it’s that refusal which brings the question of “Why?” into such a ridiculous light. 

You know people today ask that same question of God, and if there is a God, why is there evil? If there is a loving God, why is there suffering? And similar questioning. But the answer often points us back to our own failings, our own sins, our own disregard and rejection of God’s ways. 

Psalm 50 says, 

“To the wicked God says, “What right do you have to tell of my laws and to take my covenant in your mouth? You hate discipline and you cast my words behind you. You associate with adulterers and you let your mouth loose in evil and your tongue frames deceit. You sit and speak against your brother you slander your own mother’s son. These things you have done and I kept silence; you thought that I was just like you; I will reprove you and state the case in order before your eyes.” (Psalm 50.16-21)

God is saying that all your religion is a self-contained mockery. If you don’t live like God tells you to live, why should you expect anything to happen for your good. Yes, God is good; but your behaviour is telling him that you don’t want his goodness. You get what you put in. 

Zedekiah (which means God is righteous) even had the prophecy of Jeremiah in hand. He quotes it extensively. He well knew what was spoken and what was expected, and yet, he refused. Shame. What a mistake. 

Six passages in the book of Jeremiah report a word from the LORD given through Jeremiah to Zedekiah (21:1–7; 32:1–5; 34:1–7; 37:1–10, 17; 38:14–28).  The other passages all announce the certain conquest of Jerusalem by the Babylonians and Zedekiah’s capture.

Even so, Jeremiah answers, from jail! (Ok, maybe it was little more than house arrest, but still he was prevented from living freely in his day)

Verse 6, Jeremiah recounts the story of his first cousin coming and offering to sell some property. Now remember this is not the 21^st century with LJ Hooker and Richardson and Wrench selling real estate freely. Making commissions and gaining from all things property. Jews were not to sell property; it was to stay within the tribal units and certainly re-configured appropriately every 50 years on the Year of Jubilee. 

What might help us understand this is the reading from Leviticus 25. ‘The land, moreover, shall not be sold permanently, for the land is Mine; for you are but aliens and sojourners with Me. ²⁴ ‘Thus for every piece of your property, you are to provide for the redemption of the land.

 

‘If a fellow countryman of yours becomes so poor he has to sell part of his property, then his nearest kinsman is to come and buy back what his relative has sold. ²⁶ ‘Or in case a man has no kinsman, but so recovers his means as to find sufficient for its redemption, ²⁷ then he shall calculate the years since its sale and refund the balance to the man to whom he sold it, and so return to his property. ²⁸ ‘But if ¹he has not found sufficient means to get it back for himself, then what he has sold shall remain in the hands of its purchaser until the year of jubilee; but at the jubilee, it shall revert, that he may return to his property.” (25.23-28)

We don’t see anything particularly fulfilling of the Torah rulings in this Jeremiah and his cousin transaction. And what we know about the timing makes this ridiculous.

1)   Jeremiah had no wife and kids, so no one to pass the land onto

2)   The war was already in full and thus Anathoth was probably already under siege

3)   No one would be back to fulfil its purposes until 70 more years; what a waste to buy it now

4)   Jeremiah was in jail and he had no assurance he could even get to the field in question, which was being trampled by soldiers of Nebuchadnezzar

And yet…there it is…and yet, Jeremiah took all his funds on hand, 17 shekels and a ceremony ensued. Deed signed. Transaction completed in verses 9-15. Some say he put his money where his mouth had been. Jeremiah predicted that we would return to the land. It would again be on loan from heaven to the Jewish people. We would again have a chance to live right and to represent him. Jeremiah buying that property was a statement of faith, wasn’t it? Verse 15 says, “God says, “houses and fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.” 

2.   Jeremiah’s prayer and God’s answer

Verse 16 gives us a wonderful song from the 1980s or so. “Ah Lord God, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power. Nothing is too difficult for you!” That reminds itself to me but listen to the linkages the people would have heard as Jeremiah prayed this awesome prayer.  Verse 17: God made the heavens and the earth. He is the creator. Verse 17: Great power and outstretched arm. Verse 18: lovingkindness to thousands. Repays iniquity. That’s straight out of God’s self-revelation in Exodus. (34.6-7) Right? 

Verse 19: rewards and punishes. More Exodus language. Verse 20: The mention of Egypt underscores on what Jeremiah’s prayer is based. He is the God who saw us in our misery in those days about 1500 BCE (remember we are reading about 600 BCE or so, in other words, 900 years later). Verse 20: signs and wonders—that’s how he caused Israel to escape the exile in which we were, as jailed or incarcerated people in the detention centre known as the Land of Goshen.^[1] Verse 21: You did it in Egypt, with signs and wonders, strong hand and outstretched arm, with great terror and gave us the land. God is the God of deliverance and promise-keeping. He not only makes promises, he fulfils them, amen?

The prayer continues, with more history. To God and to himself. Verse 22: land flowing with milk and honey. This phrase is used 20 times in the Tenach! Promises, promises! Verse 23: God gave us the land. So far, so good. All about God. He said; he did; he will do it again. It’s a prayer of hope, and then… it all changes. 

Verse 23: they did not obey or walk in your Torah. We did nothing to earn or merit your love. So you were forced to act. You are faithful both to your promises and to your nature of holiness. Thus ‘all this calamity has come upon them.”

Jeremiah’s prayer continues with updating history, so as to get a good perspective of the situation. He reports the sale of property and the yielding of the land to the Babylonians (Chaldeans).  Listen to verse 24: “what you have spoken has come to pass…and you see it.” Jeremiah is wrapping his prayer in the words, in the faith-filled words of God to and through him. That’s prayer. That’s faith. That’s how this works.

God then answers the prayer. Verse 26 and following. He self-introduces. I’m the Lord, the God of all flesh. That’s an odd phrase. The short form, כָּל־בָּשָׂר, “all flesh,” parallels and even rhymes with כָּל־דָּבָר, “anything,” at the end of the verse.

 I wonder if God isn’t saying this: I know the peoples of the earth. I love everyone. I can use everyone to make my world mine. Babylonians and Egyptians and Jews and Kiwis and Americans and you and I are able to be part of God’s work and world. That, my friends, ought to encourage you. He’s the God of all flesh!

God repeats from Jeremiah’s prayer… is anything too difficult for me? The word for ‘difficult’ here and in verse 17 is PELA, a word you ought to remember from Isaiah’s prophecy, chapter 9, about a child who would be born to us. Nothing is too difficult for him; he will make his world his; he will accomplish his intention. Isaiah said in chapter 14, God wills and who can frustrate it? (14.27) The answer is loud—nothing is too difficult or wonderful. He runs the wonders. He is sovereign. THUS… don’t miss this—you can trust him!

Verse 30… the people of Israel and Judah, both…have bothered him. He is highlighting a 150-year-old problem and it’s not getting better. You guys are doing the same wrongs the Northern Tribes did in 725 BCE. You are verse 32, “provoking’ me to anger. Everyone…kings and leaders, priests and prophets, men and inhabitants… everyone! No one is helping the situation. 

Listen to verse 33 and see the action required to fix this. “They turned their back to me and not their face.” Though I taught them, again and again… they would not listen and receive instruction.” That’s how to fix this. Turn to him. Turn to God. Don’t turn to religion. Turning to self-advisement and self-satisfaction is what got you into trouble. You want this fixed? Turn to God. 

See that in verse 36 and following. Yes, it’s given to the Babylonians, BUT… and yet… verse 37, God will gather them, he will bring them back…he will make us dwell in safety…we will be his people (verse 38)

Verse 39 may be my favourite verse in all of this entire book: 

“I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own good and for the good of their children after them.”

If you haven’t heard anything else this morning, hear this. God wants you to know him and he will put a new heart in you to love him, to obey him, to fear him, and it’s FOR YOUR GOOD. 

Verse 44 “I will restore them. That’s it; God wants us to be his and to make his name known in our world. Are you ready for that? Are you turning your face to him and not your back? Nothing is too difficult for God. Nothing. Nothing!

CONCLUSION

God is calling each of us to know him and to walk with him, today and throughout our days. Have you received Yeshua as your messiah and Lord? He is risen from the dead! Have you renounced your sin, your idolatry, your forsaking God and given him First Place in your life? If not, please, do so now, just now, as we pray together. Use your own words, if you want, but yield, surrender, to the Lord of life. 

 

PRAYER

Then please write us (admin@jewsforjesus.org.au) to tell us what you have just done, and we will send you literature and encourage you. You are part of our family; we love and appreciate you. And we want you to enjoy the presence of the Lord who calls, who knows, who blesses and builds us up. 

We hope to see you again next week as we study chapter 33. Until then, Shabbat shalom!

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barnes, Albert, Commentary on the Old Testament. (Published by many, from 1880 on)

Henry, Matthew, Commentary.

Keown, Gerald, Scalise, Pamela, Smothers, Thomas, Word Biblical Commentary. Book of Jeremiah (Part 2).  1995. 

McConnville, Gordon, Jeremiah, New Bible Commentary. 

Wright, Christopher, The Message of Jeremiah, The Bible Speaks Today. Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois, 2014.

 

For other links:

FB: https://www.facebook.com/jewsforjesusau

The videos, especially the Bible teachings are always free. However, if you are enjoying and learning from them, and would like to share in the costs $ of putting them together, to donate use this link:  https://www.jewsforjesus.org.au/giving 

T: http://www.twitter.com/jewsforjesusau

I: https://www.instagram.com/jewsforjesusau

If you haven’t yet done so, please click the red box to the right which says ‘SUBSCRIBE’ and you will be notified of any new content on our channel. Thanks!

 

ACTUAL TEXT

 

Jeremiah Imprisoned

 

Jer. 32:1   The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. ² Now at that time the army of the king of Babylon was besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the house of the king of Judah, ³ because Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, “Why do you prophesy, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Behold, I am about to give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will take it; ⁴ and Zedekiah king of Judah will not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but he will surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will speak with him face to face and see him eye to eye; ⁵ and he will take Zedekiah to Babylon, and he will be there until I visit him,” declares the LORD. “If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not succeed”’?”

 

Jer. 32:6   And Jeremiah said, “The word of the LORD came to me, saying, ⁷ ‘Behold, Hanamel the son of Shallum your uncle is coming to you, saying, “Buy for yourself my field which is at Anathoth, for you have the right of redemption to buy it.”’ ⁸ “Then Hanamel my uncle’s son came to me in the court of the guard according to the word of the LORD and said to me, ‘Buy my field, please, that is at Anathoth, which is in the land of Benjamin; for you have the right of possession and the redemption is yours; buy it for yourself.’ Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD.

 

Jer. 32:9   “I bought the field which was at Anathoth from Hanamel my uncle’s son, and I weighed out the silver for him, seventeen shekels of silver. ¹⁰ “I signed and sealed the deed, and called in witnesses, and weighed out the silver on the scales. ¹¹ “Then I took the deeds of purchase, both the sealed copy containing the terms and conditions and the open copy; ¹² and I gave the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the sight of Hanamel my uncle’s son and in the sight of the witnesses who signed the deed of purchase, before all the Jews who were sitting in the court of the guard. ¹³ “And I commanded Baruch in their presence, saying, ¹⁴ ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Take these deeds, this sealed deed of purchase and this open deed, and put them in an earthenware jar, that they may last a long time.” ¹⁵ ‘For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Houses and fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.”’

 

Jeremiah Prays and God Explains

 

Jer. 32:16   “After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, then I prayed to the LORD, saying, ¹⁷ ‘Ah Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You, ¹⁸ who shows lovingkindness to thousands, but repays the iniquity of fathers into the bosom of their children after them, O great and mighty God. The LORD of hosts is His name; ¹⁹ great in counsel and mighty in deed, whose eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, giving to everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds; ²⁰ who has set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and even to this day both in Israel and among mankind; and You have made a name for Yourself, as at this day. ²¹ ‘You brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and with wonders, and with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm and with great terror; ²² and gave them this land, which You swore to their forefathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey. ²³ ‘They came in and took possession of it, but they did not obey Your voice or walk in Your law; they have done nothing of all that You commanded them to do; therefore You have made all this calamity come upon them. ²⁴ ‘Behold, the siege ramps have reached the city to take it; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword, the famine and the pestilence; and what You have spoken has come to pass; and behold, You see it. ²⁵ ‘You have said to me, O Lord GOD, “Buy for yourself the field with money and call in witnesses” — although the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’”

 

Jer. 32:26   Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁷ “Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?” ²⁸ Therefore thus says the LORD, “Behold, I am about to give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans and into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and he will take it. ²⁹ “The Chaldeans who are fighting against this city will enter and set this city on fire and burn it, with the houses where people have offered incense to Baal on their roofs and poured out drink offerings to other gods to provoke Me to anger. ³⁰ “Indeed the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah have been doing only evil in My sight from their youth; for the sons of Israel have been only provoking Me to anger by the work of their hands,” declares the LORD. ³¹ “Indeed this city has been to Me a provocation of My anger and My wrath from the day that they built it, even to this day, so that it should be removed from before My face, ³² because of all the evil of the sons of Israel and the sons of Judah which they have done to provoke Me to anger — they, their kings, their leaders, their priests, their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ³³ “They have turned their back to Me and not their face; though I taught them, teaching again and again, they would not listen and receive instruction. ³⁴ “But they put their detestable things in the house which is called by My name, to defile it. ³⁵ “They built the high places of Baal that are in the valley of Ben-hinnom to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire to Molech, which I had not commanded them nor had it entered My mind that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.

 

Jer. 32:36   “Now therefore thus says the LORD God of Israel concerning this city of which you say, ‘It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by sword, by famine and by pestilence.’ ³⁷ “Behold, I will gather them out of all the lands to which I have driven them in My anger, in My wrath and in great indignation; and I will bring them back to this place and make them dwell in safety. ³⁸ “They shall be My people, and I will be their God; ³⁹ and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me always, for their own good and for the good of their children after them. ⁴⁰ “I will make an everlasting covenant with them that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put the fear of Me in their hearts so that they will not turn away from Me. ⁴¹ “I will rejoice over them to do them good and will faithfully plant them in this land with all My heart and with all My soul. ⁴² “For thus says the LORD, ‘Just as I brought all this great disaster on this people, so I am going to bring on them all the good that I am promising them. ⁴³ ‘Fields will be bought in this land of which you say, “It is a desolation, without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.” ⁴⁴ ‘Men will buy fields for money, sign and seal deeds, and call in witnesses in the land of Benjamin, in the environs of Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland and in the cities of the Negev; for I will restore their fortunes,’ declares the LORD.”

 

^[1] 20 “The hymnic style continues, using the language of Pss 78:43; 105:27 to describe the LORD’s acts of deliverance, beginning in Egypt. “Make a name for yourself” is an expression rarely used of God. In Isa 63:12, 14 it is also associated with the Exodus. Neh 9:10 is a close counterpart of 32:20, mentioning “signs” and “wonders” in Egypt and repeating the final clause verbatim, “you made a name for yourself which continues today.” V 20 looks beyond Israel in Egypt, however, to include humankind “until this day.” The LORD’s renown among the nations because of Israel’s deliverance is a theme of the ancient victory song in Exod 15:14–16. It is also part of Moses’ intercession in Num 14:13–16. If the LORD destroys Israel, the nations will conclude that the LORD “was not able” to bring them into the land. This verse, 32:20, seems to imply that other peoples have been more than mere observers of God’s “signs and wonders” in Israel. The perspective of v 19 is reversed. God is known by God’s deeds, just as people are known to God by theirs.” (Keown)