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August 21, 2007
Jeremiah 32-34
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Jeremiah Chapter
32
- The
word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of
Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth
year of Nebuchadrezzar.
- For
then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the
prophet was shut up in the court of the prison, which was
in the king of Judah's house.
- For
Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Wherefore dost thou
prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will give this city
into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it;
- And
Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the
Chaldeans, but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of
Babylon, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall
behold his eyes;
- And
he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit
him, saith the LORD: though ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not
prosper.
- And
Jeremiah said, The word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
- Behold,
Hanameel the son of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee,
saying, Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth: for
the right of redemption is thine to buy it.
- So
Hanameel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the prison
according to the word of the LORD, and said unto me, Buy my field, I
pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is
in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is
thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it
for thyself. Then I knew that this was the word of
the LORD.
- And I
bought the field of Hanameel my uncle's son, that was
in Anathoth, and weighed him the money, even
seventeen shekels of silver.
- And I
subscribed the evidence, and sealed it, and took
witnesses, and weighed him the money in the
balances.
- So I
took the evidence of the purchase, both that which
was sealed according to the law and custom, and
that which was open:
- And I
gave the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the
son of Maaseiah, in the sight of Hanameel mine uncle's son,
and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the book of the
purchase, before all the Jews that sat in the court of the prison.
- And I
charged Baruch before them, saying,
- Thus
saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Take these evidences, this
evidence of the purchase, both which is sealed, and this evidence which
is open; and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may continue many
days.
- For
thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Houses and fields and
vineyards shall be possessed again in this land.
- Now
when I had delivered the evidence of the purchase unto Baruch the son
of Neriah, I prayed unto the LORD, saying,
- Ah
Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great
power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing
too hard for thee:
- Thou
shewest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of
the fathers into the bosom of their children after them: the Great, the
Mighty God, the LORD of hosts, is his name,
- Great
in counsel, and mighty in work: for thine eyes are
open upon all the ways of the sons of men: to give every one according
to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings:
- Which
hast set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even
unto this day, and in Israel, and among other men;
and hast made thee a name, as at this day;
- And
hast brought forth thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with
signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand, and with a stretched
out arm, and with great terror;
- And
hast given them this land, which thou didst swear to their fathers to
give them, a land flowing with milk and honey;
- And
they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not thy voice, neither
walked in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst
them to do: therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them:
- Behold
the mounts, they are come unto the city to take it; and the city
is given into the hand of the Chaldeans, that fight against it, because
of the sword, and of the famine, and of the pestilence: and what thou
hast spoken is come to pass; and, behold, thou seest it.
- And
thou hast said unto me, O Lord GOD, Buy thee the field for money, and
take witnesses; for the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.
- Then
came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying,
- Behold,
I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is
there any thing too hard for me?
- Therefore
thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give this city into the
hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of
Babylon, and he shall take it:
- And
the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set fire on
this city, and burn it with the houses, upon whose roofs they have
offered incense unto Baal, and poured out drink offerings unto other
gods, to provoke me to anger.
- For
the children of Israel and the children of Judah have only done evil
before me from their youth: for the children of Israel have only
provoked me to anger with the work of their hands, saith the LORD.
- For
this city hath been to me as a provocation of mine
anger and of my fury from the day that they built it even unto this
day; that I should remove it from before my face,
- Because
of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children
of Judah, which they have done to provoke me to anger, they, their
kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of
Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
- And
they have turned unto me the back, and not the face: though I taught
them, rising up early and teaching them, yet they
have not hearkened to receive instruction.
- But
they set their abominations in the house, which is called by my name,
to defile it.
- And
they built the high places of Baal, which are in
the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their
daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech;
which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they
should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.
- And
now therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this
city, whereof ye say, It shall be delivered into the hand of the king
of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence;
- Behold,
I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven
them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will
bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell
safely:
- And
they shall be my people, and I will be their God:
- And I
will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever,
for the good of them, and of their children after them:
- And I
will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away
from them, to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts,
that they shall not depart from me.
- Yea,
I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this
land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.
- For
thus saith the LORD; Like as I have brought all this great evil upon
this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have
promised them.
- And
fields shall be bought in this land, whereof ye say, It is
desolate without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the
Chaldeans.
- Men
shall buy fields for money, and subscribe evidences, and seal them,
and take witnesses in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about
Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities of the
mountains, and in the cities of the valley, and in the cities of the
south: for I will cause their captivity to return, saith the LORD.
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Jeremiah Chapter
33
- Moreover
the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while
he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,
- Thus saith
the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it;
the LORD is his name;
- Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew
thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
- For thus
saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city,
and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down
by the mounts, and by the sword;
- They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it
is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I
have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I
have hid my face from this city.
- Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I
will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and
truth.
-
And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to
return, and will build them, as at the first.
- And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity,
whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their
iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have
transgressed against me.
-
And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all
the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto
them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all
the prosperity that I procure unto it.
- Thus saith the LORD; Again there shall be heard
in this place, which ye say shall be desolate
without man and without beast, even in the cities
of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without
man, and without inhabitant, and without beast,
- The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the
voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them
that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is
good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and
of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the
LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the
first, saith the LORD.
-
Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate
without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be
an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to
lie down.
-
In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the vale, and in the
cities of the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places
about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass
again under the hands of him that telleth them,
saith the LORD.
-
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good
thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house
of Judah.
-
In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of
righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and
righteousness in the land.
-
In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely:
and this is the name wherewith she shall be called,
The LORD our righteousness.
- For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want a
man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;
- Neither
shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt
offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice
continually.
-
And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying,
- Thus saith
the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of
the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season;
- Then
may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should
not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the
priests, my ministers.
-
As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea
measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the
Levites that minister unto me.
- Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah,
saying,
-
Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two
families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus
they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation
before them.
-
Thus saith the LORD; If my covenant be not with day
and night, and if I have not appointed the
ordinances of heaven and earth;
- Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and
David my servant, so that I will not take any
of his seed to be rulers over
the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity
to return, and have mercy on them.
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Jeremiah Chapter
34
-
The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, when
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms
of the earth of his dominion, and all the people, fought against
Jerusalem, and against all the cities thereof, saying,
- Thus
saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of
Judah, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give this city
into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire:
- And
thou shalt not escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and
delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the
king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou
shalt go to Babylon.
- Yet
hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah; Thus saith the
LORD of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword:
- But
thou shalt die in peace: and with the burnings of thy fathers, the
former kings which were before thee, so shall they burn odours
for thee; and they will lament thee, saying, Ah
lord! for I have pronounced the word, saith the LORD.
- Then
Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah
in Jerusalem,
- When
the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all
the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against
Azekah: for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah.
- This
is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, after that
the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were
at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them;
- That
every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being
an Hebrew or an Hebrewess, go free; that none should serve himself of
them, to wit, of a Jew his brother.
- Now
when all the princes, and all the people, which had entered into the
covenant, heard that every one should let his manservant, and every one
his maidservant, go free, that none should serve themselves of them any
more, then they obeyed, and let them go.
- But
afterward they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom
they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for
servants and for handmaids.
- Therefore
the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
- Thus
saith the LORD, the God of Israel; I made a covenant with your fathers
in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of
the house of bondmen, saying,
- At
the end of seven years let ye go every man his brother an Hebrew, which
hath been sold unto thee; and when he hath served thee six years, thou
shalt let him go free from thee: but your fathers hearkened not unto
me, neither inclined their ear.
- And
ye were now turned, and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming
liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before
me in the house which is called by my name:
- But
ye turned and polluted my name, and caused every man his servant, and
every man his handmaid, whom ye had set at liberty at their pleasure,
to return, and brought them into subjection, to be unto you for
servants and for handmaids.
- Therefore
thus saith the LORD; Ye have not hearkened unto me, in
proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his
neighbour: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the LORD, to the
sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be
removed into all the kingdoms of the earth.
- And I
will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, which have not
performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when
they cut the calf in twain, and passed between the parts thereof,
- The
princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the
priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the parts
of the calf;
- I
will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand
of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies shall be for meat
unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth.
- And
Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of
their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into
the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which are gone up from you.
- Behold,
I will command, saith the LORD, and cause them to return to
this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it
with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without an
inhabitant.
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Thought for the day:
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Jeremiah spoke these words which we have just read from prison. He was placed there because of his predictions that the Babylonians would overwhelm the Jews and that King Zedekiah would be captured and taken to Babylon. He also warned them that no matter how hard they fought, they would still be defeated. Of course Zedekiah did not like this message. He wanted to rally the troops to victory, not have them hear that their battle was in vain. He certainly didn't want to hear that he was to be taken captive. So he did what most people do when confronted with a message that they don't like: he got rid of the messenger. How little things change! If you attempt to take the Gospel to an unsaved man, he will normally either accept the Truth or attack the delivery boy! Today there are any number of supposedly born-again people who are mad at their pastor or some evangelist because that man dared to point out to them the truth contained in the Word of God. The Apostle Paul dealt with this with the churches of Galatia, which prompted him to write,
"Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth?"
Always remember that people who don't want to hear what God has to say will not want to hear what God's representative has to say. They may not like it, and they may try to stop it, but the message remains true. Note that Jeremiah continues to prophesy even though he is in jail. Certainly the temptation would be for him to stop, because he can see first hand that Zedekiah is angry and means to silence him. Yet Jeremiah's responsibility before the Lord outweighs his personal fears or desires, and he continues to deliver God's Word.
There are two particular statements of encouragement that Jeremiah delivers in today's passage. One is found in Jeremiah 32:27, which reads,
"Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?"
This verse reminds us that there is nothing that our God can not do. He is the LORD, the Almighty, Self-existent One. He is the God of all flesh - every creature that moves and breathes upon this earth is subject to His authority. Therefore, He is able to accomplish whatever He wishes whenever He wishes to do so. Thus, there can never be a situation that the Lord is unable to take care of. He can melt the coldest heart, and cause even the wrath of man to praise His name (Psalm 76:10). Though our problems may seem insurmountable to us, they are nothing to our God. May we learn to trust Him to do the right thing for us.
A second verse of encouragement is found in Jeremiah 33:3. There the prophet writes,
"Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not."
It is one thing to have a Friend Who is able to solve all my problems. It is quite another to know that this Friend wants to hear from me and is eagerly looking forward to providing me with answers and solutions. The President of the United States may have the ability and clout to fix some difficult issues in my life, but it doesn't mean that he is going to listen to me. The local millionaire has plenty of funds to solve my cash-flow problems, but I doubt that he is going to speak to me. In contrast to them, God asks me to call on Him. He promises that He will answer, and when He does He will show me, and do for me, more than I ever dreamed was possible.
Keep delivering the message of God, even though some folks don't want to hear it. Realize that God can do whatever needs to be done in your life, and call on Him in confidence because you know He loves you and desires to show Himself mighty unto you.
Pastor Mark J Montgomery
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