Then the Lord said to me, “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight, and let them go! 2 And when they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord:
“‘Those who are for pestilence, to pestilence,
and those who are for the sword, to the sword;
those who are for famine, to famine,
and those who are for captivity, to captivity.’
3 I will appoint over them four kinds of destroyers, declares the Lord: the sword to kill, the dogs to tear, and the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4 And I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem.
5 “Who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem,
or who will grieve for you?
Who will turn aside
to ask about your welfare?
6 You have rejected me, declares the Lord;
you keep going backward,
so I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you—
I am weary of relenting.
7 I have winnowed them with a winnowing fork
in the gates of the land;
I have bereaved them; I have destroyed my people;
they did not turn from their ways.
8 I have made their widows more in number
than the sand of the seas;
I have brought against the mothers of young men
a destroyer at noonday;
I have made anguish and terror
fall upon them suddenly.
9 She who bore seven has grown feeble;
she has fainted away;
her sun went down while it was yet day;
she has been shamed and disgraced.
And the rest of them I will give to the sword
before their enemies,
declares the Lord.”
Jeremiah's Complaint
10 Woe is me, my mother, that you bore me, a man of strife and contention to the whole land! I have not lent, nor have I borrowed, yet all of them curse me. 11 The Lord said, “Have I not set you free for their good? Have I not pleaded for you before the enemy in the time of trouble and in the time of distress? 12 Can one break iron, iron from the north, and bronze?
13 “Your wealth and your treasures I will give as spoil, without price, for all your sins, throughout all your territory. 14 I will make you serve your enemies in a land that you do not know, for in my anger a fire is kindled that shall burn forever.”
15 O Lord, you know;
remember me and visit me,
and take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In your forbearance take me not away;
know that for your sake I bear reproach.
16 Your words were found, and I ate them,
and your words became to me a joy
and the delight of my heart,
for I am called by your name,
O Lord, God of hosts.
17 I did not sit in the company of revelers,
nor did I rejoice;
I sat alone, because your hand was upon me,
for you had filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain unceasing,
my wound incurable,
refusing to be healed?
Will you be to me like a deceitful brook,
like waters that fail?
19 Therefore thus says the Lord:
“If you return, I will restore you,
and you shall stand before me.
If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless,
you shall be as my mouth.
They shall turn to you,
but you shall not turn to them.
20 And I will make you to this people
a fortified wall of bronze;
they will fight against you,
but they shall not prevail over you,
for I am with you
to save you and deliver you,
declares the Lord.
21 I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked,
and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.” Jeremiah 15 ESV
Jeremiah 15 The Lord Will Not Relent
1-4. Though Moses and Samuel stood before Me - These were two great intercessors, Moses having a most unique relationship with God, more intimate than any of the other prophets until Christ. He was a very meek man that interceded on behalf of a very ungrateful and taxing people. He also interceded for his own sister and brother when they spoke about him as an enemy would. Here are some instances and a link about this for Moses, observe how God Himself speaks about Moses, there is no higher speaker, so no greater commendation than that from God.
30 The next day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a terrible sin, but I will go back up to the Lord on the mountain. Perhaps I will be able to obtain forgiveness for your sin.”
31 So Moses returned to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a terrible sin these people have committed. They have made gods of gold for themselves. 32 But now, if you will only forgive their sin—but if not, erase my name from the record you have written!”
33 But the Lord replied to Moses, “No, I will erase the name of everyone who has sinned against me. Exodus 32: 30-33
Samuel was also a man of prayer, and he mourned even over Saul, and even physically intervened in his zeal for God, doing what Saul should have done.
1Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem, for I have selected from his sons a king for Myself.” 2“How can I go?” Samuel asked. “Saul will hear of it and kill me!” The LORD answered, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.’… 1 Samuel 16: 1-3
27But to those of you who will listen, I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone takes your cloak, do not withhold your tunic as well.… Luke 6: 27-29
Sword, dog, bird and beast - Some would die in battle, others to pestilence and starvation, and in their eastern culture it would be considered wrong to leave bodies unburied. Further indignities would come from scavengers, and some weak probably fell prey to beasts.
10 Rizpah daughter of Aiah took sackcloth and spread it out for herself on a rock. From the beginning of the harvest till the rain poured down from the heavens on the bodies, she did not let the birds touch them by day or the wild animals by night. 11 When David was told what Aiah’s daughter Rizpah, Saul’s concubine, had done, 12 he went and took the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from the citizens of Jabesh Gilead. (They had stolen their bodies from the public square at Beth Shan, where the Philistines had hung them after they struck Saul down on Gilboa.) 13 David brought the bones of Saul and his son Jonathan from there, and the bones of those who had been killed and exposed were gathered up. 2 Samuel 21: 10-13
Because of what Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem - Son of Hezekiah is an interesting point, for Hezekiah was one of the better kings, but this was no guarantee of a righteous son. Manasseh made the gutters of Jerusalem run with the blood of God's prophets. He led the people in idolatry and abortion.
Moreover, Manasseh shed so much innocent blood that he filled Jerusalem from end to end, in addition to the sin that he had caused Judah to commit, doing evil in the sight of the LORD. 17As for the rest of the acts of Manasseh, along with all his accomplishments and the sin that he committed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 2 Kings 21: 16-17
…36Still others endured mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the sword. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, oppressed, and mistreated. 38The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground.… Hebrews 11: 36-38
5-9. I am weary of relenting - He is tired of holding back justice, and the time of punishment has come. Sadly, when God refrains from judgment, men fail to see it as grace and a time to repent. They knew what God had judged the prior inhabitants for, but if our bellies are full, our bank accounts positive, then we tend to trust in our own works and judgment.
I have made their widows more in number - Battle, disease and beasts have claimed their husbands.
Her sun went down while it was yet day - She was a mother of seven, which was considered great wealth in those days, yet she was still quite young, in the prime of her motherhood. Seven would be considered a great blessing to a mother till she saw her sons go off to war and then one by one not return, or die from famine. It took her breath, crushed her heart.
10-14. A man of strife and contention to the whole land - I think it was R.C. Sproul once who said, "Doctrine does divide, it separates truth from error." Jeremiah is a man of division, anyone convicted by his message, who repented, would be rare and also separated from the majority. Today, there are a hosts of poor teachers, false prophets, who speak of unity at all costs, even, and most necessarily for their sakes, at the costs of the truth. Why can't Jeremiah just agree with the other prophets? Like Elijah, he is thought of as divisive, a troubler of Israel. He thinks it would have been better if he hadn't been born.
Have I not set you free for their good - God corrects him, it is actually an honor. This is the lot of being a friend of God, Jeremiah is considered an enemy by the world.
“Generally opposed and quarrelled, for my free and faithful discharge of my duty. This is the world’s wages to godly ministers, whom they usually make their butt-mark. But God be thanked, saith he with Jerome, that I am worthy whom the world should hate. Luther said of himself, Luther is fed with reproaches.” (Trapp)
…10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets before you.… Matthew 5: 10-12
Your words were found, and I ate them - Some find the word, and it is a novelty to them, but they read in such a way that they are checking off the box of daily reading. What did you read, who were the characters, and if it is all for our instruction then what did it compel you to do, to pray about or meditate upon? Jeremiah has read, but is also receiving God's word, and though the message makes him a criminal in the eyes of some, yet it is precious to him because it comes from God. How does this apply? It has influenced every sector of his life, even his thoughts.
“I have said that Jeremiah lets us into a secret. His outer life, consisting in his perpetual faithful ministry, was to be accounted for by his inward love of the word which he preached.” (Spurgeon)
ii. “It is a very different thing from saying,‘Thy word was found, and I did admire it,’ or ‘Thy word was found, and I did criticise it,’ or ‘Thy word was found, and I did divide it and make a sermon of it.’ That is a minister’s temptation.” (Spurgeon)
You had filled me with indignation - The realization of sin is the birth of disgust. My own wretchedness is more than vexing, and so you would like to withdraw, but then how could you be a light?
Will You be to me like a deceitful brook - Seasonal streams are inviting and refreshing, but not to be mistaken for a place to settle down. He is anxious about his situation, a man that is not well liked, and will His God fail him?
“In his distraught state, Jeremiah charged the Lord with failure to fulfill his promises to strengthen him in his resistance against his enemies.” (Feinberg)
iii. “This was a fit of diffidence and discontent, as the best have their outbursts, and the greatest lamps have needed snuffers.” (Trapp)
If you return I will restore you - God is calling Jeremiah to repent of his worry and distrust. He has heard his complaint, He is aware of his situation, and He has promised to be his shield.
They shall turn to you, but you shall not turn to them - As God's mouth piece there is no room for compromise. He is not God's negotiator, but rather His proclaimer. God doesn't paint it in soft terms, and the people will one day come to read Jeremiah's words and see that they were from God. In the mean time, they will hate you and fight against you, your name will be a byword and subject of slander. They will curse you, laugh at you, and friends will be few if any.
…13But rejoice that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed at the revelation of His glory. 14If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15Indeed, none of you should suffer as a murderer or thief or wrongdoer, or even as a meddler.… 1 Peter 4: 13-15
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.