#1110 Jeremiah 50 Part 1 Called and Recalled

 

The word that the Lord spoke concerning Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, by Jeremiah the prophet:

2 “Declare among the nations and proclaim,

set up a banner and proclaim,

conceal it not, and say:

‘Babylon is taken,

Bel is put to shame,

Merodach is dismayed.

Her images are put to shame,

her idols are dismayed.’

3 “For out of the north a nation has come up against her, which shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; both man and beast shall flee away.

4 “In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, the people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, weeping as they come, and they shall seek the Lord their God. 5 They shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, saying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an everlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’

6 “My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. 7 All who found them have devoured them, and their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for they have sinned against the Lord, their habitation of righteousness, the Lord, the hope of their fathers.’

8 “Flee from the midst of Babylon, and go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. 9 For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon a gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 Chaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the Lord.

11 “Though you rejoice, though you exult,

O plunderers of my heritage,

though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,

and neigh like stallions,

12 your mother shall be utterly shamed,

and she who bore you shall be disgraced.

Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,

a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.

13 Because of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited

but shall be an utter desolation;

everyone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,

and hiss because of all her wounds.

14 Set yourselves in array against Babylon all around,

all you who bend the bow;

shoot at her, spare no arrows,

for she has sinned against the Lord.

15 Raise a shout against her all around;

she has surrendered;

her bulwarks have fallen;

her walls are thrown down.

For this is the vengeance of the Lord:

take vengeance on her;

do to her as she has done.

16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,

and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;

because of the sword of the oppressor,

every one shall turn to his own people,

and every one shall flee to his own land.

17 “Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has gnawed his bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, as I punished the king of Assyria. 19 I will restore Israel to his pasture, and he shall feed on Carmel and in Bashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead. 20 In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, iniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim,

and against the inhabitants of Pekod.

Kill, and devote them to destruction,

declares the Lord,

and do all that I have commanded you.

22 The noise of battle is in the land,

and great destruction!

23 How the hammer of the whole earth

is cut down and broken!

How Babylon has become

a horror among the nations!

24 I set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,

and you did not know it;

you were found and caught,

because you opposed the Lord.

25 The Lord has opened his armory

and brought out the weapons of his wrath,

for the Lord God of hosts has a work to do

in the land of the Chaldeans.

26 Come against her from every quarter;

open her granaries;

pile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;

let nothing be left of her.

27 Kill all her bulls;

let them go down to the slaughter.

Woe to them, for their day has come,

the time of their punishment.

28 “A voice! They flee and escape from the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for his temple.

29 “Summon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. Encamp around her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has proudly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 Therefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the Lord.

31 “Behold, I am against you, O proud one,

declares the Lord God of hosts,

for your day has come,

the time when I will punish you.

32 The proud one shall stumble and fall,

with none to raise him up,

and I will kindle a fire in his cities,

and it will devour all that is around him.

33 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: The people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; they refuse to let them go. 34 Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name. He will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 “A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the Lord,

and against the inhabitants of Babylon,

and against her officials and her wise men!

36 A sword against the diviners,

that they may become fools!

A sword against her warriors,

that they may be destroyed!

37 A sword against her horses and against her chariots,

and against all the foreign troops in her midst,

that they may become women!

A sword against all her treasures,

that they may be plundered!

38 A drought against her waters,

that they may be dried up!

For it is a land of images,

and they are mad over idols.

39 “Therefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon, and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord, so no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.

41 “Behold, a people comes from the north;

a mighty nation and many kings

are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.

42 They lay hold of bow and spear;

they are cruel and have no mercy.

The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;

they ride on horses,

arrayed as a man for battle

against you, O daughter of Babylon!

43 “The king of Babylon heard the report of them,

and his hands fell helpless;

anguish seized him,

pain as of a woman in labor.

44 “Behold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd can stand before me? 45 Therefore hear the plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, and the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: Surely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 At the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.” Jeremiah 50 ESV

Jeremiah 50: 1-20 Concerning Babylon

Bel is put to shame, Merodach is dismayed - These were the gods of Babylon, and they were represented by speechless things, idols, who needed to be made by men and carried about. Jeremiah refers them as "dung pellets." I guess this shows on which side he would fall when it comes to worship, either worship Bel, Baal, Merodach, the king, the emperor or go into the fiery furnace. His successors would end up in the fire and the lion's den. If you look at the name structures, many have the words or forms of Bel and Merodach in them. Daniel's Babylonian given name was Belteshazzar, which means "Bel protects his life". His friend's Hebrew names were Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Daniel and Mishael contain the suffix -el, which comes from one of the Hebrew names for God. Iah or yah is short for Yahweh, the covenant name for the God of Israel. Nebuchadnezzar was pushing them to assimilate with Babylon and recognize her and her gods above the God of Israel. God reverses this in telling us not to be conformed to the image of this world, regenerating us unto new life, and Jesus even changes the name of Simon to Peter, Saul to Paul. Worldly rulers put their image up, have men pledge their allegiance against the words of God, and desire that everyone conform to that which is as useful as the dung pellets mentioned above.

“Bel (‘lord’) was the title of the storm-god Enlil, and when Marduk became head of the Babylonian pantheon in the second millennium bc he received the designation of Bel also.” (Harrison)

“The word gillulim is indelicate, meaning ‘balls of excrement.’ It is applied to pagan idols in Leviticus 26:30; Deuteronomy 29:17; 1 Kings 15:12, 21:25; etc. Ezekiel used the word some thirty-eight times.” (Thompson)

1Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. 3For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure of faith God has given you.… Romans 12: 1-3

Out of the North - They would come by way of the Medes, who were part of the Medo-Persian empire, headed by Cyrus.

A desolation - I agree with the commentators that point out a lack of serious conflict, in that the Persians took Babylon without much struggle, and the land has not remained completely void of man and beast. It was an exchange of one empire for another, not saying there were no scrimmages or death, but Babylon fell quickly. In light of the New Testament and the calls to come out of her, that is Babylon, this seems to take a more distant view, leaving the old Babylon in the shadows. 

…3All the nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her immorality. The kings of the earth were immoral with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown wealthy from the extravagance of her luxury.” 4Then I heard another voice from heaven say: “Come out of her, My people, so that you will not share in her sins or contract any of her plagues. 5For her sins are piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.… Revelation 18: 3-5

In those days and in that time - Near and Far. Some would return under Cyrus's decree, and then later when Messiah returns to rule after His first advent where He comes as the kinsman Redeemer.

An everlasting covenant - The new covenant, being born again of the Spirit, through faith in the complete work of Christ as decreed and found acceptable by  God the Father.

…16Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’ 17Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you from the countries to which you have been scattered, and I will give back to you the land of Israel.’ 18When they return to it, they will remove all its detestable things and all its abominations.…

…19And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them; I will remove their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh, 20so that they may follow My statutes, keep My ordinances, and practice them. Then they will be My people, and I will be their God. 21But as for those whose hearts pursue detestable things and abominations, I will bring their conduct down upon their own heads, declares the Lord GOD.”…

 Ezekiel 11: 16-21

Their shepherds have led them astray - Israel has been plagued with bad rulers, prophets and priests. Their kings have gone after other gods, lived openly rebellious and sinful lives, a horrible example as leaders. Both the rulers and the people have sought out prophets and teachers who would tickle their ears, gaging truth by how it made them feel. The priests have used their position for wicked gain, making light of the sacrifice which pointed to Messiah. Anyone who stood against them was berated, called hateful, a traitor, men like Isaiah and Jeremiah.

We are not guilty for they have sinned against the Lord - God used these nations to punish Israel, but this is a witness against them as well. If God would not tolerate sin in Israel, would he tolerate it in her accusers? Men like Hitler, Stalin and others play upon this logic when trying to seduce the masses against Israel, and most of the time they don't even believe in God, or they believe another god to be greater. 

Neigh like stallions - Babylon was proud, Nebuchadnezzar was taught about this sin, seven years he lived like an animal grazing in the field, but his son quickly forgot these things.

Everyone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled - The greater the boast, the more painful the reality. 

…7And he said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come. Worship the One who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and the springs of waters.” 8Then a second angel followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, who has made all the nations drink the wine of the passion of her immorality.” 9And a third angel followed them, calling out in a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image, and receives its mark on his forehead or on his hand,… Revelation 14: 7-9

As I punished the King of Assyrian - Assyria judged the northern tribes, but she was not out for justice or her own reform. God chased her away from Judah with one angel, and eventually she fell to Babylon. Babylon will fall to Persia, Persia to Greece, then Rome and so on. 

There shall be none - When the remnant is in Israel, after all these things take place, iniquity will be looked for, and no accusation shall stand because no iniquity will be found. This comes under Messiah, the Lord our righteousness.

…20But after he had pondered these things, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to embrace Mary as your wife, for the One conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus, because He will save His people from their sins.” 22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:… Matthew 1: 20-22

…5Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He will reign wisely as King and will administer justice and righteousness in the land. 6In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is His name by which He will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness. 7So behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when they will no longer say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the Israelites up out of the land of Egypt.’… Jeremiah 23: 5-7