Today, I am reading and commenting on  Jeremiah 26-27.

When Jehoiakim was king, Jeremiah prophesied to the people of Jerusalem and Judah that if they listened to God’s words and repented of their sins, He would forgive them and relent of the destruction He had planned for them.  But if they did not, He would bring desolation upon Jerusalem.  There was still time for them to turn from their sins.  God had declared destruction for Jerusalem, but there was still time for them to turn to Him.  Later, when Zedekiah was king, God sent Jeremiah with another prophecy.  If the people of Jerusalem would accept God’s judgement and submit to Babylon, He would spare their lives, but it was too late to maintain their independence.  The day when they could avoid God’s judgement had passed.  Their only choice was to accept, or suffer even worse.  I believe that today we are still at the point similar to Jeremiah’s first prophecy in today’s passage, but we are rapidly approaching the second.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Jeremiah 26-27.

I was struck by the similarity between what happened in this passage and what happens all too often today.

• Jeremiah: “If you don’t listen to the prophets God sends and do the right thing, this nation will be destroyed.”
• The people to whom he was prophesying: “How dare you say that this nation will be destroyed, you should be executed.”

Notice that Jeremiah did NOT say, “This nation will be destroyed.”  Instead, he said, “If you do not change your ways this nation will be destroyed.”  The people refused to consider changing their ways, instead they blamed Jeremiah for telling them that their actions would lead to their destruction.  In the same way today, many people will call Christians hateful for telling them that what they are doing is self-destructive.  It is also important that we not be hateful, that we not tell people that because they have sinned they are doomed. (I was going to start that sentence with “Of course”, but I realized that all too many people needed to be told this for it to be “of course”.)  God calls on us to give up our sinful, destructive (of ourselves, and, all too often, of others) behaviors.

You may be called on, as Jeremiah was, to call others to change their ways, but make sure you have examined your own life and begun allowing God to change those of your ways of which He does not approve.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Jeremiah 26-27.

I am not sure how I am going to write today’s blog because there are two different, but related, things going on in today’s passage.  While King Jehoiakim was reigning, Jeremiah went to the temple and prophesied that the people must turn from their sins, or Jerusalem would be completely destroyed.  The religious establishment, and the people who regularly worshiped in the temple, wanted to lynch him for this prophecy, claiming that Jeremiah was committing treason, but the political establishment (or, at least a faction of the political establishment) intervened.  However, the passage also tells us that another prophet, named Uriah, had prophesied similarly to Jeremiah and King Jehoiakim had sent agents after him to Egypt to bring him back and execute him.  I have long wondered what point the passage was trying to make by bringing up Uriah.  Why did Jeremiah survive, while Uriah was put to death?  So, when Uriah heard that the king wanted to kill him, he fled to another country.  When Jeremiah was threatened, he stood up, repeated his prophecy, and told the people he was innocent of treason.  I do not know the Uriah would not have been killed if he had not fled, but fleeing did not save him.  Jeremiah stayed and continued to speak the words God gave him, despite repeated threats on his life.  We learn here that we must never shrink, or run, from opposition which arises from speaking God’s word.  We may suffer and die, but running will not save us from that.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on  Jeremiah 26-27.

When Jehoiakim (who was placed on the throne by the Pharoah to replace his brother 3 months after the death of his father) was King of Judah, Jeremiah prophesied that there was still time for the people to turn from their evil ways and avoid the coming disaster.  Then later, when Zedekiah was king, Jeremiah prophesied that if Zedekiah submitted to Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, God would permit the people of Jerusalem and Judah to remain in the land, but if he did not, the people (including the ruling class) would suffer death or exile.  So, we see that up until the very end, if the people had turned away from their evil practices, they could have averted the worst of the disaster which God was bringing upon them.  As bad as things seem in our society today, we should follow the command which God gave Jeremiah…and take to heart the hope which God gave Jeremiah:
“Tell them everything I command you; do not omit a word. ³ Perhaps they will listen and each will turn from their evil ways. Then I will relent and not inflict on them the disaster I was planning because of the evil they have done.”                                                                                                 If we consistently speak God’s word, perhaps those around us whom we love will turn from the wicked ways of our society and follow God.  And perhaps enough of them will do so in order to transform society, but even if not, those we love who listen will be rescued by God.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Jeremiah 26-27.

If God would destroy Shiloh, where His Tabernacle had been, and later destroy Jerusalem, where His Temple was built, because they would not listen to Him and the prophets He sent, then He will destroy this country if people continue to refuse to listen to Him and the messengers He sends.  It is kind of scary to feel compelled to carry God’s message to people when I read this passage, because Jeremiah faced serious threat, and other godly prophets were killed, for relaying God’s message which people did not want to hear.  However, I find it much scarier to refuse to speak God’s message.  God protected Jeremiah and kept him from the suffering that many of his contemporaries experienced.  And we know that those prophets who were killed for speaking God’s word have entered into God’s presence and live there with Him.  Pray for the people of this world that they may turn to God before their sin brings destruction down upon them.

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Jeremiah 26-27.

Other parts of the Book of Jeremiah are directed at abandoned God completely to worship pagan gods.  However, in today’s passage Jeremiah directs his prophecy of doom directly to those worshiping in the Temple.  Rather than listening to his words from God and repenting, the people who claimed to be trying to follow God tried to have Jeremiah killed.  They were angry because he told them that they would not be safe just because they worshiped in the Temple.  In the same way today it is not enough to go to Church and pay lip service to obeying God.  We must show His love to those suffering in the world around us.