Those Who Rejoiced Over Israel's Problems - Ezekiel 25

Ezekiel 25:6 "For thus saith the Lord God; Because thou hast clapped thine hands, and stamped with the feet, and rejoiced in heart with all thy despite against the land of Israel: v7 Behold, therefore I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, ..."

It was the Lord's decision to punish Israel and Judah. It was not the business of the surrounding nations which rejoiced at the fall of the kingdom. So, because of the arrogance they too were punished.

We should take note in regard to our own lives and the lives of others. Sometimes a fellow Christian might be going through something either as chastening or as a test. We should be careful not to make comments like 'I knew that was going to happen' or 'They had that coming.' We may sometimes have thoughts but they need to be rebuked and prayed about before they bud.

Here we start a list of those who were punished for glorying over Israel's problems:

v3 "And say unto the Ammonites, Hear the word of the Lord God: Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because thou saidst, Aha, against my sanctuary, when it was profaned, and against the land of Israel when it was desolate; and against the house of Judah, when they went into captivity, v4 Behold therefore, I will deliver thee to the men of the east..."

v8 "Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because that Moab and Seir do say, Behold, the house of Judah is like unto all the heathen;..."

v12 "Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because that Edom hath dealt against the house of Judah..."

v15 "Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with a despiteful heart, to destroy it for the old hatred;"

I think some of these nations saw Israel and Judah in a weakened state and decided to get back at them for all the times when they were defeated by a strong nation. That was taken up by the Lord himself.

I think we in this part of the country might sometimes think that some other countries have had no dealings with the one true God. But they have.

v17 "And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall lay my vengeance upon them."

Sour Grapes - Ezekiel 18

Ezekiel 18:2 "What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge?"

There were some bad expressions on the faces in the land. No doubt, anyone going through could see the attitude of the people by their expression and the proverb used to describe them.

The Lord goes on to explain that if the people do right, they will not be punished and will have no reason for long faces.

v4 "Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.

v5 But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right, ... he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord God."

The chapter reviews the elements of the law that was given to the people. The final word is that every person bears his own sin and it is not passed up or down in the family.

v20 "The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shalt the father bear the iniquity of the son; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him."

It tells us that we shall stand before God individually. I think it also tells us that our family ties are not the issue but rather how we conduct ourselves.

The plea is for Israel to turn from their wickedness. It has not changed that the wages of sin is death. Romans 6:23.

It is so obvious that we need a Savior. Man is of sinful nature and cannot pull himself up. Much of what we learn in the Old Testament shows us the need for the New. We need someone who was pure enough to take our place. It was and is Jesus.

v32 "For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God; wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye."

Eagles & Twigs - Ezekiel 17

Ezekiel 17:3 "And say, Thus saith the Lord God; A great eagle with great wings, longwinged, full of feathers, which had divers colors, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar;

v4 "He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants."

These stories are beautiful to me. I do not understand the exact meaning but I can see Jesus here. He is telling a truth with a story just as he did in the New Testament.

Telling of two eagles, I believe this first one is Israel and the second one is Babylon. I cannot be sure.

v12 "Say now to the rebellious house, Know ye not what these things mean? tell the, Behold, the king of Babylon is come to Jerusalem, and hath taken the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and led them with him to Babylon;"

It seems that the purpose for the invasion of Judah was to bring down the mighty nation so that it would again learn to trust the Lord. They rebelled again by going to Egypt for help.

v14 "That the kingdom might be base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping of his covenant it might stand."

v17 "Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war, by casting up mounts, and building forts, to cut off many persons."

So Judah was suppose to yield to the captivity but they went to Egypt for help. This caused judgment on Egypt as well and the destruction of many.

There is hope in the chapter.

v24 "And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish; I the LORD have spoken and have done it."

God's chosen people are to learn that they serve the true God who is able to tear down the mighty and do the impossible with that which seems useless. "...have made the dry tree to flourish..."

Isaiah 53:4 Isaiah 53:2 "For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: ...."

Days are at Hand - Ezekiel 12

Ezekiel 12:1 "The word of the LORD also came unto me saying v2 Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not; for they are a rebellious house."

In this chapter we see two issues covered. One the day Zedekiah left the castle and was captured. Second, dealing with the immediate fulfilment of the true prophesy.

Ezekiel was to pack his stuff and dig a hole under the wall and leave with his head covered to illustrate how Zedekiah left Jerusalem. Jeremiah 39.

v5 "Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby. v6 In their sight shalt thou bear it upon thy shoulders, and carry it forth in the twilight; thou shalt cover thy face, that thou see not the ground: for I have set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel."

There was a saying in Jerusalem that the things prophesied were 'far off' and therefore not to be worried over. The Lord said that was not to be anymore.

v22 "Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth?"

v23 "Tell them therefore, Thus saith the Lord God; I will make this proverb to cease, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them, The days are at hand, and the effect of every vision."

We often wait for a day, perhaps dread a day that is coming. Maybe it is the dentist we dread or a holiday we look forward to. They seem so far away. Then the days pass and before you know it, the day is here and we have to deal with it for good or bad.

So, it was for Israel, they had heard the prophets but felt that the day would come much later. As with Hezekiah, he was okay with the fact that destruction would come after he was gone. But in our studies, the day came for fulfilment and Israel was not ready.

v28 "Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; There shall none of my words be prolonged anymore, but the word which I have spoken shall be done, saith the Lord God."

Could today be the day?

Ezekiel - Introductions

Ezekiel 1:1 "Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God." See also II Kings 23:3 II Kings 24:11-16

We need to understand who Ezekiel was and when he lived. For this I must look to a couple of Bible scholars for help.
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Scofield: "Ezekiel is the voice of God to "the whole house of Israel". As opposed to some being either to Judah or the Ten Tribes, etc.

He preached for 21 years. He was there before the destruction of Jerusalem and lived among the people in a community near a river called Chebar.

Ezekiel uses symbols to illustrate his words.
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Comprehensive Bible Helps:

Ezekiel was the son of a priest and a priest himself. He was a contemporary of Jeremiah. (So we see that Jeremiah was not alone as I thought before.) His father was the priest Buzi. He was educated in Judea. He had a house and lost his wife suddenly. Tradition says he was murdered.

The symbols were a mystery until statues were unearthed in recent history that were similar to what he described. The Jews recommended not reading the book until they were 20 years old.
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Ezekiel's words from God were to remind the people of the national and personal sins of the nation so that they would know why they were in captivity. It is also a book of hope that the nation will again be reborn and their oppressors would be punished.

v4 "And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, a great cloud, and a fire infolding itself, and a brightness was about it , and out of the midst thereof as the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire." See Isaiah 21:1 Jeremiah 23:19.

The Longing - Lamentations 5

Lamentations 5:18 "Because of the mountain of Zion, which is desolate, the foxes walk upon it."

Here seems to be a look back at Zion from captivity, but I cannot be sure. I've wondered if Jeremiah made it to Babylon or if he just knew the heart of the people there.

They are turning back to the Lord.

v16 "The crown is fallen from our head; woe unto us, that we have sinned!"

This verse makes me think they are now in Babylon:

v5 "Our necks are under persecution: we labor, and have no rest."

A historical statement looking back to the happenings in Jerusalem.

v9-11 "We got our bread with the peril of our lives because of the sword of the wilderness. Our skin was black like an oven because of the terrible famine. They ravished the women in Zion, and the maids in the cities of Judah. v12 Princes are hanged up by their hand: the faces of elders were not honored."

So a terrible time has ended. Captivity is being endured. The good part of this chapter is that the people are acknowledging their sin against God.

v21 "Turn thou us unto thee, O LORD, and we shall be turned; renew our days as of old."

A prayer that shall be answered and was answered in part with the returning to build the wall.

Fury Accomplished - Lamentations 4

Lamentations 4:2 "The precious sons of Zion, comparable to fine gold, how are they esteemed as earthen pitchers, the work of the hands of the potter!"

My note on this verse is: 'Better we humble ourselves, than for God to do it.'

This chapter refers back to the pitiful sight of a city under siege. Starvation was in all the city. People who had been privileged were now wandering the streets looking for food. Children were deserted or worse.

v5 "They that did feed delicately are desolate in the streets; they that were brought up in scarlet embrace dunghills."

That is what sin will do. It will take you to the heights and let you crash in your own filth. Israel trusted in idols. They were praying to the air but now what they trusted in is useless.

God raised them up. When they turned from Him, he took his hand away and they crashed.

v11 "The LORD hath accomplished his fury; he hath poured out his fierce anger, and hath kindled a fire in Zion, and it hath devoured the foundations thereof."

So the punishment is over and now the path to restoration.

v20 "The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the LORD, was taken in their pits, of whom we said, Under his shadow we shall live among the heathen."

Submission to captivity but now returning to the shadow of his care. Progress.

A note to Edom to not glory over Israel's punishment...

v21 "Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom, that dwellest in the land of Uz; the cup also shall pass through unto thee: thou shalt be drunken, and halt make thyself naked."

Faithfulness - Lamentations 3

Lamentations 3:22-23 "It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness."

Very often a passage will start off as a statement and end up in a prayer of thanksgiving or praise, as if the one talking has been given insight while they were speaking. Psalm 23 is such a passage.

In studying Jeremiah and Lamentations (same author) we need to keep in mind that Jeremiah was sort of like a conduit between Israel and the Lord. He spoke the complaints of Israel during this time of suffering. He also spoke the words of the Lord. With that in mind, we should remember that Jeremiah was a man. He suffered like anyone else. He was a man of emotion. He felt what was going on and expressed it with tears and sadness and sometimes anger.

Here are my notes I took to summarize this in my own mind: Jeremiah is upset over the judgment in chapter 2 verse 20 until he is thrown in the dungeon by his people in chapter 3 verse 53, then he was praying for them to be punished in chapter 3:64.

2:20 "Behold, O LORD, and consider to whom thou hast done this. Shall the women eat their fruit, and children of a span long? shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the sanctuary of the LORD? See also 4:10

3:53 "They have cut off my life in the dungeon, and cast a stone upon me." See also Jeremiah 38:6.

3:64 "Render unto them a recompense, O LORD, according to the work of their hands."

So we see that Jeremiah's attitude changed as he went through these events. He was rescued from the dungeon but he learned some things. He learned just how evil the people had become. He learned that there is mercy when he was pulled from the dungeon. I learned that I am glad that the Lord is in charge because our moods change with circumstance. We would not be good judges.

Jerusalem is under siege. In this type of warfare, the enemy simply encamps around a city and waits for the inhabitants to either starve or surrender. Jeremiah had been begging them to submit to the enemy so that they could survive. The false prophets told them that they would see victory if they would but hang on. Jeremiah was right, the false prophets were wrong.

The Lord gave measured judgment. Israel had committed grievous sins but He still wished to preserve them as a nation.

v48 "Mine eye runneth down with rivers of water for the destruction of the daughter of my people."

Remember that Jeremiah expressed (often) the heart of God through these events.

Jeremiah 2:13 "For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water."

Jeremiah 5:19 "And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours."

Chapter 3 of Jeremiah.

His Right Hand - Lamentations 2

Lamentations of Jeremiah 2:3 "He hath cut off in his fierce anger all the horn of Israel, he hath drawn back his right hand from before the enemy, and he burned against Jacob like a flaming fire, which devoureth round about."

(horn in the Old Testament is used to depict power, honor and glory)

I hear it over and over, 'why does God let this or that bad thing happen'. The thinking is reversed. The mighty hand of God holds back harm to us. It is when we run out of his protection that the enemy descends on us. We must remember that we live in an unfriendly world. Christians are in a foreign land because our citizenship is in heaven.

So in this chapter we are told that the right hand of God was drawn back and the enemy came in because of Israel's rebellion.

v1 "How hath the LORD coveted the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger, and cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel, and remembered not his footstool in the day of his anger!"

There is no question of the love the LORD has for Israel. He raised them up and planted them in Canaan. He raised them up to the greatest nation on earth. It troubled him to punish Israel, yet he declared it in the beginning that chastening would happen if they rebelled against him.

As if from the heart of God:

v11 "Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city."

I think of Calvary and the suffering Jesus Christ suffered so that we would not have to suffer them. His heart was broken for us.

v22 "Thou hast called as in a solemn day my terrors round about, so that in the day of the LORD's anger none escaped nor remained: those that I have swaddled and brought up hath mine enemy consumed."

As a Christian we can find much comfort in the words of the Old Testament, it should be noted that the New Testament is a new and better way that tells us of the grace we are under and the way a Christian should live. Let me say it like this, The law was outward to the inward parts, the Christian (grace) is inward to the outward.

I'm afraid man people take the grace of God for granted but there will come a day when the door of grace will close forever. The same Jesus who died for us and lived that humble life on earth will be the judge as in the days of Israel that we have studied about. It will be a terrible day when the world is judged, we can all see the sin around us and know that that judgment will be harsh. We can read about it in Revelation, the last book in the Bible.

I plead with you that you would learn of this time of grace and take advantage of the love of God before it is too late.

Misery of Jerusalem - Lamentations 1

Lamentations of Jeremiah 1:1 ""How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!" (subordinate)

There can be no doubt that the punishment was just. Israel, Judah and Jerusalem had turned to idols. They were committing hideous acts in the name of those idols.

v18 "The LORD is righteous, for I have rebelled against his commandment: hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow, my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity."

This are the words of a broken heart. As we remember past studies, with the glory of king David and Solomon, we can think of the great buildings overlaid with gold and the processions as they came to worship. All that is lost.

v3 "Judah is gone into captivity because of affliction..."

v4 "The ways of Zion do mourn..."

v6 "And from the daughter of Zion all her beauty is departed..."

v7 "Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction...all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old..."

v12 "Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by? behold, and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is done unto me, wherewith the LORD hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger."

But remember the previous books we have studied and we will agree that

v18 "The LORD is righteous..."

The Book of Lamentations of Jeremiah - intro

Jeremiah 3:22-23 "It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is thy faithfulness."

Scofield describes the book like this: "...it is the disclosure of the love and sorrow of Jehovah for the very people whom He is chastening - a sorrow wrought by the Spirit in the heart of Jeremiah."

Jeremiah 13:17 "But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and ine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD's flock is carried away captive."

From my Comprehensive Bible Helps: Chapters 1, 2 and 4 have 22 verses, each corresponding to the Hebrew alphabet, each verse beginning with the corresponding letter. The fifth chapter has 22 verses with the letters but not in order of the alphabet. The third chapter has three verses under each letter.

Lamentations is about Jerusalem and Judah. It is about necessary punishment but with no joy found in administering that punishment.

v1 "How doth the city sit solitary, that was full of people! how is she become as a widow! she that was great among the nations, and princess among the provinces, how is she become tributary!"

tributary: subordinate, secondary, dependent

I Kings 10:23 "So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom."

Back to Zion - Jeremiah 50

Jeremiah 50:4-5 "In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go and seek the LORD their God. They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten."

This is a prophecy from Jeremiah. He is looking forward to the end of the 70 years of captivity. Most of the original captives have probably died by now. When they left Zion, the people were worshipping idols and all sorts of things. I doubt there was much teaching going in in the households about Israel and Judah and the ways of the LORD. But in this prophecy there is a longing for the homeland which most of them have not even seen.

v2 "Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not; say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces."

The punished for rebellion is now over and those who took the Lord's punishment to the extreme of their own volition are now going to be punished. I cannot guess when this chapter may have been written. Jeremiah may have been in Egypt at the time but we cannot tell from this writing. Babylon is going to fall though.

v9 "For lo, I will raise and cause to come against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country; and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken; their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain."

Verse 11 explains it for us, as to why the Chaldeans are being judged after they did the Lord's bidding.

v11 "Because ye were glad, because ye rejoiced, O ye destroyers of mine heritage, because ye are grown fat as the heifer at grass, and bellow as bulls,"

It seems to be that Babylon has gotten proud and boastful as if they brought themselves to greatness. They took the punishment of God's chosen beyond what God intended. We learned that the captivity was to be an instrument to keep Israel together as a people while the land laid in sabbath. The Chaldeans gave out their own punishment.

The passage is a lament over the condition of Israel.

v17 "Israel is a scattered sheep; the lions have driven him away; first the king of Assyria hath devoured him; and last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones."

v18 "Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria."

Then the Promise:

v19 "And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, and he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan and his soul shall be satisfied upon mount Ephraim and Gilead."

I am bringing my people home.

Not only that but I will take away their sin.

v20 "In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found; for I will pardon them whom I reserve."

I do not think this prophecy has been completely fulfilled. They came back to build the wall again (Nehemiah) but we will have to study more. There are references to Babylon in Revelation which are not all together clear to me. I do believe there was a physical Babylon and I believe there is a spiritual Babylon where the same things worshipped in the old nation are carried forward to a broader kingdom that worshipped or worships the same way. See Revelation. I will leave this difficult subject to the expert Bible scholars of prophecy.

I will leave this chapter with these two verses.

v33-34 "Thus saith the LORD of hosts; The children of Israel and the children of Judah were oppressed together: and all that took them captives held them fast; they refused to let them go. Their Redeemer is strong; the LORD of hosts is his name; he shall thoroughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the land, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon."

Philistines Judgment - Jeremiah 47

Jeremiah 47:1 "The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Philistines, before that Pharaoh smote Gaza."

We have entered into s series of chapters that tell of the judgment on various nations. It shows us that the entire region was shaken during the time Judah was taken into captivity. We will have to visit other books of the Bible to recall the reasons for the judgments.

v4 "Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyre and Sidon every helper that remaineth; for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphor."

Amos 1:9 "Thus saith the LORD; For three transgressions of Tyrus, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom, and remembered not the brotherly covenant;"

Some of what was going on is found in II Chronicles 28:16-18 "At that time did king Ahaz send unto the kings of Assyria to help him. For again the Edomites had come and smitten Judah, and carried away captives. The philistines also had invaded the cities of the low country, and of the south of Judah and had taken Bethshemesh, and Ajalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with the villages thereof, and Timnah with the villages thereof, Gimzo also and the villages thereof; and they dwelt there."

Not that I need to explain, but we can see that these judgments were not without a cause.

It also illustrates that although judgment is sometimes mercifully slow in coming, it will come.

Pharaoh and Nebuchadrezzar - Jeremiah 46

Jeremiah 46: 1-2 "The word of the LORD which came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles; Against Egypt against the army of Pharaohnecho king of Egypt which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah." See also II Kings 23:29


This begins several chapters which talk about judgments against various peoples. The words seem to encourage the armies to come together so that the judgment is sure. It reads like some of the plays I've heard with its flow of words. It leaves no doubt as to where and when it happened.

v10 "For this is the day of the Lord God of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries; and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood; for the Lord God of hosts hath a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates."

satiate: to satisfy fully or to excess

Pharaoh had become, according to history, no just a king but was worshipped as a god. They also had many gods of animals and part animals as we see in the stories of the tombs. It is a part of history that seems to have stopped suddenly.

v24 "The daughter of Egypt shall be confounded; she shall be delivered into the hand of the people of the north."

Not only was Egypt defeated by Nebuchadrezzar but the land was changed when they cut down great forest of trees.

v23 "They shall cut down her forest, saith the LORD, though it cannot be searched; because they are more than the grasshoppers, and are innumerable."

For the remnant of Judah that came to Egypt, the chapter closes with a word for them.

v28 "Fear thou not, O Jacob my servant, saith the LORD; for I am with thee; for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee; but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not leave thee wholly unpunished."

Special attention goes to the beloved of the Lord. These are the times before Christ came to redeem the world. The last part of the Bible is called the New Testament. It represents a change in how the world is dealt with. It includes a time of grace when people can turn to Christ for salvation. The book of Revelation takes us beyond this time of grace to a time when the world is judged. Everyone should consider themselves seriously while we are given this gift of grace. I prefer this time of grace to the violent times we read about in the Old Testament and in history.

Romans 3:24 "Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

Baruch - Jeremiah 45

Jeremiah 45:2 "Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto thee, O Baruch; v3 Thou didst say, Woe is me now! for the LORD hath added grief to my sorrow; I fainted in my sighing, and I find no rest."

There are several Baruch's mentioned in this area of the Bible. This one, I believe, is still talking about the one Jeremiah used as a scribe when he was in prison.

There must have been some event which caused Baruch to get stressed. I'm thinking that it had something to do with his relationship to Jeremiah, i.e. he was seen as helping Jeremiah and it is obvious that the leaders did not think much of Jeremiah.

v5 "And seekest thou great things for thyself? seek them not; for behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh saith the LORD; but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest."

I looked for the word 'prey' but found only Webster's definition which was not much help to me. I gather from this passage that things were not going to be peachy for Baruch but his life would be spared.

What I find amazing about this chapter is that the LORD would take a moment to send Baruch a message with all that was going on. Nations are falling, God's beloved Judah is being led into captivity. Yet he takes a moment to give some comfort to his servant and that of Jeremiah's. We do, after all, have Jeremiah's words preserved here.

So, the Lord is well able to deal with the masses and still pay attention to us as individuals. That's very comforting.

Psalm 136:1 "O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever."

Open Refusal to Obey by People - Jeremiah 44

Jeremiah 44:16 "As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee."

See Exodus 5:2 Romans 2:3-9

We that is quite plan. They have completely rejected God's instructions to them which were given for their good.

They argue with Jeremiah. They argue that while they worshipped the 'queen of heaven' (Don't know where they got that from - probably Egypt) things were good. Then when they stopped burning incense and stuff things got bad. They Bible does not bear that up but that is the way they want to remember it.

v4 "Howbeit I sent unto you all my servants the prophets, rising early and sending them, saying, Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate."

I have tried to do some study on the various gods where a woman depicts their image. They go by various names as well, usually altered to fit the local society. It is a long study.

v19 "And when we burned incense to the queen of heaven, and poured out drink offerings unto her, did we make her cakes to worship her, and pour out drink offerings unto her, without our men?" referchapter 7:18

c7:v18 "The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger."

My Topical Reference says 'queen of heaven' was a name given to the moon by the Hebrews. and refers us to Ashtoreth who was a Syrian goddess, mentioned with Baal and Astarte goddess of the moon. So it is Syrian instead of Egyptian.

Caution: Study of the various gods is not necessary to understanding the scriptures. It is enough to recognize that there is only one true God. The God that made heaven and earth. Study of these false gods can lead the mind into very evil places and cause great harm. It is enough to be aware of their impotence and then learn about the real God.

Back to our chapter. Most of those who went down to Egypt did not survive their judgment. Yet a few did escape and return to Judah.

v28 "Yet a small number that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose words shall stand, mine or theirs."

v30 "Thus saith the LORD,..."

I have not yet found out if Jeremiah left Egypt with the small number that escaped or died in Egypt as some believe.

Johanan Refuses to Obey - Jeremiah 43

Jeremiah 43:7 "So they came into the land of Egypt; for they obeyed not the voice of the LORD; thus came they even to Tahpanhes."

Tahpanhes: a city in Egypt on a branch of the Nile.

The chapter comes after Jeremiah told the remnant that they would be safe in Judah. The leaders accused Jeremiah of being deceived by Baruch, you remember the scribe who wrote down what Jeremiah told him and the book that was burned.

v3 "But Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, for to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they might put us to death, and carry us away captives in Babylon."

They, apparently, remember the time of Joseph when Israel was protected in Egypt but have forgotten the many years of slavery there and that they had to be delivered by Moses.

They have also 'forgotten' their promise to obey what ever word Jeremiah brought from the LORD. I think often we pray to tell God what to do rather than to submit to his wisdom in doing the thing we need instead of the thing we want.

As a reminder of the words Jeremiah spake from the LORD, a witness was set up in Egypt.

v9 "Take great stones in thine hand and hide them in the clay in the brick kiln, which is at the entry of Pharaoh's house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah;"

These were a material symbol of a prophecy spoken by Jeremiah that on that very spot the king of Babylon would sit after he had conquered Egypt and dealt with the remnant of Judah for disobeying the LORD.

v11 "And when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt, and deliver such as are for death to death; and such as are for captivity to captivity; and such as are for the sword to the sword."

I do not know really, why Egypt tried to come to Judah's rescue earlier nor why they want to shelter them now. I'd think that after the Red Sea and the pestilence inflicted on them because of Israel that they would shun them. Now, the king of Babylon is coming.

v12 "And I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captives: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd putteth on his garment; and he shall go forth from thence in peace."

Well, it is a far cry from the greatness when David and Solomon were kings. Those kings honored God in their doings and the kingdom was great. The people turned to idols and the kingdom fell. It should be clear which way was best.

Next chapter, tells of the arrogance of the people. They are no longer ashamed of their transgression but lash out.

Safety Promised in Judah - Jeremiah 42

Jeremiah 42:10 "If ye will still abide in the land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up, for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you." See here.

Repent: turn from

In summary: Jerusalem has fallen and the king of Babylon has left Gedaliah governor. Baalis sent Ishmael to kill Gedaliah and he did so. Johanan went after Ishmael with a group of men and rescued those he had taken but Ishmael got away.

In this chapter, the people are gathered together and they have asked Jeremiah to ask the Lord what they should do and promised that they would do it.

Jeremiah's message is for them to remain in Judah and the Lord would protect them. Johanan and others do not accept the message and so set their faces to go into Egypt.

v15-16 "And now therefore hear the word of the LORD, ye remnant of Judah; Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there; Then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die."

The Lord is willing to let the remnant remain in Judah and to bless them there and pretty much begs them not to go down to Egypt. They are altogether turned from the Lord in their hearts by this time. Fear and idol worship drive them as we will see later.

v19 "The LORD hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt; know certainly that I have admonished you this day."

In the next chapter we will see the response of the leaders of the remnant to Jeremiah and thus to the Lord. I know it broke his heart.

It seems that they no longer trusted the prophets words to them from the Lord.

v22 "Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to go and to sojourn."

As parents, we often make this speech to our have grown children. "You are headed into trouble by doing those things that you should not do."

Gedaliah Governor of Judah - Jeremiah 40

Jeremiah 40:5 "Now while he was not yet gone back, he said, Go back also to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon hath made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people: or go wheresoever it seemeth convenient unto thee to go. So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a reward, and let him go."

The Chaldeans are leaving Judah and have left Gedaliah in charge as governor. A man who was of the princes of Judah (the fallen government) is not pleased with this arrangement, perhaps he still wants to be king, and so sets a trap for Gedaliah who was for peace as best they could manage under the Chaldeans.

v9 "And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan sware unto them and to their men, saying Fear not to serve the Chaldeans; dwell in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you."

It sounds a lot like the instructions given by Jeremiah for the king to surrender to the Chaldeans to preserve his life.

Then appears two men: Johanan who was for Gedaliah. Ishmael sent by Baalis (king of Ammonites) to kill Gedaliah.

v15 "Then Johanan the son of Kareah spake to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it; wherefore should he slay thee, that all the Jews which are gathered unto thee should be scattered, and the remnant in Judah perish?"

But Gedaliah would not believe Johanan. I suppose he felt like everyone wanted to just live quietly for a change. But he was wrong and we will follow the story in the next chapter.

v16 "But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah, Thou shalt not do this thing; for thou speakest falsely of Ishmael." And by doing so, he signed his own death warrant. Tomorrow the next part of the story.

Jerusalem Fails - Jeremiah 39

Jeremiah 39:2 "And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, the city was broken up."

Zedekiah has been king for nine years when the king of Babylon laid siege to the city, then after about two years they entered the city. These two years or so were are very bad time for Jerusalem. It could have been avoided if they had listened to Jeremiah and the words of the Lord.

v4 "And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them, and all the men of war, then they fled, and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king's garden, by the gate betwixt the two walls; and he went out the way of the plain."

At this point, there was no mercy from the Chaldeans. They broke up the city, killed the sons of Zedekiah and put out the kings eyes, leading him away in chains to Babylon.

v8 "And the Chaldeans burned the king's house, and the houses of the people, with fire, and brake down the walls of Jerusalem."

So a great kingdom, created and built up by the LORD, is brought down because they turned from the LORD and would not be corrected.

As for Jeremiah, he remained with the remnant that was left.

v12 "Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee." So said Nebuchadrezzar to the captain of the guard.

As for Ebedmelech the Ethiopian who helped Jeremiah and saved his life. He was given a good word from the Lord.

v17 "But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the LORD: and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid."

v18 "For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee; because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the LORD."