not the Babylonians

As I continue in the book of the prophet Jeremiah I read the warnings and dire predictions of how the people of Jerusalem were to lose their property, their freedom, their way of life.  If Jeremiah said it once, he said it scores of times.  Yet it doesn't appear that many, if any, listened or changed.  This morning it occurred to me that God wasn't expressing his displeasure with the nations who had no knowledge of Him, like Egypt or Babylon.  He was upset with the nation of Israel, with whom He had made more than one covenant, and to whom He had been faithful to preserve and protect.  As we look about our world today, we can find much to be unhappy about.  There are many, even in "the land of the free", who do not know the Lord and, unsurprisingly, do not order their lives to Him or to His ways.  Our culture reflects our people and, perhaps, that is why there are many evidences of moral decline.  On the other hand, the people who have come to know the Lord and experienced His covenant of forgiveness and reconciliation can represent a distinctive difference in focus, values and lifestyle.  No doubt the Lord is not pleased when unbelievers ignore their Creator, but I imagine He is more distressed by believers who live like unbelievers, rather than like people who have been transformed.  We may live close to Babylon, but our address can still be Jerusalem!

 

Jeremiah 32:³⁶ "Now therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this city of which you say, 'It shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: ³⁷ Behold, I will gather them out of all countries where I have driven them in My anger, in My fury, and in great wrath; I will bring them back to this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely. ³⁸ They shall be My people, and I will be their God; ³⁹ then I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them and their children after them. ⁴⁰ And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from doing them good; but I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me. ⁴¹ Yes, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will assuredly plant them in this land, with all My heart and with all My soul.'

 

blessings,

Rob Smith