The Bible Edge
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Daily Reading: Jeremiah 42-45
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.
You think it’s over and yet it begins all over again. This happened to Jeremiah. Jerusalem has been ransacked, burned, and most of its occupants have been carried away to Babylon. But there is a remnant there. This remnant approaches Jeremiah at the beginning verses of chapter 42 saying: …Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:) That the LORD thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we may do. In verse 5 they clearly promise to do all that the Lord tells them to do through Jeremiah. Their question was basically, “Do we stay in Jerusalem, or can we flee to Egypt?”
Yet, ten days later, the Word of God came to the prophet telling him to let the remnant know that it was God’s will that they stay in Jerusalem. If they stayed there, they would be protected and blessed, if they fled to Egypt, they would be plagued by three things: the sword, pestilence, and famine. Ultimately, we come to today’s verse. One thing can be said for this group, at least they were upfront about it. We will not hearken unto thee. They claimed earlier that he was a traitor and that Baruch conspired with Jeremiah to cause them to also go into captivity to Babylon. At this point they were just making things up in their mind that had no basis in reality.
So, they rebelled against the Lord, and they dragged Jeremiah with them as a prisoner. Just when he thought the worst was behind him, a whole new problem arose. All the prophet could do was suffer through it. While there is no record of Jeremiah’s time or cause of death, it is held by tradition that he was stoned by the remnant of the Jews while in Egypt. But no one knows for sure.
But one thing we do know. Jeremiah the prophet was faithful to the Lord. His heart was broken, and his body was afflicted, yet he was faithful. In the midst of national decay, rebellion, and overthrow he stands as a shining example of God’s faithful servants for all the ages.
One of the many lessons we can learn from him is this; just when you think it is over, it starts up all over again, and again, and again. Just be faithful, know God’s Word and choose to keep it; especially during those times when you do not want to.
Until tomorrow, live for Christ today.
William T. Howe, Ph.D.
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