Jeremiah 7 has the prophet standing at the gate of the Temple. What is your greatest weakness? Do you believe liars? Do you treat others justly? Are you oppressive with others? To many of us allow ourselves to be deceived.

Verse eleven is the scripture that Jesus quoted when He threw the vendors from the Temple grounds at Passover. Jehovah reminds them of what happened to Shiloh because of their unbelief and unfaithfulness. Remember that this was the city where Samuel was raised in the Tabernacle and Eli’s sons were killed in a battle and lost the Arc of the Covenant. Moses gave the Israelites instructions to obey the Lord. All they remember is the sacrificial system.

Have you ever wished that you could just die because of circumstances in your life? Jeremiah 9 tells that the Jews will feel this as they are driven from their homeland. They will wish that they could perish where they are and not have to be displace.

Do you return after you leave? Do you get up when you fall? When you fail Jesus do you return to Him with repentance. God tells Jeremiah that Israel has refused to return to Him and rise when they have fallen. Even the scribes copy the scriptures incorrectly. They pervert His word. Have you ever heard a minister interpret the Bible in a way that does not sound like what was written? I have.

We sometimes are advised to ignore guilt from our sins and not feel any shame. If you want to do it, go ahead. You can make your own choices. You are Americans. You are free. We all feel hopeless and helpless at times. Do not despair. There is salvation in Christ alone.

Jehovah laments over His chosen people in Jeremiah 9. He wants to leave them and not have to listen to their disloyalty or see the terrible things they do to each other. Your tongue can be like a bow and shoot lies at others. I have shot my mouth off before. This is the reason I do not watch reality television. The contestants do not hesitate to say or do whatever it takes to win the prize. Therefore, they are so popular.

 Wisdom is being ignored in our time as it was in Jeremiah’s. We follow the stubbornness of our hearts as they did. We do not have professional mourners now. We have television, movies, and recorded music to cry out our sorrows. Listen to your play list and tell me that I am wrong. We teach our children how to complain about everything. Christians are falling into this trap also. Break the cycle. Teach the children to praise the Lord.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

We continue speaking of Israel returning to Jehovah in Jeremiah chapter four. The Lord asks them to destroy the idols they have been worshiping and be truthful, just, and righteous. What does breaking unplowed land have to do with repentance? Judah is to circumcise their hearts. This is a cutting away of flesh that is of no use to them. It is an act of obedience to God. Plowing the ground symbolizes the change that needs to be made in their lives. The weeds and thorns that are buried by the plow are the sins that they promise to move out of their lives.

If they believe that the disaster that is foretold will come, they will move to the cities for protection. Yahweh’s anger is against them. Do they believe this? They have told God lies in the past. Are they going to keep their word now? Punishment is for something that we have done. He does not apologize for giving us what we deserve. They will cry as a pregnant woman does because of the discomfort of childbirth.

The challenge in Jeremiah 5 is to find one person who is honest. The city will be forgiven for one person who speaks the truth. In this election year, this is something we all desire, people to be honest with us. Swearing by God is no indication of their lack of falsehood. Why should we be forgiven when we and our children deny that God exists. We make science, knowledge, lust, or money our object of worship.

If there is a God, why do people violate His laws without suffering the consequences? That time is coming according to Jeremiah. The Judeans asked that question and believed that He would never punish them. Slowness should not be misinterpreted as apathy. His love continues when we are disciplined. This is for our growth as His children. Do not be one of those that rejects Jehovah to your eternal doom.

The warning in Jeremiah 6 is to flee from Jerusalem before the Babylonian army attacks. Siege ramps will be built. The fighting will be fierce. Before the walls are breeched starvation will set in. Judah will not listen. They are offended by God’s call to recognize Him as their sovereign. Deceitfulness will bring the doom. “They do not know how to blush.” We refer to that as having no conscience.

Sacrifices and burnt offerings mean nothing to the Lord. Mourning for their disbelief is all they can do now. Yahweh’s attempt to refine the Israelites as they would gold, silver, or bronze has failed. They are being rejected.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger

Jeremiah has a prophecy for Josiah, King of Judah, in chapter one of his book. This chapter contains verse five which is used to show that Jehovah knows each of us before we are in our mother’s wombs. The future prophet tells the Lord that he is too young. He is told that he will be told what to say. We have the first of his visions described to us. It is a boiling pot. It is north of Judah and will pour out destruction and death on Jerusalem.

A proclamation is given to Jerusalem in Jeremiah 2. Israel once loved Jehovah as a bride loves her groom. What was wrong with Him that made the Jews reject Him? They did not follow Him. They had no good reason for that. The Lord is prosecuting them for alienation of affection. The spring of living water is what Jesus told the woman at the well that He was.

The bride has become a prostitute. She was like a vine planted in the ground. That vine became wild. They do not want to be tamed. It is the same with each of us. We make our choice of whether to follow Christ or not. It does not matter what Yahweh does for some of us. There are those that will always run away from God.

Divorce is the first topic in Jeremiah chapter three. The Prophet draws a connection between a man returning to his divorced wife and the Israelites trying to return to Jehovah. Faithless is a description for God’s people. Adultery is again used to describe the idolatry the has been practiced throughout the promised land. The northern kingdom of Israel has been divorced and Judah is said to be less righteous than he sister.

All that He requires for forgiveness is for them to repent and return to Him. This means forsaking their foreign lovers and worshiping only the true God, Yahweh. The prediction of the loss of the Ark of the Covenant is given here. It will not be missed or remembered, and another will never be made. There goes the story line for “The Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Israel and Judah will someday return to their land.

©Copyright 2020 by Charles Kensinger