February 28, Jeremiah 27
"But if any nation or kingdom will not serve this Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and put its neck under the yoke of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence declares the LORD, until I have consumed it by his hand." - Jeremiah 27:8
God sometimes used the prophets as visual aids to teach the lesson he wanted his messenger to convey. So Hosea married an adulterous woman and took her back repeatedly because God wanted to show his long suffering love for his people. Isaiah once walked unclothed for two years, and gave his sons names with prophetic significance, because God told him to do so to make a point to the people.
In Chapter 27, God told Jeremiah to make and wear an ox yoke to deliver and illustrate a message to the people of Judah and the surrounding countries. An ancient yoke was made of two wooden poles joined by leather straps. The apparatus fit the animal like a collar or a mantle. It signified submission to the will of another, being under another's control.
God's word to the people of Judah and the neighboring countries was, "Submit to Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. Do not rebel against their control." God told them their captivity was from his own hand, and the Babylonians were acting as his servants to accomplish his purpose.
Jeremiah wore the yoke and delivered the message to the kings of the nations, and then repeated it to the priests and people of Judah. He told them God was in control, that he gave the earth and its kingdoms to whomever he pleased. And he had chosen the Babylonians to dominate the Israelites and their neighbors for discipline and/or punishment. He warned them to not listen to the lying prophets who urged them to rebel. They would be rebelling against God as well as their captors if they did.
The first wave of invasion and captivity did not humble Zedekiah and the people left behind in Judah, even when they saw thousands of their countrymen killed, and many more taken away. So they persisted in their rebellion against God, and listened to the false prophets who told them what they wanted to hear.
Once again, if these people had listened to God’s gracious forewarning, they and their city could have been saved from death and ruin. But they rejected the message and didn't turn back to God. By their hardhearted choice, they witnessed destruction, went away into captivity and died.
Nebuchadnezzar was an evil man, but God called him his servant. If God gave him all the treasure of the nations he conquered, just imagine what he will give to his godly servants who obey him!
God also gave Jeremiah the assurance that the captivity would end. Babylon itself would be conquered. They and their treasures would return to their homeland after 70 years of captivity. Isaiah had already prophesied that return and named one of his sons "A Remnant Shall Return" as a sign of that message.
This chapter emphasizes (again) God's goodness, his sovereignty and the certainty of his word. It reminds us that false teachers will tell us what they think we want to hear without regard for God's truth. And it is another example of how we make foolish choices and inflict suffering on ourselves when we disobey God's perfect will.
Copyright © 2024 by Michael B. McElroy. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Today in God's Word—February 2024
East Tallassee Church of Christ
Comments