3640.) Psalm 119:113-128

Psalm 119:113-136

New Living Translation

Samekh

¹¹³ I hate those with divided loyalties,
but I love your instructions.

“I hate the double minded, but I love your law,” the ESV has it.

Spurgeon says, “When we love the law it becomes a law of love, and we cling to it with our whole heart.”

¹¹⁴ You are my refuge and my shield;
your word is my source of hope.
¹¹⁵ Get out of my life, you evil-minded people,
for I intend to obey the commands of my God.

How careful we must be in the choosing of our friends! 

“It is better to be alone than in bad company.”
~George Washington

“My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me.”
~Henry Ford

“The only way to have a friend is to be one.”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

¹¹⁶ Lord, sustain me as you promised, that I may live!
Do not let my hope be crushed.

Everything that is done in the world
is done by hope.
~Martin Luther

¹¹⁷ Sustain me, and I will be rescued;
then I will meditate continually on your decrees.
¹¹⁸ But you have rejected all who stray from your decrees.
They are only fooling themselves.
¹¹⁹ You skim off the wicked of the earth like scum;
no wonder I love to obey your laws!

The fall of the wicked is the work of God.
~William Cowper

¹²⁰ I tremble in fear of you;
I stand in awe of your regulations.

Ayin

¹²¹ Don’t leave me to the mercy of my enemies,
for I have done what is just and right.
¹²² Please guarantee a blessing for me.

The Psalmist cried out to God as Job did:
Now put down a pledge for me with Yourself.
(Job 17:3)

Don’t let the arrogant oppress me!
¹²³ My eyes strain to see your rescue,
to see the truth of your promise fulfilled.
¹²⁴ I am your servant; deal with me in unfailing love,
and teach me your decrees.
¹²⁵ Give discernment to me, your servant;
then I will understand your laws.
¹²⁶ Lord, it is time for you to act,
for these evil people have violated your instructions.

Some read it, and the original will bear it,
It is time to work for thee, O Lord!
It is time for every one in his place to appear on the Lord’s side
— against the threatening growth of profaneness and immorality.
We must do what we can for the support
of the sinking interests of religion.
~Matthew Henry

¹²⁷ Truly, I love your commands
more than gold, even the finest gold.

“Should I not love them? Can gold, yea, fine gold, offer to me blessings such as these? Can it heal my broken heart Can it give relief to my wounded spirit? Has it any peace or prospect of comfort for me on my death bed?”
~Charles Bridges

¹²⁸ Each of your commandments is right.
That is why I hate every false way.

_________________________

Music:

One of my favorite hymns and well suited to Psalm 119 — “How Firm a Foundation.”  Click  HERE  to hear an orchestral arrangement.

How Firm a Foundation

How firm a foundation, you saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He has said,
To you, who for refuge to Jesus have fled?

Fear not, I am with you, O be not dismayed,
For I am your God and will still give you aid;
I’ll strengthen you, help you, and cause you to stand,
Upheld by my righteous, omnipotent hand.

When through the deep waters I call you to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow;
For I will be with you, your troubles to bless,
And sanctify to you your deepest distress.

When through fiery trials your pathway shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be your supply;
The flame shall not hurt you; I only design
Your dross to consume, and your gold to refine.

The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose,
I will not, I will not desert to its foes;
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake.

–London pastor John Rippon, 1787

_________________________

New Living Translation (NLT)   Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

light through the window.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/bethlehemblogentrycopy.jpg

hope candle.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/hope-in-focus.jpg

only with thine eyes.    http://slideplayer.com/slide/3517764/12/images/70/8Only+with+thine+eyes+shalt+thou+behold+and+see+the+reward+of+the+wicked..jpg

guarantee.   http://www.integrityinspection.com/images/guarantee.jpg

Psalm 37:9.    https://www.kcisradio.com/blog/psalm-397/

3639.) Jeremiah 50:1-20

Lions symbolize both Assyria and Babylon. The Assyrians destroyed Israel (the northern kingdom) in 722/721 B.C., and then the Babylonians sacked Judah (the southern kingdom) in 586 B.C. See verse 17.

Jeremiah 50:1-20   (NLT)

A Message about Babylon

“It is to be observed that there is no gleam of hope for Babylon; that power, for some time material, and persistently spiritual, which was conceived in an attempt to make man great by frustrating Divine purpose. Her doom is irremediable in Old and New Testaments.” 

–G. Campbell Morgan

The Lord gave Jeremiah the prophet this message concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians.

Babylon is mentioned 164 times in Jeremiah, more than in the rest of God’s Word combined.

–William MacDonald

The prophecy against Babylon is the climax of the book. The previous prophecies have served Jeremiah’s purpose of showing that Babylon would prevail over “all the nations” (27:7) for a period. Babylon has appeared up to this point as the instrument of God’s wrath. Finally, however (as in 25:17-26), “the word of the Lord” is uttered against Babylon itself, to show that its own time of judgment must come.   (The Reformation Bible)

² This is what the Lord says:

“Tell the whole world,
    and keep nothing back.
Raise a signal flag
    to tell everyone that Babylon will fall!
Her images and idols will be shattered.
    Her gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced.

Marduk was the chief deity of the Babylonian Empire during the period of Jewish exile in Babylon (sixth-fifth centuries B.C.E.). It was Marduk whom Cyrus the Great of Persia credited with the inspiration to allow the Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple of Yahweh.  Marduk’s association with the solar system’s largest planet led indirectly to its being named Jupiter, after the Roman god who occupied Marduk’s place in the pantheon. — wikipedia

³ For a nation will attack her from the north
    and bring such destruction that no one will live there again.
Everything will be gone;
    both people and animals will flee.

Hope for Israel and Judah

⁴ “In those coming days,”
    says the Lord,
“the people of Israel will return home
    together with the people of Judah.
They will come weeping
    and seeking the Lord their God.

THE DAY IS COMING . . . when people ask for Zion because they are seeking the Lord.

⁵ They will ask the way to Jerusalem
    and will start back home again.
They will bind themselves to the Lord
    with an eternal covenant that will never be forgotten.

They would come back to God on His terms, the terms of His covenant. These are promises associated with the new covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34).

This reminds the believer that our relationship with God is based on something with great foundation – on perpetual covenant. Hebrews 8:7-13 is a powerful description of this great covenant. God’s goodness and care is given to us on the basis of covenant.

–David Guzik

“I rejoice in those old Scotch books about the covenant: covenant truth was so inwrought into the Scotch heart that Scottish peasants as well as divines talked about it perpetually. You remember the good old cottager’s grace over her porridge. I cannot repeat it in pure Doric, but it ran like this:- ‘Lord, I thank thee for the porridge, I thank thee for an appetite for the porridge, but I thank thee most of all that I have a covenant right to the porridge.’ Only think of that, a covenant right to the porridge.”

–Charles Haddon Spurgeon

⁶ “My people have been lost sheep.
    Their shepherds have led them astray
    and turned them loose in the mountains.
They have lost their way
    and can’t remember how to get back to the sheepfold.
⁷ All who found them devoured them.
    Their enemies said,
‘We did nothing wrong in attacking them,
    for they sinned against the Lord,
their true place of rest,
    and the hope of their ancestors.’

⁸ “But now, flee from Babylon!
    Leave the land of the Babylonians.
Like male goats at the head of the flock,
    lead my people home again.
⁹ For I am raising up an army
    of great nations from the north.
They will join forces to attack Babylon,
    and she will be captured.

“The army of Cyrus was composed of Medes, Persians, Armenians, Caducians, Sacae, &c. Though all these did not come from the north; yet they were arranged under the Medes, who did come from the north, in reference to Babylon.”

–Adam Clarke

The enemies’ arrows will go straight to the mark;
    they will not miss!
¹⁰ Babylonia will be looted
    until the attackers are glutted with loot.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!

Babylon’s Sure Fall

¹¹ “You rejoice and are glad,
    you who plundered my chosen people.
You frisk about like a calf in a meadow
    and neigh like a stallion.
¹² But your homeland will be overwhelmed
    with shame and disgrace.
You will become the least of nations—
    a wilderness, a dry and desolate land.
¹³ Because of the Lord’s anger,
    Babylon will become a deserted wasteland.
All who pass by will be horrified
    and will gasp at the destruction they see there.

THE DAY IS COMING . . . when evil will be exposed for what it is.

¹⁴ “Yes, prepare to attack Babylon,
    all you surrounding nations.
Let your archers shoot at her; spare no arrows.
    For she has sinned against the Lord.
¹⁵ Shout war cries against her from every side.
    Look! She surrenders!
    Her walls have fallen.

“It has troubled some scholars that chapters 50-51 predict the violent destruction of Babylon, whereas its defeat by Cyrus in 539 b.c. took place without a battle and with no damage to the city. But with other predictive prophecies, if a fulfillment does not occur in one period, it is to be sought for in another and future one.”

–Charles L. Feinberg

In truth, this interpretive challenge is a strong testimony to the authenticity of Jeremiah’s prophecy. “Those critical scholars who reject the possibility of such a foretelling of the future, and who would put these chapters after Babylonia’s fall in 539 b.c., face an insurmountable problem. If these words were written after the event, they would surely correspond more accurately with the events themselves.”

–Arthur E. Cundall

It is the Lord’s vengeance,
    so take vengeance on her.
    Do to her as she has done to others!

THE DAY IS COMING . . . when God will deal with all injustice.

¹⁶ Take from Babylon all those who plant crops;
    send all the harvesters away.
Because of the sword of the enemy,
    everyone will run away and rush back to their own lands.

Hope for God’s People

¹⁷ “The Israelites are like sheep
    that have been scattered by lions.

Earlier in this prophecy Jeremiah spoke of Israel as lost sheep (verse 6). Now he sees them as sheep scattered by the mighty lions of Assyria and Babylon.

First the king of Assyria ate them up.
    Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon cracked their bones.”
¹⁸ Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
    the God of Israel, says:
“Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land,
    just as I punished the king of Assyria.

Ninevah, the proud Assyrian capital, fell in 612 B.C., and Assyria herself was conquered by a coalition of Medes and Babylonians in 609.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

¹⁹ And I will bring Israel home again to its own land,
    to feed in the fields of Carmel and Bashan,
and to be satisfied once more
    in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.

These are the most fertile parts of Israel, known for their lush pasturelands.   (The Reformation Bible)

²⁰ In those days,” says the Lord,
    “no sin will be found in Israel or in Judah,
    for I will forgive the remnant I preserve.

THE DAY IS COMING . . . when God’s people will be guiltless and sinless.

_________________________

Music:

The false gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced. But Jesus, the Lamb of God, is worthy of all our praise forever and ever!  HERE  is Bob Fitts and “You Are My All in All.”

_________________________

New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

lion.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lion#/media/File:Lion_waiting_in_Namibia.jpg

Marduk and pet.    http://nlife.ca/sermons/OTbooks/Isaiah/Isaiah46/Marduk_and_pet.jpg

a covenant with God.    https://radio.keysforkids.org/Whats-Up/What-in-the-World-is-a-Covenant-

fall of Babylon.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2017/12/jer50-fall-of-babylon.jpg

Good Shepherd.   https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/331596/_Daily_Images/2017/04-10-quote.jpg

3638.) Jeremiah 49:23-39

Heavy fighting on the outskirts of Damascus, 2016.

Jeremiah 49:23-39   (NLT)

A Message about Damascus

²³ This message was given concerning Damascus. This is what the Lord says:

Damascus is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and is a major cultural center of the Levant and the Arab world. The last several years, with the Syrian war, the ongoing economic crisis, the devastating earthquakes, etc., have not been kind to Damascus.

Really, one could imagine this is a current news report from Damascus:

“The towns of Hamath and Arpad are struck with fear,
    for they have heard the news of their destruction.
Their hearts are troubled
    like a wild sea in a raging storm.
²⁴ Damascus has become feeble,
    and all her people turn to flee.
Fear, anguish, and pain have gripped her
    as they grip a woman in labor.
²⁵ That famous city, a city of joy,
    will be forsaken!
²⁶ Her young men will fall in the streets and die.
    Her soldiers will all be killed,”
    says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
²⁷ “And I will set fire to the walls of Damascus
    that will burn up the palaces of Ben-hadad.”

A Message about Kedar and Hazor

²⁸ This message was given concerning Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which were attacked by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.

Kedar, a region in northern Arabia, was known for its flocks, tents and tent curtains, which were woven by hand from black goat hair.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

This is what the Lord says:

“Advance against Kedar!
    Destroy the warriors from the East!
²⁹ Their flocks and tents will be captured,
    and their household goods and camels will be taken away.
Everywhere shouts of panic will be heard:
    ‘We are terrorized at every turn!’
³⁰ Run for your lives,” says the Lord.
    “Hide yourselves in deep caves, you people of Hazor,
for King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has plotted against you
    and is preparing to destroy you.

³¹ “Go up and attack that complacent nation,”
    says the Lord.
“Its people live alone in the desert
    without walls or gates.
³² Their camels and other livestock will all be yours.
    I will scatter to the winds these people
    who live in remote places.
I will bring calamity upon them
    from every direction,” says the Lord.
³³ “Hazor will be inhabited by jackals,
    and it will be desolate forever.
No one will live there;
    no one will inhabit it.”

While Kedar and Hazor may no longer exist, many places like them, with nomadic Arab herders, still dot the desert regions of the Middle East and northern Africa.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

A Message about Elam

³⁴ This message concerning Elam came to the prophet Jeremiah from the Lord at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah.

Elam was located in the southern part of modern Iran. The Elamites, perpetual enemies of both Assyria and Babylon, became part of the Persian army that conquered Babylon under Cyrus in 539 B.C. (The Archaeological Study Bible)

³⁵ This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:

“I will destroy the archers of Elam—
    the best of their forces.

The Elamites were known as skilled archers.

³⁶ I will bring enemies from all directions,
    and I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds.
    They will be exiled to countries around the world.
³⁷ I myself will go with Elam’s enemies to shatter it.
    In my fierce anger, I will bring great disaster
    upon the people of Elam,” says the Lord.
“Their enemies will chase them with the sword
    until I have destroyed them completely.
³⁸ I will set my throne in Elam,” says the Lord,
    “and I will destroy its king and officials.

God will set His throne in Elam in the sense that He will rule there in judgment.

–William MacDonald

Philip Ryken has a good summary of this whole chapter and what it teaches us about the judgment of God: “Wealth did not save the Ammonites. They were not able to buy their way out of judgment. Wisdom did not save the Edomites, nor did their military might. Fame did not save the Arameans because God is no respecter of persons. Independence did not save the Bedouin; God found them in the wilderness and destroyed them just the same. Weapons did not save the Elamites.”

³⁹ But I will restore the fortunes of Elam
    in days to come.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!”

John Wesley has an interesting perspective here:  “We had the like promise as to Moab, chap. xlviii, 47, and as to Ammon, ver. xlix, 6, the same latter days either signify after many days, or in the time of the Messiah. In the former sense it may refer to Cyrus, who conquered Persia. In the latter sense it refers to the spiritual liberty which some of these poor Heathens were brought into by the gospel. We read Acts ii, 9, that some of the Elamites were at Jerusalem at Pentecost, and were some of those converted to Christ.”

_________________________

Music:

When the world seems to be such a dangerous place, then and now, we do well to remember that “God Is in Control.”  HERE  is Twila Paris with a timeless message.

_________________________

New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

fighting in Damascus.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2017/12/jer49-syria-fighting.jpg

modern-day black goat hair Bedouin tent.   http://www.jordanbeauty.com/BedouinTent.htm

Elamite archers.    http://theminiaturespage.com/news/pics/2012/apr/716807175a.jpg

3637.) Jeremiah 49:1-22

Years ago I visited my Uncle Curt and Aunt Harriet when he was based in Amman, Jordan, for Boeing Aircraft. I asked my aunt what her most lasting memory of Amman would be. She answered, “Beige.”

Jeremiah 49:1-22   (NLT)

A Message about Ammon

This message was given concerning the Ammonites. This is what the Lord says:

“Are there no descendants of Israel
    to inherit the land of Gad?
Why are you, who worship Molech,
    living in its towns?
² In the days to come,” says the Lord,
    “I will sound the battle cry against your city of Rabbah.
It will become a desolate heap of ruins,
    and the neighboring towns will be burned.
Then Israel will take back the land
    you took from her,” says the Lord.

Citadel in Amman, Jordan, with the ruins of the hand of Hercules

Ammon was located north of Moab and east of the Jordan River. The chief god of the Ammonites was Molech, the god to whom child sacrifices were tragically offered in Judah (see Leviticus 20:2-5; 2 Kings 23:10). Rabbah was the capital of Ammon. Its remains form part of the impressive citadel at the heart of modern Amman, Jordan.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

³ “Cry out, O Heshbon,
    for the town of Ai is destroyed.
Weep, O people of Rabbah!
    Put on your clothes of mourning.
Weep and wail, hiding in the hedges,
    for your god Molech, with his priests and officials,
    will be hauled off to distant lands.
⁴ You are proud of your fertile valleys,
    but they will soon be ruined.
You trusted in your wealth,
    you rebellious daughter,
    and thought no one could ever harm you.

⁵ But look! I will bring terror upon you,”
    says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
“Your neighbors will chase you from your land,
    and no one will help your exiles as they flee.
⁶ But I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites
    in days to come.
    I, the Lord, have spoken.”

Messages about Edom

⁷ This message was given concerning Edom. This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says:

“Is there no wisdom in Teman?
    Is no one left to give wise counsel?
⁸ Turn and flee!
    Hide in deep caves, you people of Dedan!
For when I bring disaster on Edom,
    I will punish you, too!
⁹ Those who harvest grapes
    always leave a few for the poor.
If thieves came at night,
    they would not take everything.
¹⁰ But I will strip bare the land of Edom,
    and there will be no place left to hide.
Its children, its brothers, and its neighbors
    will all be destroyed,
    and Edom itself will be no more.
¹¹ But I will protect the orphans who remain among you.
    Your widows, too, can depend on me for help.”

¹² And this is what the Lord says: “If the innocent must suffer, how much more must you! You will not go unpunished! You must drink this cup of judgment! ¹³ For I have sworn by my own name,” says the Lord, “that Bozrah will become an object of horror and a heap of ruins; it will be mocked and cursed. All its towns and villages will be desolate forever.”

¹⁴ I have heard a message from the Lord
    that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say,
“Form a coalition against Edom,
    and prepare for battle!”

¹⁵ The Lord says to Edom,
“I will cut you down to size among the nations.
    You will be despised by all.
¹⁶ You have been deceived
    by the fear you inspire in others
    and by your own pride.
You live in a rock fortress
    and control the mountain heights.
But even if you make your nest among the peaks with the eagles,
    I will bring you crashing down,”
    says the Lord.

¹⁷ “Edom will be an object of horror.
    All who pass by will be appalled
    and will gasp at the destruction they see there.
¹⁸ It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah
    and their neighboring towns,” says the Lord.
“No one will live there;
    no one will inhabit it.
¹⁹ I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan,
    leaping on the sheep in the pasture.
I will chase Edom from its land,
    and I will appoint the leader of my choice.
For who is like me, and who can challenge me?
    What ruler can oppose my will?”

Psalm 2:1-6   (ESV)

Why do the nations rage
    and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
    and the rulers take counsel together,
    against the Lord and against his Anointed, saying,
“Let us burst their bonds apart
    and cast away their cords from us.”

He who sits in the heavens laughs;
    the Lord holds them in derision.
Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
    and terrify them in his fury, saying,
“As for me, I have set my King
    on Zion, my holy hill.”

²⁰ Listen to the Lord’s plans against Edom
    and the people of Teman.
Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep,
    and their homes will be destroyed.
²¹ The earth will shake with the noise of Edom’s fall,
    and its cry of despair will be heard all the way to the Red Sea.
²² Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle,
    spreading his wings over Bozrah.
Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish
    like a woman in labor.

_________________________

Music:

Ammon and Edom learned it. Do we live as if we believe it?  HERE  is Chris Tomlin and “Our God Is Greater.”

_________________________

New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Amman, Jordan.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/j49-amman_jordan.jpg

Citadel in Amman.   http://www.travelojordan.com/images/destination/1358423648_1!!-!!4.JPG

I dare not trust the sweetest frame.    http://sd.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/i/i-dare-not-trust-the-sweetest-frame-but-wholly-trust-in-jesus-name.png

map showing Ammon and Edom.    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/Kingdoms_of_the_Levant_Map_830.png

James 1:27.   https://wiirocku.tumblr.com/post/166718054688/james-127-niv-religion-that-god-our-father

Pride goeth before destruction.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/15852-pride-prov1618.jpeg

3636.) Jeremiah 48

God of the nations, who by grace made Ruth, a Moabite, an ancestor of a great dynasty, to which Jesus our Savior was heir; may we cultivate loyalty and commitment beyond the bounds of law or duty. And may we recognize that all who love and serve you, regardless of their origin or culture, are acceptable to you. In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

Jeremiah 48   (NLT)

A Message about Moab

In the series of judgments of nations surrounding Judah, Jeremiah now turned his attention to Israel’s neighbor to the east, on the other side of the Jordan. The ancestor of Moab came from the incestuous pairing of Lot and his daughter (read about it HERE in Genesis 19).

Moab was something of a cousin to Israel. They feared Israel as they came from Egypt towards Canaan (Numbers 22:3-4) and Balak king of Moab hired Balaam to curse Israel (Numbers 22:5-8). When Israel came into Canaan sometimes Moab attacked and ruled over them (Judges 3:12-14). 

Later Ruth the Moabite was the great-grandmother of King David, and David sent his parents to Moab for their protection when Saul hunted him (1 Samuel 22:3-4). When he was king David fought against and defeated Moab (2 Samuel 8:2) and they became a vassal kingdom to Israel, sometimes rebelling (2 Kings 1:1, 2 Kings 3:4-5). 

–David Guzik

“There was little love lost between the two nations, a fact which is attested by foreign judgments directed against Moab by the prophets Isaiah (15-16), Amos (2:1-3), Zephaniah (2:9), Jeremiah, and Ezekiel (25:8-11).”

–J. A. Thompson

This message was given concerning Moab. This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says:

“What sorrow awaits the city of Nebo;
    it will soon lie in ruins.
The city of Kiriathaim will be humiliated and captured;
    the fortress will be humiliated and broken down.
² No one will ever brag about Moab again,
    for in Heshbon there is a plot to destroy her.
‘Come,’ they say, ‘we will cut her off from being a nation.’
    The town of Madmen, too, will be silenced;
    the sword will follow you there.
³ Listen to the cries from Horonaim,
    cries of devastation and great destruction.
⁴ All Moab is destroyed.
    Her little ones will cry out.
⁵ Her refugees weep bitterly,
    climbing the slope to Luhith.
They cry out in terror,
    descending the slope to Horonaim.
⁶ Flee for your lives!
    Hide in the wilderness!
⁷ Because you have trusted in your wealth and skill,
    you will be taken captive.

Your god Chemosh, with his priests and officials,
    will be hauled off to distant lands!

Chemosh was the national god of Moab (see 1 Kings 11:7, 33). Images of pagan deities were often carried about from place to place (see Jeremiah 43:12).  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

2 Kings 3:27 tells us that the sacrificing of children to Chemosh was an important part of the cultic worship.

⁸ “All the towns will be destroyed,
    and no one will escape—
either on the plateaus or in the valleys,
    for the Lord has spoken.
⁹ Oh, that Moab had wings
    so she could fly away,
for her towns will be left empty,
    with no one living in them.
¹⁰ Cursed are those who refuse to do the Lord’s work,
    who hold back their swords from shedding blood!

¹¹ “From his earliest history, Moab has lived in peace,
    never going into exile.

“Geographically, Moab was more isolated than Israel and Judah, which were on the main trade-routs and were also surrounded by other kingdoms. Moab’s isolation enabled her to escape many of the international upheavals which weakened her neighbours, and she was often able to strengthen herself at their expense.” 

–Arthur E. Cundall

“For defense, Moab had towering cliffs, and for wealth, her enormous flocks of sheep, riches that were self-renewing. But the shelter of these things had bred more complacency than character.”

–Derek Kidner

He is like wine that has been allowed to settle.
    He has not been poured from flask to flask,
    and he is now fragrant and smooth.
¹² But the time is coming soon,” says the Lord,
    “when I will send men to pour him from his jar.
They will pour him out,
    then shatter the jar!

The wine left to age represents Moab’s complacency. Their ease and security will vanish as quickly as a bottle empties when overturned.  (The Reformation Bible)

Wine was an apt figure for Moab, since this nation was noted for her vineyards. The best wine was aged while being “left on its dregs,” a reference to thickening and congealing at the bottom of a container. The implication is that the people were complacent, indifferent and unmoved by prophetic warnings—like thick, syrupy wine.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

¹³ At last Moab will be ashamed of his idol Chemosh,
    as the people of Israel were ashamed of their gold calf at Bethel.

¹⁴ “You used to boast, ‘We are heroes,
    mighty men of war.’
¹⁵ But now Moab and his towns will be destroyed.
    His most promising youth are doomed to slaughter,”
    says the King, whose name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
¹⁶ “Destruction is coming fast for Moab;
    calamity threatens ominously.
¹⁷ You friends of Moab,
    weep for him and cry!
See how the strong scepter is broken,
    how the beautiful staff is shattered!

¹⁸ “Come down from your glory
    and sit in the dust, you people of Dibon,
for those who destroy Moab will shatter Dibon, too.
    They will tear down all your towers.

Dibon was a city east of the Dead Sea and about 4 miles north of the Arnon River. It was an important Moabite town. Dibon has been identified as modern Dhiban, Jordan, where the famous Moabite Stone of King Mesha was discovered in 1868. In its inscription, both Yahweh, the God of Israel, and Chemosh are mentioned.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

You can see the Moabite Stone for yourself at the Louvre in Paris!

¹⁹ You people of Aroer,
    stand beside the road and watch.
Shout to those who flee from Moab,
    ‘What has happened there?’

²⁰ “And the reply comes back,
‘Moab lies in ruins, disgraced;
    weep and wail!
Tell it by the banks of the Arnon River:
    Moab has been destroyed!’

The Arnon, Moab’s most important river, served as the border between Moab and the region of the Amorites. It flows west into the midpoint of the Dead Sea.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

²¹ Judgment has been poured out on the towns of the plateau—
    on Holon and Jahaz and Mephaath,
²² on Dibon and Nebo and Beth-diblathaim,
²³     on Kiriathaim and Beth-gamul and Beth-meon,
²⁴ on Kerioth and Bozrah—
    all the towns of Moab, far and near.

²⁵ “The strength of Moab has ended.
    His arm has been broken,” says the Lord.
²⁶ “Let him stagger and fall like a drunkard,
    for he has rebelled against the Lord.
Moab will wallow in his own vomit,
    ridiculed by all.
²⁷ Did you not ridicule the people of Israel?
    Were they caught in the company of thieves
    that you should despise them as you do?

²⁸ “You people of Moab,
    flee from your towns and live in the caves.
Hide like doves that nest
    in the clefts of the rocks.

Isaiah 2:10    (NIV) 

Go into the rocks, hide in the ground
    from the fearful presence of the Lord
    and the splendor of his majesty!

²⁹ We have all heard of the pride of Moab,
    for his pride is very great.
We know of his lofty pride,
    his arrogance, and his haughty heart.

³⁰ I know about his insolence,”
    says the Lord,
“but his boasts are empty—
    as empty as his deeds.
³¹ So now I wail for Moab;
    yes, I will mourn for Moab.
    My heart is broken for the men of Kir-hareseth.

³² “You people of Sibmah, rich in vineyards,
    I will weep for you even more than I did for Jazer.
Your spreading vines once reached as far as the Dead Sea,
    but the destroyer has stripped you bare!
    He has harvested your grapes and summer fruits.
³³ Joy and gladness are gone from fruitful Moab.
    The presses yield no wine.
No one treads the grapes with shouts of joy.
    There is shouting, yes, but not of joy.

Joel 1:12   (NIV)

 The vine is dried up
    and the fig tree is withered;
the pomegranate, the palm and the apple tree—
    all the trees of the field—are dried up.
Surely the people’s joy
    is withered away.

³⁴ “Instead, their awful cries of terror can be heard from Heshbon clear across to Elealeh and Jahaz; from Zoar all the way to Horonaim and Eglath-shelishiyah. Even the waters of Nimrim are dried up now.

³⁵ “I will put an end to Moab,” says the Lord, “for the people offer sacrifices at the pagan shrines and burn incense to their false gods. ³⁶ My heart moans like a flute for Moab and Kir-hareseth, for all their wealth has disappeared. ³⁷ The people shave their heads and beards in mourning. They slash their hands and put on clothes made of burlap. ³⁸ There is crying and sorrow in every Moabite home and on every street. For I have smashed Moab like an old, unwanted jar. ³⁹ How it is shattered! Hear the wailing! See the shame of Moab! It has become an object of ridicule, an example of ruin to all its neighbors.”

⁴⁰ This is what the Lord says:

“Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle,
    spreading his wings over Moab.
⁴¹ Its cities will fall,
    and its strongholds will be seized.
Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish
    like a woman in labor.
⁴² Moab will no longer be a nation,
    for it has boasted against the Lord.

“The end of Moab as an independent nation seems to have come in 582 b.c. when Nebuchadnezzar, no doubt because of a rebellion, marched against Moab and Ammon. …Not long after this the small states in Transjordan were overwhelmed by an Arab invasion and ceased to exist as a nation.”

–J. A. Thompson

⁴³ “Terror and traps and snares will be your lot,
    O Moab,” says the Lord.
⁴⁴ “Those who flee in terror will fall into a trap,
    and those who escape the trap will step into a snare.
I will see to it that you do not get away,
    for the time of your judgment has come,”
    says the Lord.

Isaiah 24:18    (NIV)

Whoever flees at the sound of terror
    will fall into a pit;
whoever climbs out of the pit
    will be caught in a snare.

The floodgates of the heavens are opened,
    the foundations of the earth shake.

⁴⁵ “The people flee as far as Heshbon
    but are unable to go on.
For a fire comes from Heshbon,
    King Sihon’s ancient home,
to devour the entire land
    with all its rebellious people.

⁴⁶ “O Moab, they weep for you!
    The people of the god Chemosh are destroyed!
Your sons and your daughters
    have been taken away as captives.
⁴⁷ But I will restore the fortunes of Moab
    in days to come.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!”

This is the end of Jeremiah’s prophecy concerning Moab.

_________________________

Music:

We worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Jesus. His is the power of life and death, of creation and destruction. And his love endures forever. Just ask the Moabite woman Ruth!   HERE  is Kristian Stanfill and “Forever Reign.”

_________________________

New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Ruth.    https://spectrummagazine.org/sites/default/files/imagecache/large_article_image/files/ruth%20wheat.jpg

I dare not trust the sweetest frame.    http://sd.keepcalm-o-matic.co.uk/i/i-dare-not-trust-the-sweetest-frame-but-wholly-trust-in-jesus-name.png

wine.    http://ak5.picdn.net/shutterstock/videos/4158835/thumb/10.jpg

Moabite Stone.    http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/43/Mesha_Stele_Louvre.JPG

Arnon River.    http://www.bibleistrue.com/qna/arnon2.jpg

Proverbs 16:18.  https://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Inspirational-Images/large/Proverbs_16-18.jpg

abandoned vineyard.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/j48-vineyard.jpg

No escape.   https://occ-0-2433-444.1.nflxso.net/art/42ec6/78807aea09d448976f8e79cdb46eb1ee8b442ec6.png

3635.) Psalm 119:97-112

Psalm 119:97-112   (NIV)

מ Mem

“This is a pure song of praise. It contains no single petition, but is just one glad outpouring of the heart.” 

–G. Campbell Morgan

⁹⁷ Oh, how I love your law!
I meditate on it all day long.

If one wants to, they can increase their love for God’s word. You can’t make yourself love something or someone; but you can cultivate love towards someone or something.

– Give it your time; set it before you constantly.
– Give it your attention and care; look after the word of God (it is my meditation all the day).
– Give it a truly listening ear.
– Give it your honor and your obedience.
– Give it your appreciation; value it for all the good it has done for you and be thankful for all that good.
– Give it your dependence and trust; let it care for you.
– Give it your praise; speak highly of it before others.

–David Guzik

⁹⁸ Your commands are always with me
and make me wiser than my enemies.
⁹⁹ I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.

There is a story about the life of Harry Ironside, the pastor and author and Bible commentator. Ironside went to visit a man near death, suffering from tuberculosis. The man was almost dead and could barely speak. As Ironside spoke to him the sick man asked, “Young man, are you trying to preach Christ, are you not?” Ironside said that he was, and the man replied, “Well, sit down a little, and let us talk together about the Word of God.” Then the man opened his Bible and spoke with Ironside until his strength was gone; he shared insights from the Bible that Ironside had not appreciated or even seen before. 

Ironside was stunned and asked the man, “Where did you get these things? Can you tell me where I can find a book that will open them up to me? Did you get them in seminary or college?” 

The old man replied, “My dear young man, I learned these things on my knees on the mud floor of a little sod cottage in the north of Ireland. There with my open Bible before me, I used to kneel for hours at a time and ask the Spirit of God to reveal Christ to my soul and to open the Word to my heart. He taught me more on my knees on that mud floor than I ever could have learned in all the seminaries or colleges in the world.”

Ironside became a Bible teacher, preacher, theologian, pastor, and author of more than 100 books, booklets and pamphlets. He pastored Moody Church in Chicago from 1929 to 1948. And in 1930, Wheaton College presented Ironside, who quit school after eighth grade, with an honorary Doctorate of Letters degree.

¹⁰⁰ I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts.
¹⁰¹ I have kept my feet from every evil path
so that I might obey your word.
¹⁰² I have not departed from your laws,
for you yourself have taught me.

¹⁰³ How sweet are your words to my taste,
sweeter than honey to my mouth!

¹⁰⁴ I gain understanding from your precepts;
therefore I hate every wrong path.

נ Nun

¹⁰⁵ Your word is a lamp for my feet,
a light on my path.

How are we as Christians to walk?

Ephesians 4:1-3  (NASB)

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Isaiah 57:1-2  (NASB)

The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart;
And devout men are taken away, while no one understands.
For the righteous man is taken away from evil,
He enters into peace;
They rest in their beds,
Each one who walked in his upright way.

1 John 1:7   (NASB)

If we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light,
we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Micah 6:8   (NASB)

He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?

¹⁰⁶ I have taken an oath and confirmed it,
that I will follow your righteous laws.
¹⁰⁷ I have suffered much;
preserve my life, Lord, according to your word.
¹⁰⁸ Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth,
and teach me your laws.
¹⁰⁹ Though I constantly take my life in my hands,
I will not forget your law.
¹¹⁰ The wicked have set a snare for me,
but I have not strayed from your precepts.
¹¹¹ Your statutes are my heritage forever;
they are the joy of my heart.

“What is the psalmist’s spiritual heritage, that is, what is he looking toward and working for? Some heavenly reward? A word of praise from God? Surprisingly, he says that his heritage is what he has been speaking about all along: God’s Word itself.”

–James Montgomery Boice

¹¹² My heart is set on keeping your decrees
to the very end.

_________________________

Music:

Can you hear it even before the music starts? Amy Grant and “Thy Word.” Click  HERE  to listen!

_________________________

Images courtesy of:

Psalm 119:105.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/lamptomyfeet.jpg

Harry Ironside.   http://www.harryironside.com/ironside.jpg

honey.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/p119-honey.jpg?w=450&h=315

Psalm 119:105 with oil lamp.   http://www.emblibrary.com/el/Product_images/E3592.jpg

Matthew 28:20.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2017/12/887ca-1467374092627.jpg

3634.) Jeremiah 47

When I think of Philistia, I think of the giant Philistine Goliath, who fell to the boy David and a stone from a slingshot.

Jeremiah 47   (NLT)

A Message about Philistia

Jeremiah 46, the previous chapter, began the section of Jeremiah’s prophecies against the nations surrounding Judah. Jeremiah 47, this chapter, is the record of his prophecy against the Philistines, the ancient enemies and rivals of Israel.

This is the Lord’s message to the prophet Jeremiah concerning the Philistines of Gaza, before it was captured by the Egyptian army. ² This is what the Lord says:

“A flood is coming from the north
    to overflow the land.

The Babylonians would come from the north to overwhelm the Philistines as flood waters overwhelm a land.

It will destroy the land and everything in it—
    cities and people alike.
People will scream in terror,
    and everyone in the land will wail.

Jeremiah describes the vivid sounds of conquest. The people are wailing, the horses with stamping hooves, the sound of rushing chariots with rumbling wheels. These were the sounds of judgment upon the Philistines.

³ Hear the clatter of stallions’ hooves
    and the rumble of wheels as the chariots rush by.
Terrified fathers run madly,
    without a backward glance at their helpless children.

⁴ “The time has come for the Philistines to be destroyed,
    along with their allies from Tyre and Sidon.
Yes, the Lord is destroying the remnant of the Philistines,
    those colonists from the island of Crete.
⁵ Gaza will be humiliated, its head shaved bald;
    Ashkelon will lie silent.
You remnant from the Mediterranean coast,
    how long will you lament and mourn?

The Anthedon, Gaza’s ancient port, dates back to the eighth century B.C., when Gaza was a major Philistine city. For thousands of years, trade and travel between Canaan and Egypt passed through this port and Gaza thrived. Today the Anthedon’s ruins stretch for several miles under the northern part of what is now Gaza’s beach refugee camp.

⁶ “Now, O sword of the Lord,
    when will you be at rest again?

“This is a most grand prosopopoeia [a figure of speech in which an abstract thing is represented as speaking] – a dialogue between the sword of the Lord and the prophet. Nothing can be imagined more sublime.”

–Adam Clarke

Go back into your sheath;
    rest and be still.

⁷ “But how can it be still
    when the Lord has sent it on a mission?
For the city of Ashkelon
    and the people living along the sea
    must be destroyed.”

The immediate fulfillment of this prophecy took place under Nebuchadnezzar in 604 B.C.  (The Archaeological Study Bible)

_________________________

Music:

Oh, for courage in the hard times! Like Peter, climbing out of the boat onto the waves of the sea. Like David, going forward towards the giant. Is there something facing you now that is just too daunting? Relationship issues? Children or grandchildren wandering away from the Lord? Financial woes? Jesus is with you to help you and Scripture is close at hand to encourage you.  HERE  is Casting Crowns and “The Voice of Truth.”

_________________________

New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Goliath.    http://kinooze.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/David-and-Goliath.jpg

Gaza ruins.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/j47-gaza-ruins.jpg

sword of the Lord.   https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2017/11/20d55-sword-of-the-lord-logo2blarger.jpg

3633.) Jeremiah 46

Prophecies against Egypt.

Jeremiah 46   (NLT)

Messages for the Nations

The following messages were given to Jeremiah the prophet from the Lord concerning foreign nations.

In chapters 46-51, Jeremiah delivers warnings of destruction and judgment—poetically and beautifully. He prophesies against nine nations:  Egypt, Philistia, Moab, Ammon, Edom, Damascus, Arabia (Kedar and Hazor), Elam, and Babylonia. The nations are listed geographically, i.e., from west to east. These prophecies were fulfilled after the fall of Jerusalem. Babylon will be destroyed and desolate, while Israel will be redeemed.

–William MacDonald (and other notes in red)

Jeremiah the prophet against the nations: It is an important reminder that though the Book of Jeremiah deals mostly with the judgment God would bring against Judah, God did not neglect or ignore the Gentile nations. He would also righteously judge them.

“God knows who he is. He is not a regional supervisor. He is not a tribal deity. He is the God of all nations. His sovereignty is not limited to a single culture, nation, or ethnic group.” (Ryken)

–David Guzik

Messages about Egypt

² This message concerning Egypt was given in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, the king of Judah, on the occasion of the battle of Carchemish when Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, and his army were defeated beside the Euphrates River by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.

In the summer of 605 BC, the Battle of Carchemish was fought by the Babylonian army of Nebuchadnezzar II and that of Pharaoh Necho II of Egypt and the remnants of the Assyrian army. The aim of Necho’s campaign was to contain the westward advance of the Babylonian Empire and cut off its trade route across the Euphrates. However, the Egyptians were defeated by the unexpected attack of the Babylonians and were eventually expelled from Syria.

“It was on his way there [Carchemish] that Pharaoh Neco had slain King Josiah of Judah in 609 when Josiah tried to turn him back.” (Kidner) Pharaoh kept his army in Carchemish four years, dominating the area and waiting for the inevitable confrontation with rising Babylon. When it came, the Egyptians were routed.

–David Guzik

Noted biblical scholar J. A. Thompson said of this following section, Jeremiah 46:3-12, “The poetry is among the most vivid in all the OT and is certainly unsurpassed in the book of Jeremiah.” 

³ “Prepare your shields,
    and advance into battle!

⁴ Harness the horses,
    and mount the stallions.
Take your positions.
    Put on your helmets.
Sharpen your spears,
    and prepare your armor.

On the Western Front during the First World War: Battle of Ypres, 1917 (The First World War Poetry Digital Archive)

Around 6 million horses served in World War One and a huge number of them died as a result.

In 1914 the RSPCA set up a fund for sick and wounded war horses to help alleviate suffering on the front line. Some 725,000 horses were treated in France alone. 

Horses were used to perform essential tasks such as pulling ambulances and field guns, as well as carrying supplies and ammunition. The use of horses at the front was vital as they could cope with the deep mud far more effectively than vehicles.

⁵ But what do I see?
    The Egyptian army flees in terror.
The bravest of its fighting men run
    without a backward glance.
They are terrorized at every turn,”
    says the Lord.

Jeremiah describes the Egyptian army in full flight. Although they were numerous and formidable, the battle seems to be over as soon as it begins. In his prophetic vision Jeremiah now sees (verses 6-8) the captains of the Babylonian army calling out orders, commanding all their soldiers to pursue and utterly defeat the retreating Egyptians.

⁶ “The swiftest runners cannot flee;
    the mightiest warriors cannot escape.
By the Euphrates River to the north,
    they stumble and fall.

⁷ “Who is this, rising like the Nile at floodtime,
    overflowing all the land?
⁸ It is the Egyptian army,
    overflowing all the land,
boasting that it will cover the earth like a flood,
    destroying cities and their people.

⁹  “Charge, you horses and chariots;
    attack, you mighty warriors of Egypt!
Come, all you allies from Ethiopia, Libya, and Lydia
    who are skilled with the shield and bow!
¹⁰ For this is the day of the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
    a day of vengeance on his enemies.
The sword will devour until it is satisfied,
    yes, until it is drunk with your blood!
The Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, will receive a sacrifice today
    in the north country beside the Euphrates River.

¹¹ “Go up to Gilead to get medicine,
    O virgin daughter of Egypt!
But your many treatments
    will bring you no healing.
¹² The nations have heard of your shame.
    The earth is filled with your cries of despair.
Your mightiest warriors will run into each other
    and fall down together.”

An army is seen preparing for battle, then making a hasty retreat. The army is Egypt’s, but it is composed mainly of mercenaries—Ethiopians, Libyans, and Lydians. 

Nebuchadnezzar defeated Pharaoh Neco at the battle of Carchemish on the upper Euphrates River in 605 B.C. and brought to a close Egypt’s political and military influence over Palestine and Syria. Egypt is no longer a great power; Babylon is ascending.

¹³ Then the Lord gave the prophet Jeremiah this message about King Nebuchadnezzar’s plans to attack Egypt.

Next Egypt is warned to prepare for invasion and exile. When Nebuchadnezzar invades the land, the valiant mercenary soldiers will fall against one another, then decide to go back home. Pharaoh will be renamed “Empty Sound,’ for he is just so much noise. Babylon’s commanding presence will spell captivity for the Egyptians.

¹⁴ “Shout it out in Egypt!
    Publish it in the cities of Migdol, Memphis, and Tahpanhes!
Mobilize for battle,
    for the sword will devour everyone around you.
¹⁵ Why have your warriors fallen?
    They cannot stand, for the Lord has knocked them down.
¹⁶ They stumble and fall over each other
    and say among themselves,
‘Come, let’s go back to our people,
    to the land of our birth.
    Let’s get away from the sword of the enemy!’
¹⁷ There they will say,
    ‘Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, is a loudmouth
    who missed his opportunity!’

¹⁸ “As surely as I live,” says the King,
    whose name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
“one is coming against Egypt
    who is as tall as Mount Tabor,
    or as Mount Carmel by the sea!

Tabor and Carmel are two prominent mountains in Israel. From J. A. Thompson again:  “Both seemed to Jeremiah to depict Nebuchadnezzar, who towered over Egypt in his might like lofty mountains towering over a plain.” 

¹⁹ Pack up! Get ready to leave for exile,
    you citizens of Egypt!
The city of Memphis will be destroyed,
    without a single inhabitant.
²⁰ Egypt is as sleek as a beautiful young cow,
    but a horsefly from the north is on its way!
²¹ Egypt’s mercenaries have become like fattened calves.
    They, too, will turn and run,
for it is a day of great disaster for Egypt,
    a time of great punishment.
²² Egypt flees, silent as a serpent gliding away.
    The invading army marches in;
    they come against her with axes like woodsmen.
²³ They will cut down her people like trees,” says the Lord,
    “for they are more numerous than locusts.
²⁴ Egypt will be humiliated;
    she will be handed over to people from the north.”

²⁵ The Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “I will punish Amon, the god of Thebes, and all the other gods of Egypt.

The Lord will punish Amon (the sun god of ancient Thebes and the chief god of Egypt during much of its history), Pharaoh, and Egypt with their gods and their kings. But afterward there will be restoration for Egypt and for Israel, too.

I will punish its rulers and Pharaoh, too, and all who trust in him.

²⁶ I will hand them over to those who want them killed—to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his army. But afterward the land will recover from the ravages of war. I, the Lord, have spoken!

Now, a word of comfort to the people of God. “In the midst of wrath God remembers mercy. Though Judah shall be destroyed, Jerusalem taken, the temple burnt to the ground, and the people carried into captivity, yet the nation shall not be destroyed. A seed shall be preserved, out of which the nation shall revive.”

–Adam Clarke

²⁷ “But do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant;
    do not be dismayed, Israel.
For I will bring you home again from distant lands,
    and your children will return from their exile.
Israel will return to a life of peace and quiet,
    and no one will terrorize them.
²⁸ Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant,
    for I am with you,” says the Lord.
“I will completely destroy the nations to which I have exiled you,
    but I will not completely destroy you.
I will discipline you, but with justice;
    I cannot let you go unpunished.”

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Music:

HERE  is Hillsong Chapel and “Cornerstone.” The lyrics are partly words from the old hymn “My Hope Is Built on Nothing Less.”

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New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

pyramids.    http://cdn2.list25.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/www.digital.bg-2c3affdc20eabf13db93ea162ef0bcf1.jpg

map of the battle of Carchemish.   http://slideplayer.com/slide/4880664/16/images/14/Battle+of+Carchemish+(609+BC).jpg

horses at war.    http://img.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2007/11_01/horsedrawnDM0811_468x461.jpg

Amon.    http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2760/4369621962_53a48208e1.jpg

3632.) Jeremiah 45

Jeremiah 45   (NLT)

A Message for Baruch

Chronologically this chapter is out of order. Evidently time order was not important to the one who put this book together!

The prophet Jeremiah gave a message to Baruch son of Neriah in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, after Baruch had written down everything Jeremiah had dictated to him.

“Baruch happens to be the only man from the Old Testament who has been fingerprinted. In 1975 a group of archaeologists purchase some clay document markers from an Arab antiquities dealer. The archaeologists did not decipher the markers – which were the bookmarks of the ancient world – until 1986. When they did, they discovered that one of them bears the seal of Baruch son of Neriah. Since then, another document marker has been discovered that bears not only Baruch’s seal, but also a thumbprint, very probably the thumbprint of the scribe himself.”

–Philip Graham Ryken

He said, ² “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to you, Baruch: ³ You have said, ‘I am overwhelmed with trouble! Haven’t I had enough pain already? And now the Lord has added more! I am worn out from sighing and can find no rest.’

⁴ “Baruch, this is what the Lord says: ‘I will destroy this nation that I built. I will uproot what I planted. ⁵ Are you seeking great things for yourself? Don’t do it! I will bring great disaster upon all these people; but I will give you your life as a reward wherever you go. I, the Lord, have spoken!’”

God used this word to Baruch to speak to many throughout the centuries. Dr. J. Oswald Sanders coveted a certain job in a Christian organization, and he almost lobbied some influential friends for it. But walking through downtown Auckland, New Zealand, these words came to him with authority: “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not!” Consequently, he didn’t seek the position, but it later opened to him on its own in God’s timing.

When Charles Spurgeon was eighteen, he applied to Regent’s Park College. An interview was set and Spurgeon rose early and set out. But through a misunderstanding he missed his appointment and was not admitted. Bitterly disappointed, Charles walked through the countryside trying to calm down. Suddenly Jeremiah 45:5 came to mind: “Seekest thou great things for thyself? Seek them not!” Spurgeon never made it to college, but he went on to become the most effective preacher in England.

–David Guzik

This is a promise given to you for the difficult places in which you may find yourself—a promise of safety and life even in the midst of tremendous pressure. And it is a promise that adjusts itself to fit the times as they continue to grow more difficult, as we approach the end of this age. 

What does it mean when it says that you will “escape with your life”? It means your life will be snatched from the jaws of the Enemy, as David snatched the lamb from the lion. It does not mean you will be spared the heat of the battle and confrontation with your foes, but it means “a table before [you] in the presence of [your] enemies” (Psalm 23:5), a shelter from the storm, a fortress amid the foe, and a life preserved in the face of continual pressure. It means comfort and hope from God, such as Paul received when he and his friends “were under great pressure, far beyond [their] ability to endure, so that [they] despaired even of life” (2 Corinthians 1:8). And it means the Lord’s divine help, such as when Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7) remained, but the power of Christ came to rest upon him, and he learned that God’s “grace is sufficient” (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

May the Lord “wherever you go . . . let you escape with your life” and help you today to be victorious in your difficulties.

from Streams in the Desert, November 30

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Music:

HERE is a real treat —  Mahalia Jackson and “God Will Take of You.”  She is singing it directly to YOU!  You can believe it!

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New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Be great.    https://dwellingintheword.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/c3a03-be_great_in_all_things_christian_message_follow_his_will_tiffany_staples_motivation_matthew_jeremiah.jpg

verse 5.    https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d8/aa/78/d8aa78f921d75f980cb3aaf9a02ade81–april–do-you.jpg

3631.) Jeremiah 44

It’s not Queen of Heaven, but it’s close. Going west on I4 in Orlando, close to the attractions, you will find a beautiful Roman Catholic basilica named Mary, Queen of the Universe. It is my most favorite church name! 🙂

Jeremiah 44   (NLT)

Judgment for Idolatry

This is the message Jeremiah received concerning the Judeans living in northern Egypt in the cities of Migdol, Tahpanhes, and Memphis, and in southern Egypt as well: ² “This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: 

God began this word to these displaced and disobedient Jews by declaring two names. He remained the Lord of hosts, the God of powerful armies. He remained the God of Israel, even though at that time Israel did not even exist as its own kingdom. These things that did not appear to be were nevertheless real before God and in His plan.

–David Guzik

You saw the calamity I brought on Jerusalem and all the towns of Judah. They now lie deserted and in ruins. ³ They provoked my anger with all their wickedness. They burned incense and worshiped other gods—gods that neither they nor you nor any of your ancestors had ever even known.

⁴ “Again and again I sent my servants, the prophets, to plead with them, ‘Don’t do these horrible things that I hate so much.’

“‘Oh!’ says someone, ‘sin is a sweet thing.’ No, no; it is an abominable thing. ‘It is a delightful thing,’ says another. No, it is an abominable thing. ‘Oh, but it is a fashionable thing; you can see it in courts of kings, and princes, and the great men of the earth love it.’ Even though they do, it is an abominable thing. Though it should crawl up to a monarch’s throne, and spread its slime over crown jewels it would still be an abominable thing.”

–Charles Haddon Spurgeon

⁵ But my people would not listen or turn back from their wicked ways. They kept on burning incense to these gods. ⁶ And so my fury boiled over and fell like fire on the towns of Judah and into the streets of Jerusalem, and they are still a desolate ruin today.

The crucifix at the front of the sanctuary is stunning.

The cross is fashioned from hanging glass rods and the body is carved from blond wood.

⁷ “And now the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, asks you: Why are you destroying yourselves? For not one of you will survive—not a man, woman, or child among you who has come here from Judah, not even the babies in your arms. ⁸ Why provoke my anger by burning incense to the idols you have made here in Egypt? You will only destroy yourselves and make yourselves an object of cursing and mockery for all the nations of the earth. ⁹ Have you forgotten the sins of your ancestors, the sins of the kings and queens of Judah, and the sins you and your wives committed in Judah and Jerusalem? ¹⁰ To this very hour you have shown no remorse or reverence. No one has chosen to follow my word and the decrees I gave to you and your ancestors before you.

There is a sense of wonder in these words from God, as if God could not believe that His people would be so foolish to reject His word and rebel against His command with the devastation of recent judgment so near in their memory.

–David Guzik

¹¹ “Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: I am determined to destroy every one of you! ¹² I will take this remnant of Judah—those who were determined to come here and live in Egypt—and I will consume them. They will fall here in Egypt, killed by war and famine. All will die, from the least to the greatest. They will be an object of damnation, horror, cursing, and mockery. ¹³ I will punish them in Egypt just as I punished them in Jerusalem, by war, famine, and disease. ¹⁴ Of that remnant who fled to Egypt, hoping someday to return to Judah, there will be no survivors. Even though they long to return home, only a handful will do so.”

Jeremiah reminded his countrymen that all their calamity came as a result of idolatry; yet they were still worshiping false gods in Egypt.  As a result, they would be utterly destroyed; none would return to Judah except a few refugees.

–William MacDonald

¹⁵ Then all the women present and all the men who knew that their wives had burned incense to idols—a great crowd of all the Judeans living in northern Egypt and southern Egypt—answered Jeremiah, ¹⁶ “We will not listen to your messages from the Lord! ¹⁷ We will do whatever we want. We will burn incense and pour out liquid offerings to the Queen of Heaven (the Babylonian idol Ishtar) just as much as we like—just as we, and our ancestors, and our kings and officials have always done in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. For in those days we had plenty to eat, and we were well off and had no troubles! ¹⁸ But ever since we quit burning incense to the Queen of Heaven and stopped worshiping her with liquid offerings, we have been in great trouble and have been dying from war and famine.”

“At the instinctive level, the fallen mind is always ready to assume that God is the adversary, whom we (like these characters) may blame for our past and distrust for our future.”

–Derek Kidner

¹⁹ “Besides,” the women added, “do you suppose that we were burning incense and pouring out liquid offerings to the Queen of Heaven, and making cakes marked with her image, without our husbands knowing it and helping us? Of course not!”

But the people refused to listen to Jeremiah, claiming that they prospered more when they served the queen of heaven. The men were involved in this false worship as well as the women.

²⁰ Then Jeremiah said to all of them, men and women alike, who had given him that answer, ²¹ “Do you think the Lord did not know that you and your ancestors, your kings and officials, and all the people were burning incense to idols in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? ²² It was because the Lord could no longer bear all the disgusting things you were doing that he made your land an object of cursing—a desolate ruin without inhabitants—as it is today. ²³ All these terrible things happened to you because you have burned incense to idols and sinned against the Lord. You have refused to obey him and have not followed his instructions, his decrees, and his laws.”

²⁴ Then Jeremiah said to them all, including the women, “Listen to this message from the Lord, all you citizens of Judah who live in Egypt. ²⁵ This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘You and your wives have said, “We will keep our promises to burn incense and pour out liquid offerings to the Queen of Heaven,” and you have proved by your actions that you meant it. So go ahead and carry out your promises and vows to her!’

I have worshiped here several times, along with some 2000 others. The presiding priest welcomes visitors not by which state or which country they are from, but which continent!

²⁶ “But listen to this message from the Lord, all you Judeans now living in Egypt: ‘I have sworn by my great name,’ says the Lord, ‘that my name will no longer be spoken by any of the Judeans in the land of Egypt. None of you may invoke my name or use this oath: “As surely as the Sovereign Lord lives.”

David Guzik says:  “God solemnly declared that He rejected those who rejected Him and chose to go to Egypt, those who trusted idols more than Him. He would not allow them to speak His name.”

²⁷ For I will watch over you to bring you disaster and not good. Everyone from Judah who is now living in Egypt will suffer war and famine until all of you are dead. ²⁸ Only a small number will escape death and return to Judah from Egypt. Then all those who came to Egypt will find out whose words are true—mine or theirs!

²⁹ “‘And this is the proof I give you,’ says the Lord, ‘that all I have threatened will happen to you and that I will punish you here.’ ³⁰ This is what the Lord says: ‘I will turn Pharaoh Hophra, king of Egypt, over to his enemies who want to kill him, just as I turned King Zedekiah of Judah over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon.’”

This was probably Jeremiah’s last recorded prophecy. He ended as he started: faithful to God, trusting in God’s faithfulness. “He had seen his nation decline from a relatively strong independent state to the point of near extinction, and little fruit seemed to have been borne by his ministry. Yet, in these final words, his utter faith in an omnipotent God, and his perception of fundamental truths, are as clear as ever.”

–Arthur E. Cundall

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Music:

In keeping with the pictures, HERE  is Schubert’s “Ave Maria”  sung by Andrea Bocelli.

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New Living Translation (NLT)  Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright© 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Images courtesy of:

Mary, Queen of the Universe, view from I4.    http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/c7/99/20/front-view.jpg

church crucifix.    http://www.zimmcomm.biz/images/path/mary-shrine-path.jpg

crucifix close-up.   http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/03/8c/c2/17/crucifixo-de-cristal.jpg

church pews.    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_Mary,_Queen_of_the_Universe#/media/File:Maryqueenoftheuniverseshrine.JPG