Today’s passage: Jeremiah 50:1-46

Helpful thoughts:

• After seeing several nations receive word of judgment coming from the Lord, Babylon (The tool God used for judgment on those preceding nations) now has two full chapters committed to themselves.
• Babylon fell to the Medes and Persians in 539 B.C.
• God used Babylon to punish Israel, and Babylon would be judged for being a curse to Israel.  (Romans 9:14-24)
• As we read this chapter, we see many promises that are partially fulfilled in the return of Israel from Babylonian Exile…but these promises will be finally and fully accomplished still in the future.
  • Verse 20 is a good example of this.  The Remnant that God preserves will all be seen as without sin, having their righteousness imputed to them through Christ!

Questions to consider:

1. How do these prophecies and promises expand and refine our view of the providence, justice, eternality and holiness of God?
2. As powerful as Babylon surely would have been considered in their day, what were they compared to Almighty God?  What is the most powerful, most talented, most wealthy person, or corporation, or nation in the world compared to the Lord?  What will Jesus have to do to win the victory at the final battle (Revelation 19:11-16)?
3. How do all these truths infuse life and power into a passage like Proverbs 3:5-6?  How can you trust in the Lord today?

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 49:1-39

Helpful thoughts:

• Today’s first prophecy is given to the people of Ammon (Ammonites).  Like the Moabites, they are also descended from Lot (Genesis 19:38).
  • Milcom is another name for the false god Molech.  The Ammonites were living in land that God had promised to Israel, therefore Israel will eventually live in the land.
• The second prophecy of judgment is against the Edomites, the descendants of Esau (Genesis 36:1).
  • The Edomites were proud and felt unbeatable because of the mountainous area they lived in.  But they were defeated by the Babylonians and even ceased to exist as a political entity after the Roman conquest.
• Judgment number three: Damascus
  • Nebuchadnezzar conquered Damascus in 605 B.C.
• Judgment number four: Kedar and Hazor
  • These are Ishmaelite people who lived in the desert areas east of the Jordan.  They were conquered in 599/598 B.C.
• Judgment number five: Elam
  • Elam was east of Babylon and west of the Tigris river.  King Darius of the Persians would later rule from its capital, Susa (Nehemiah 1:1).  They were conquered by Babylon in 596 B.C. and then changed hands to the Persians in 539 B.C.

Questions to consider:

1. What does Acts 2:9 prove concerning God’s promise to the Elamites in verse 39?  What does the fulfillment of all these prophecies confirm to us about our God?  Which of His attributes are on display?
2. Compare and contrast what these different nations seem to be trusting in for their safety and well-being?  What is different about them…and yet, what is similar?
3. How can these varying trusts and hopes be contrasted with all the things that God is for us?  What does God commit to do for His children that frees us from relying on ourselves, weapons, terrain, false gods, etc.?

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 48:1-47

Helpful thoughts:

• Our attention is turned now to the Lord’s judgment against Moab, the descendants of Lot (Genesis 19:37).
• Chemosh was the main god worshipped by the Moabites (Verse 7).
  • Chemosh did not exists.  But, the Word of God tells us that behind every false god, there is demonic activity (Deuteronomy 32:16-17).
• The “horn” is symbolic of a nations military power. (Verse 25)
• Moab refused to be humbled by God’s judgment.  Their pride resulted in their loss of joy and hope…and the weeping of God.

Questions to consider:

1. If the Moabites were to be ashamed of their god in their defeat, and if their shame was being compared to the way Israel saw “Bethel” (The house of God), how did Israel view God?  Why don’t we view God the same way the nations view their false gods?  Beyond the fact that our God actually exists, what are the other differences of view?
2. If we treat God the way the Moabites would have treated Chemosh, what would we not be understanding?
3. What do we learn about the heart of God even as He renders judgment to those who have rejected Him?  Did God get enjoyment out of judging Moab?  What was their downfall?  What accompanied their pride in themselves?

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 47:1-7

Helpful thoughts:

• God’s promise of judgment now turns toward the Philistines.
• The phrase, “Sword of the Lord” is used here as a figure of speech for judgment. (Judges 7:20)
• The Philistines were attacked and defeated by the Egyptians around 587 B.C.  Yet, this judgment was of the Lord.

Questions to consider:

1. Do you think these nations would have expected to be judged by, or even used in judgment by the Lord who was the God of Israel?  Why or why not?
2. How far does God’s sovereignty, omniscience and justice extend?  Only to Israel?  Only to the church?
3. How far does the love of God extend?  What is our role on this earth as the body of Christ (As ambassadors)? (Matthew 5:13-16, Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8)

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 45:1-46:28

Helpful thoughts:

• Baruch had written God’s message for Jeremiah and read it to the leaders of Judah in chapter 36.
  • Baruch’s plans and dreams were not compatible with God’s sovereign plan in Judah.  He needed to be encouraged and to rest in God’s will.
• Chapter 46 begins a series of judgments which God had promised on the nations surrounding Israel/Judah.  Egypt is first.
  • The Pharaohs, gods, and mighty men of Egypt are no match for the Lord.
• God promises judgment on the nations.  But, to Israel, He promises to never make an end of them.  This was His gracious choice.

Questions to consider:

1. Why might we feel badly for Baruch?  What do we often want God to do concerning our plans?  Why must we hold them with an open hand?  What do we know about the attributes of God that helps us to adjust to changes with peace?
2. Why is it right for the nations of the earth (And not just Israel) to answer to God as judge?  What were some of Egypt’s sins against Him?
3. Is Israel better than the rest of the nations of the earth in their own right?  Are the people of the church by nature worth more than others in the world?  How does this produce humility and gratitude in us which leads to joyful service (Ephesians 2:8-10)?

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 44:1-30

Helpful thoughts:

• The Mosaic Covenant (The Old Covenant, or the Law) with Israel was conditional.  Israel had agreed to the terms and vowed to follow the Lord.  They did not. (Exodus 24:3)
  • In this chapter, God confirms that He is continuing to fulfill His promise (Deuteronomy 30:15-20).
• The false god Ishtar (Sometimes called Ashtoreth or Astarte) was considered the wife of Baal or Molech in different pagan idolatrous traditions, and therefore the “Queen of Heaven.”  She was the wife of the supreme god in each culture and therefore also the mother of the gods who were their sons/daughters.
  • The Catholic Church has referred to Mary as the Queen of Heaven in what many believe to be a merging of the true biblical account with these pagan traditions.
• The people of Judah who had gone to Egypt believed it was the Queen of Heaven who had been feeding them.  They are declaring that God failed them and are officially giving their allegiance to a different god (One who does not exist by the way…).

Questions to consider:

1. What was the basis for these people’s loyalty to any god?  From their perspective, what did the god have to do to earn their worship?  What is the folly of that last question and their thinking?  Whose will were they truly following and what did they rob themselves of as a result?
2. How does the fact that we don’t worship other gods in our culture today make it hard to see when we might be doing the same thing?  How long do we give God to answer our requests before we start to worry and look elsewhere for answers and resolution?  Instead of others gods, to whom do we tend to look for the answers?
3. Did the Queen of Heaven ever give Judah their food and clothing?  Why not?  Who has met all your needs and who holds your eternal well-being in His faithful and powerful hands?  Why do we have every reason to trust and obey, even during times of adversity?

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 43:1-13

Helpful thoughts:

• The people did not want to go back on their vow, so they called the messenger a liar.  They are declaring Jeremiah to be a false prophet.
• If you trace this narrative through the siege, capture and these latest events, what becomes clear is that the people of Israel had grown to love Israel/Judah more than they loved God.
  • They disobeyed God thinking they were defending Israel/Judah.
  • When Joshua asked the Commander of the Lord’s Army whose side He was on, He made it clear, Israel was to be on His side, not the other way around (Joshua 5:13-15).
• The children of Israel have finally run back to Egypt for safety as they had desired to so many years ago (Numbers 14:1-4).  They did not know that NO country had ever been their safety. Not Egypt, nor Israel or Judah was ever their safety.

Questions to consider:

1. What must be true of our heart as we go to the Word of God?  What do we know about God and therefore about His word (The Bible) that compels us to receive it meekly and submissively?
2. What could Christians in the United States (Or any other country) learn from the sins of Israel and Judah?  Who are the people of God in the world today, is it a country or is it the Church?  Is God “for us” or is the Church for Him?  And, if God is actively loving us and conforming us to Christ (That kind of “For us” – Romans 8:31), then what should He do if we are not living as followers of Christ? (Hebrews 12:6)
3. What made you a child of God? (Romans 9:30-33)  What has Christ (Our King!) called us to do to advance His kingdom? (Matthew 28:18-20)

Today’s passage: Jeremiah 42:1-22

Helpful thoughts:

• Johanan, the captain who had tried to do what was right, wants to know the Lord’s will on what the remnant in Judah is to do next.
• In verses 5-6, the people pledge to obey the Lord’s instruction before they even hear it.
  • All of this looks really good so far…until it doesn’t.
• The command is clear, they are not to go to Egypt.  But God already knows what they will do.  He knows their hearts, their desires and their actions before they even do them.
  • In verse 10, God says He will relent (Put a stop to) the judgment Judah was under if they would obey and stay in the land.  The only way the judgment would continue is if they disobey and leave.

Questions to consider:

1. After the absence of any interaction with God in the previous chapters, what did Johanan’s request look like?  Why might we have gotten excited?  Was his request genuine?  Is everyone who claims Jesus a godly person?  How would we know, or how do we find out?
2. Since the people promised to obey whatever God says, if they choose to go to Egypt what will they have to claim?  They won’t want to break their vow, but they clearly understood the message…who will they have to blame to defend their decision?
3. How important are the doctrines of the authority, infallibility and inerrancy of scripture?  If we cannot trust the Bible, what can we know?  How do these truths concerning the Bible drive us to want to study it all the more?