Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

We jump now to the reign of Zedekiah, about thirty to forty years after Jeremiah started prophesying for the Lord. Jeremiah had remained in Jerusalem when the captives were taken to Babylon. The Lord did not leave those taken into captivity without His words. After Jeconiah, his queen, his eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the carpenters, and the smiths had been taken to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar; Jeremiah wrote them a letter dictated by the Lord. [Daniel and this three friends were among these captives.]

The Lord warned them NOT to listen to the false prophets and priests who prophesied a quick end. They were NOT speaking for Him. The people had been taken into captivity because the Lord judged them. They were going to remain there seventy years. This was the truth. He warned them not to listen to anyone else. To settle down and be at peace in the city (don’t strive against anyone and try to leave). To be good citizens because God put them there. Period. They were to take wives and husbands. They were to have children. They were going to be there for a long time and were to live their lives peacefully and properly. They were to pray for the peace and prosperity of Babylon, not revenge.

After seventy years, the Lord would visit them and perform His good word toward them, and then they would return to Judah and Jerusalem. [It was for clarification about this and what Jeremiah said in 25:12 that Daniel was seeking the Lord in Daniel 9:1-2]. They were being judged, but the Lord wasn’t seeking their destruction. He had nothing but good in His mind about them – it was THEIR actions and choices that had caused the judgment, not HIS. He wanted to give them a hope and a future. God is NOT a smiter. God prophesied that they would call on Him and pray to Him, and that He would listen to them. They would seek Him and find Him. When they did, He would cause them to return to their land and His city.

He warned them not to listen to the self-appointed prophets that were in Babylon with them and what they said about the people still in Judah and Jerusalem. The people left in Judah would be destroyed by famine, pestilence, and the sword. They would be delivered into trouble because they had not listened to the word of the Lord. They would be a reproach because they had not believed. They would be delivered up to fire because they had done disgraceful things, committed adultery with their neighbour’s wives, and spoken lies claiming them to have come from God. God knew the truth and was a witness against them.

Jeremiah also addressed Shemaiah specifically. Shemaiah was a captive in Babylon, but he was prophesying a quick end to their captivity and had written a letter to the high priest in Jerusalem to reprove Jeremiah and stop up his mouth. Shemaiah had claimed it was the responsibility of the priesthood to put into prison everyone who was crazy or who was prophesying lies – insinuating that Jeremiah was both. This made Shemaiah the second ‘prophet’ to come against Jeremiah. But God was saying through Jeremiah that it was Shemaiah who was a liar. That Shemaiah and his family would be punished. He would have nowhere to dwell among the Jews and He would not see the good God was going to do because of his lies.

“The word that came to Jeremiah from Yahweh, saying,” (Jeremiah 30:1) “At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.” (Jeremiah 31:26)

Between Jeremiah 30:1 and 31:26 is a dream. They are the recorded words of the Lord spoken to Jeremiah in a dream. The main point seems to be inspiring Jeremiah to write a book of all that the Lord told to him regarding Judah and Jerusalem and those who lived there. The Judeans had forsaken their covenant with the Lord and ALL deserved destruction, but instead some would go into captivity – showing God’s grace, mercy, and desire NOT to punish if He didn’t have to.

In the dream, the Lord spoke of the grief and anguish the people would feel when these things came to pass. It would be like labour pains. After their captivity was over (seventy years), they would be delivered. God gave them the comfort of knowing that they (or their descendants) would return to the Promised Land. They broke covenant with Him, so punishment was merited, but He promised to keep a light burning for their eventual return. They had sinned so greatly judgment was inevitable. There was no way to avoid it. They rushed into it. They committed idolatry willingly. They broke His heart. They would be punished. However, sin needed punishment period, so the nations used in their punishment would themselves be punished – but without the promise of ultimate restoration He was extending to His children.

The Lord promised to heal the wounds of His people. To reconcile and restore them to their place. After seventy years of captivity they would rebuild their city and return to their land. He would defend them – not because they deserved it, but because He is merciful and loved them. They would one day be ruled by one of their own (no more foreign domination). They would be His people, and He would be their God. God would not stop until it was performed. Until it was a reality. At the same time, He would be the God of ALL Israel – no more divided countries. He would give rest to them in His everlasting love. He had drawn them to Him and they would live in that place.

The nation would be rebuilt. The people would be prosperous. They would sing and dance in their rejoicing. They would plant vines and eat well. The Temple would be restored. They would praise the Lord and sing with joy. God would bring His people from everywhere they had been scattered to and return them to the Promised Land. He scattered them, He would bring them back and the nations of the world would know it. He had already redeemed them and He had already ransomed them (Romans 4:17). In abundance they would return and sorrow no more. Their mourning would be turned to joy. He would comfort them. The priests would also be satisfied, taken care of and prosperous, well able to do their duties before Him.

God also started speaking about Messiah (Jeremiah 31:5) and the conditions of His coming. He spoke this to the Jews who survived the destruction of Judah. They could rejoice because a time was coming when they would again have their own land. Messiah would come as surely as they would again have their own land. Those who trusted in Him would have real hope to hold onto. Both the northern ten tribes and the southern tribes as well. The Lord had heard the groaning of the northern tribes in their captivity (which had happened a fair time ago – 2 Kings 17:5-18). Even though they had been punished because of their actions which they insisted upon, He loved them still and had a hope and good ending in mind for them. Signposts would be set up by the Lord and He would court them like a woman courting a man. They would again bless the Lord with their voices. They would keep livestock. They would dwell in the Promised Land. He had replenished the weary souls which had been full of sorrow.

Jeremiah woke up here. And was full of sweet sleep. It wasn’t often that he had GOOD news to prophesy. The whole land had been (or was about to be) destroyed, but this message was one of complete and total replenishment and restoration. The children would not suffer for the sins of their fathers. God was going to make a NEW covenant between man and Himself. His Law would be put in their minds and be written in their hearts [we are living in a partial fulfillment of this now – 1 Corinthians 6:19; Romans 12:2]. In this new birth, Holy Spirit would live inside the people and teach them from the inside out. Every believer had no need for an external teacher if they listened to Holy Spirit. Their sins would be forgotten and so would our iniquities. Through Messiah’s sacrifice, they would be restored and remade. God would ALWAYS see them as His nation. They would last forever. The future city of Jerusalem would be larger than the one destroyed. It will not be plucked up or thrown down anymore. Under the reign of Messiah, it would be restored and expanded. and made a whole and complete nation again.

Summary

Key Players: God, Jesus, Jeremiah, Shemaiah

Key Verse(s): Jeremiah 29:1-4, 10-14, 20-23, 29-32; 30:5-11, 17, 23-24; 31:3-9, 15-17, 31-37