Day 795: Jeremiah 21- God is for us...

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, when King Zedekiah sent to him Pashhur the son of Malchiah and Zephaniah the priest, the son of Maaseiah, saying, 2 “Inquire of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadnezzar[a]king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the Lordwill deal with us according to all his wonderful deeds and will make him withdraw from us.”
3 Then Jeremiah said to them: “Thus you shall say to Zedekiah, 4 ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands and with which you are fighting against the king of Babylon and against the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the walls. And I will bring them together into the midst of this city. 5 I myself will fight against you with outstretched hand and strong arm, in anger and in fury and in great wrath.6 And I will strike down the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast. They shall die of a great pestilence. 7 Afterward, declares the Lord, I will give Zedekiah king of Judah and his servants and the people in this city who survive the pestilence, sword, and famine into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of their enemies, into the hand of those who seek their lives. He shall strike them down with the edge of the sword. He shall not pity them or spare them or have compassion.’
8 “And to this people you shall say: ‘Thus says the Lord: Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.9 He who stays in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, but he who goes out and surrenders to the Chaldeans who are besieging you shall live and shall have his life as a prize of war. 10 For I have set my face against this city for harm and not for good, declares the Lord: it shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.’
Message to the House of David11 “And to the house of the king of Judah say, ‘Hear the word of the Lord, 12 O house of David! Thus says the Lord:
“‘Execute justice in the morning,
    and deliver from the hand of the oppressor
    him who has been robbed,
lest my wrath go forth like fire,
    and burn with none to quench it,
    because of your evil deeds.’”
13 “Behold, I am against you, O inhabitant of the valley,
    O rock of the plain,
declares the Lord;
you who say, ‘Who shall come down against us,
    or who shall enter our habitations?’
14 I will punish you according to the fruit of your deeds,
declares the Lord;
    I will kindle a fire in her forest,
    and it shall devour all that is around her.”
 
Meditation
Grace gives ground for Christians to stand and boldly proclaim, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) Believers are secure in God’s steadfast love, forgiven from sin within and fortified from the enemy outside. Jesus solidifies this security through His life, death, and resurrection.
 
Jerusalem was historically threatened by Babylon, eventually captured by king Nebuchadnezzar (588 BC). The king hoped for security, that God would work as He did during the exodus or conquest (1-2). Jeremiah offered a different direction, detailing God’s divine plan: Worse than the king of Babylon, God Himself is against Jerusalem (3-10). Jerusalem had chosen the way of death, rejecting God and refusing to repent and return to relationship. Judah’s holy God would execute justice through Babylon on His rebellious house.
 
History hopes for Divine rescue! And all humanity needs a mediator between a holy God and unholy people. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. No one is righteous and no one seeks God. Grace is displayed when we see how Christ has loved you and me, giving Himself to the wrath of God so God can give forgiveness and security in His steadfast love.
 
Jesus became sin to satisfy God’s wrath in His death so all who trust His work are free. By faith we are united with Christ and can walk in a newness of life. In Christ, God’s wrath is satisfied and through our new life He can be glorified!
 
Richly Dwelling
-What is difficult for you to read about this passage, particularly in what God declares He will do against His people?
 
-What does this reveal about God’s holy and just character?
 
-How does this highlight the reversal in relationship offered through the cross of Christ, that God is no longer against His unholy people but that, in fact, nothing can separate us from His love?
 
Key Verse
8 “And to this people you shall say: ‘Thus says the Lord: Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.