Jeremiah
7
Jeremiah had a long ministry from the
days of Josiah until the last days of Zedekiah. The last recorded days in
Jeremiah is an event in days of Evil-Merodach of Babylon in the 37th
year of the exile counting from 605 BCE, thus 568 BCE. He saw the conditions
before and after the exile. When a prophet of the Old Testament functioned for
God, he had a clock with him, because he had to talk about periods,
chrono-periods, end-time scenarios, calculated times, Divine appointed times
and so forth. The prophet also focused on the sins of the Remnant weed and
spelled out promises for the Remnant seed. He listed the problems and suggested
solutions. As usual, the people were stiff-necked. Much to the frustration of the
prophet and of God. In this chapter Jeremiah was to stand in the gate of the
Lord’s house to proclaim His word (v. 2a). The message is for worshippers just
like messages from God every week is to members of the church coming to church
to worship. The Lord asked them to change their lifestyles and He will let them
stay in that area in the future Eschaton when He created the New Heaven and New
Earth (v. 3). Deceptive words were going around saying “This is the temple of
the Lord” so nothing can go wrong (v. 4). Superstitiously they thought that the
building is the house of God so God living in that house will be their rescue
without them needing a relationship with Him. Then Jeremiah spelled out the reformation
needed: change your lifestyle (v. 5a); changes your actions/deeds (v. 5b); be
just to your neighbor (v. 5c); do not oppress the alien believer (v. 6a); the
orphan (v. 6b); the widow (v. 6c); do not shed innocent blood [meaning for
justice the courts can shed guilty blood?] (v. 6d); walk after other gods of
self-interest to one’s own ruin (v. 6e). If the law or Torah of God is kept
perfectly, God will give them a promise land “forever and ever” in the Eschaton
after the Hell-event when He created a New Heaven and New Earth (v. 7). Jeremiah
lists the problems: they trust in deceptive words (v. 8); steal (v. 9a); murder
(v. 9a); commit adultery (v. 9a); swear falsely (v. 9b); offer sacrifices to
Baal (v. 9c); walk after unknown gods (v. 9d); command-breaking they come to
worship proclaiming that they are “saved” yet cling to abominations (v. 10).
God says that the place of worship has become a den of robbers (v. 11). The
remnant weed should go to Shiloh and study history and see what God did in the
past with that disobedient place and its worshippers (v. 12). While they were
doing these things, the Lord spoke to them early in the morning (v. 13b) but
they did not pay attention or hear. He called them but they did not answer (v.
13c). The Lord is going to punish them the same as Shiloh of the past (v. 14). They
are going to be cast out (v. 15). A church that is rebellious in their actions,
their members or worshippers will be cast out by the Lord. If the church-board
is skew, the Lord will do it Himself His own way. The religious leaders of the
evil Remnant members in the congregation are asked not to pray for the rebellious
members to the Lord (v. 16a); “do not lift up a cry of prayer for them” (v.
16b); “do not intercede with Me” about them for the Lord will not hear the
wicked intercessor (v. 16c). In the cities and streets they are doing wicked
things at night and day (v. 17). Corporately, fathers, mothers and children
have each their supportive action in contribution of the abomination set up
against the Lord in His house of worship (v. 18). Each one come and help make kimbab for the church picnic but they do
not pay tithe, they drink alcohol, they work on Sabbath in their gardens and
farms but they want to come Sabbaths for an hour to say, “We are saved!” Are
they spiting the Lord? They spite themselves (v. 19). The anger of the Lord
will be poured out on that place in the Eschaton and not stop until all evil is
finally exterminated, after the Millennium and during the timed Hell-burning
event (v. 20). When the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt in 1450 BCE, and
instructed them at Sinai in 1448 BCE, He did not speak to them about the
tabernacle service with its burnt offerings and sacrifices pointing to Christ
just as an event to eat flesh (v. 22). Personal faith and personal
sanctification and personal obedience (v. 23) were connected to this whole
salvation system repeatedly in Exodus 15:26; Deuteronomy 6:3; Exodus 19:5, 6 and
Leviticus 26:12. Without faith, obedience and sanctification, worship in church
is useless. They did not follow the Lord, they did not obey, nor listen, but
walked after fables and their own existential and experiential sensibility (v.
24). God sent them His messengers, prophets, rising early and be sent (v. 25).
They did not listen (v. 26a); but stiffened their necks (v. 26c) and did not
evil in Jeremiah’s day than the Israelites did in the Wilderness (v. 26d). Even
though Jeremiah will speak to them they will not listen and when he calls them
they will not answer (v. 27). Jeremiah was to say to them that they are the
nation that is disobedient (v. 28b) do not want to accept correction (v. 28c);
they neglect truth and it perished (v. 28d); and their mouths stopped talking
about the truths of God in His Scriptures (v. 28e). Jeremiah was to cut his
hair and go to the hills and throw away the hair for the Lord will cut off the
Remnant weed (v. 29) in similar fashion as Moses described in 1460 BCE what Job
did in 2200 BCE (Job 1:20). An old custom of dismay thus. The action of cutting
by the Lord will be fulfilled at the Eschaton after the millennium. Evil things
they have set in the house of the Lord and defiled it (v. 30). They built high
places and ovens to burn their sons and daughters in the valley of Hinnom in
fire which was not commanded by the Lord (v. 31). They burnt foreign fire in the
house of worship. In the Eschaton, this area will be called the valley of
Slaughter for that is what Hell is (v. 32). The dead bodies of the evil at the
Second Coming of Christ will be for the birds since only Satan will be lonely
on this earth for a thousand years before the Hell event (v. 33). At that time,
the land of Judah and Jerusalem will be a land of ruin, of course, for a
thousand years (v. 34).
.
Dear God
Grant that we
may listen to your warnings and change our lives to conform to your
requirements of sanctification and obedience and not be rebellious and
stiff-necked people. Amen.
Koot
van Wyk, (DLitt et Phil; ThD) Kyungpook National University, Department of
Liberal Education, Sangju, South Korea; conjoint lecturer of Avondale College,
Australia