Jeremiah 16A

Jeremiah commanded not to marry in Jerusalem verse 1- 4

The word of the LORD came also unto me – saying
            You shall not take you a wife
                        neither shall you have sons or daughters in this place
For thus says the LORD concerning the sons and the daughters that are born
in this place – and concerning their mothers that bare them
and concerning their fathers that begat them in this land
They shall die of grievous deaths
They shall not be lamented
Neither shall they be buried
But they shall be as dung upon the face of the earth
            and they shall be consumed by the sword – famine
And their carcasses shall be meat for the fowls of heaven
            and for the beasts of the earth

Jeremiah commanded not to attend funerals verse 5- 7

For thus says the LORD
            Enter not into the house of mourning
                        neither go to lament nor bemoan them
                                    for I have taken away MY peace from this people
                                                says the LORD
                                                            even loving-kindness and mercies
            BOTH the great and the small shall die in this land
                        they shall not be buried – neither shall men lament for them
                                    nor cut themselves – nor make themselves bald for them
                                                neither shall me tear themselves for them in
                                                            mourning – to comfort them for the dead
                                                neither shall men give them the cup of consolation
to drink for their father or for their mother

Jeremiah commanded not to attend party’s verse 8- 9

You shall not go into the house of feasting
to sit with them to eat and drink
For thus says the LORD of hosts – the God of Israel
            BEHOLD – I will cause to cease out of this place in your eyes
and in your days – the voice of mirth – gladness – bridegroom
and the voice of the bride

People of Jerusalem will question judgment verse 10

And it shall come to pass – when you shall show this people all these words
and they shall say unto you
Wherefore hath the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us?
or What is our iniquity?
or What is our sin that we have committed against the
  LORD our God?

LORD gives reason for judgment verse 11- 13

THEN shall you say unto them – BECAUSE your fathers have forsaken ME
says the LORD – and have walked after other gods
and have served other gods – and have worshiped other gods
and have FORSAKEN ME – and have not kept MY law
AND you have done worse than your fathers – FOR – BEHOLD
you walk every one after the imagination of his evil heart
that they may not hearken unto ME
THEREFORE I will cast you out of this land into a land that you know not
            neither you nor your fathers
And there shall ye serve other gods day and night
where I will not show you favor

Future plans of LORD for Israel: Restoration of land verse 14- 15

THEREFORE – BEHOLD – the days come – says the LORD
            that it shall no more be said – The LORD lives
                        that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt
BUT – The LORD lives – that brought up the children of Israel
from the land of the north and from all the lands whither
HE had driven them AND I will bring them again into their
land that I gave unto their fathers

Present plans of LORD for Israel: Judgment verse 16- 18

BEHOLD – I will send for many fishers – says the LORD
and they shall fish them and after will I send for many hunters
                        and they shall hunt them from every mountain
                                    and from every hill and out of the holes of the rocks
For MINE eyes are upon all their ways – they are not hid from MY face
neither is their iniquity hid from MINE eyes
And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin DOUBLE
            BECAUSE they have defiled MY land
they have filled MINE inheritance with the carcasses of
their detestable and abominable things

Future statements of foreign nations verse 19- 20

O LORD – my strength – my fortress – my refuge in the day of affliction
            the Gentiles shall come unto YOU from the ends of the earth
and shall say
                                    Surely our fathers have inherited lies – vanity
and things wherein there is no profit
                                    Shall a man make gods unto himself
and they are no gods?

Future statement of the LORD verse 21

THEREFORE – BEHOLD – I will this once cause them to know
            I will cause them to know MINE hand and MY might
                        and they shall know that MY name is THE LORD

COMMENTARY:

DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers

: 10 “And it shall be, when you show this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great disaster against us? Or what is our iniquity? Or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’ The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982).
Devotion: Sometimes people have a difficult time with believing God’s word! They look at it and find it unbelievable that a loving God could or would pronounce judgment and disaster on a people that He says he loves. The question that is asked reveals how ignorant and blind the people of Judah was to the Lord’s ways! They should have known that God saw and sees their sins! It is equivalent to the questions asked by Israel in the book of Malachi when God was speaking to them (Mal. 1:6; 2:17; 3:7-8, 13). In verses 11-12 Jeremiah tells them their fathers had forsaken them and that they were worse than their fathers.
Sometimes we have a difficult time believing that God sees and will hold us accountable for the things He calls sin in His word. We compromise with the world and accept their standard of morality or ethics and ignore what God tells us in His word. Breaking of absolutes results in punishment regardless of whether we believe those absolutes or not. You jump off a cliff and you will crash to the ground! The absolute law of gravity is always at work, regardless of your beliefs. The same principle is true for God’s word. It will come to pass irrespective of your beliefs. We may question the results but the results will occur.
Application: Today is a good day to come to grips with the absolute authority of God and His word! If He has spoken it to us He will bring those truths to pass even if the time it takes to happen is a thousand years or a few days. Do not let the stubbornness of your heart result in disobedience to His word. You will end up on the ground because God’s word never alters or fails. Like gravity, it works every time! (Dr. Brian Miller – board member)

DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers

: 17 For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hidfrom my face, neither is their iniquity hidfrom mine eyes. (5641 "hid" [cathar] means be absent, keep close, be concealed, or secret.
DEVOTION: God is omniscient. The presence of the LORD is everywhere. HE is omnipresent. HE knows all our thoughts. HE sees all our actions. HE has a record.
The LORD told the children of Israel the way they should go through HIS law. HE gave them specific instructions. HE didn’t leave anything to error. HE set up leaders to instruct each generation of what HE expected of them. The priests were to perform HIS instructions. The children of Israel were without out excuse in the sight of the LORD.
The children of Israel thought that they were getting away with their sins. They thought that God didn’t see them. They were following after every imagination of their evil hearts. The LORD wanted them to know that HE sees what is going on here on earth. HE knows all our secrets. HE doesn't let us get away with anything. HE always sent nations to correct them. They were going to be corrected by a nation from the north. Babylon was coming.
HE was going to send soldiers to fish for all of HIS people who were scattered. HE was going to send hunters to hunt down all those who thought they had escaped to other lands. No one was free from the judgment of the LORD. HE had declared it and it was going to happen to all of Judah.
The LORD gave special instructions through HIS Son, Jesus Christ. These instructions are found in the New Testament. HE continues to not leave anything to chance. HE has a plan and has told HIS people HIS plan for their lives. They are to follow the straight and narrow road to heaven. Most of the world will follow the wide path that leads to destruction or hell for eternity.
HE is there to help those outside of Christ to get to know HIM. Those who know Christ are chastened, pruned, or corrected, so that, they can be more like Christ. Remember God is not absent, HE us always present. HE wants us to know HIS name. Do we know HIS name? Are we worshiping HIM in spirit and in truth? Let us not think that anything is concealed from the LORD in our lives!!!
CHALLENGE: Practice the presence of the LORD in our daily life. Realize that HE knows the thoughts and intention of our hearts. May HE see that these thoughts and intention are only toward HIM!)

DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers

: 19 O LORD, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. (3276 “profit” [ya‘al] means benefit, gain, avail, useful, aid, advantage, value, or help.
DEVOTION: Jeremiah is making a statement concerning his perspective of the LORD. He communicates with the LORD regarding their relationship to one another. He wants the LORD to know that he gains his strength from the LORD to face all that daily life brings into his path.
He knows that the LORD is ALMIGHTY and no one and nothing can break through the HIS defenses to defeat him in his daily walk with HIM. The SWORD of the LORD is there to protect from all enemies.
He realizes that the LORD is the only place he can turn with confidence of victory. He knows that affliction is going to come. He knows that he is not going to like each of the afflictions the LORD allows in his life but he still turns to HIM at those times.
Not only will he turn to the LORD but in the future all of Israel will turn to the LORD for strength, defense and refuge. They will finally realize who HE is and how much HE loves them.
They will also inspire those who are not Israelites to come and trust in the LORD. This is a future plan that the LORD is working through HIS promise to Abraham. Abraham was to bless many nations.
We live in a day and age when the LORD is working with us who are not Israelites to become followers of HIM through HIS Son Jesus Christ. We have a future and a hope because of HIS death on the cross for our sins. HE has made promises to us. These promises are based on HIS plan in the past through HIS chosen people Israel.
CHALLENGE: As Gentiles, for the most part, we need to thank the LORD for including us in HIS plan. We have a future hope that we can share with others. Share these truths with others.)

DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:

BODY

Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)

SOUL

Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)

SPIRIT

Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)

Jeremiah prays verse 19- 21

Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)

DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:

Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)

Word of the LORD verse 1
Law verse 11

God the Father (First person of the Godhead)

LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 1, 3, 5, 9- 11,
14- 16, 19, 21
Word of the LORD verse 1
LORD of hosts verse 9
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign) verse 9
God of Israel verse 9
LORD our God verse 10
Eyes of the LORD on HIS people verse 17
Hand of the LORD verse 21
Might of the LORD verse 21
MY name is The LORD verse 21

God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)

Land of Egypt verse 14
Gentiles verse 19

Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)

Evil verse 10
Iniquity verse 10, 17, 18
Sin verse 10, 18
Forsaken God verse 11
Walked after other gods verse 11
Served other gods verse 11, 13
Worshiped other gods verse 11, 20
Not kept the Law verse 11
Walk after imagination of evil heart verse 12
Not listen to the LORD verse 12
Defiled the land verse 18
Carcasses of detestable things verse 18
Filled land with abominable things verse 18
Inherited lies verse 19
Inherited vanity verse 19
Inherited things wherein is no profit verse 19
Make gods verse 20

Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)

Peace verse 5
Loving-kindness verse 5
Mercies verse 5
Comfort verse 7
Shows favor verse 13
Inheritance verse 18
LORD is strength – fortress – refuge verse 19

Israel (Old Testament people of God)

God takes peace away from Israel verse 5
Israel verse 9, 14, 15

Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)

QUOTES

16:21When they acknowledged him, he would teach them his “power” (lit. “hand”) and might. When that takes place, they will know that his “name is the Lord” (see 14:7 for the significance of this expression; cf. Exod 3:13–15). (Huey, F. B. (1993). Jeremiah, Lamentations (Vol. 16, pp. 170–171). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)

16:19–21. Jeremiah affirmed his trust in God as his Strength … Fortress, and Refuge (cf. comments on Ps. 18:2), three words that emphasized the protection God had provided for him. After affirming his trust in God, Jeremiah looked forward to the day when all the world would know God. Though Judah had turned to the false gods of the Gentiles, a time will come when the nations will come to the true God of Israel. They will admit that their former objects of worship were nothing but false gods, worthless idols (cf. comments on Jer. 2:5). At that time God will teach them of His power and might so they will understand His true character. They will know then that His name is the Lord (cf. Ezek. 36:22–23). ( Dyer, C. H. (1985). Jeremiah. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1151). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)

Jeremiah’s affirmation (vv. 19–21). In a burst of faith and prophetic joy, Jeremiah saw not only the gathering of the Jewish remnant but also the coming of the Gentile nations from the ends of the earth to worship the true and living God of Israel. Isaiah had this same vision (Isa. 2:1–5; 11:10–16; 45:14), and so did Zechariah (Zech. 8:20–23). The Gentiles will confess their sin of idolatry and admit that the idols were worthless. Then they will be taught to know the Lord. Meanwhile, it’s the task of the church today to spread the message of the Gospel to the ends of the earth so that sinners might abandon their false gods, whatever they may be, and trust in Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be Decisive (pp. 77–78). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books)

Ver. 21. Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, &c.] Or, at this time, as the Targum; when the Gentiles shall be convinced of the idolatry they have been brought up in, and of the vanity and falsehood of their idols; they shall be made to know the true God, God in Christ, Christ himself, whom to know is life eternal, and to know the way of life and salvation by him; and all this through the ministry of the Gospel that should be brought among them, the spirit of God accompanying it; by means of which they should come to Christ from the ends of the earth, before predicted. I will cause them to know my hand and my might; to experience the power and efficacy of his grace in conversion; quickening their dead souls, softening their hard hearts, taking away the stony heart, and giving a heart of flesh; and making them willing in the day of his power to be saved by Christ, and to serve him; to relinquish their idols, and turn to and worship the living God in spirit and in truth: though most understand this not as a promise of grace to the Gentiles, but as a threatening of punishment to the idolatrous Jews; that because of their idolatry they should once for all, or by this one and grievous calamity, captivity in Babylon, be made to know what they could not be brought to know by all the instructions and warnings of the prophets; they should now feel the weight of the Lord’s hand, the lighting down of his arm with the indignation of his wrath; and so the Targum, “I will shew them my vengeance and the stroke of my power.” And they shall know that my name is the Lord; the Jehovah, the self-existent Being, the Being of beings, the everlasting and unchangeable I AM; who is able to make good his promises, or perform his threatenings; a name incommunicable to creatures, which don’t belong to the idols of the Gentiles, is peculiar to the true God, who is the most High in all the earth; see Psal. 83:18 (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 5, p. 494). London: Mathews and Leigh.)