God tells Ezekiel to shave his head and beard and then divide his hair into 3 parts: 1/3 to burn in a fire, 1/3 to chop in pieces, and 1/3 to toss into the wind. Then He says to bind a few strands in his garment. This is to illustrate the fate of the people. Some will die by famine and pestilence when Jerusalem is set on fire, some will die by the sword, and some will be exiled into foreign lands. But the Lord will save a remnant of the people and restore them to accomplish His plans and purposes.

The Lord says the end has come for Jerusalem and He will judge them for their wicked ways and have no pity for, “Then you shall know that I am the Lord who strikes.” God says that all the worthless stuff they value and receive joy from will be useless. “Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord. They will not satisfy their souls, nor fill their stomach, because it became their stumbling block of iniquity.”

Then the Lord gives Ezekiel a horrific vision of Jerusalem:

– In the court of the temple is an idol of jealousy.

– Inside the temple are 70 elders practicing idolatry.

– At the gate of the temple are women weeping for the false god Tammuz.

– At the door of the temple, people are worshipping the sun.

Although idolatry is a trivial thing for the people it is not for God and He will not tolerate it forever.

The next vision is of 7 angels, with one being a scribe, coming to execute the people. He told the scribe to mark the ones who have repented so they would be spared. The rest will be killed beginning with the elders who led the people astray.

Tomorrow the glory of the Lord departs the temple. Keep reading.

(Ezekiel 5:1-9:11)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

God tells Ezekiel that he is the watchman for the house of Israel. Ezekiel will be held accountable for speaking the Word of God and the people will be accountable for their response. However if Ezekiel knows God’s Word and does not warn the people and they die in their sins, God tells Ezekiel “his blood I will require at your hand.” Then the Lord fills Ezekiel with the Spirit so that he is equipped to handle the job of watchman.

We will find out later in the Story that we too have the same command (Luke 12). By the power of the Holy Spirit, we are to share the Gospel. How people respond is on them, but what we do or don’t do with God’s Word is on us. And this really isn’t any pressure…it’s a privilege!

So the Lord tells Ezekiel to go to his home and that the people will bind him and the Lord will make him mute. But when the Lord speaks to Ezekiel, he is to open his mouth and speak to those who will hear.

God instructs Ezekiel to perform 3 symbolic acts:

1) Sketch the city of Jerusalem on a clay tablet and play siege against it like a kid would with a block toy to illustrate the coming destruction of the city.

2) Lie on his left side 390 days and his right side 40 days for the years of Israel’s and Judah’s sins. There are differing views on this one. Some say the years are for their past sins and some say for their future judgment.

3) Cook your food over human dung. 😱 Now Ezekiel does object to this one, so God says he can use cow dung instead. This is to illustrate the food shortage during the invasion and captivity by the Babylonians.

Over in Jerusalem we find out that during the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah, the Lord has Jeremiah wear a yoke to symbolize Judah’s future enslavement to Babylon. God will use Babylon to subdue all the nations and anyone who fights against them will die. Jeremiah warns the people against listening to false prophets and says to trust the Lord and summit to Babylon.

The false prophet, Hananiah, tells the people they will be released from captivity in 2 years and he yanks the yoke off Jeremiah’s neck. God rebukes this false prophet for making the people believe lies and says he will die within the year. And Hananiah dies 2 months later.

Tomorrow, God has Ezekiel perform some more strange acts in an effort to get the people’s attention. Keep reading.

(Ezekiel 3:16-4:17, Jeremiah 27:1-28:17, Jeremiah 51:59-64)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

After the Chaldeans return home for fear of the Egyptians, Jeremiah goes to leave Jerusalem to claim his property in the land of Benjamin. A guard falsely accuses him of defecting to the Chaldeans and Jeremiah is thrown into a dungeon.

Many days later, Zedekiah secretly visits Jeremiah to inquire of the Lord. And the Lord is consistent with His message to Zedekiah – “You shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.” Then Jeremiah asks to not go back to the dungeon where he will die. So Zedekiah places Jeremiah in the court of prison and gives him a daily ration of bread.

When Shephatiah, a prince of Judah, hears the Lord’s message from Jeremiah, that the people should go with the Chaldeans to live or stay and die, he wants Jeremiah dead. Shephatiah is worried that this message will make the people fearful. Therefore, Jeremiah is lowered down into a muddy dungeon with no water.

When Ebed-Melech, an Egyptian eunuch working in the King’s house, hears about the state of Jeremiah, he pleads for Jeremiah’s life and Zedekiah allows him to rescue Jeremiah from the dungeon. Zedekiah secretly inquires of Jeremiah again and Jeremiah is consistent with the Lord’s message. He tells Zedekiah to surrender to the Chaldeans and he will live and the city will not be burned or don’t surrender and he, his wives and children will be delivered into the hands of the Babylonians and the city will be burned.

Zedekiah is afraid that if he surrenders, the Jews who already defected will kill him. So Jeremiah assures him that all will be ok if he will just obey the Lord! Jeremiah is placed in the court prison where he will remain until the invasion of Jerusalem.

Next we meet Ezekiel who was taken to Babylon during the second wave of captivity in 597 BC. Four and a half years later, while by the River Chebar in the land of the Chaldeans, Ezekiel has his first vision from the Lord. Ezekiel tries to explain what he sees but he has never seen anything quite like it before. There are 4 marvelous creatures and 4 spinning wheels and at the sound of a voice the creatures appear to submit. Ezekiel sees the throne of the Lord and a splendid being which causes Ezekiel to fall to his face in the presence of the Lord. The Lord tells him to rise and while He is speaking to him, the Spirit of the Lord fills Ezekiel. God tells him that He is sending him to speak to rebellious people who may or may not listen but Ezekiel’s job is to just say what the Lord has said and leave the rest up to the Lord. Ezekiel then eats a scroll that tastes like honey, “And written on it were lamentation and mourning and woe.”

Ezekiel is now commissioned to be the voice of God to the captives. Keep reading.

(Jeremiah 37:11-38:28, Ezekiel 1:1-3:15)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

Today the Lord says Babylon is “My battle ax and weapons of war: For with you I will break the nations into pieces”.

After the Lord uses Babylon to judge the nations, Babylon will be judged by the Lord. The Medes and Persians will one day destroy Babylon.

In 597 BC Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, comes up against Jerusalem and besieges the city. He carries off as captives King Jehoiachin as well as everyone else in Jerusalem leaving only the poorest people. “And he carried out from there all the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house, and he cut in pieces all the articles of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, as the Lord had said.”

Nebuchadnezzar makes King Jehoiachin’s uncle, Mattaniah, the new king of Judah and changes his name to Zedekiah. Zedekiah is an evil king who ignores the Word of God and he also rebels against King Nebuchadnezzar. When the Chaldeans come up against Jerusalem, Zedekiah has his men ask Jeremiah to pray to the Lord for them.

Pharaoh’s army from Egypt comes to help Jerusalem so the Chaldeans turn back. However, the Lord responds by saying that next time Egypt’s army won’t come to help and, “The Chaldeans shall come back and fight against this city, and take it and burn it with fire.”

Tomorrow Jeremiah gets thrown into a dungeon and we meet the prophet Ezekiel so keep reading.

(Jeremiah 51:15-58, 2 Kings 24:10-17, 2 Chronicles 36:10, 1 Chronicles 3:10-16, 2 Chronicles 36:11-14, Jeremiah 52:1-3, 2 Kings 24:18-20, Jeremiah 37:1-10)

#bibleliteracymovement

#chronologicalbibleteaching

Today Jeremiah says a voice was heard – “Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted for her children, because they were no more.”

Remember Rachel was the younger sister of Leah, who Jacob loved and wanted to marry, but he got tricked into marrying Leah first. Well, Leah and Rachel both became Jacob’s wives and the tribes Ephraim and Manasseh (sons of Joseph) and Benjamin came from Jacob and Rachel.

The Lord says to stop weeping because there is hope for her children’s future. God says He will bring His people home and make a new covenant with them since they broke the old covenant. “I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people…For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sins I will remember no more.”

This new covenant will be established through the shedding of the blood of the innocent, Jesus Christ, on behalf of guilty sinners, us. While Jesus is having supper with His disciples before He is crucified, He will take a cup of wine as an illustration and tell the men, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you” (Luke 22:20). Later Paul will tell us that this is a better covenant (Hebrews 7:22). After Jesus’s death and resurrection, Jesus will ascend to heaven where He sits at the right hand of the Lord as the High Priest. “But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises” (Hebrews 8:6). And anyone who puts their faith in Jesus Christ will be saved by grace through faith.

God goes on to say that He will punish Babylon because they took such joy in destroying His inheritance – “First the king of Assyria devoured him; Now at last this Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has broken his bones.” The Lord will break Babylon like He broke Assyria and, “The iniquity of Israel shall be sought, but there shall be none…For I will pardon those whom I preserve.”

Tomorrow Babylon captures Jerusalem. Keep reading.

(Jeremiah 31:15-40, Jeremiah 49:34-51:14)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

Yesterday the Lord rebuked false prophets who had spoken lies and tolerated evil, all in the name of the Lord. He told the people not to listen to worthless words from these false prophets who did not speak the Word of God. “’Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,’ says the Lord, ‘and tell them, and cause My people to err by their lies and by their recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not profit this people at all.’”

Today the Lord says that He will punish the false prophets and the people for not turning from them and their wickedness toward the Lord.

God tells Jeremiah that He is sending some of the people off into exile in Babylon for their own good and He will one day bring them back. “Then I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.” But the Lord will destroy the wicked King Zedekiah (who we will soon meet), his princes, and the rest left in Jerusalem.

Shortly after the second wave goes off into captivity, Jeremiah writes a letter to those in exile. He tells them to settle down in Babylon and build homes and lives for themselves there bc they will be in exile for 70 years before the Lord will bring them out. “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” He warns the people not to listen to the false prophets in Babylon who are saying captivity will be short. The Lord will deal with these false prophets.

We end with the Lord giving the people in exile great hope for restoration. ”’He who scattered Israel will gather him, And keep him as a shepherd does his flock,’…Their souls shall be like a well-watered garden, And they shall sorrow no more at all…For I will turn their mourning to joy, Will comfort them, And make them rejoice rather than sorrow…And My people shall be satisfied with My goodness, says the Lord.” Amen! AND He does the same today for those who trust in Him!

Keep reading.

(Jeremiah 23:33-24:10, Jeremiah 29:1-31:14)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

Jeremiah continues to pronounce judgment against the nations:

– Ammon, Lot’s descendants, God will humble them and, “Afterwards I will bring back the captives of the people of Ammon.”

– Edom, Esau’s descendants, “Your fierceness has deceived you, the pride of your heart,” therefore, the Lord will destroy Edom like He did Sodom and Gomorrah.

– Damascus, a prominent city in Syria, their days of joy will be cut off and turned into days of sorrow.

– Kedar and Hazor, Arab tribes from the east, Babylon will destroy them and the land will become desolate.

King Jehoiakam dies after reigning 11 years and his son, Jehoiachin, becomes the next king of Judah. Jehoiachin will only reign 3 months before he is taken off to Babylon with Ezekiel during the second wave of captivity. He will spend 37 years in prison in Babylon (2 Kings 25:27).

Jehoiachin is wicked like his dad thus the Lord says, “None of his descendants shall prosper, sitting on the throne of David, and ruling anymore in Judah.” God will bring judgement upon all the wicked leaders and false prophets who have scattered His flock and have not attended to them. BUT the Lord will gather the remnant of His flock, “And they shall be fruitful and increase.”

The Lord is bringing a Righteous Ruler, Jesus Christ, for His people! “‘Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord, ‘That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.‘“ 🙌

Keep reading.

(Jeremiah 49:1-33, 2 Kings 24:5-7, 2 Chronicles 36:6-8, 2 Kings 24:8-9, 2 Chronicles 36:9, Jeremiah 22:24-23:32)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

God tells Jeremiah not to marry or have a family bc things are about to get ugly. He also says don’t mourn for the ones who die bc they will die as a result of their great sins and unrepentant hearts. However, the Lord is sending some into captivity and one day He will bring them back to their land.

But Judah just continues on in their sins. God rebukes them for trusting in themselves instead of the Lord. “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength.” “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is in the Lord.” God goes on to say, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings.”

As a potter shapes clay, so the Lord shapes the nations according to His divine purposes. If He speaks to destroy a nation and the nation repents, then He will relent of the disaster He was going to bring. If He speaks to build up a nation and the nation turns to evil then He will relent of the good He was going to bring. Therefore the Lord tells Jeremiah to tell the people to, “Return now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.” “And they said, ‘That is hopeless! So we will walk according to our own plans, and we will every one obey the dictates of his evil heart.’” The people are right. Apart from the Lord it is hopeless.

Later in the Story the disciples will ask Jesus, “Who then can be saved?” and Jesus will say, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:25-26). And Paul will tell us that, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). We are all in desperate need of a Savior and the Lord knows this. That is why He is working His plan to send Jesus who is, “Able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).

We end the reading with Jeremiah commanding the Rechabites, a clan of Judah, to drink wine but they refuse bc their earthly father, Jonadab, forbidden it. The Lord uses this example to rebuke the people of Judah. This clan obeys their earthly father but the people of Judah refuse to obey their Heavenly Father, the God of Creation. The Lord then tells the Rechabites that since they obeyed their father, Jonadab, they, “Shall not lack a man to stand before Me forever.”

Tomorrow Judah gets a new king so keep reading.

(Jeremiah 16:1-18:23, Jeremiah 35:1-19)

#bibleliteracymovement #chronologicalbibleteaching

Jeremiah wonders why the wicked prosper. The Lord tells Jeremiah not to grow weary bc He has a plan and Jeremiah is part of His plan but it will be a long, hard road.

God says that He will punish all of Israel’s evil neighbors but they too will have a chance to be redeemed. “And it shall be, if they will learn carefully the ways of My people, to swear by My name…then they shall be established in the midst of My people.”

The Lord has Jeremiah perform symbolic acts to nail home His message:

– God has him purchase a sash and wear it. Then He tells him to go to the Euphrates and bury it. After some time He has him return and dig it up; thus illustrating how the Lord was going to destroy the pride of the people who at one time clung to Him, as the sash did Jeremiah’s waist, but left Him for pagan worship.

– Jeremiah instructs the people to fill their jugs with wine. For as wine leads to drunkenness, the sins of the people will lead to their destruction.

In an attempt to lead the people to repentance, the Lord sends a drought. He tells Jeremiah not to intercede for them bc they will experience judgement for their sins. The false prophets, who keep telling the people that all is fine when it is not fine, will also experience God’s wrath for they do not speak the word of the Lord but lies.

Jeremiah asks if the Lord has totally rejected Judah and he prays for healing. The Lord says at this point, not even Moses or Samuel could intercede for them bc King Manasseh lead Judah to a state of corruption where the people had completely abandoned the Lord. God says the people have 3 options: death by sword, death by famine, or captivity.

We end the reading with Jeremiah struggling bc everyone hates him for speaking God’s Words and he asks the Lord to remember him and to protect him, “For I am called by Your name.” So the Lord assures Jeremiah, “I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”

More from Jeremiah tomorrow. Keep reading.

(Jeremiah 12:1-15:21)

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Today the Lord lays out Judah’s wickedness:

– they have rejected God’s Word

– everyone is given to covetousness, from prophet to priest

– everyone deals falsely

– no one is ashamed of their abominations

“Therefore they shall fall among those who fall.”

Jeremiah mourns with the Lord over the state of the people. “And the Lord said, ‘Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice, nor walked according to it, but they have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts and after the Baals, which their fathers taught them,’ therefore thus says the Lord…’I will scatter them also among the Gentiles, whom neither they nor their fathers have known. And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.’”

The Lord tells them when this distress comes upon them they are not to trust in themselves. “‘Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, Let not the mighty man glory in his might, Nor let the rich man glory in his riches; But let him who glories glory in this, That he understands and knows Me, That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight,’ says the Lord.” Judah has broken their covenant with the Lord and nothing will save them, not even Jeremiah’s prayers, except for a repentant heart.

The reading ends with Jeremiah’s enemies plotting to kill him for speaking the words of the Lord but God assures Jeremiah that He has Jeremiah’s back and He will destroy those enemies.

More from Jeremiah tomorrow. Keep reading.

(Jeremiah 8:4-11:23)

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