“In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it”
Jeremiah 39:1 (ESV)
Jerusalem Under Siege
Jeremiah had warned them. God had tried to give them an out. There was plenty of time for them to make a move in the right direction.
“Take him, look after him well, and do him no harm, but deal with him as he tells you.”
Jeremiah 39:12 (ESV)
Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave clear instructions on the care for Jeremiah and they were carried out by Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard. Jeremiah was removed from the court of the prison and placed in another’s charge where he lived “among his own people.”
Jeremiah finds favor among the invaders despite being imprisoned and shunned by the kings and leadership of his own land. In spite of being spared the cruelty of the exile, we still experience Jeremiah’s words of agony and anguish in Lamentations that speak of this time period and give testimony to personal hopes and pleas for God’s people to turn around and repent by coming back to God.
Turn up for that check and yeah I get it out the streets
Hustle like I’m starving going hard, I gotta eat
Kevin Gates, “Out of the Mud”
Someone is going to question why reference rapper Kevin Gates when speaking about Jeremiah. I’ve got an answer for that. Kevin Gates might be viewed as outspoken and challenging. That’s just like Jeremiah.
Gate spews raps of realism from the streets through his underground channels of distribution whether through album or mixtape, a realistic perspective that many try to downplay and keep hidden. He keeps it real, even when he speaks openly about society and stereotypes via YouTube interviews.
That’s what Jeremiah did. He spoke truth to power and was considered outspoken. He spoke the words of God and was looked upon as a problem by the court of princes in Judah (Jeremiah 38: 1-4). He was tossed in a cistern filled with mud that some deem as a “dungeon,” according to Jeremiah 38:6.
Truthfully, if we look at it honestly, Kevin Gates is the product of his upbringing and a reflection of society leaving its children in harm’s way. That’s not what the labels tend to portray as a gangsta image to boost sales. That’s challenging for some to fathom. That’s challenging for some to understand and accept. That’s just too real for some folks.
In Jeremiah’s case, things got so bad to the point where he saw that others viewed him as challenging. He previously questioned King Zedekiah what wrong he had committed against him or others for his imprisonment (Jeremiah 37:18). Even in this chapter, Jeremiah questions if his life is in danger by answering the king of Judah according to the words of God in verse 15.
This chapter has some other discoveries, too. Jeremiah gets help from an odd place in the person of Ebed-Melech (Ebed-Melek), an Ethiopian eunuch whose name means “Servant of the King.” The eunuch sought out the king on Jeremiah’s nehalf and eventually got Jeremiah out of the muddy cistern and into more acceptable surroundings in the courtyard of the prison but still imprisoned.
When he was at the Benjamin Gate, a sentry there named Irijah the son of Shelemiah, son of Hananiah, seized Jeremiah the prophet, saying, “You are deserting to the Chaldeans.” - Jeremiah 37:13 (ESV)
Jeremiah was imprisoned falsely due to false accusations.
It was All Based on a Lie
Jeremiah was falsely imprisoned because he was falsely accused of “going over to the Chaldeans” (NASB). It was a lie. Jeremiah even said so in his protest of being seized at the time, according to verse 14. It was all based on a lie.
It didn’t matter.
But Irijah would not listen to him and seized Jeremiah and brought him to the officials. And the officials were enraged at Jeremiah, and they beat him and imprisoned him in the house of Jonathan the secretary, for it had been made a prison. – Jeremiah 37:15 (ESV)
False Accusations with Brutal Treatment and Cruel Confinement
Jeremiah is seized, beaten, and imprisoned due to the belief that he was an ally of the Chaldeans. He spent “many days” in captivity at the house of Jonathan the scribe. He was there under false accusations and found himself appealing to King Zedekiah to not return to confinement in that same location or potentially die.
Jeremiah also said to King Zedekiah, “What wrong have I done to you or your servants or this people, that you have put me in prison?
Jeremiah 37:18 (ESV)
No matter what Jeremiah had done. He had not lied about the inevitable invasion of Jerusalem and Judah. He had been forthright and straightforward with the words that God had shared with him. Even when summoned by the king of Judah during his imprisonment, Jeremiah still dropped the truth on the king that he would be handed over to the king of Babylon. He even appealed to the king of Judah for some relief from the confinement at Jonathan’s house.
So King Zedekiah gave orders, and they committed Jeremiah to the court of the guard. And a loaf of bread was given him daily from the bakers’ street, until all the bread of the city was gone. So Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.
Jeremiah 37:21 (ESV)
Help to Hold Fast
The lies can still hold us in captivity when we have not strayed from the Word of God nor the will of God. We can find ourselves subjected to all kinds of persecution due to our obedience, but we must endure and remain steadfast.
We learn that confinement at Jonathan’s was going to kill Jeremiah, so he made his appeal to the king of Judah. Jeremiah made his appeal in the hopes of the king making things easier for him.
But it wasn’t enough to get him free.
Yet, we watch on as he endures being wrongfully imprisoned and remaining steadfast to God’s direction and orders.
Download the Bible study guide for this week and explore more of what Jeremiah endured and experienced as the Babylonian invasion raged on in Jerusalem.
Look at Jeremiah. His story does not end here. This is not the end for Jeremiah. This is just another leg in the journey for the weeping prophet.
“As it is written” is a phrase that appears in the Bible on 68 occurrences that appear in 33 different translations of the Bible, including KJV, ASV, MKJV, NASB, and HCSB. Matthew chapter 4 uses a different variation of the phrase in the NASB, for instance, but Jesus responds to the tempter repeatedly with a reference to what is written (vv. 4, 7, 10).
What we discover in Jeremiah chapter 36 is the importance of the written record. With all of the denial of what Jeremiah and other prophets were saying to God’s people, the written record would withstand the test of time and provide evidence of what was said over time.
As we embark on this prayer challenge to pray more day by day, we must keep the latter portion of this verse in mind.
“. . . be constant in prayer.”
Let us stay constant in prayer and consistent in our prayer life. Let this challenge serve as a means for you to learn more about prayer and your own prayer life as well as deepening your relationship with God through prayer. Join the challenge today!
The Jeremiah Journey Continues with Live @ Lunch Bible Study
We’ve been doing it chapter by chapter week by week. The plan is to continue doing it: chapter by chapter, week by week throughout 2021. It’s all 52 chapters of the Book of Jeremiah for all 52 weeks of the calendar year. It’s all about the weeping prophet and how he carried God’s message to God’s people despite their resistance and refusal to hear him openly. It’s all about getting a better understanding of what God’s Word says and what God’s Word has for you to learn and live out today.
Jeremiah chapter 34 is basically a 2-part chapter:
• Part1: The Warning to King Zedekiah of the Babylonian Invasion and the Results (vv. 1-7) • Part 2: The Relief of Debtors According to God’s Covenant (vv.8-22)
Be sure to download the Show Notes from Week 34 to get the full picture of the chapter’s discussion on the livestream this past episode.
Never take your obedience as the reason God blesses you; obedience is the outcome of being rightly related to God.
Oswald Chambers
A world cloud based on the words contained in chapter 35 of Jeremiah
The Old Testament gives a clear picture of the value of obedience in the Lord’s eyes. We see God using a lesson of stark contrast here in chapter 35 with Jeremiah. The Rechabites, descendants of Jonadab, refused to touch wine, but God instructed Jeremiah to offer them wine in the house of the Lord nonetheless.
We’ve all heard some portion of the Book of Psalms in one way or another. We might have heard a worship leader use a psalm for the call to worship to kick off Sunday worship. Songs have been lifted up from the choir loft countless times with the Psalms as their foundation. And numerous prayers and sermons have been lifted from the 150 psalms contained in the Bible. In essence, the Book of Psalms is an essential part of the church and its worship as well as the believer and his or her celebration of God’s love through prayer, poetry and praise.
"Prayer changes things, prayer changes things; if you believe, you shall receive, prayer changes things. . . " - Lyrics of "Prayer Changes Things" popularized by voices like Mahalia Jackson and the Georgia Mass Choir.
But as I prepare for the 30-Day Prayer Challenge coming up this September, I can’t help but reflect on the notion that prayer changes things.
“Change requires action.”
John C. Maxwell
Beyond simply expecting something to happen because you have prayed over it or on it, laying it out before the Lord, I wonder what comes along with that for you. For me, it usually paves the way for a changed outlook on my part. I am a firm believer that even if prayer doesn’t change the outcome, it will most definitely change the outlook of the one praying if it is sincere and genuine supplication and petition to God Almighty. That’s what I expect out of prayer at the bare minimum: a new way of looking at the situation that sent me to my knees in the first place.
Ask yourself: What actions do I need to add to my prayer life?
Do you need to pray more for others than yourself?
Do you need to begin to get comfortable praying with others?
Do you need to find a way to listen to God more than you speak?
Join the 30-Day Prayer Challenge
If any of these are part of what you desire to do within your prayer life, I invite you and implore you to join us this September in the 30-Day Prayer Challenge. Simply add your email via the sign-up form and receive the FREE September 2021 30-Day Prayer Challenge Calendar. In addition, you will receive weekly emails encouraging and equipping you for a stronger prayer life.
God Introduced the Concept as He Made His Covenant
1 At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. 2 This is the manner of remission: Every creditor shall cancel what he has loaned to his neighbor. He is not to collect anything from his neighbor or brother, because the LORD’s time of release has been proclaimed. 3 You may collect something from a foreigner, but you must forgive whatever your brother owes you. – Deuteronomy 15:1-3
4 There will be no poor among you, however, because the LORD will surely bless you in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, 5 if only you obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commandments I am giving you today. 6 When the LORD your God blesses you as He has promised, you will lend to many nations but borrow from none; you will rule over many nations but be ruled by none. – Deuteronomy 15:4-6
God Revisits the Concept in the Hopes of Renewing His Covenant
Thus says the LORD God of Israel, ‘I made a covenant with your forefathers in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, saying, At the end of seven years each of you shall set free his Hebrew brother who has been sold to you and has served you six years, you shall send him out free from you; but your forefathers did not obey Me or incline their ear to Me.
Therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You have not obeyed Me in proclaiming release each man to his brother and each man to his neighbor. Behold, I am proclaiming a release to you,’ declares the LORD, ‘to the sword, to the pestilence and to the famine; and I will make you a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth. I will give the men who have transgressed My covenant, who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts
Jeremiah 34:17-18 (NASB)
God says openly how He plans to deal with those who have not fulfilled the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they cut the calf in two and passed between its parts. He doesn’t paint a pretty picture of what will transpire. He makes it plain who He is talking about, too. He points out in verse 19: the officials of Judah, the officials of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf (ESV). He speaks plainly about what He aims to do in verses 20-21.
And I will give them into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives. Their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth. And Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials I will give into the hand of their enemies and into the hand of those who seek their lives, into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon which has withdrawn from you.
Jeremiah 34: 20-21 (ESV)
God’s dealings with the king and the officials are not simply in defense of the debtors. God’s dealing with their disobedience and dishonor of the covenant just like their forefathers. He shows that He will exercise His power with anger and fury in order to prove true to His own word, His covenant with His people.
God’s covenant called for debt relief and since it was not handled appropriately, God’s got an answer for that.
You know it’s a compound word [“prayer” + “full”] which translates as “full of prayer.” It means expressive in prayer; given to prayer; devout.
Let me ask it another way.
Are you in continuous communion,connection, and communication with God?
I can imagine that’s got your mental wheels spinning as you question yourself about your prayer life, but here’s something to address that. Get involved in the 2021 30-Day Prayer Challenge as we tackle the act of prayer throughout the month of September. If nothing else, you will definitely be able to say by the end of September this year that you learned more about your own prayer life and what God’s Word says about prayer. As E.M. Bounds famously said: “Prayer is humbling work.”
Take the 2021 30-Day Prayer Challenge this September. Simply subscribe here and receive the FREE September 2021 30-Day Prayer Challenge Calendar. Sign up for our new weekly e-newsletter as part of the 30-Day Prayer Challenge for September. Don’t forget: you’ve got to subscribe here to get the FREE 30-Day Prayer Challenge Calendar.
This week we looked at chapter 32 and Jerusalem Under Siege. We had a deep discussion on the “right of redemption” from Leviticus as exercised by Jeremiah to buy the field in Anathoth from Hamanell as well as Jeremiah’s prayer and God’s answer to him about the future of Israel and Judah. Be sure to download the show notes as a help to catch up on this episode and access resources mentioned during the livestream.
If I had to depend on somebody coming through with a promise, I am going to go with God.
People are ultimately and oftentimes fallible.
If I am going to stand on anything in my faith, it’s going to be on the promises of God.
People can stand up in church and pledge to give all they have to the building fund or they can sign up to volunteer to pass out food at the next food distribution, but let’s face reality. Sometimes the check never arrives for the building fund. Some folks sign up but don’t show up when it comes to service. That’s just how it goes with people sometimes.
I love when Isaiah says in Isaiah 2:22: “Stop trusting the power of humans. They are all going to die, so how can they help?” (CEV). That is true to life food for thought.
God’s Promise to David
We covered this already, but I have to go back and hare it again, so that you can see two things:
God’s Word offers confirmation upon confirmation of its contents being in synch across time periods.
God backs up His own promises Himself
God promised David that one from His lineage would serve on the throne of an everlasting kingdom. This is known as the Davidic Covenant. In Jeremiah, God refers to an “everlasting covenant” multiple times. These both are in conjunction, working together for the fulfilment of God’s promise to David His servant and to His people Judah and Israel.
Many will refer to Psalm 110 and 2 Samuel 7 as the root of the Davidic Covenant. God offers a branch of righteousness through the son of Jesse. Jesus questioned the Pharisees about it and its reference to the Son of David in Matthew chapter 22. But no matter how much time has transpired, God has not forgotten His promise to David. And we so in this chapter as God points out His promises about Judah and Israel.
For thus says the Lord: ‘David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel
God’s final words in chapter 33 are an example of Him not backing down on any of His promises:
I will never abandon the descendants of Jacob or David, my servant, or change the plan that David’s descendants will rule the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Instead, I will restore them to their land and have mercy on them. (v. 26, NLT)
If you look in this week’s Bible Discussion Study Guide, you find the word surety. That’s a word used in the King James Version. We don’t use it much nowadays However, we’re familiar with the concept. We would call it co-signing for someone in case they were unable to pay their debts. The Bible offers a strict warning against this in Proverbs 22:26, telling people not to act as “sureties for debts.”
God is able to serve as His own surety simply based upon His limitless power and ability. You can’t get that from man. He can’t give you that type of guarantee or assurance. Only God can offer to come through time and time again throughout the test of time.
Don’t ask anyone else. Check His track record. Look throughout the Bible and see it over and over again.
Don’t take anyone else’s word for it. Wasn’t He there for you? Didn’t He come through for you? When you didn’t have another soul to turn to, didn’t He do it for you?
Join us for another lively discussion on God’ Word, especially as we look at God backing up His promises in Jeremiah chapter 33.
The Bible can be viewed in multiple translations at the same time. You don’t have juggle with a stack of different versions of the Bible to conduct adequate and serious Bible study. In print, some publishers have developed a parallel Bible. These tend to be bulky and limited in their selection of translations as well as pricey. In many cases, it can be a cumbersome book to work with.
So what do I suggest?
View the Bible in multiple translations simultaneously online. Sites like Biblegateway.com or Bible.com, even Studylight.org and others offer an option for viewing the Bible in side-by-side parallel format. Watch this FREE video mini tutorial and see how easy it is to access the Bible in multiple translations online.
Some people might prefer to hold the Word in their hands might still want to explore the various parallel Bibles available in print. Here’s a link to a page with multiple parallel Bibles available on Amazon.
It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t scripted. It was just a little insight I was sharing based upon our discussion on what is a covenant.
I wasn’t trying to step on any toes. I wasn’t trying to offend anyone. My intention was to inform. I’m not judging anyone. I’m not condemning them either.
I am just not going to support a winged Greek goddess bearing a swoosh with my hard-earned money or the money that a local church might share with me as a guest minister in the pulpit, even the faithful believers who support my ministry with occasional free will gifts.
I just cannot do it with Nike.
What’s that about?
When I Discovered Who Nike Really Is
I was attending community college in San Diego in the late 90s and spending a lot of time at the library with my nose in all sorts of books and publications. One of my main research topics was world religions. While browsing through a book on world belief systems for empowerment, confidence and motivation, I discovered who Nike really is.
Nike: Greek Winged Goddess of Victory
Greek mythological goddess, child of one of the Titans
Symbols: wings, golden sandals, wreath
Known as: “the Winged Goddess”
Famous stone statue depicting Nike erected in ancient city of Ephesus
What God Says about Other Gods
You shall have no other gods before Me.
exodus 20:3 (NKJV)
Let me break this verse down in its context. it will make plenty of sense to you when you consider that this verse follows God introducing Himself: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.”
the Lord your God: He asserted Himself as their God, not as the God of their fathers as before with the burning bush to Moses on Mount Horeb and through Moses and Aaron in Egypt
who brought youout of the land of Egypt: He reminds them of His marvelous miracle at the Red Sea that allowed them to escape to freedom but also wiped out the mightiest army on the face of the earth at the time
You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me
Exodus 20:5 (ESV)
God’s a jealous God. That says enough right there if we just stop where it says: “a jealous God.” Based upon this warning alone, it would seem only just to not try and play games with God in this regard.
for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God
Exodus 34:14 (NKJV)
The connection to covenants comes in Exodus 34 as God makes a covenant with the children of Israel prior to driving out the inhabitants of the Promised Land. That’s where it is right there. That’s how it fits. God, “whose name is Jealous,” wants you all to Himself and that covenant makes it binding. No other gods have any place in that equation.
Determined Not to Entangle Myself with Anything Like That
Man, I was floored. I think I had tennis for P.E. coming up and I had Nike all over me, including shoes, socks, shorts, and maybe even the shirt. I felt some kind of way about it, even tried to rationalize it. That was all up until I read a little deeper and understood a little bit more about Nike’s influence in historic cities like Ephesus, a city I was familiar with from reading and studying the Bible. Finally, I just made a decision after some consideration, prayer, and quiet time.
I just couldn’t just do it with Nike anymore.
Watch the discussion on other gods as I share about Nike in last week’s livestream
Sporting But Not Supporting
Like I said before, I might own some Nike items leftover from Father’s Day and birthday gifts, even stuff from the 90s when I didn’t know any better. I think it all might amount to 4 or 5 pairs of socks, a sweatsuit, a pair of sweatpants, and maybe 2 pairs of Nike shorts. No Nike shoes. No Jordans either.
You might catch me working out or playing basketball in the Nike shorts. Occasionally, you’ll see me in the sweatsuit or sweatpants. And those socks tend to make their rounds when I wear my steel-toe boots because of their thickness (You know those socks they get you for father’s Day like an afterthought while they’re shopping in Kohl’s or JC Penney.) At worst, you’ll spot me on the Nike Run app but once Strava or Garmin, even Samsung Health, get it together a little better then I am game to switch over whether I lose followers in the community or not.
