Call to Commitment

 

 

Chapter 27

  

The Yokes and bonds

      1.      In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 

       2.      "Thus says the LORD to me: 'Make for yourselves bonds and yokes, and put them on your neck,

       3.      and send them to the king of Edom, the king of Moab, the king of the Ammonites, the king of Tyre, and the king of Sidon, by the hand of the messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah. 

 4.      And command them to say to their masters, "Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel—thus you shall say to your masters: 

 You may remember that I began chapter 24, commenting on the need of the prophet to see clearly and feel deeply the sense of his message, before bringing it to the people. The first verse of the chapter we will now study, states that Jeremiah received this word from the Lord at the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim. Verse 3 mentions messengers, who come from other countries, to King Zedekiah, an event which occurred several years later.

 Some commentators, even some versions of the Bible, such as the English Standard, think that perhaps a scribe made a mistake, writing Jehoiakim instead of Zedekiah, in verse one. I think that the very last thing that we should consider, in order to solve a difficult passage, is that a mistake could have been made in the inspired word. Others say that Jeremiah made the yokes at the time of the first king and delivered them to the messengers later in the reign of Zedekiah. I prefer to apply again the principle of chapter 24… that the prophet needed first to digest the prophecy, concerning yielding to Nebuchadnezzar’s rule, over a long period of time. Calvin, also, sees no mistake in the transcription, but comments: “It was thus long deposited in the prophet’s bosom, in order that by it he might be supported under trials in his prophetic career in the interim.” Those are two possible explanations for God speaking His word to Jeremiah long before he delivered it to the people involved.

 Let the difference in verse 1 and verse 3 be for whatever reason God determined that it should be, we will go on to the heart of the message. Once again Jeremiah is to symbolize his prophecy and this time the Lord instructs him to make yokes and bonds. OF course, a yoke was put over the necks of two oxen, to unite them as they worked together and to hitch them to an object, which they would pull. The bonds simply held the yoke together, the top part to the bottom. Jeremiah is to make one for himself to personally exemplify the future bondage to the emperor of Babylon. Then he is to make others and have them ready to give to five ambassadors from Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre and Sidon to carry back to their kings, while Jeremiah will bear the yoke in Jerusalem.

 

 The dignitaries are coming to Jerusalem from the neighboring nations, two from the north and three from the east, to form an alliance to defend themselves against Nebuchadnezzar (3). Jeremiah is again in an unpopular position, and his word from God is an insult, directly contrary to their intentions. The prophet is an ambassador from the Kingdom of God and conveys the will and purpose of his Lord. His is an immensely prestigious office, far outranking that of the visiting ambassadors and the host king in Jerusalem. The prophet is totally within his sphere of delegated power. A world, without the fear of God, which refuses to recognize His authority, is not capable of seeing the superiority of the prophet’s mission.

 In 2 Corinthians 5:20, Paul affirms, “We are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.” The ambassador speaks for his ruling authority on behalf of his country, without expressing his own personal desires or opinions. In that way, he receives complete authorization from his government. It is as though the ruler himself speaks, but notice how Paul’s involvement goes beyond a simple message. It touches his emotions and passions… he pleads, he implores!

 Paul further claimed that he was “an ambassador in chains” (Eph.6:20), a totally paradoxical expression. A prisoner is below the dignity of a common citizen, forfeiting all his rights and privileges. An ambassador receives the highest support of his government, in order to carry out its mission. In Paul, the world sees a prisoner; God sees an ambassador.

 Carrying their yokes, Jeremiah sends these representatives away, with a totally different purpose than that, for which they came. God has absolute right to dictate His will on these kings. He can interfere with their intentions and insist that they submit to His.  Jeremiah gives them a prophetic message to relay to their kings. God gives His word to the kings, not the word of the king pf Judah, but the God of Israel, the God of armies, with unequaled military force behind His word (4).

 

Message to heathen nations

 5.      'I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are on the ground, by My great power and by My outstretched arm, and have given it to whom it seemed proper to Me. 

 6.      And now I have given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant; and the beasts of the field I have also given him to serve him. 

 7.      So all nations shall serve him and his son and his son's son, until the time of his land comes; and then many nations and great kings shall make him serve them. 

 8.      And it shall be, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation I will punish,' says the LORD, 'with the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand. 

 9.      Therefore do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers, or your sorcerers, who speak to you, saying, "You shall not serve the king of Babylon." 

 10.  For they prophesy a lie to you, to remove you far from your land; and I will drive you out, and you will perish. 

 11.  But the nations that bring their necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let them remain in their own land,' says the LORD, 'and they shall till it and dwell in it.' " ' " 

 Whether or not the ambassadors carry out the divine purpose, the Scriptures do not say. I can only suggest that the Lord of Lords has ways and means, in order that people act, contrary to their intentions. God’s message is sent and is in force, regardless of how men respond to it. In gospel times, those who reject Christ will stand in judgment on the basis of His word. Jesus said, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him – the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day” (Jn.12:48).

 We will study His unwavering message to the five kings. The Lord approaches them as their Creator. By His rights as Creator, they belong to Him and are formed for His will and pleasure. Twenty-four elders fall down before Him and express heaven’s truth: “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things and by Your will they exist and were created” (Rv.4:11).

 In His dealings with Nebuchadnezzar, He will involve, not only every man, but also animals, domestic and wild. His omnipotent power and outstretched arm have brought His creation into being. They are His to give to whomever He wills (5), and it is His will and purpose, at that time in history, to put everything into Nebuchadnezzar’s hand. The great emperor is only a servant of God, limited to His purposes. Instead of the individual countries ruling independently, they will all come under Babylon’s rule.

 Concerning giving the beasts to the emperor (6), Jamieson, Faucett, Brown comments: “Not merely the horses to carry his Chaldean soldiers, and oxen to draw his provisions, not merely the deserts, mountains, and woods, the haunts of wild beasts, implying his unlimited extent of empire; but the beasts themselves by a mysterious instinct of nature.” The beasts tend to respond better than men to God’s ownership: “The ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s crib; but Israel does not know, My people do not consider” (Is.1:3).

 Babylon’s rulership over the nations will endure for three generations. He, Who knows all things and sovereignly rules over the affairs of men by His perfect wisdom, sees that it is necessary at this time. Remember how God raised up the Egyptian Empire and sent Joseph there to save the world from starvation. But after His purpose is achieved, the God who gave Babylon men and beasts, will bring judgment upon them, making them a nation of slaves (7). At the time of Jeremiah’s prophecies, it was in the plan of the Lord that the nations would submit and come under the yoke of Babylon. Those who would resist in independent obstinance would be punished. The punishment would far exceed the price of the loss of their independence. It would come by an awful siege, followed by a merciless attack, ending in famine and disease, until they are destroyed (8).

 To avoid the purpose of the Lord, the enemy enters with tremendous deception, using the religious world as his agents. Remember, God, as their Creator, is addressing the pagan world currently, who not only have false prophets, but also diviners, dreamers, soothsayers and sorcerers. The spiritual world controls the physical world and evil powers will move men to oppose God. Their spiritual leaders are preaching resistance. The Lord says submit to the King of Babylon; they say do not serve him. Had He said, do not serve him, they would say the opposite. That is the nature of the kingdom of darkness and that is the nature of the world that serves it (9).

 The pagan world has had false religion and its proponents over centuries, but it is paramount for their salvation that they turn from it. It is extremely difficult for them to do so, because it has become deeply engrained in their lives and culture. They fear its loss. Their family, friends and neighbors are loyal followers. For that reason, some preachers will not insist that people, who search for salvation, should repent and remove their religion from their existence. They must! Hear the prophet: “Do not listen to your prophets… they prophesy a lie to you”. The result, in the end, is that the loss will be many times greater, than the loss of their religion. Jesus was faithful as a friend to His disciples, when they faced difficult decisions. He said, “My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body… but I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell” (Lk.12:4,5). . God Himself will bring down condemnation upon them and “you will perish” (10).

 In judgment, God remembers mercy; it is in His nature and He will lighten the burden, so people will be able to bear it. In the case that we are studying, to submit to the king of Babylon is to submit to the will of God. He promises the pagan nations, that if they will submit, He will not remove them from their land. They will keep their homes, farms, animals and their citizenship (11). 

 

Message to the king, the priests and the people of Judah

 12.  I also spoke to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, "Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live! 

 13.  Why will you die, you and your people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD has spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? 

 14.  Therefore do not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, 'You shall not serve the king of Babylon,' for they prophesy a lie to you; 

 15.  for I have not sent them," says the LORD, "yet they prophesy a lie in My name, that I may drive you out, and that you may perish, you and the prophets who prophesy to you." 

 16.  Also I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying, "Thus says the LORD: 'Do not listen to the words of your prophets who prophesy to you, saying, "Behold, the vessels of the LORD's house will now shortly be brought back from Babylon"; for they prophesy a lie to you. 

 17.    Do not listen to them; serve the king of Babylon, and live! Why should this city be laid waste? 

 Jeremiah turns to the local king of Judah, Zedekiah, with a similar message, using the same symbol of a yoke. He instructs him to submit peaceably to the Babylonian emperor or there will be severe consequences. As he warned the five foreign kings against their religious leaders, so he also warns Zedekiah not to listen to the false prophets of Jerusalem. Deception and error have invaded the legitimate religion of the Jews. 

I want to focus for a moment on the fact that the message of the prophet is one of life (12). As God´s servant that is what can be expected from him. The eternal Son of God stepped down onto earth and the apostle wrote: “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men” (Jn.1:4). He came to give life, new life through a new birth, and that life brought the light of truth from heaven to men: “Unless a man is born again (from above), he cannot see the kingdom of God (Jn.3:3).  As a baby is born into the world and begins to see its light, so the person, who is born from above, begins to see the light of the Kingdom of God. 

It is difficult for a king to give up the sovereignty of his nation, but in order to save the lives of his people, it must be done. To obey God in this issue, will not only save them physically, but will also benefit their spiritual lives, because in obedience they can continue to live in their land under His blessing. ¨Why will you die?” is as reasonable a question that anyone can ask and for men to choose death over life, can only be attributed to Satanic deception (13). It is the lie that the false prophets seek to promote.

 The craftiest wile of the enemy is to induce the false prophets to lie in God’s name. I wonder, how many pastors and priests are doing it Sunday after Sunday?  The most effective deception is done by prophets, who believe what they are saying. They think that they have heard from the Lord, but they are truly under Satanic influence. Those who want to escape perdition, must turn from the false prophets, no matter how attractive their message seems (14).

 No matter how sincerely they speak and how genuinely they think that they are helping their listeners, the aim of the message is that the Lord, because He is righteous, will turn against His disobedient people. It is from the devil and not from God,. He will fulfill His word, by which He has warned them, drive them out of their land, so that they will be lost. Not only the listeners, but their prophets will perish (15).   Learn the ways of the enemy and the “reward”, that he gives to his faithful servants!

 How Jeremiah pleads! He has truly heard from God and is certain of His righteous punishment for disobedience (17). He suffers, as he sees the great deception overwhelming the people, as a flood covering the land. He sees the great city, void of its inhabitants, its walls torn down and its costly, historic temple ablaze. They are listening to the prophets; they are accepting the lies; they are drinking the wine of God’s wrath.

 

Pray for that which remains

 18.  But if they are prophets, and if the word of the LORD is with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, do not go to Babylon.' 

 19.  "For thus says the LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, concerning the Sea, concerning the carts, and concerning the remainder of the vessels that remain in this city, 

 20.  which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take, when he carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem— 

 21.  yes, thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah and of Jerusalem: 

 22.   'They shall be carried to Babylon, and there they shall be until the day that I visit them,' says the LORD. 'Then I will bring them up and restore them to this place.' " 

 The people have heard Jeremiah prophesy and have already seen his word come to pass. Already Nebuchadnezzar has come and taken their king, his mother and many nobles to Babylon. He has already raided the temple of many treasures. One would think that the people would awaken to the truth, admit their mistake and disobedience, and repent. But no, they find a way to continue blindly on the path to destruction. Instead of learning from the loss that they have already experienced, admit their error, and save that which remains, their prophets make them think that it will shortly be recovered and that their king will return.

 Oh people, let us learn the wickedness of the fallen human heart. It depresses me to think about it, but we must think about it. With the knowledge of our own potential for error, we will cast ourselves upon the Lord and trust in Him and His salvation.

 Stand up, stand up for Jesus,

Stand in His strength alone;

The arm of flesh will fail you,

You dare not trust your own.

 Having this conviction, we will fall to our knees in intercession for the hopeless state of those led by a deceptive heart. Knowing the truth about human nature, we will go out under the anointing of the only One who alone can convict of sin, righteousness, and judgment. In His power we will compel the lost to hear the Word of God and he saved.

 Today, when as never before, we need to go out into the world, endued with power from on high, many influential ministers are denying a post conversion baptism in the Holy Spirit. They are convincing many that supernatural gifts of the Spirit have ceased. What pernicious lies Christians are believing! The devil is gloating over his victory in the minds of believers and mocking a powerless Christianity!

 Nebuchadnezzar will not return, what he has taken, as the false prophets have affirmed, but will come for more. That’s the word of the Lord! That which is lost, is lost. If there is any truth at all in the hearts of the prophets, they should pray that what remains in the temple, in the king´s house and what is in Jerusalem, in general, will not go to Babylon (18).  

 Nevertheless, God is omniscient and knows beforehand that the prophets will not recognize the truth and admit that they prophesied falsely.  Even though they are unwilling to retract their errors, it would be a small step towards humbling themselves, if they would at least intercede for the treasures that remain in the Jews’ possession. No, they will not bend in the slightest manner, they are committed to believing that Nebuchadnezzar will return their goods and their king.

 Consequently, they will lose everything and God itemizes their loss. He names the great pillars in front of the temple, the brazen sea and the 10 carts, that the priests used for purification, vessels and utensils, not only in the temple, but in the king’s house and throughout Jerusalem. (19). What the emperor did not take, on the first invasion of Jerusalem, including the outstanding people and their national treasures (20), he will carry to Babylon in the upcoming raid (21).

  It will be in your interest to look ahead to the end of this book and read of Babylon’s final siege against Jerusalem and of Zedekiah’s horrible defeat, because Jeremiah records it. The great pillars are mentioned, the carts and the bronze sea, as well, and all that the Lord foretold, was taken. Of course, we will eventually study chapter 52.

 Verse 22 shows us a fact, which holds true throughout the book of Jeremiah. Judah’s defeat is brutal and devastating, but it is never absolute and final. The Jews will recover and be restored to their Promised Land. The Lord will come for them in Babylon: “Then I will bring them up and restore them to this place.”  Their history continues from that point until in 70 A.D., when they suffer another awful setback, this time at the hand of the Roman Empire. They are driven from their land again, and scattered throughout the earth.

 The apostle Paul states emphatically, “God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew.” He did not in Jeremiah’s time, He did not in 70 A.D., and He never will “for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable” (Ro.11:2 & 29). Around the beginning of the 20^th Century, He began to draw them back to Palestine. Then, for the first time since the days of the prophet Ezekiel, some 2,500 years before, Israel once again became a sovereign nation on May 14, 1948. Paul continues, comparing Israel to an olive tree: “God is able to graft them in again… These, who are natural branches, will be grafted into their own olive tree… And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: The deliverer will come out of Zion, and He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob” (Ro.11:23, 24, 26, 27). The apostle is also a prophet and tells of a glorious future, still to come, for Israel.