By: Dr. Dale Weckbacher
Text: Jeremiah
43:1-13
Jeremiah 43:5-7
But Johanan the son of
Kareah and all the commanders of the forces took all the remnant of Judah who
had returned to live in the land of Judah from all the nations to which they
had been driven— 6 the men, the women, the children, the princesses, and every
person whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son
of Ahikam, son of Shaphan; also Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch the son of
Neriah. 7 And they came into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice
of the Lord. And they arrived at Tahpanhes.
(ESV)
The people remaining in
Judah had security under the leadership of Gedaliah but with his murder, found
that security has gone (Jeremiah
40:9-12; 41:1-3). Those in Judah initially sought the Lord’s direction
through Jeremiah and were advised not to return to Egypt (Jeremiah
42). However, simply hearing from the Lord is useless without seeking
interpretation of the Word through the Holy Spirit and making application of
the Word to our lives. Sadly, those in Judah failed to properly interpret the
Word coming from Jeremiah and failed to make application of the Word to their
lives.
After receiving the
warning from the Lord through Jeremiah, Azariah, Johanan, and all the insolent
men accuse Jeremiah of lying and not speaking the words given to him by the
Lord (Jeremiah
43:1-3). Such false accusations were not surprising to Jeremiah because his
entire ministry has been one of trying to convince Israel and Judah to repent
and turn back to the Lord to avoid exile that was rejected (Jeremiah
6:19; 15:6). After making these false accusations, Johanan and the
commanders of the forces then disobey the Word of the Lord and go to Egypt,
arriving at Tahpanhes (Jeremiah
43:4-7).
Once
the people are in Egypt, Jeremiah receives a Word from the Lord in Tahpanhes (Jeremiah
43:8). The Lord orders Jeremiah to take large stones with his hands and
hide them in the mortar of the pavement in front of Pharoah’s palace in Tahpanhes
in sight of the men of Judah (Jeremiah
43:9). Jeremiah then tells the men of Judah that Nebuchadnezzar, the Lord’s
servant, will set his throne upon the stones he has just hidden and spread a
royal canopy over them (Jeremiah
43:10). Nebuchadnezzar shall come in and strike the land of Egypt, causing
those in the land to suffer pestilence, captivity, and the sword (Jeremiah
43:11). Nebuchadnezzar shall burn the temples of the gods of Egypt and
clean the land of Egypt like a shepherd cleans his cloak, and then go away in
peace (Jeremiah
43:12). Nebuchadnezzar shall also break the obelisks of Heliopolis along
with burning the temples of the gods of Egypt (Jeremiah
43:13). The people of Judah seeking escape from Babylonian captivity will suffer
captivity in Egypt but without the safety promised by God to those going to
Babylon (Jeremiah
24).
Decisions have
consequences which in this case are destruction for those choosing to go to
Egypt instead of obedience to the Lord according to the Word of the Lord coming
from Jeremiah. It is puzzling that these people would ask Jeremiah to inquire
of the Lord on their behalf (Jeremiah
42:1-6) and then reject what they hear from the Lord (Jeremiah
43:1-2). They even went so far as to accuse Jeremiah of lying to them
because he wanted them destroyed (Jeremiah
43:3). Every individual has free will with God allowing them to make
decisions but along with this right to make decisions comes the consequences of
these decisions. After following through on the decision to go to Egypt, the people
in Judah receive a warning from the Lord through Jeremiah that tells them the
king of Babylon that they are running from will conquer Egypt (Jeremiah
43:8-13). What the people of Judah feared was destruction by the king of
Babylon that will come upon them in Egypt, something they could have escaped by
obeying the Lord and remaining in Judah.
Our decisions also have
consequences and why it is wise for one to seek Godly counsel before making any
major decision. It is also crucial to prepare through the study of the Word of
God and praying continually so we can keep our head or Godly perspective in all
situations, endure hardship, and do the Lord’s work (Ephesians
6:18; 2 Timothy 4:1-8). It is also crucial to spend time regularly with
other believers for this is where we will find wise counsel when we need it.
The main application we must make in our lives is to lose conformity to the
world’s way of thinking and allow the Word of God, time spent with God in
prayer, and time with other believers to transform our thinking (Romans
12:2).
If you are reading this
and have never made Jesus the Lord of your life, I invite you to do so now by
praying with me,
Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans
3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans
6:23). I ask you to forgive me of my
sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1
John 1:9). I believe you died, spent
three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord
of my life.
May God Challenge and
bless everyone reading this post.
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