By: Dr. Dale Weckbacher
Text: Jeremiah
49:1-22
Proverbs
16:18
Pride
goes before destruction,
and a haughty spirit before a fall.
(ESV)
When we think of pride, we
often think of one having pride in their accomplishments such as a promotion on
their job, graduating from school, or even reaching a milestone like a 50th
wedding anniversary. Pride in such accomplishments can be beneficial for it
gives one a sense of accomplishment but when a haughty spirit accompanies pride,
it becomes a destructive pride leading to a fall (Proverbs
16:18). Nations can also fall prey to this destructive pride, something
both Ammon and Edom fell prey to.
The passage in Jeremiah
49:1-22 continues the series of judgments on the nations contained in the
book of Jeremiah. This passage records the prophecies of judgment against Ammon
and Edom. Both Ammon and Edom are part of modern-day Jordan along with Moab. While
the judgments against Ammon and Edom differ, there is a common reason for God
pronouncing judgment on them, pride.
1)
Ammon (Jeremiah
49:1-6) – The pronouncement of judgment against Ammon begins with the Lord
asking why Milcom dispossessed Gad and settled in their cities (Jeremiah
49:1). The judgment pronounced against Ammon turns the tables on Ammon as
Israel dispossesses those that dispossessed them, sending them into exile (Jeremiah
49:2-3). Ammon is guilty of boasting of their valleys and trusting in their
treasures with a pronouncement of judgment bringing terror from the nations
surrounding them (Jeremiah
49:4-5). However, the judgment does come with mercy from God with God
restoring the fortunes of the Ammonites (Jeremiah
49:6).
2)
Edom (Jeremiah
49:7-22) – The judgment against Edom begins with the Lord asking if wisdom
and counsel have disappeared from Teman (Jeremiah
49:7). So devastating will be the destruction of Edom that God strips the
nation bare, with any hiding places uncovered. Only the fatherless children are
kept alive with the widows urged to trust in the Lord (Jeremiah
49:8-11). Since people who did not deserve to drink the cup of wrath from
God must drink it, Edom has no hope of escaping the cup of God’s wrath (Jeremiah
49:12-13). The judgment from God will come at the hands of an envoy of
nations God gathers to attack them (Jeremiah
49:14-15). Edom has brought horror to many nations with this creating
deceptive pride in the heart of Edom offering no protection from the clefts of
the rock and high places (Jeremiah
49:16). The destruction of Edom will be complete, resembling the
destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah with the hearts of their warriors resembling
a woman in her birth pains (Jeremiah
49:17-22).
The judgment against
Ammon is due to their boasting of their valleys and trusting in their treasures
(Jeremiah
49:4). For Edom it is pride in their hearts because of the horror they have
inspired among the nations. They believe hiding in the clefts of the rock and
holding the heights of the hill are sufficient to provide protection, but the
Lord intends to bring them down from there (Jeremiah
49:16). For both nations, the problem involves pride. Ammon is prideful of
their valleys and treasures and Edom is prideful of their military strength and
the strength of their defenses. God’s judgment has a purpose, bringing down the
pride of Ammon and Edom. However, God does extend mercy to both nations. For
Ammon, it is the promise of the restoration of their wealth (Jeremiah
49:6). For Edom it is God protecting their fatherless children and widows (Jeremiah
49:11).
Proverbs
16:18 reminds us of the danger of pride. Just as pride led to the fall of
Ammon and Edom, pride can lead to our fall. When confronting Jesus, a rich
ruler asked Jesus what he had to do to inherit eternal life (Luke
18:18). Jesus answers the question with a question, asking the ruler why he
says He is good since only God is good (Luke
18:19). Of course since Jesus is God, He is good, but Jesus does not enter
into a theological discussion of His deity. Instead, he cites the commandments
against adultery, murder, stealing, lying, and dishonoring one's parents to
which the ruler tells Jesus he has kept since his youth (Luke
18:20-21). Jesus then tells him he lacks one thing, he must sell all he has
and give to the poor to have treasure in heaven, to which the man turned and
walked away for he was wealthy with a haughty pride about his wealth (Luke
18:22-23). The issue keeping this ruler from inheriting eternal life was
his pride in his wealth and his unwillingness to trust in God by storing
treasure in heaven. His heart was in his wealth and not with God (Matthew
6:21).
We should regularly
search our hearts to determine what we treasure. If it is not God, we must
surrender it to God to rid ourselves of destructive pride and place our trust
in God. This begins with one surrendering his or her life to Christ, making Him
their savior. If you are reading this and have not done so, please pray with me
now to ask Jesus to be your Savior,
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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