Week 32
Jeremiah 26 and Habakkuk
During the reign of Jehoiakim, the Lord sends Jeremiah to the temple in Jerusalem to preach a message of judgement towards Judah, and to plea with the leaders and the people to repent, and return to God. The priests appeal to the king’s princes, arguing that Jeremiah should be put to death for speaking against the nation. Jeremiah tells them to do as they please, but they will be guilty of shedding innocent blood before God if they kill him. Ultimately, Jeremiah is not executed, but Jehoiakim does arrest and kill another prophet of God named Urijah.
The book of Habakkuk is short, and little is known about this prophet. It is generally accepted that he was a priest, since the 3rd chapter is a prayer of Habakkuk, which is written after the likeness of a psalm of David, and with instructions to be sung with stringed instruments. Habakkuk probably lived as a contemporary of Jeremiah, as the message of God is one of imminent judgement against Judah, which will be fulfilled when Nebuchadnezzar destroys Jerusalem in around 587 BC.
In chapter 1 Habakkuk is complaining to the Lord about the unchecked wickedness among the leaders and people in Judah. God responds by telling him that He is raising up the Chaldeans (Babylon) to bring judgement upon Judah. The prophet is dismayed, and asks why God would use an even wickeder nation to judge His people, but the Lord tells him that every proud and evil man will suffer His judgement. This is called out in chapter 2.
In Habakkuk 2:4 we also have a foundational declaration by God, that “the just shall live by faith”, which is greatly expounded on by the New Testament apostles, including Paul and the writer of Hebrews.
Chapter 3 is a prayer of praise and trust towards God, and Habakkuk says that no matter how bad things get, the Lord will always be trustworthy and faithful.
Jeremiah 46-47 and 2 Kings 24:1-4,7 and 2 Chronicles 36:6-7 and Jeremiah 25 and 35
The Lord speaks through Jeremiah of the destruction of the Egyptian army that is led by Pharaoh Necho, which happened in 605 BC when Nebuchadnezzar defeated them at Carchemish. He also prophesies of the destruction of the Philistines in Jeremiah 47, which was accomplished by Pharaoah Necho on his march from Egypt to Babylon, along the coasts of Judah.
In Jeremiah 25 the Lord speaks through the prophet around the same time that Nebuchadnezzar defeated Pharaoh Necho, prophesying that Nebuchadnezzar was going to eventually come up against Judah, destroy the city and many people, and take the remainder of the people as slaves back to Babylon. Jeremiah also wrote that this Babylonian captivity would last for 70 years, and then God would judge Babylon and return His people to Jerusalem and the land of Israel. It is this prophecy of Jeremiah that Daniel will read at the end of the 70 years of captivity (Daniel 9), and pray that the Lord bring it to pass. In Jeremiah 25 the Lord shifts His focus in the latter half of this chapter, speaking of His plans to judge all the nations of the world that have come against His people, speaking of the time when Jesus will come to judge the earth at the end of the great tribulation.
In Jeremiah 35 the Lord commands Jeremiah to call the family of the Rechabites, and sets them up as an example of the type of behavior that He was looking for by the rest of His people in Judah. For generations the Rechabites had obeyed the orders of their forefather Jonadab, yet the majority of people in Judah refused to obey the commands of God. The Lord blesses the Rechabites, and again calls for Judah and the leaders to turn to Him in repentance, before He brings about their destruction.
Jeremiah 36, 45, and 48
Again, around the same time that Pharaoh Necho is defeated by Nebuchadnezzar at Carchemish, the Lord speaks another word to Jeremiah, telling him to write down all He had previously spoken to him on a scroll. Jeremiah calls his disciples Baruch to do this, and then instructs him to go into the temple and read it aloud when there are many people there for a holy day of fast to God. The next year such a fast occurs, and Baruch goes and reads the scroll, with many of the kings servants astonished that he would say such things. They take the scroll to king Jehoiakim, who hears a few lines before cutting it up and throwing it into the fire. Baruch and Jeremiah go into hiding, as the king issues an order for their arrest.
In chapter 45 the Lord speaks through Jeremiah to Baruch, telling him that God will protect his life in the future, even though he will not realize wealth or position.
In chapter 48 the Lord speaks a prophecy of judgement against the nation of Moab, who were persistent enemies of Israel, and the descendants of Moab, the son of Lot by his eldest daughter (Genesis 19). Yet, at the end God promises to restore Moab, probably for Abraham’s sake.
Jeremiah 49:1-33 and Daniel 1-2
In Jeremiah 49:1-33 the Lord speaks against Ammon, who were the descendants of Lot’s second son, and also promises to restore them in the end. Then He prophesies destruction on Edom (the descendants of Esau), on Syria, and also Hazor. All of these nations will be cast down when Nebuchadnezzar invades the region and also destroys Jerusalem, and takes the survivors away as slaves to Babylon.
In Daniel 1 and 2 we are introduced to him and his 3 friends, who were all taken as captives to Babylon during the reign of Jehoiakim, which was about 8-9 years before Nebuchadnezzar goes back and completely destroys Jerusalem. Daniel, Hananiah, Azariah, and Meshiel (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego) were young men, who were probably among the royal families in Judah, who Nebuchadnezzar would have taken hostage to prompt Jehoiakim to behave himself.
Daniel and his friends are chosen to be trained and educated in Babylon, and God gives them good favor with their master, and blesses them for being faithful to Him in all that they do.
God gives king Nebuchadnezzar a dream, and none of the wise men and sorcerers in Babylon could tell him the dream, or the interpretation. Yet God told Daniel what the dream was, and what the interpretation was, which provided a birds eye view of history. The Babylonians would be succeeded by the Medes and Persians, who would be conquered by the Greeks (Alexander), who would then be conquered by the Romans. A remnant of the Roman empire would eventually be completely destroyed by God, and Jesus will reign thereafter on the earth.
Nebuchadnezzar promotes Daniel to very high office in his kingdom, along with the other 3 Hebrew friends of Daniel, and Daniel will have position and influence even until the days of Cyrus, more than 70 years later.
Jeremiah 22:18-30 and 2 Kings 24:5-20 and 2 Chronicles 36:8-12 and Jeremiah 37:1-2, 52:1-3, and 24 and 29
When Jehoiakim dies, his son Jeconiah reigns for just 3 months and 10 days, until Nebuchadnezzar comes and besieges Jerusalem, takes him captive, and sets up his uncle as his vassal, and renames him as Zedekiah. Zedekiah would hold that position in Jerusalem for 11 years, but he was an evil king, and ends up rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar. Ultimately, Nebuchadnezzar comes back (again) and completely destroys Jerusalem and the temple, killing Zedekiah’s sons before his eyes, and then putting out his eyes and taking him back to Babylon in chains. Only a small number of Jews will remain in Israel, with some also hiding in Egypt.
In Jeremiah 29 the prophet sends a letter to the exiles in Babylon, telling them that the Lord will bless them in their captivity. He tells them to build houses and raise families in exile, and to actually seek the welfare and good of Babylon during the time God will have them living in Babylonian captivity. He says “don’t listen to the false prophets among you, who say this is just a short thing”, as the Lord will only visit to restore them to Jerusalem after 70 years have passed in captivity. Conversely, the Lord promises to utterly destroy the pretenders who did not go into captivity, and stayed back in Israel and Egypt, as well as the false prophets who lead the exiles astray.
Jeremiah 27-28, and 23
The word of the Lord speaks against all of the false prophets in the land, who claim that they declared the words of God, but who are lying to all the people. Jeremiah sends letters to the kings of all the surrounding nations, telling them willingly submit to Nebuchadnezzar, and ignore the words of their false prophets who say that they will prevail against him. The Lord promises to bless each of those nations that will submit to Nebuchadnezzar.
There was a false prophet in Jerusalem named Hananiah, who claimed that the Lord told him that Nebuchadnezzar’s authority and rule will be broken after 2 years, however Jeremiah confronted him with the true word of God. The Lord told Hananiah that he had not be sent from Him, and that because of his lies he would die that same year (which he did 2 months later).
In Jeremiah 23 the Lord speaks against all of the false prophets and shepherds in Judah, but promises that in the last days He will raise up The righteous Branch, Who will be a descendant of David, and reign as king with justice and righteousness.
Jeremiah 50-51
These two chapters in Jeremiah foretell the future destruction of Babylon, which we see in scripture completely fulfilled in Revelation chapters 17-18, and which is also prophesied in two chapters in Isaiah 13-14.
Babylon is first mentioned in Genesis 10:10, which was founded on the plain of Shinar in the days of Nimrod. With the exception of Jerusalem, there is no other city mentioned more often in the Bible than Babylon, and it is clearly presented throughout as the earthly Capitol of satan’s kingdom.
Throughout world history, the city of Babylon has been conquered and overthrown many times, however it has never been destroyed in the ways that both Jeremiah and Isaiah described, which is compared to the apocalyptic annihilation of Sodom and Gomorrah, where no one will ever live again. The ruins of Babylon still exist about 50 miles south of Bagdad, in Iraq, and it has the residence of small desert tribes even today.
Whether the destruction of Babylon in Revelation 17-18 is literally speaking of the city in Iraq, or more specifically focused on the spiritual kingdom of satan is a matter of theological debate, however all of these prophecies combined make it clear that God is going to permanently judge it’s ruler, and it will never rise again.