Good Morning, Siblings!
Today’s readings are Jeremiah 14-17
Click here to read today’s passages on BibleGateway.
Special thanks to my pinch hitter, Debbie Ingle, for filling in for me today.
Debbie’s Rabbit Trails
Hello Front Porch Family! What a privilege it is to be sharing a few notes with you about Jeremiah. If you are feeling a little anxious about the prophetic books, I understand. I remember the first time I read the bible….they scared me to death. They were always the place I stopped on every earlier attempt. The time I finally made it through, I made a commitment to The Father. I told Him that I was gonna read, and that I would leave the understanding part to Him. He honored that prayer, and I read the bible cover to cover that year. Did I understand everything? Absolutely not! But, I understood more than I thought I would. And…that is still my prayer. Every year when I re-read, He shows me a little more. There is still so much to learn! So, do not be afraid. Just read and pray for His guidance to help you understand what He has for you THIS time through. I promise, there will still be something left to learn next time. 🙂
Jeremiah 14
- Right out of the gate, we see YHVH repeating a message. Do a quick comparison between Jeremiah 14:3 and Isaiah 3:1 War wasn’t going to be Judah’s only problem. There was also the drought…both physical and spiritual.
- Notice that Jeremiah is really struggling because he knows the truth, but there are false prophets telling lies. Jeremiah 14:13-15
- Intercessory prayer — Even though YHVH told Jeremiah not to pray for the people, he prays anyway. Notice that he acknowledges Judah’s sin (Jeremiah 14:20) and reminds YHVH of the covenant (Jeremiah 14:21).
Jeremiah 15
- “Those for death — to death…” Sound familiar? Check out Revelation 13:10 and Jeremiah 43:11
- So why is this happening? I’m so glad you are a bible reader because you will likely remember King Manasseh. Go back and do a quick review of 2 Chron 33 and 2 Kings 21. Do you recall all the terrible things Manasseh did? He offered multiple sons as sacrifices, built altars for the hosts of heaven in the courtyards of the temple, practiced witchcraft, consulted ghosts, and the biggie…he set up a carved image of Asherah inside the temple.
- Interesting note as I did some research about Asherah in preparation for writing these notes. There are some scholars who believe that there was some confusion in Judah about using Asherah symbols in worship…I found that some scholars think that Judah actually thought it was okay to incorporate such symbols into their worship to YHVH. As strange as that sounds…it reminded me of Aaron and the golden calf. Do you recall that Aaron thought that he was feasting to YHVH with the calf image? See Exodus 32:5 for that refresher. That gives me pause today family. May we all reflect on our own worship to make sure that we have added nothing that is an abomination to The Father…even out of ignorance. Such things cost Judah greatly, as we see throughout the book of Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 16
- Notice that YHVH tells Judah exactly why they are being punished: Jeremiah 16:10-13. Do you see how the punishment fits the crime? Judah was worshipping other gods. Now they will be forced to worship other gods in the land of their captivity.
- Right on the heels of that, however, Jeremiah is given some good news! There will come a time when a second exodus will take place (Isaiah 11:10-16) that will be such a big deal that the first exodus will no longer be the one that people talk about (Jeremiah 16:14-15)
- There will even be “many fishers” (Jeremiah 16:16) Anyone thinking about Messiah making Simon Peter and Andrew fishers of men in Matthew 4:18-19 right now? Yeah, me too!
Jeremiah 17
- Jeremiah 17:7-8 — May we strive to trust in YHVH and be like the tree planted by the waters!
- I have a theory…and it’s just a theory…but I am going to share it with you for you to do your own rabbit trailing. Here goes. Read Jeremiah 17:13 and compare it to John 8:6. Could Messiah have been writing their names in the sand? Could they, being familiar with this scripture, have understood the fulfilled prophcey?
- And while you are in Jeremiah 17:13…let’s look at that “fountain of living waters” for a moment. Who does it say the living waters are here? What about in John 4:10. Could this be more evidece for YHVH and Messiah being one?
I’ve already gotten lengthy, but we have just scratched the surface. May The Father direct you to what He has for you to learn from His Word today. Have a GREAT DAY Front Porch Family!
Test everything, hold tight to what is good.~ 1 Thess 5:21
We are saved by Grace alone: Obedience is not the root of our salvation, it is the fruit!
May YHWH bless the reading of His Word!