Jeremiah 8:1-11
1 At that time, saith the LORD, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves:
2 And they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered, nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.
3 And death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue of them that remain of this evil family, which remain in all the places whither I have driven them, saith the LORD of hosts.
4 ¶ Moreover thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he turn away, and not return?
5 Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return.
6 I hearkened and heard, but they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.
7 Yea, the stork in the heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment of the LORD.
8 How do ye say, We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it; the pen of the scribes is in vain.
9 The wise men are ashamed, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the word of the LORD; and what wisdom is in them?
10 Therefore will I give their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit them: for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness, from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
11 For they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
After I had read this, still scratching my head, yet very sobered at what I had read, I knew I was supposed to do something with the scriptures I had read. It was such a sobering message, I knew I had to pass it along, but how? What could I say? Then I read what I was supposed to read for the day. What a comfort I found there!
Jeremiah 1:4-9
4Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
6 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
7 But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
9 Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
So, here is what I learn from these Scriptures....
The Lord is talking about His people Israel, but I think this also applies to us today. Listen.
- Why then is this people ... slidden back by a perpetual backsliding? they hold fast deceit, they refuse to return.
- As I read this, I was reminded of many religions out there that match what this is saying. They teach deceit and their people hold fast to deceit. When truth is presented they put up a wall and refuse to hear it.
- they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.
- Their repentance consists of guilt and trying to atone for their own sins through works imposed on them by religious leaders or themselves instead of coming to Christ Jesus in faith and repentance and accepting His atonement on their behalf as payment in full. Christ's atonement is not sufficient for them. They feel they must do all they can to atone for their own sins and Christ only makes up what they couldn't do.
- Ephesians 2:8 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast."
- It never occurs to them that their righteousness is as filthy rags to a Holy God and their only hope is in the blood of Jesus' perfect sacrifice for sin. Isaiah 64:6 ¶ "But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away."
- my people know not the judgment of the LORD.
- The NIV says "My people do not know the requirements of the LORD." The KJV says "judgements". The Hebrew indicates that the word judgement here can be interchanged with the words requirements, law, ordinances etc.
- This is a day when religious leaders are watering down God's Word. They don't want to offend anyone with the Truth. The people are starved for the Truth but they are not getting it. They do not know the requirements of the LORD.
- False religions teach that the Bible can not be trusted so their people are not encouraged to read it and learn it and know what God's requirements are for themselves. They are told to listen to their church leaders instead who will tell them what God says.
- How do ye say, We are wise, and the law of the LORD is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it; the pen of the scribes is in vain.
- Many religions have their own set of scriptures that are revered above the revealed Word of God, the Bible. But Jeremiah says the pen of their scribes is in vain, dealing falsehood.
- The wise men are ashamed, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the word of the LORD; and what wisdom is in them?
- Their wise men have rejected the Word of God. Psalm 119:9 " Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word." John 17:17 "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth."
- from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
- Their priests and prophets deal falsely. The NIV says they are all greedy for gain. Deuteronomy 18:22 "When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him."
- they have healed the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there is no peace.
They give their people a false sense of peace that all is right when in fact they are being led to the very depths of Hell.
The following verses tell what will happen to them and the last verse tells what we need to do:
Jeremiah 8:12-14
12 Were they ashamed when they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the LORD.
13 ¶ I will surely consume them, saith the LORD: there shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree, and the leaf shall fade; and the things that I have given them shall pass away from them.What We Need to Do
14 Why do we sit still? assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the defenced cities, and let us be silent there: for the LORD our God hath put us to silence, and given us water of gall to drink, because we have sinned against the LORD.
Ecclesiastes 5:2 "Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few."
2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.(KJV)
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