Jeremiah 2 (HCSB)
Israel Accused of Apostasy
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Go and announce directly to Jerusalem that this is what the Lord says:
I remember the loyalty of your youth, your love as a bride—how you followed Me in the wilderness, in a land not sown.
3 Israel was holy to the Lord, the first fruits of His harvest. All who ate of it found themselves guilty; disaster came on them.”
This is the Lord’s declaration.
4 Hear the word of the Lord, house of Jacob and all families of the house of Israel.
5 This is what the Lord says:
What fault did your fathers find in Me that they went so far from Me, followed worthless idols, and became worthless themselves?
6 They stopped asking, “Where is the Lord who brought us from the land of Egypt, who led us through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and ravines, through a land of drought and darkness, a land no one traveled through and where no one lived?”
7 I brought you to a fertile land to eat its fruit and bounty, but after you entered, you defiled My land; you made My inheritance detestable.
8 The priests quit asking, “Where is the Lord?” The experts in the law no longer knew Me, and the rulers rebelled against Me. The prophets prophesied by Baal and followed useless idols.
9 Therefore, I will bring a case against you again.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
I will bring a case against your children’s children.
10 Cross over to Cyprus and take a look. Send someone to Kedar and consider carefully; see if there has ever been anything like this:
11 Has a nation ever exchanged its gods? (But they were not gods!) Yet My people have exchanged their Glory for useless idols.
12 Be horrified at this, heavens; be shocked and utterly appalled.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
13 For My people have committed a double evil:
They have abandoned Me, the fountain of living water, and dug cisterns for themselves, cracked cisterns that cannot hold water.
Consequences of Apostasy
14 Is Israel a slave? Was he born into slavery? Why else has he become a prey?
15 The young lions have roared at him; they have roared loudly. They have laid waste his land. His cities are in ruins, without inhabitants.
16 The men of Memphis and Tahpanhes have also broken your skull.
17 Have you not brought this on yourself by abandoning the Lord your God while He was leading you along the way?
18 Now what will you gain by traveling along the way to Egypt to drink the waters of the Nile? What will you gain by traveling along the way to Assyria to drink the waters of the Euphrates?
19 Your own evil will discipline you; your own apostasies will reprimand you. Think it over and see how evil and bitter it is for you to abandon the Lord your God and to have no fear of Me.
This is the declaration of the Lord God of Hosts.
20 For long ago I broke your yoke; I tore off your chains. You insisted, “I will not serve!” On every high hill and under every green tree you lie down like a prostitute.
21 I planted you, a choice vine from the very best seed. How then could you turn into a degenerate, foreign vine?
22 Even if you wash with lye and use a great amount of soap, the stain of your sin is still in front of Me.
This is the Lord God’s declaration.
23 How can you protest, “I am not defiled; I have not followed the Baals”? Look at your behavior in the valley; acknowledge what you have done. You are a swift young camel twisting and turning on her way,
24 a wild donkey at home in the wilderness. She sniffs the wind in the heat of her desire. Who can control her passion? All who look for her will not become tired; they will find her in her mating season.
25 Keep your feet from going bare and your throat from thirst. But you say, “It’s hopeless; I love strangers, and I will continue to follow them.”
26 Like the shame of a thief when he is caught, so the house of Israel has been put to shame. They, their kings, their officials, their priests, and their prophets
27 say to a tree, “You are my father,” and to a stone, “You gave birth to me.” For they have turned their back to Me and not their face, yet in their time of disaster they beg, “Rise up and save us!”
28 But where are your gods you made for yourself? Let them rise up and save you in your time of disaster if they can, for your gods are as numerous as your cities, Judah.
Judgment Deserved
29 Why do you bring a case against Me? All of you have rebelled against Me.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
30 I have struck down your children in vain; they would not accept discipline. Your own sword has devoured your prophets like a ravaging lion.
31 Evil generation, pay attention to the word of the Lord! Have I been a wilderness to Israel or a land of dense darkness? Why do My people claim, “We will go where we want; we will no longer come to You”?
32 Can a young woman forget her jewelry or a bride her wedding sash? Yet My people have forgotten Me for countless days.
33 How skillfully you pursue love; you also teach evil women your ways.
34 Moreover, your skirts are stained with the blood of the innocent poor. You did not catch them breaking and entering. But in spite of all these things
35 you claim, “I am innocent. His anger is sure to turn away from me.” But I will certainly judge you because you have said, “I have not sinned.”
36 How unstable you are, constantly changing your ways! You will be put to shame by Egypt just as you were put to shame by Assyria.
37 Moreover, you will be led out from here with your hands on your head since the Lord has rejected those you trust; you will not succeed even with their help.
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 27): Father, for far too long and far too often I have treated You like Israel treated You in this verse. I would only come to You and have relationship with You in my “time of disaster” and not really any other time. Please forgive me of the sin of not truly embracing a relationship with You through all of this life; forgive me for turning away from You and doing things on my own except for when I hit my deepest and darkest moments. Thank You for remaining faithful to me, Father, even when I have struggled and failed at consistently being faithful to You through my faith walk with Jesus.
PROMISE (verses 9, 22): You made a vow to Israel through their dissentions that You would still bring a case against them and their children’s children; that the stain of their sin is still in front of You. Since they turned away from You and relied on their false gods, You assured them that their false gods would be who they need to turn to as proof that You are the one and only God in this world and that You are our almighty and powerful savior. None of their false gods can save them. Please help me to stop praising the so many false gods in this life, Father. Help me to ensure that my focus is always on You so that I may never stray again as bad as Israel did in this Scripture. Thank You for the promise of accountability, Father, for without it I would continue to do whatever my flesh and the world desires of me and that is not pleasing to You.
ATTITUDE (verses 17, 27): I often have a self-righteous attitude, Father, that ends up making me abandon Your way that You are trying to lead me along. Please forgive me of this self-righteous attitude, Father. Help me to remain on Your path always, but if I do end up regressing and stray from Your path please remind me that You are the way and that the mistakes I’ve made in the past are proof that I cannot do this on my own. Thank You for creating such an amazing path for me, Father, even if I slack at staying on it consistently.
COMMAND (verse 4a): In the beginning of this verse, You tell us to “hear the word of the Lord.” Such a simple command, but I fail at this so often. I read the word, I know the word, but how often do I truly embrace and HEAR the word of You, Father? Very rarely have I taken time in the past to truly dig into, embrace, and deeply hear the Truth You are speaking to me, Father. Help me to be better at following this command by truly hearing Your word on a day-to-day basis instead of when I feel in the mood to do so. Help me to continue to make You my top priority so that Your word is what I hear throughout all of this life’s experiences. Help me to stop hearing and prioritizing over You what my flesh, the world, the enemy, and other broken sinners say to me all the time, Father, so that my main focus and priority is always hearing You from this point forward.
EXAMPLE (verses 19, 31): So many examples for us NOT to live by in this Scripture, Father. Israel was definitely messing up quite a bit in this Scripture in their faithfulness to You. Please help me to not be like Israel’s example in this Scripture, Father. Help me to remember that I am a sinner and that You are my God, my Lord, my Savior, and my Redeemer. Remind me and convict me of all the evil I do, so that I may turn to You for forgiveness but also for help to change my evil ways. Remind me constantly in this life to keep my eyes on You and to repent of any sin I may commit, so that You can help me to change my ways to be more aligned with Your way as I grow older in my faith and in this life. Thank You for such an amazing example that speaks to me personally on the screwups of my past and even at times the present, Father. Thank You for the remind of how I should be walking in my faith, so that I never turn away from You again.
*DAILY NOTE: Thank You for the constant reminder that my focus should always be on You through all things, Father. I do fail to commit to this in my daily walk in this life, but You are always there for me, leading me back to Your will for my life. Although I do struggle often, just like Israel has so often, You are always faithful. Thank You for that constant faithfulness, Father, regardless of how many times I’ve failed in my faith. Thank You for always showing me grace, patience, and understanding as I traverse this difficult and broken life. Help me to always remember that my focus should remain steady on You no matter what trials and tribulations this life puts in front of me.
*GENERAL NOTE: I always "sandwich" my quiet time with God in prayer and do it in a location that I will not have any distractions so that I can be focused on my quiet time with God. Do not worry about how short or long your journal entries are for that day's quiet time. Just focus on the actual quiet time and relational conversation with God through the Holy Spirit and His Word. The journaling is an enhancement to your quiet time conversation with God, but also to allow you to reflect on things later as you can look back on your journal entries later when you do the chapters again in the future to see how you have grown. See the FAQ for more detail on how I do my quiet time.
Comentários