The People and the King Refuse to Listen to God (Jeremiah 1-38:6)

 Today we begin a new book of the Bible. It is the 24th book and it is called the Book of Jeremiah.

 Jeremiah was born in Judah. His father was a priest named Hilkiah. So Jeremiah was taught many religious things as a boy. His father had hoped that Jeremiah would become a priest like him. But God... had different plans.

 A lot of times we make plans or our parents make plans ...  (But God). So we should hold on to our plans loosely as God may have other plans. His plans are always better. Sometimes they are harder, as we will see in the story of Jeremiah, but they are always better. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

When Jeremiah was a boy, there was a good king of Judah named Josiah. He had all the idols destroyed and led the nation in the ways of God. But as soon as Josiah died in a battle, the people of Judah went right back to idol worshipping and sinning. The people were following their king and not following God. 

When we go to church, we should be putting our hearts in the hands of God and not our trust in a minister or pastor. They are human beings just like we are. If they mess up or even die, our faith should not be shaken or crumble, because our faith is in God.

When Jeremiah was a young man, about 20 years old, God spoke to him. He said that He knew Jeremiah before he was even born... and He had a plan for him to speak for Him as a prophet. But Jeremiah was scared. He told God that he was way too young to speak for Him.

Remember last time in Isaiah we learned that God has a plan for us before we are even born? Well here it is again as God spoke to Jeremiah. God had a plan for Isaiah, and for Jesus, for Jeremiah and He has a plan for you and me!

Jeremiah took his new job as God's prophet very seriously. He knew that telling the people that they must repent of their wickedness would not go over too well. It would be difficult, and sometimes dangerous, but Jeremiah was up to the task and began to tell the people what God was saying about their evil ways. Jeremiah loved God and he loved his country. He preached for over 40 years, but the people turned their back and refused to listen. This made Jeremiah sad and he became known as the "weeping prophet".

How was Jeremiah able to do such a hard thing? God told him to do it, and God gave him the wisdom, courage and strength to carry it out. When God touches our hearts and wants us to do something for Him, don't be fearful, because God will give you all the tools you need, and He'll be right there with you. (Isaiah 41:10)

Jeremiah told the people that they were doing wrong. And he told them that God loved them and that they needed to repent or God would punish them by sending an army from the north to take them over just like He did 100 years earlier. The people laughed. Then Jeremiah went to the king and told him the same thing.

Has anyone ever laughed at you? It doesn't feel good. Especially if it is for doing the right thing. Don't let that stop you. God says that If He is for us, who can be against us. (Romans 8:31) He also says that we should do things that please him, instead of doing things that people want us to do. (Galatians 1:10) God is always on our side when we do what is right. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

God told Jeremiah to go to the temple and tell the people that they have turned away from the one true God. The High priest were infuriated that Jeremiah would come to their temple and preach such words. They called the temple guards and had Jeremiah brought before the judges. The judges had Jeremiah exiled (kicked out of the country). Even in exile Jeremiah sent messages through Baruch, his scribe ( a person who writes down on a scroll what a prophet dictates) to the palace and had a priest read the scroll to the king. After hearing what Jeremiah had written on the scroll, the king cut up the scroll in tiny pieces and burned it. Then the king then had Baruch arrested.

One of the most well-known verses in Jeremiah is Jeremiah 29:11. It says: "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." God was warning Israel against false prophets, but that is a promise that we can hold onto for ourselves.

Some time later,  Jeremiah heard a message from God to go to the palace wearing a yoke. (a collar that oxen wear to pull a plow) He wasn't supposed to enter the palace, but God wanted to send a message to the king that his kingdom would be  taken over by Nebuchadnezzar, and unless he surrendered to his yoke (his will) the king's kingdom would be destroyed. Hananiah, one of the king's false prophets pulled the yoke off Jeremiah's shoulders and broke it.  The high priests and false prophets were getting tired of Jeremiah and his hard words and so was the king. So the king told the priests to do whatever they wanted with the prophet. So guess what they did? They called the kings guards who threw him in a muddy well with no food and left him to die!

Isaiah 41-48 God's Amazing Plan is Filled With Hope

 In Chapter 40 we see God beginning to reveal his plan for everyone and the hope that we have in Him.   Now God continues to speak in chapter 41. He is speaking to people in distant lands, the idol worshippers. He tells them to step into His holy courtroom and present their evidence. Then God begins to explain that He alone is in control of everything. The things that happen in an individuals life, along with worldwide events on a colossal scale are all in His power. People who believe and trust in Him, as well as people who don't, are all subject to God's ultimate plan. 

So when we see things on the news about events happening around the world, don't think that they are out of God's control. He is still on the throne and is in control of all things. Remember that it is all a part of His loving plan. (even though to us, it doesn't seem loving)

In verse 8 God addresses Israel through Isaiah and tells them not to worry. He's got this. He will protect them and He will be their ever present help in times of need. (psalm46) God continually reminds them not to be afraid. Then He tells the Israelites that he will not only protect them and help them, but He will also provide for them. God is reassuring them that He is always there for them. Fear is a crippling emotion. Have you ever been so afraid that you could't move or think straight? I certainly have! God wants us to live our best lives for Him. He wants our best. How can we give Him our best if we are paralyzed by fear or can't even think straight? We cant. That is why God reminds us over 350 times in the Bible "Do not fear".

Then God readdresses the idol worshippers from the beginning of the chapter after they have laid out their case for worshipping idols. God asks them a simple question. "Can your idols tell you what will happen in the future?" He answers for them. "Of course not! Your idols don't even exist. They have no power." Then God proceeds to tell them some events that will happen in their future.

Chapter 41 of Isaiah is considered the great I WILL chapter. 14 times God reinforces His promises by saying "I will". Here are some of them: I will strengthen you. (Isaiah 41:1) I will help you. (Isaiah 41:10, 13, and 14) I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10) I will make you into a new threshing sledge with sharp teeth. (Isaiah 41:15) I will open rivers in desolate heights. (Isaiah 41:18) I will make the wilderness a pool of water. (Isaiah 41:18) I will plant in the wilderness the cedar and the acacia tree. (Isaiah 41:19) I will set in the desert the cypress tree. (Isaiah 41:19) I will give to Jerusalem one who brings good tidings. (Isaiah 41:27)

Did you know that God's promises are also for us today? 2Peter 1:4-5 says just that! And Galatians 3:29 states that if we are followers of Jesus, we are children of Abraham and heirs to God's promises.

In Chapter 42, He starts off with Behold! My Servant .... which is definitely Jesus. How do we know that? Because when God refers to other servants of His, like Moses, He uses a small letter s at the beginning of the word servant. But here we see a capital S. Isaiah follows up with a beautiful "song" straight from the lips of God about how Jesus will be a light to the world. He will bring justice. He will open the eyes of the blind man and set the captives free. The book of Isaiah is filled with references and prophesies about Jesus. Jesus is the hope of Israel and the whole world. The rest of Chapter 42 is about God's provision for Israel and their rebellion.

Chapter 43. God will allow Israel to be captured by Babylon, But He reassures them that they are still his people. He reminds them how He rescued them from Egypt, and He will do it again from Babylon. Has God ever been there when you needed Him most. He has for me. God wants us to remember those times, because if He did it before... He will certainly do it again.   Chapter 43 ends just like 42.... the Israelites neglect to obey God.  

Chapter 44 reminds the people of Israel that He alone is the one true God. Idols are mere artifacts made by human hands. They have no power... But he, God, Has ultimate power over everything.

Chapter 45 speaks of how God will use a non-Jew, Cyrus, to bring about His plan. They Israelite didn't think that God could, or would use anyone outside of Israel to bring about His plans.... But God can use whomever He pleases.

Chapters 46 and 47 are about Babylon. How they worship false gods. Those false gods are powerless when the one true God moves in to defeat them.

Chapter 48: God reminds Israel that He made promises to Abraham that ALL came true. So all these things that He is revealing now about being captured by Babylon, the hard hearts of God's own people and the ultimate defeat and fall of Babylon will certainly come to pass.  

So to wrap it all up. God wants the Israelites to know that He is in control of all things present and all things in the future. God wants us to know the same thing. Sure, we'd like to know exactly what will happen, but that is where trusting God comes in. After all aren't our hearts and trust really the only things that we can give a God who owns everything? So during some of these dark days, hold tightly to God and trust Him for the days to come.       

Hezekiah gets 15 More years (Isaiah 38-40)

 While all this was going on, (Judah being threatened, and God responding), Hezekiah became very ill.

The Word of the Lord came to Isaiah with a message for Hezekiah.... and it was not a very pleasant message. "King Hezekiah," Isaiah said as Hezekiah lay feverishly in his bed. "God said that you should get all your affairs in order, because you are going to die very soon."

Hezekiah was devastated! As soon as Isaiah left, Hezekiah rolled over and faced the wall. Through his tears, he began to pray. He asked God to let him live. He reminded God about all that he had done for Him. 

Meanwhile, God told Isaiah to turn around and go back to Hezekiah with a new message. Hezekiah was surprised to see Isaiah again so soon. Isaiah said, "The Lord has heard your prayer. He has decided to give you an additional 15 years to live as well as keep you and this city protected from the king of Assyria.

Once again we see that God hears our prayers. It doesn't matter if you say them out load, whisper them of even think them. God DOES hear our prayers. Many times as we are praying, we think to ourselves, is God even listening? Yes He Is. Also, God answers prayers. Hezekiah was a living example of this.

Then Isaiah continued, "God also said that he will send you a sign so that you will know that He will do this thing He has promised. God will cause the Sundial of Ahaz to move backward 10 units. Then you will know that God has done what He said He would.

One of Hezekiah's men was looking out the window. He called the king over to witness an amazing thing. The Sundial of Ahaz was moving backward! Hezekiah was overjoyed! He wrote a poem of praise about all he had been through and how God answered his prayers. It is found in verses 10-20.

The king of Babylon's son, Merodach-baladan, heard that King Hezekiah was very sick, and that he had recovered. He sent a special group of messengers with a gift and his personal best wishes. Hezekiah was very surprised that the son of such a powerful king would even acknowledge his illness and recovery. He was so thrilled when they arrived, that the king brought the envoy around the palace and showed them all the treasures that he had. He was trying to impress the special messengers with all the gold and treasures, but the men were more interested than impressed.

Isaiah showed up just as the special messengers were leaving. "What did those men want?" He asked. "They brought me a gift from Babylon. So I showed them all the treasures I had, every last piece of gold! They were very impressed." Hezekiah answered.

Isaiah could not believe his ears. He knew that Hezekiah let his pride lead him into major trouble. Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, "Listen to this message from God, 'The time is coming when everything in your palace, all the treasures that you and your ancestors have stored up, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left. Even some of your very own grandsons will be carried off into exile." 

Sometimes we try to impress people with what we have. It not only doesn't impress them, it leads to problems for us. Not only may we lose what we have, but our pride and ego are fed by the compliments of others. God warns us in Proverbs 16:18, "Prides comes before a fall."

Hezekiah's response was surprising and selfish. He said, "Well I don't have to worry about that in my lifetime. God promised peace and security while I am still around." Instead of honoring God and doing what was right with his extra 15 years, Hezekiah became selfish. 

God blesses us in many ways, with a loving family, a nice home, friends, food, health etc... we can choose to be selfish, or we can honor God with what he gave us. When we honor God with what we have, that is called stewardship, and God will ask us what kind of steward were we when we stand before Him one day.

Chapter 40 begins a 26 chapter section on the comfort that God will give His people after the Babylonians carry off all the treasures and take the people of Judah away with them. The people of Israel will be very disheartened with God after the exile, but God gives them hope in the next 26 chapters. Much of it is filled with prophesies about Jesus. we will look at those next time. But for now, Chapter 40 focusses on who God is, and how powerful He is. He says that "The grass will wither, but His word (the Bible) will never die. He states that He has no equal. Who can be compared to God. No one! He continues by pointing out that He, and He alone created the stars, the sun, the earth and all things on it. God says that 'He never grows weak or weary. No one can measure the depths of His understanding. He gives power to the weak and strength to the powerless. Even the young will become weak and tired and will collapse from exhaustion....' Vs. (28-30) Then comes one of the most famous verses in the book of Isaiah....

Isaiah 13-34 Judgements, the New Kingdom and Trusting God

Chapters 13- 17 are prophesies about God's judgement of different lands. A prophesy is basically a God given prediction. But we think of a prediction as something that probably will happen, like a predicted thunderstorm. But God's predictions (prophesies) are for sure. But God in His loving grace and mercy is always giving the people of these lands one more chance. And that's why he sent the prophets.

Chapter 13 is God's judgment upon Babylon. Isaiah says the Babylon will never be inhabited, Nor will it be settled from generation to generation. But wild beasts of the desert will lie there, And their houses will be full of owls; Ostriches will dwell there, And wild goats will dance there. The hyenas will howl there. Chapter 14: Judgment to come on Assyria and the Philistines. Chapters 15 and 16: Judgement upon Moab. Chapter 17: Judgement against Syria and Israel.

Isaiah shifts gears a little in chapter 18. He warns the people of Judah not to accept any help from the Ethiopians. God knows that they will make an offer to Judah, but God tells the people of Judah that He is enough. Judah is fearful that Assyria will attack (and they will) so they are looking elsewhere for help. 

Don't we do the same thing? God is our security, but don't we put more trust in things like money, popularity and material things than we do in God? God wants us to remember all the times that He was there for us. He is unchanging. If He did it before, He will be there for us again. Try this: sit very quietly and try to remember some of the hard stuff you went through. Then think about how it all worked out even though you thought it might not. God was there!

Isaiah continues with the prophesies of God's judgements. In Chapters 19, 21, 22, and 23, the judgements are prophesied against Egypt, Babylon, Edom, Arabia, Jerusalem and Tyre.

In chapter 20 The LORD gives Isaiah a sign to act out.  God told Isaiah to remove his outer garments and his sandals (basically strip down to his underwear) for three years as a sign to all of what will happen to Egypt and Ethiopia after the Assyrian invasion. Then the LORD said, “Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years as a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, so shall the king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, to the shame of Egypt.”

In Chapters 24 through 34 Isaiah's prophesies jump from the present to the future great tribulation In chapter 24, 25, 26 and 27 his words point to the end times when Jesus will rule over all the world. Then for the next few chapters he reminds Judah that they talk and act like they trust God, but their actions speak louder than words.They will also be judged. But again in His mercy and grace, God will spare Judah much tribulation during that time, and The Assyrian army will be defeated (by God) as it invades Jerusalem.

When we trust in God (Jesus as our Lord and savior) we become His children. Just as a father disciplines his child, God will disciple us when we misbehave (sin). Yes it is true that Jesus died for our sins, but that doesn't mean we can go on sinning and not reap the consequences. We are slowly become more and more like Jesus every day. If we "get away" with our sins, we won't change. Just like a car won't turn if the steering wheel doesn't move. So God nudges us, or pushes us in the right directions through His loving discipline.

(Isaiah 7-12) Isaiah's Children as a Warning

As chapter 7 begins, the LORD tells Isaiah to go and meet  king Ahaz. Isaiah was told to take his son, named Shear-Jashub, which means, A Remnant Shall Return. We will see how God uses both of Isaiah's sons as object lessons in his prophesies. 

 When Isaiah arrived before king Ahaz, he told the king that God said He would give Ahaz some kind of a sign to help convince Ahaz of His word. But Ahaz said that he would not test the Lord. It sounds like Ahaz was being humble, but in fact it was the opposite. Yes it's true, the Bible says not to test God, but if He says to test Him, as in the book of Malachai when God says to test Him with offerings so that He could pour out blessings on us, then it's OK.

God told Ahaz, through Isaiah, "Very well, then I will send you a sign anyway. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." This is one of the most famous prophecies regarding the birth of Jesus the Messiah in the Bible.  We know this passage speaks of Jesus because the Holy Spirit says so through Matthew: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” (Matthew 1:23)

In chapter 8, God tells Isaiah to take a large board and write the words Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz which means, Plunder and Carry Away. The word plunder means to steal by force, usually during an invasion. So Isaiah did as God commanded. Isaiah had 2 witnesses. He wasn't sure what this was all about at the time, but he wanted 2 honest men, Uriah and Zechariah, to see him write it so no one could say that he wrote it after the fact.

Soon afterward Isaiah's wife became pregnant with their second son and 9 months later, after he was born, God came to Isaiah and said, "Remember those words I asked you to write on a board last year? That is what I want you to name your son, Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz." (Mr. BibleHead paraphrase) God told Isaiah that before the baby is able to say "mommy" Assyria would attack Damascus and Samaria. 

Isaiah went before the people. "See my two sons? God has asked me to give them specific names as a warning to you. Before my youngest son will be able to speak, the Assyrian army will attack and plunder. But my older son is a symbol of hope. There will be an Israelite remnant." A remnant is a small part left over after the large piece of cloth has been cut, but it can be used later. Isaiah said that Judah will be tempted to ask fortune tellers and mediums what would be their fate, but Isaiah said that he is standing right in front of them with his two sons and a message from God. We too can seek guidance through wrong means. God reveals all we need to know. Read your Bible. That's how God speaks to us. In the Old Testament, the people needed a prophet. But now we have God's Word.

Chapter 9 is a beautiful chapter of God's grace and mercy. He gives hope to Judah and to all people through His words. " Nevertheless, the darkness will not last forever. There will be a time when Galilee will be filled with glory. A light will come into the darkness.(Jesus) And the people will rejoice." Have you ever watched a Charlie Brown Christmas?  Then verse 6 will sound familiar to you. It is one of the most recognized prophesies about the coming of Jesus. 

For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

God is not only telling them about what will happen 700 years later, He is giving them a chance to turn from their wicked ways and turn toward Him. He is truly a faithful and merciful God! It doesn't matter how much we have screwed up. God wants us to come to Him. We don't have to get "right" before we come to Him. He is the one who makes us "right". If we accept what Jesus has done for us. (taking our sins and giving His life as a sacrifice, and if we choose to make him Lord (everything we do is for Him) of our life, God promises that the Holy Spirit will come and live inside us and that we will live with Him forever.

Chapter 10 tell about how God used Assyria as a judgement tool (vs.7) against Israel and Judah, but now it is time to judge prideful, godless Assyria. God says that Assyria will waste away like sick people during a plague. (vs.18) Then God reminds His people again at the end of Chapter 10 and into Chapter 11 about the coming Messiah. It is a beautiful description of a savior coming through the line of David.

Chapter 12 is a beautiful song of praise for salvation that comes through Jesus, and only because of the unimaginable grace and mercy of the living God. Have you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Remember to thank Him always. Because it was nothing that you or I did. It is was Jesus did!