King James Bible Study – [Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.]
Date: Monday, August 21, 2023
Chapters: JEREMIAH 41-44
Study: Endure Unto The End
Hello My Brother/Sister/Friend,
The more you read the Bible the more you begin to understand how God works and that much of the evil we face today is a result of judgments God has placed on nations. A lot of people will discredit, hate, or even deny that God exists because they do not agree with what the Bible teaches. Immorality is such a norm today that it is seen as moral, while morality itself is seen as immoral. You know, even faithful, saved, born again Christians will suffer in these judgments, but the world is going to suffer much worse as there get caught up in their own evil, [Matthew 24:7-13 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. 10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.]
This was the state of Israel, God, after warning them for decades, has placed judgment on them. Most of Judah had been taken captive to Babylon, but the remnant that remained, including Jeremiah, served under a governor who Nebuchadnezzar had appointed, named Gedaliah. As we return the Book of Jeremiah, we learn of a group of rebels who decided that they were going to escape. Leading the pack was a man named Ishmael, who ended up not only killing Gedaliah, but all the men that were with him and anyone else who found out about it.
[Jeremiah 41:2–5,7 Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword, and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land. 3 Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there, and the men of war. 4 And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it, 5 That there came certain from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven, and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with offerings and incense in their hand, to bring them to the house of the LORD. 7 And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them, and cast them into the midst of the pit, he, and the men that were with him.]
[Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him,] Why did Ismael kill the governor and all these men? He felt that he had the right to the throne and was upset that Nebuchadnezzar had set Gedaliah who was not from the royal seed. These are actually prophecies that Jeremiah made to the people after Nebuchadnezzar had come and carried away king Zedekiah as a captive to Babylon and left the poor of the people in the land. Ishmael, was not going to let anyone stand in his way from making himself the new governor. Well, Ishmael’s plan backfired on him when a man named Johanan fought back.
[Jeremiah 41:10-12,15,17 Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king’s daughters, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam: and Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the Ammonites. 11 But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, 12 Then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon. 15 But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the Ammonites. 17 And they departed, and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt,]
[to go to enter into Egypt,] Things were getting out of hand, they were conspiring against each other and being killed left and right. Remember, God warned them that if they went into Egypt then they would die. Now, with everyone in a panic, Johanan, and the captains find Jeremiah, and asks him to pray for them.
[Jeremiah 42:1-4 Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near, 2 And said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:) 3 That the LORD thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we may do. 4 Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the LORD your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass, that whatsoever thing the LORD shall answer you, I will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you.]
[and pray for us unto the LORD thy God,] Notice that they said, “Thy God”, they did not claim God as their own at this point. I can give countless examples of people who have come to me and asked me to pray for them that have no relationship with God whatsoever, or rather on their own terms. Jeremiah, tells them that he would pray for them, and ten days later he had a response.
[Jeremiah 42:5-7,9-10,16 Then they said to Jeremiah, The LORD be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the LORD thy God shall send thee to us. 6 Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the LORD our God. 7 And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah. 9 And said unto them, Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto whom ye sent me to present your supplication before him; 10 If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you. 16 Then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die.]
[Whether it be good, or whether it be evil,] In other words they were saying, “Thy will be done.” That is the intention of every Christian, even those who are halfhearted toward God, or only seek His will when they are in trouble, where many fail is when God tells them what His will for them is. Jesus said it this way, [Luke 8:11-15 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. 14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. 15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.]
People want the world to change and God to help them, but most are too proud to accept His Word. God, does not want to see anyone suffering more than what life gives us, but those who are in constant needless suffering end up that way because they will not listen to God. God, does not tell us not to do something on some whim, He knows what is going to happen if we get everything we want. He also knows if we are sincere in our wanting to live in His will, even if it would be uncomfortable. God, already knew that those people were not sincere in wanting to know His will and follow it. Watch how they react to the news that they will die if they go to Egypt.
[Jeremiah 43:2-6 Then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou speakest falsely: the LORD our God hath not sent thee to say, Go not into Egypt to sojourn there: 3 But Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, for to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they might put us to death, and carry us away captives into Babylon. 4 So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, obeyed not the voice of the LORD, to dwell in the land of Judah. 5 But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the remnant of Judah, that were returned from all nations, whither they had been driven, to dwell in the land of Judah; 6 Even men, and women, and children, and the king’s daughters, and every person that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah.]
[Thou speakest falsely:] If we are going to call of God for help, we need to make sure that we are willing to accept the answer He gives us. Okay, we may not always like the answer, but if we want God to take us seriously, we must take His Word seriously, He will help us out of any situation as long as we take Him seriously. There are three reasons people reject Christ, fear, sin, and pride, they fear what the world will do if they turned to Him. These proud and arrogant men did not want to listen to God, they accused Jeremiah of lying and took all of them to Egypt with them, including Jeremiah, but it was indeed the end of their journey.
[Jeremiah 43:8-12 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying, 9 Take great stones in thine hand, and hide them in the clay in the brickkiln, which is at the entry of Pharaoh’s house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah; 10 And say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid; and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them. 11 And when he cometh, he shall smite the land of Egypt, and deliver such as are for death to death; and such as are for captivity to captivity; and such as are for the sword to the sword. 12 And I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captives: and he shall array himself with the land of Egypt, as a shepherd putteth on his garment; and he shall go forth from thence in peace.]
[and hide them in the clay in the brickkiln,] This was God’s way of saying that because they did not listen to Him, Egypt would now fact the same judgment. God, uses everything for a purpose, and after all these centuries of dealing with Egypt God uses this opportunity to have all their idols destroyed, just like He did with Israel. God, is not the God of Israel, Egypt, America, Italy, Greece, or any other country, He is the God of all nations, and we may be able to choose our own god, but He will destroy every one of them, nation by nation, and the people who worship them as well, [Revelation 21:7-8 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.]
These fools thought that they were avoiding judgment by going Egypt, but all they did was make matters worse, they were now going to die there, and not peacefully either.
[Jeremiah 44:2,7,13-14 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Ye have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, and upon all the cities of Judah; and, behold, this day they are a desolation, and no man dwelleth therein, 7 Therefore now thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel; Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your souls, to cut off from you man and woman, child and suckling, out of Judah, to leave you none to remain; 13 For I will punish them that dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: 14 So that none of the remnant of Judah, which are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall escape or remain, that they should return into the land of Judah, to the which they have a desire to return to dwell there: for none shall return but such as shall escape.]
[Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your souls,] It is not God who sends souls to hell, it not even the devil, it is each and every person who denies the truth. Well, as you can imagine, that news did not go so well, in fact, the people rebelled even more and actually had the nerve to say that they were perfectly fine worshiping their false gods until they stopped.
[Jeremiah 44:15-18 Then all the men which knew that their wives had burned incense unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great multitude, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying, 16 As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee. 17 But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil. 18 But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine.]
[But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven,] Now, that is the devil in all his glory, he loves to make one think that by their accepting Christ they will suffer more. Well, the truth is, if they keep living in sin without repentance they will suffer more. We all backslide to some extent, from time to time, even if it is just for a little bit, but He will never let us go, simply due to our faith alone in Him. That does not mean that He will chasten us, but it does mean that our salvation is eternal and nothing can change that, [Hebrews 12:11-13 Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. 12 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; 13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.]
Today’s Prayer: God, The world is getting more evil by the day, we are fighting over things that have no merit, and innocent people are getting caught up in it all. Lord, soften some hearts, help them to let go of their pride, sin, and or fear, and turn to You. Be with those who are caught up in the middle of Your judgments, bring them to safety, and let them know You are near and will take care of them. Give us Your power, wisdom, and guidance to go where You tell us to go, help us reach those who are in the midst of the judgments, and give us Your strength to endure the suffering we face for our faith. I pray this in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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