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776. Bible Study: Jeremiah 15 (One Person's Impact, Restoration to Serve God, Lift Others Up) · Faith by annm2705

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Let's read chapter 15 from the book of Jeremiah and remember
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why we are doing this. As it says in Second Timothy
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chapter 3 verse 16 and 17, all Scripture is God breathed and is
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useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in
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righteousness so that the servant of God may be thoroughly
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equipped for every good work. Dear Lord, please let the Holy
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Spirit open our eyes and accomplish what Second Timothy 3
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says in Jesus name. Amen.
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Then the Lord said to me, Even if Moses and Samuel were to
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stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people.
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Send them away from my presence. Let them go.
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And if they ask, where shall we go, tell them This is what the
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Lord said. Those destined for death to
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death, those for the sword to the sword, those for starvation
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to starvation, those for captivity to captivity.
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I'll pause and read the question and answer from the study guide.
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Do some prayers move God more than others?
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Though? This verse seems to suggest that
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the prayers of Moses and Samuel were more effective than the
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prayers of others. God hears all sincere prayers,
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those of sinners as well as those of Saints.
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God's point was that it's futile for anyone, no matter how well
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respected, to pray for the wrong thing or for something opposed
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are for something opposed to God's will.
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Judah's stubborn refusal to repent meant that judgment was
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certain. God would not change his plans.
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Again, we just have to pay attention to that one word that
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could change everything. And this word is repent.
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When we turn away from our sins, then things begin to change with
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God, and we can have God's help with that too, through the Holy
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Spirit. So we'll go back to Scripture.
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I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,
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declares the Lord, The sword to kill and the dogs to drag away,
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and the birds and the wild animals to devour and destroy.
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I will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth.
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Because of what? Manasseh son of Hezekiah, king
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of Judah, did in Jerusalem. Think about this for a minute,
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that God is sharing the reason for death, for sword or war and
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starvation and captivity. All these things are happening
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and and you know, he's giving a reason.
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And he said because of what Manasseh, son of Hezekiah, king
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of Judah, did in Jerusalem. So it says in the study guide,
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Why was Manasseh singled out? Jeremiah saw Manasseh's sins as
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the root reason for Judah's coming exile.
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Manasseh was the instigator of the nation's final moral
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decline. So again, this shows us like how
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impactful a single person can be in a good way or a bad way.
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So this is one person who influenced a large number of
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people. Now, he was the king and he was
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the king of Judah. And he did these things that,
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let's see, I'm, I'm curious now and I didn't look this up, but I
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was curious about when Manasseh was ruling, like how far back it
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was. So it was back to somewhere
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around 6-7, somewhere between 690 and 670 BC is when Manasseh
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reigned, reigned. And he was the son of Hezekiah.
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And Hezekiah was good. He did good things, but Manasseh
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was evil. So it's really interesting.
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Another point is that somebody good can have a child who is not
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and, and also the reverse is true.
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Somebody, you know, evil can have, I guess someone good cut.
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I don't know. That's a question too, because
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I'm not sure. Like I'd have to look back again
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because Ahaz was evil and then came Hezekiah.
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So I don't know if there was any relation there, but Manasseh was
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the son of Hezekiah and he did evil.
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And so the the order of kings was Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon,
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Josiah. Josiah was good, Jeho Ahaz was
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evil, Jehoah Kim was evil, Jehoiah Chin was also evil, and
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then Zedekiah was evil. And that was the end of
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Jerusalem. So there were very sparse good
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things that came, good kings that came after Hezekiah.
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The only one was Josiah. So let's look at what did the
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overview of what King Manasseh. He angered God by committing
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idolatry, sacrificing his own sons and sorcery.
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He rebuilt high places for false gods, erected altars to Baal, he
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defiled the temple with idol worship and Ashira poles.
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He also engaged in divination and communicated with mediums
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and spirits. So then there's an article from
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gotquestions.org that is is always.
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I mean, they're really great resources and summaries of
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information in the Bible. So if you want to go directly to
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that, gotquestions.org, who was King Manasseh in the Bible is
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the question. And I'll read through the
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answers because it's helpful just to see the things that
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somebody did that really caused God to be angry and got and
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caused God to take that a next step and pronounce judgment for
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people because they did not repent.
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They just kept doing what they were doing.
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They followed the leader. So when the leader is doing
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evil, you're not to follow that. So let's read about from God
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questions what it says about who was King Manasseh in the Bible.
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The story of King Manasseh is told in Second Kings chapter 21
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and Second Chronicles chapter 32 and he is also briefly mentioned
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in Jeremiah 15 verse 4. Manasseh was the king of
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southern of the southern Kingdom of Judah and the son of the
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godly king Hezekiah. Hezekiah had undertaken reforms
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in Judah to rid the land of idolatry.
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Manasseh, a wicked king, reversed these reforms and did
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much worse. The 1st 5 verses of Second Kings
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chapter 21 are a frank and stunning account of Manasseh's
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apostasy. Manasseh was 12 years old when
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he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem 55 years.
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He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, following the detestable
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practices of the nations the Lord had driven out before the
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Israelites. He rebuilt the high places of
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his father Hezekiah had destroyed.
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He also erected altars to Baal and made an asshirable, as Ahab,
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king of Israel, had done. He bowed down to all the starry
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host and worshipped them. He built altars in the temple of
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the Lord, of which the Lord had said in Jerusalem, I will put my
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name in the two courts of the temple of the Lord.
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He built altars to all the starry host.
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He sacrificed his own son in the fire divination, sought omens,
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and consulted mediums and spiritist.
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He did much evil in the eyes of the Lord, arousing his anger.
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Although not given the specifics, Manasseh was also a
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treacherous king, killing innocent people.
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Manasseh also shed so much innocent blood that he filled
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Jerusalem from end to end. He was pronounced by God to be
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more wicked than the Amorites who lived in Canaan before they
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were displaced by Israel in an act of God's judgment.
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Not only did Manasseh sin personally, but as a king, he
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led Judah into forsaking the Lord and worshipping idols.
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Such was the extent of their sin that God declared He would wipe
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out Jerusalem as He had the northern Kingdom of Israel.
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Let's see Second Kings chapter 21 and Jeremiah 15 four notes
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that it was the sin of Judah initiated by Manasseh that
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brought the judgment that Jeremiah proclaimed the judgment
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of Jerusalem and the Temple and the exile of the people.
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According to Jewish tradition, it was King Manasseh who
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murdered the prophet Isaiah. I did not know that Second
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Chronicles 33 adds more information not recorded in
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Second Kings. God reached out to Manasseh and
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the people, presumably through prophets, but they would not
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listen. So God sent the Assyrians who
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captured Manasseh and took him away to exile.
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That's found in Second Chronicles chapter 33.
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While in exile, in his distress, he sought the favour of the Lord
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and humbled himself greatly before the God of his ancestors.
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And when he prayed to him, the Lord was moved by his entreaty
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and listened to his plea. So he brought back, brought him
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back to Jerusalem and to his Kingdom.
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Then Manasseh knew the Lord is God.
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In Second Chronicles chapter 33, the apocryphal book The Prayer
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of Manasseh claims to record Manasseh's prayer of repentance.
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But it is highly unlikely that the contents of the prayer of
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Manasseh accurately represent Manasseh's prayer.
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The repentant Manasseh was restored to his Kingdom and
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started to rebuild Judah militarily, and he also began to
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institute religious reforms. He got rid of the foreign gods
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and removed the image from the Temple of the Lord, as well as
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all the altars he had built on the temple hill and in
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Jerusalem, and he threw them out of the city.
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Then he restored the altar of the Lord and sacrificed
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fellowship offerings and thank offerings on it, and told Judah
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to serve the Lord, the God of Israel.
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Even though Manasseh had a personal conversion, he was
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never able to lead Judah out of the sin that had previously LED
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them that he had previously LED them into.
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They did not follow him in his reforms.
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The people continued in their idolatry and when Manasseh died,
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his son Amon did evil in the eyes of the Lord as his father
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Manasseh had done. Eamon worshipped and offered
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sacrifices to all the idols that Manasseh had made, but unlike
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his father Manasseh, he did not humble himself before the Lord.
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Manasseh is a tragic figure in Scripture.
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Although he repented of his sin, he was unable to undo the damage
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he had done to the nation to his own son who followed him.
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Manasseh demonstrates that while any sin may be forgiven when we
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repent, forgiveness does not necessarily remove the natural
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consequences that flow from disobedience.
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I think that's a a learning point for all of us is that, you
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know, God will forgive, but sometimes the things that we do
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have consequences that aren't changed as a result of what was
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done. But the point being is that we
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can have our relationship restored with God and God is
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forgiving. And the most important part is
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that our relationship with God is restored and that someday
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when Jesus returns and that we will be in the Kingdom of God if
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we repent. So even someone who brought on
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all of this punishment to Israel or the tribe of Judah be because
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of idolatry and other things that Manasseh led the people
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into, even though that happened, there's still restoration that
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is possible. And that we should all strive,
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if we've been far from God, that we should strive to have our
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relationship restored with God. And God is forgiving, loving,
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and merciful. And there is positive that will
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come from it when we change. The important part is not to
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stay in that rebellion because that only the the end result of
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that is is death and its eternal separation from God.
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So it's not worth it. It's worth it to reconcile with
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God. So let's go back to Scripture.
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Who will have pity? Who will have pity on you,
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Jerusalem? Who will mourn for you?
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Who will stop to ask how you are?
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You have rejected me, declares the Lord.
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You keep on backsliding. So that's something that people
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who profess to be Christians should really pay attention to.
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If you're in this quote of backsliding stage, that's an
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unrepentant stage and I would seriously be concerned about
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that. There's there's a little there's
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some teaching out there that I don't agree with.
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If we are in backsliding, we are in rebellion to God and God does
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he will give us consequences to turn us away from that.
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But if we don't turn back, I think there, you know, it says
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that no one who's been born of God, who's been born again keeps
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continues to keep on sinning. So if it's something that we are
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going back to the sin, there's something else in the scripture
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that says, you know, a dog goes back to his vomit and it's it's
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not something pleasant. I mean, that's not the, the dogs
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were something that were not a good thing in biblical context.
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It was it was someone that was far from God.
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It was somebody who was rebellious.
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So anyway, it's just it, there's too much comforting that's given
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today of people who are backsliding.
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I don't think people should have comfort.
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I think they should have the fear of God and realize that if
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they don't change that by turning back to God, they could
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see destruction, they could see eternal separation from God.
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I truly believe that. So let's go back to Scripture.
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I will winnow them with a with a winnowing fork at the city gates
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of the land. I will bring bring bereavement
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and destruction on my people. For they have not changed their
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ways, so there's no repentance. So God is bringing about
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destruction from them. I will make their widows more
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numerous than the sand of the sea at midday.
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I will bring a destroyer against the mothers of their young men.
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Suddenly I will bring them. I will bring down on them
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anguish and terror. The mother of seven will grow
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faint and breathe her last. Her son will set while it is
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still day. She will be disgraced and
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humiliated. I will put their survivors to
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the sword before the enemies. So what was a winnowing fork?
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Farmers in ancient times tossed the threshed grain into the air
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with a large wooden fork so the wind would blow away the lighter
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chaff while the grain dropped back to the ground.
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It became an image of separation, judgment on the
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wicked, and reward for the for the righteous.
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John later used this image to describe Jesus's ministry
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separating humanity, some to judgment and some to reward.
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Why would God destroy the mothers?
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This pictures absolute devastation, totally upsetting a
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Hebrew image of complete happiness, having seven sons.
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Having many sons usually meant security and comfort for a
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mother, but now Jeremiah said people would no longer rely on
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such expectations. The coming war casualties would
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cause mothers to become childless widows with no means
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of support. Back to Scripture at last, my
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mother, that you gave me birth. A man with whom the whole land
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strives and contends. I have neither lent nor
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borrowed, yet everyone curses me.
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So why did Jeremiah wish he'd never been born?
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Jeremiah was in a no win situation.
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He knew judgment was coming to his people, but he could do
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nothing about it. God called him to pronounce
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judgment but stopped him from praying for mercy.
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The hopelessness of the nation coupled with his own troubles
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made him lapse into self pity. The Lord said, surely I will
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deliver you for a good purpose. Surely I will make your enemies
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plead with you in times of disaster, in times of distress.
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Can a man break iron? Iron from the north or bronze?
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Your wealth and your treasures I will give as plunder without
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charge because of all your sins throughout your country.
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I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you did not
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know, for my anger will kindle a fire that will burn against you.
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Lord, you understand. Remember Me and care for me.
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Avenge me on my persecutors. You are long-suffering.
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Do not take me away. Think of how I suffer reproach
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for your sake. When your words came, I ate
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them. They were my joy and my heart's
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delight, for I bear your name. Lord God Almighty, I never sat
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in the company of revellers, never made merry with them.
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I sat alone because your hand was on me and you had filled me
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with nation. Why is my pain unending and my
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wound grievous and incurable? You are to me like a deceptive
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brook, like a a spring that fails.
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Did Jeremiah escape capture in exile?
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Yes, but he suffered badly at the hands of his own people who
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imprisoned and persecuted him because of his message of doom.
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Is this how Jeremiah acquired the name Prophet of Doom?
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Jeremiah gained his reputation because of his grim message.
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He was so morose that people inevitably shunned him, which
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was deeply hurtful to him. Did Jeremiah fear that God might
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let him down? Despite his close contact with
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the Lord, Jeremiah was human. With his lack of visible
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success, he questioned his calling.
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He feared that he might have missed God and that he would
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find nothing from God to sustain him in his need, like trying to
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drink from a dried up brook. So going back to Scripture,
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therefore, this is what the Lord says, if you repent, I will
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restore you, that you may serve me.
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I thought this might be a key detail or this was like a little
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detail that stood out this time that I read it.
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Listen to this again. If you repent, I will restore
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you, that you may serve me. Is this what God ultimately
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wants of all of us? If we repent, I will restore
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you. So He will give us something for
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that. He will restore us.
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We will, we will receive the inheritance as children of God
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in His Kingdom. But then look at what else it
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says, that you may serve me. So when God Forgives us and
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brings us into restoration, He does so that we may serve Him.
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It's not for our own wealth and prosperity and things like that.
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It is so that we may restore that that we may serve Him.
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So He restores so that we may serve.
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And I think that's a really important detail that's found in
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Jeremiah 15 verse 19. I'll continue on.
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If you utter worthy, not worthless words, you will be my
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spokesperson. Let this people turn to you, but
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you must not turn to them. See, that happens often.
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And it's a warning throughout Scripture that when we surround
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ourselves with people who are ungodly or in nations where
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there is ungodliness or people are not focused on the true God,
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it's very easy for human beings to assimilate into the culture,
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into the friendships that are ungodly.
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And it's more apt to happen that someone turns away from God then
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it is that someone turns to God. And it's, that's just something
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that's shown to us throughout the Bible.
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I don't know why that is. You would think people would
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want good rather than evil, But for some reason it seems like
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the pull of evil is much stronger in our world, I guess.
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But the Holy Spirit is stronger than that.
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So I, I, I won't say that, you know, I think that needs to be
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clarified a little bit more because God's power is greater
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than anything here on earth. And so it can happen.
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I think it's more or less the tendencies of people to desire
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sin rather than desire to do God's will.
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So let's go back to Scripture. I will make you a wall to this
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people, a fortified wall of bronze.
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They will fight against you but will not overcome you.
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So of what did Jeremiah need to repent?
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Jeremiah had indulged in self pity.
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So this is interesting. I wouldn't have even thought of
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that. I was kind of wondering myself
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like what did Jeremiah do? Because it seemed like he was
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faithful to God. But it says he had indulged in
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self pity. And something that I realized as
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I was studying the Bible and was that ultimately sin seems to be
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self related. When we start to become, when
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it's something selfish rather than selfless, it can turn into
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sin. I don't know.
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It's like when we start focusing on ourselves that leads us into
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sin. And it's interesting that all
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the, you know, the way that the world talks right now is about
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self. You know, like I'll focus on
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self, which is kind of scary because that could lead you
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right into sin. We do have to recognize the
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value that we have as individuals.
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God created, God created us in his image and he created good.
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So from that regard, we were created and God intended good
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for us and God, he didn't create us to be evil.
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So we have to remember that. We have to remember we are very
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valuable to God, like he created us out of love.
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So we do have value as ourselves, so we should never
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forget that part of it, but it's where our mind goes.
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Like are we just looking at self preservation?
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Are we just looking at things that we can do for ourselves or
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are we looking at things that we can do for other people?
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What can we do in our lives that will benefit other people?
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How can we do God's will? Those are all questions that we
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should ask ourselves because if like this one, if we get into
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self pity and it says this is what Jeremiah needed to report
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of how many people are in that place and and self pity could be
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something that is a natural occurrence from having really
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bad things happen to someone very similar to like Jeremiah.
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But I think there's something another piece of learning here
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where it's like, don't stay in that because nothing good comes
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from that. Turn your thoughts to others
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instead of focusing like what good can you do?
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What have you learned from the bad things that have happened to
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you? How can you help others so that
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they don't have those same bad things happen to them?
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Those are ways that we can take this self focus and then look at
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others like anything that happened to us is almost like
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God uses it for good so that we can help other people.
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Like when things that happened to us that were bad, we learn
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from them and then we can hopefully help others to avoid
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them or to deal with them once they've happened.
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And I think that's the part of the restoration of getting away
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from self pity too. So I'll continue to read what
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the study Bible says. He had also been impatient with
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God. Like how often are that you know
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us too impatient with God and wanted swift vengeance on his
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enemies. God considered Jeremiah's
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complaints worthless words and called Jeremiah to repent and
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speak worthy words. God wanted Jeremiah to lift
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others up, not be dragged down to their level.
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That's another great point is that we should focus on lifting
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others up, not dragging others down with our interactions on a
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daily basis. How can we lift others up with
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what we do every day instead of dragging others down?
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Even if we are experiencing things that aren't so great, how
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can we still be a light, a light of God and focus on the positive
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and lift others up rather than bringing them down and and
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disparity and depression and everything like that, which is
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hard to do when you're in the midst of all that.
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But this clearly indicates that that's not what God wants of us.
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He doesn't want us to be in this low spirit.
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He wants us to be joyful and to turn that into a different
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reaction, a different emotion. So how could Jeremiah be like a
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wall if Jeremiah would speak the message as it came from God,
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unaltered? God promised to make him
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invisible, like a fortified wall of bronze.
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God didn't promise Jeremiah freedom from trouble or that the
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prophet would never again or that the people would never
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again oppose the prophet, But he did promise to rescue Jeremiah
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so his opponents would never be victorious.
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So then this is really a beautiful verse from Lord.
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It says, For I am with you to rescue and save you, declares
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the Lord. I will save you from the hands
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of the wicked, and deliver you from the grasp of the cruel.
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And that is the end of chapter 15 from Jeremiah.