This tape contains the fifth in a series of five teachings on the book of Jeremiah, presented by the Reverend John W. Howe, Rector of Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, Virginia. The title of this teaching is Concerning the Nations, and the scripture referenced is Jeremiah chapters 32 through 52. Zedekiah. Zedekiah is the last king of Israel, apart from the one who comes as king of kings and lord of lords. And I want to sort out the chronology of Jeremiah's witness and ministry during the final years of Zedekiah's reign.

I've already showed you that the book, the prophecies are not in chronological order, and that's a real problem. But we can sort out most of what Jeremiah had to say during the time of Zedekiah because it's quite clear where a given prophecy begins and where it ends. So I'm going to move quite quickly.

You can kind of follow along, but we're going to be moving rather quickly and skipping back and forth from chapter to chapter. If you would begin in chapter 34, in the first seven verses, Jeremiah warns Zedekiah that the Lord will indeed give Jerusalem into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar. But he promises Zedekiah that he, the king, Zedekiah, will have a peaceful death and an honorable burial, evidently on the assumption that Zedekiah is going to surrender.

Verse 3, you shall not escape from his hand. You shall not escape from Nebuchadnezzar's hand. You shall be captured and delivered and so on.

But verse 4, This was probably spoken in the summer or fall of 589 B.C. It is just before the siege of Jerusalem actually begins. Now if you'd skip over to chapter 37, the siege has begun and in fact there's a little interval when the Babylonians sort of lift the siege upon the approach of the Egyptian army this would probably be the spring of 588 and Zedekiah sends a delegation to Jeremiah asking him to pray for the city and Jeremiah sends back word that the Babylonians will return to the city and capture it look at verse 10 what an incredible word Even if you should defeat the whole army of Chaldeans who are fighting against you, and there remain of them only wounded men, every man in his tent they would rise up and burn this city with fire.

Doesn't matter how many tanks and guns and M1s and stealth bombers and anything else you want to bring against them, cut them down to the last man. God is going to have his way. He's going to do what he said.

This city is going to be leveled. this people is going to be brought into punishment. Back to chapter 34, verses 8 to 22.

After the siege began, Zedekiah issued a proclamation freeing the Hebrew slaves, but when the siege was lifted with the approach of the army, the Egyptian army, the slave owners took their slaves back again. And Jeremiah rebukes them for their disobedience, again predicts that the Babylonian army will be the Lord's instrument of justice for this and for all their other sins. Look at verse 17.

Therefore thus says the Lord, You have not obeyed me by proclaiming liberty, everyone to his brother and to his neighbor. Behold, I proclaim to you liberty to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine, says the Lord. That's some kind of liberty, isn't it?

I'm going to liberate you out of your disobedience by bringing horrible punishment upon you. Chapter 37, verses 11 to 15. Jeremiah sets out for Benjamin.

He is arrested on the charge of deserting to the enemy, a false charge he is beaten and imprisoned until the fall of Jerusalem what's going on here is that those who even at this very very late date are still saying God will not allow this thing to happen to us they are also saying Jeremiah is aiding and abetting our enemy see he's a traitor he's weakening the people's resistance he's speaking words against us and against our victory and so he is arrested on the charge of desertion. Verse 13, you are deserting to the Chaldeans. Jeremiah says, verse 14, I am not deserting to the Chaldeans.

But Erege would not listen to him and seize Jeremiah and brought him to the princes. And the princes were enraged at Jeremiah. They beat him and imprisoned him in the house of Jonathan, the secretary, for it had been made a prison.

And he spends the rest of this battle time, this siege time, under arrest. He moves around a little bit, but he is arrested till the fall of Jerusalem. The next portion of that chapter, verses 16 to 21, Zedekiah sends a message to Jeremiah, sends a secret inquiry.

Is there any word from the Lord? And obviously what he's hoping is that the word which has been delivered again and again and again for 40 years is somehow going to be rescinded You're modified. Jeremiah says, verse 17, there is a word from the Lord.

Here it is. Guess what? You shall be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.

In 16 to 21, no, sorry, we just looked at that. He goes on to say, where are all the prophets who promised peace, peace? Where are they now?

They've deserted you. At this point, he asks for freedom, some degree of freedom, more freedom in his imprisonment, and he has granted it. He's allowed to go to the court of the guard, which is probably some sort of an open courtyard in the palace compound.

If you turn all the way back to chapter 32, we looked at this a couple of weeks ago. It's at this point in the story, while he's in the court of the guard, that he purchases the field. It's very late into the story.

we're already being destroyed and at this point he purchases the field and verse 15 explains why there is a message in his doing this that in spite of this annihilation this seeming annihilation this seeming destruction coming upon us it is not going to be final God will have a future and a hope for his people thus says the Lord of hosts the God of Israel houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land chapter 38 while he's in the court of the guard Jeremiah continues advising the people to surrender Nebuchadnezzar, the Chaldeans, the Babylonians are being used as God's instrument don't resist them it will be better for you if you go willingly and a group of princes appeal to the king to do away with Jeremiah. They say he's weakening the resistance. Verse 4, Let this man be put to death, for he's weakening the hands of the soldiers who are left in this city and the hands of all the people by speaking such words to them.

For this man is not seeking the welfare of this people, but their harm. King Zedekiah says, Behold, he is in your hands. The king can do nothing against you.

So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the cistern of Malachiah, the king's son, which was in the court of the guard, letting Jeremiah down by ropes. There was no water in the cistern but only mire. Jeremiah sank into the mire.

What a picture. And left him there literally to die. There's no way he's going to crawl out of this cistern.

He's just sinking into the mud. But, in fact, he is rescued in the next paragraph by an Ethiopian eunuch. verse 14 to 28 of the same chapter, there's a second secret interview with Zedekiah who asks essentially the same question.

Doesn't the Lord change his mind even now? And he gets the same reply. Verse 17, Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, Thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the God of Israel, If you will surrender to the princes of the king of Babylon, then your life shall be spared, and this city shall not be utterly burned with fire, and you and your house shall live.

But if you do not surrender to the princes of the king of Babylon, then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and you shall not escape from their hand. Zedekiah goes on to ask Jeremiah not to let anybody know the real reason for this interview. And Jeremiah agrees to do that.

Chapter 39, all the way through the chapter on into the 40th chapter, the worst of the prophecies that we have been looking at for this last month begin to unfold horribly. The city falls to the Babylonians. Zedekiah is seized.

His sons are killed in front of his eyes. Verse 6, the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah at Riblah before his eyes. and the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah and then he blinds Zedekiah and binds him, carries him in chains to take him to Babylon.

Jeremiah is entrusted to a governor by the name of Gedaliah who is appointed by Nebuchadnezzar and Gedaliah gives Jeremiah his option. Do you want to go to Babylon or do you want to stay here? And we will give you safe travel, safe passage to Babylon or you can stay behind with the remnant left in Judah and Jeremiah elects to stay behind.

Chapter 40 all the way through into the middle of 42, I'm just going to summarize very, very quickly. A group of rebels assassinates Gedaliah, asks Jeremiah to seek the will of the Lord. He prays and seeks the mind of the Lord for 10 days and comes back to them with the word that they're to remain in Judah and not to flee to Egypt.

They ignore that counsel taking Jeremiah with them and that's where he lived out the remainder of his life. Probably as late as 570 BC. It was there that his final oracles were spoken and tradition has it that he was stoned to death by his exasperated and still unrepentant fellow countrymen.

Incredible story. incredible story how many of you have run into the prosperity gospel if you are faithful to the Lord riches, health fame will be yours, right? check it out with Jeremiah 40 years of faithful preaching and as I said in the first lecture apart from Baruch, his secretary there really is no evidence of anybody being converted.

Use that word in a broad sense. Anybody really changing his or her mind or heart at the preaching of Jeremiah. It just unfolds.

And he's finally amid a group of totally unrepentant rebels who are so frustrated that even now he doesn't change his mind that they stone him to death. In the final chapters of the book there is this series of prophecies that I believe is as remarkable as anything that's ever been written. Jeremiah is not simply a prophet to the Jews or to Judah.

He is a prophet to the nations. And again, I'm just going to kind of very briefly highlight, and you can go back and read these more clearly, but chapter 44, verses 8 to 14, is addressed to the rebels in Egypt, the ones that I just referred to, these folks who eventually, tradition has it, put him to death. And he preaches to them.

And look at verse 16, after they've listened to one more sermon over against 40 years of preaching. Verse 15, Then all the men who knew that their wives had offered incense to other gods, and all the women who stood by a great assembly, all the people who dwelt in Pathros in the land of Egypt, answered Jeremiah, As for the word which you have spoken I mean, the worst of what he has prophesied has come true. That's why they're in Egypt.

Will they repent? Will they bow before God? Look at what it goes on to say.

We will do everything that we have vowed. We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and pour out libations to her as we did, both we and our fathers, our kings and our princes in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem for then we had plenty of food and prosperity and saw no evil but since we left off burning incense to the queen of heaven and pouring out libations to her we have lacked everything and we've been consumed by the sword and by famine and the women said when we burned incense to the queen of heaven and poured out libations to her was it without our husband's approval that we made cakes for her bearing her image and poured out libations to her and so on there were many names to the queen of heaven one of the pagan deities one of many that they worshipped. Okay?

That was the problem all the way through the land. Chapter 46. The word of the Lord which came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations about Egypt.

Now we're dealing with the rebels inside Egypt. Now here's a prophecy about Egypt herself. And the essence of that word is Egypt is going to be defeated by the Babylonians.

Chapter 47. The Philistines defeated by the Babylonians. Interestingly enough, this one was prophesied 20 years previously.

It appears here in the book, but it was prophesied 20 years earlier and fulfilled when Nebuchadnezzar took Judah. Chapter 48, Moab will be defeated by the Babylonians. Moab helped Babylon against Judah, but then was herself defeated in 582 B.C.

49, Ammon, Edom, Syria, Hazor, Elam, one by one like dominoes. The nations will fall before the advancing Babylonians. Domino theory fulfilled.

And then, look what happens in chapter 50. Let me read 17 to 20. Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions.

First the king of Assyria devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has gnawed his bones. Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, as I punish the king of Assyria. I will restore Israel to his pasture, and he shall feed on Carmel and in Bashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead.

in those days and in that time, says the Lord, iniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none. And sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant. Look at 51.

Verse 11. Sharpen the arrows, take up the shields. The Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because his purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it.

So the Lord has held Babylon in the palm of his hand and used this heathen nation, this warmongering nation, as his instrument of punishment and correction, not only for the Jews, but more broadly for all these surrounding nations, one after another, and yet not for a moment. Does that mean that the Lord is pleased with Babylon? Can you hold those two thoughts in your mind at once?

I mean, here God is using Babylon for his own purposes, and yet Babylon itself now comes under the Lord's judgment. He says, I'm going to use the Medes and the Persians to punish Babylon. Then I'm going to use the Romans to punish the Medes and the Persians.

Then I'm going to use the Visigoths to punish the Romans. Do you get the picture? Then America will rise.

I'll get to America. I'm stirring up the spirit of the kings and the Medes because his purpose concerning Babylon is to destroy it, for that is the vengeance of the Lord, the vengeance for his temple. Drop down to verse 20.

You are my hammer and weapon of war. With you I break nations in pieces. With you I destroy kingdoms.

With you I break in pieces the horse and his rider. With you I break in pieces the chariot and the charioteur. With you I break in pieces man and woman.

With you I break in pieces the old man and the youth. With you I break in pieces the young man and the maiden. With you I break in pieces the shepherd and his flock.

With you I break in pieces the farmer and his team. With you I break in pieces governors and commanders. I will requite Babylon and all the inhabitants of Chaldea before your very eyes for all the evil that they have done in Zion, says the Lord.

Incredible. Incredible. I use you to break everything.

Now I'm going to break you. Get it? Now I'm against you.

God uses the nations to accomplish his own purposes. He even uses their evil for good. It says he uses the wrath of man to please himself.

Eventually their evil will be punished. I want to turn in closing to Psalm 2. We've just really just scratched the surface and I invite you to study this book much more fully and go on and read also the book of Lamentations where Jeremiah sees all of his prophecies coming true over the city of Jerusalem and its people and weeps, his heart breaking inside him.

But this seems to me a better note on which to conclude. The psalmist says, Why do the nations conspire? And the people's plot in vain.

The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and his anointed, saying, Let us burst their bonds asunder and cast their cords from us. He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord has them in derision.

Then he will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury, saying, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill. I will tell of the decree of the Lord. He said to me, You are my son.

Today I have begotten you. That's fulfilled in a very shadowy kind of a way, a preliminary way historical kings of Israel, fulfilled a little bit in David, fulfilled a little bit in Solomon, but we've seen what a sorry lot most of those kings were. That's fulfilled in the king of kings, isn't it?

You are my son, today I have begotten you. Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.

Now therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, with trembling.

Kiss his feet, lest he be angry and you perish in the way. For his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Mariel, will you lead us in prayer? Amen.