Lessons From Jeremiah – Part 30 – The Problem Is Disobedience And Necks That Are Too Stiff Part 30 - Jeremiah 7:20-26 Series

LESSONS FROM JEREMIAH – PART 30 – THE PROBLEM IS DISOBEDIENCE AND NECKS THAT ARE TOO STIFF

PART 30 - Jeremiah 7:20-26

CHAPTER 7

[A]. THEREFORE BECOMES THE CONCLUSION

{{Jeremiah 7:20 THEREFORE thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, My anger and MY WRATH WILL BE POURED OUT on this place, on man and on beast and on the trees of the field and on the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and not be quenched.”}}

“What is the conclusion,” we may ask. For the answer to that we need to rake up all that has preceded this that earned God’s great displeasure. For that it included all the book of Jeremiah, so far but we confine ourselves to chapter 7.

Found in chapter 7 are terrible things. The people had despised justice. Everyone deceived each other. They stole, murdered, and committed adultery, and swore falsely, and offered sacrifices to Baal. The LORD’S house had become a den of robbers. Maybe even worse than all, they committed themselves to the evil worship of the queen of heaven. All that forms the corruption that is so far in chapter 7. To use a modern term, “It was gross.”

With that great weight of sin upon them, God introduces the “Therefore.” Now comes the inevitable result. It is a full description of judgement and it is thorough. God’s anger and wrath will be poured out.

Firstly, the expression “poured out” is quite common in scripture, the first usage being – {{Genesis 35:14 “and Jacob set up a pillar in the place where He had spoken with him, a pillar of stone, and HE POURED OUT a libation on it. He also poured oil on it.”}} Then we have references to the Tabernacle and other matters, but I want to come down to Jeremiah’s time, in the reign of King Josiah (Jeremiah’s time) and this is the king speaking – {{2 Chronicles 34:21 “Go, inquire of the LORD for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book which has been found; for GREAT IS THE WRATH OF THE LORD WHICH IS POURED OUT ON US because our fathers have not observed the word of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book.”}}

Straight on top of that, the prophetess Huldah confirmed the dire position of Judah – {{2 Chronicles 34:25 “Because they have forsaken Me and have burned incense to other gods, that they might provoke Me to anger with all the works of their hands, THEREFORE MY WRATH WILL BE POURED OUT ON THIS PLACE, AND IT SHALL NOT BE QUENCHED.”’}} I find it interesting that the expressions of Jeremiah and Huldah are so similar. She also uses a “Therefore”.

In Jeremiah 7:20 the prophet states, “My anger and My wrath,” but what is the difference between these two? The AV uses “My anger and My fury”.

There is a difference with the second word being much stronger than the first. Anger is associated with the nostril such as when a person is angry the nostril supposedly twitches or turns up. It means angry as we understand the everyday usage. However the second word, “wrath” or “fury”, even “burning wrath, according to Strong’s means heat, rage, hot displeasure, indignation, anger, wrath, poison, venom, rage” – well, you get the idea! God would act so decisively!

The end of the verse says it “burns and will not be quenched.” These are the strongest terms for the fierceness of the rage of God against His unrepentant, wicked people. Beware, the same conditions will be here in the Tribulation that is very close now. The world is in deep wickedness, and the Lord will remove His Church as Noah was removed in the ark, and then the burning wrath of God will fall. It is all in Revelation.

Verse 20 is all-inclusive – man, beast, trees, fruit. Nothing will be excluded from the fury of God that will come on the nation. They worshipped the queen of heaven and all manner of idols, including Moloch where their children were thrown into the mouth of a burning brass bull. Wickedness multiplies and becomes more evil over time. Man is accountable for his sin and in Judah’s case, many men and women meant a huge weight of wickedness that must meet justice.

Verse 20 uses “pairs” and I think that is for emphasis and certainty –

anger, wrath

man, beast

trees, fruit of the ground (crops)

burn, not to be quenched

[B]. WHAT GOD COMMANDED AND DID NOT COMMAND

{{Jeremiah 7:21 Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Add your burnt offerings to your sacrifices and eat flesh,

Jeremiah 7:22 for I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices,