Determined To Disobey
Text: Jer. 44:15-17
I. THE PEOPLE’S REQUEST (Jer. 41:16-42:8)
A. The People Purportedly Sought God’s Direction.
B. The Prophet Promised That What God Said, He Would Declare.
C. The People Promised That What God Said, They Would Do
II. THE PROPHET’S REPORT (Jer. 42:9-21)
A. Jeremiah Reveals God’s Decree.
B. Jeremiah Reveals The Danger Of Disobedience.
C. Jeremiah Reveals The People’s Deceitfulness.
III. THE PEOPLE’S REBELLION (Jer. 43:1-44:27)
A. They Vilified God’s Prophet.
B. God’s Wrath Was Provoked.
C. Their Defiance Progressed.
D. Judgment Was Pronounced.
Intro: Today’s text accurately sums up the overall attitude of the people of Judah during the time of Jeremiah the prophet. In spite of the fact that God’s judgment had already resulted in the capture of Jerusalem and the surrounding cities, the remnant of Judah still displayed hardened hearts toward God that seemed determined to have their own way—determined to disobey.
The strange thing about the condition of these folks is that they didn’t seem to realize that God could see past the charades of their deceitful hearts. They talked of wanting to do God’s will; but what they really meant was that they would do God’s will as long as it agreed with what they had already made up their minds to do. When God’s plans didn’t coincide with their plan, they rebelled. That attitude sounds a lot like a number of Baptist church members I’ve known through the years.
People in our day are really not so different from the people of Judah in the days of Jeremiah. There are still those who know how to submit to God with their lips, but don’t know how, or even care to live submissively. However, we can be assured that God knows the difference.
Let’s examine the hearts of the people of Judah. We will find that they were a people who were DETERMINED TO DISOBEY.
Theme: It’s plain to see that Judah was determined to disobey when one considers…
I. THE PEOPLE’S REQUEST
A. The People Purportedly Sought God’s Direction.
1. The people, fearing Babylonian reprisals, had already come to a preconceived conclusion.
Jer. 41:16 “Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam [whom the king of Babylon had made governor of Judah], even mighty men of war, and the women, and the children, and the eunuchs, whom he had brought again from Gibeon:
17 And they departed, and dwelt in the habitation of Chimham, which is by Bethlehem, to go to enter into Egypt,
18a Because of the Chaldeans: for they were afraid of them…”
NOTE: After Johanan had delivered the people from Ishmael, including Jeremiah the prophet; he immediately departs to “…the habitation of Chimham” (v. 17a). Though there is little in biblical history concerning Chimham, according to one commentary, “The lodging place was a khan (caravansary) on the caravan route to Egypt.”1 It’s seems rather clear that Johanan and the remnant of Judah were poised and ready to take the road down to Egypt for safety.
2. The people enlisted Jeremiah’s help only to see if God would concur.
Jer. 42:1 “Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hashaiah, 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 show us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we may do.”
NOTE: What prophet of God, or pastor, wouldn’t like to hear words like these found in verse three, from his people? But unless the ones speaking those words follow through, and truly obey and follow the Lord, their words are little more than religious rhetoric and high-sounding, but meaningless, verbiage. God is tired of cheap commitment, and “Burger King religion” (“Have it your way”). He’s not interested in Christians who merely talk the talk, but those who are willing to walk the walk. As it turned out, the words of Johanan and the remnant of Judah were hollow and insincere.
B. The Prophet Promised That What God Said, He Would Declare.
Jer. 42:4 “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.”
C. The People Promised That What God Said, They Would Do.
Jer. 42:5 “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.”
NOTE: [1] Notice that though these people had already made up their minds about what they were going to do, they had the audacity to call upon God to witness their agreement to obey His will, as spoken through Jeremiah.
[2] In verse six, these people said in essence, “Whatever God’s will is, we’ll do it, because we want things to go well for us.” The only reason I can think of for their making such a statement is that they were assuming that what they wanted would be what God wanted, just because they felt strongly about it. Their hearts were not surrendered to the sovereignty of God’s will. However, these people had made a vow to obey whatever God told them to do. Folks, when you make a promise to God, He takes that promise seriously.
Eccl. 5:5 “Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay.”
II. THE PROPHET’S REPORT
A. Jeremiah Reveals God’s Decree.
Jer. 42:9 “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.
11 Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid; be not afraid of him, saith the Lord: for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand.
12 And I will show mercies unto you, that he [the king of Babylon] may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land.”
NOTE: [1] There’s a principle to be found in verses 9-12. That principle is this: God’s people can only reap the greatest benefit from God’s willingness to bless, protect and provide, when they are within His perfect will. However, the remnant of Judah had no real faith in God. They simply disregarded the promises of God for protection and preservation. Apparently, they felt that God’s plan made no logical sense to them. They thought running in fear preferable to resting in faith.
[2] If you withhold trusting God until you can understand how God’s going to accomplish what you need, you’ll probably never trust Him. You need to realize that “understanding” isn’t the issue. Augustine once said:
Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that thou mayest believe, but believe that thou mayest understand.2
[3] Manley Beasley, speaking of this idea of faith and understanding, once said, “Faith is reason at rest with God.”3 Bro. Beasley went on to say: “Faith is acting as though a thing is so, when it is not, in order for it to be so.”4
B. Jeremiah Reveals The Danger Of Disobedience.
Jer. 42:15 “And now therefore hear the word of the Lord, ye remnant of Judah; Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and to sojourn there;
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.
17 So shall it be with all the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there; they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them.”
NOTE: [1] God made one thing abundantly clear to the remnant of Judah: To knowingly depart from the revealed will of God places one at great peril. It can even be fatal. This is seen in principle in Deuteronomy 31: 16 & 17, where God pointedly warned Israel of the outcome of failing to follow the Lord’s ways.
Deut. 31:16 “And the Lord said unto Moses, Behold, thou shalt sleep with thy fathers; and this people will rise up, and go a-whoring after the gods of the strangers of the land, whither they go to be among them, and will forsake me, and break my covenant which I have made with them.
17 Then my anger shall be kindled against them in that day, and I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them; so that they will say in that day, Are not these evils come upon us, because our God is not among us?”
[2] When the child of God ignores the revealed will of God he is on his own. That’s always dangerous, because Jesus said, “…without me ye can do nothing” (John 15:5c).
C. Jeremiah Reveals The People’s Deceitfulness.
Jer. 42:19 “The Lord hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt: know certainly that I have admonished you this day.
20 For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me unto the Lord your God, saying, Pray for us unto the Lord our God; and according unto all that the Lord our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it.
21 And now I have this day declared it to you; but ye have not obeyed the voice of the Lord your God, nor any thing for the which he hath sent me unto you.”
NOTE: [1] The word “dissembled” carries the idea of deception. One commentator explains the thought of the word as follows:
Jeremiah shows the remnant their duplicity in asking for a message from God when they had no intention of following it. All the time they had intended doing their own will in the hope that God’s will would coincide with theirs (v. 21). So they were victims of self-deception and self-delusion.5
[2] The whole point here is simply that these folks wanted God to place His approval on what they had already determined to do. (Sounds a lot like Baptists, doesn’t it?) They would do the will of God as long as God’s will coincided with their will. That, my friends, is not a submissive attitude. God is not obliged to get in on what we are doing, but we are obligated to get in on what He is doing.
III. THE PEOPLE’S REBELLION
A. They Vilified God’s Prophet.
Jer. 43:1 “And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the Lord their God, for which the Lord their God had sent him to them, even all these words,
2 Then spake Azariah the son of Hashaiah, 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.”
NOTE: [1] This is still a very common occurrence today. Some people make claims of wanting to follow God, but the minute the preacher tells them something from God’s Word that goes against their preconceived ideas or plans, or perhaps gets on their sin, they begin to accuse the preacher of not knowing what he’s talking about, or being out to get them.
[2] Dear friend, I’d rather take a beating than to make someone mad. However, if speaking the truth of God makes somebody mad, I’ll have to speak the truth anyway. I’ll do my best to speak the truth in love (Eph. 4:15a); but I’ll still have to tell you what God says. I’d rather displease man than displease my Lord. Any man of God that’s worth his salt will feel the same way.
B. God’s Wrath Was Provoked.
1. They defied God’s command.
Jer. 43:4 “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.
…………………………………………………….
7 So they came into the land of Egypt: for they obeyed not the voice of the Lord: thus came they even to Tahpanhes.”
2. They defiled themselves with greater sin.
Jer. 44:7 “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:
8 In that ye provoke me unto wrath with the works of your hands, burning incense unto other gods in the land of Egypt, whither ye be gone to dwell, that ye might cut yourselves off, and that ye might be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth?”
NOTE: John Phillips once said, “Whom God would destroy, He first makes blind.”6 Rejecting known spiritual truth leads to the onset of spiritual blindness. Spiritual blindness leads to greater sin, which leads to increased hardness of heart, which eventually leads to destruction. The principle of God’s Word is, “He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy” (Prov. 29:1).
C. Their Defiance Progressed.
Jer. 44:15 “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.”
NOTE: [1] Isn’t it ironic that what supposedly began as a request for God’s direction, turned out to be outright rebellion against God’s direction. Folks, following God isn’t following when it pleases you, but rather, following and obeying Him no matter what. Following Christ is absolute surrender to His will, nothing more and nothing less. Through the prophet Samuel, God told King Saul:
1 Sam. 15:23a “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…”
[2] Do you know what rebellion really is? Rebellion, when one boils it all down, is putting one’s own will above God’s will. Someone has accurately defined rebellion this way: “Reserving for myself the right to make the final decision. (Isaiah 65:2).”7
D. Judgment Was Pronounced.
Jer. 44:26 “Therefore hear ye the word of the Lord, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt; Behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, The Lord God liveth.
27 Behold, I will watch over them for evil, and not for good: and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine, until there be an end of them.”
Theme: It’s plain to see that Judah was determined to disobey when one considers…
I. THE PEOPLE’S REQUEST
II. THE PROPHET’S REPORT
III. THE PEOPLE’S REBELLION
End Notes:
1. Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 6, Copyright © 1986 by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapid, Michigan; Jeremiah, Charles L. Feinberg, Contributor, pg. 633.
2. St. Augustine.
3. Manley Beasley, Faith Workbook, Copyright © 1973 by Manley Beasley, printed by Christian Litho, Inc., P.O. Box R, Zachary, La. 70791; pg. 7.
4. Ibid, pg. 11.
5. Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Vol. 6, Copyright © 1986 by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapid, Michigan; Jeremiah, Charles L. Feinberg, Contributor, pg. 636.
6. John Phillips, Exploring Genesis, Copyright © 1980 by The Moody Bible Institute, Chicago, Illinois; pg. 161.
7. Author unknown. Acquired from SermonIllustrations.com.
Be sure to check out the author’s May 12, 2011 book release entitled, "Meditations of the Heart: Thoughts on the Christian Life" at: http://www.amazon.com/Meditations-Heart-Thoughts-Christian-Life/dp/1453739238
