Thy Kingdom Come Series

34 The fields that used to lie empty and desolate—a shock to all who passed by—will again be farmed.

35 And when I bring you back, people will say, ‘This godforsaken land is now like Eden’s garden! The ruined cities now have strong walls, and they are filled with people!’

36 Then the nations all around—all those still left—will know that I, the Lord, rebuilt the ruins and planted lush crops in the wilderness. For I, the Lord, have promised this, and I will do it.

Israel had been blessed by God and given all they ever needed, but they begin to become prideful and snobbish. Remember that God had called this people for several reasons:

• First, to Embody His name.

He wanted them to be His representatives on earth, and to tell all the other nations about Him. But if they’re going to represent God, they must live godly lives, and they must give themselves to Him as living sacrifices. And there are other things involved, such as obedience, commitment, and trust in God. Israel couldn’t do any of those things, but the worst part was that they didn’t evangelize; they kept God to themselves. We are His representatives today, but nothing has changed. He told us, just before He returned to heaven, to take the gospel to the whole world, and that leads us to the second reason. He wanted Israel to—

• Embrace His mission.

Jesus completed His mission of reconciling man to God when He died on the Cross. And then He went back to heaven, and set down at the Father’s right side, and there He continues to work for us by being our mediator with God. He doesn’t audibly talk directly to people any more, instead, He uses His children—men and women just like you and me. In a certain sense we are continuing His mission to the world by telling others His story—the gospel of Jesus Christ.

• Finally, He wanted His people to Obey His Word.

They were especially blessed by God. They were chosen by God and they enjoyed a special relationship with Him that no other nation had or have had since then. God even made a covenant with them.

He said, “I’ll be your God and you will be My people.” But they were to do certain things, one of which was to obey Him. But, unfortunately, they couldn’t (rather, "they wouldn't) do it, and the result was that God turned them over to their enemies.

Throughout their history as a nation there was this cycle that was repeated over-and-over again. They would turn away from God to worship other Gods. God would punish them by giving them over to their enemies. They would cry out to God, who would send a deliver such as Moses, Samson, and Deborah. He wanted them to embody His name, embrace His mission, and obey His word. But Israel refused to follow God, which brought dire consequences upon them.

In 587 BC God allowed the sinful nation of Babylon to invade, overwhelm, and take captive the people of Israel. They were removed from their land and exiled to Babylon. The nation of Israel was judged for its life of sin and disobedience and found guilty. Their guilt was not only because of sin’s affect on them, and they were not judged because of their sin’s affect on the nations around them. They were found guilty because of what their sin had done to the name of Yahweh. Yahweh’s name had been profaned in the nation and in other nations as well. The Lord tells how His name was profaned in Amos 2:6-8. This is what the Lord said just before they were taken captive to Babylonia: