Jeremiah 22:2

“Hear the word of the Lord, O king of Judah, you who sit on the throne of David, you and your servants and your people who enter these gates!”

As king of Judah, Zedekiah was afforded certain privileges and responsibilities. His seat, or throne, gave him authority that others did not have, and this authority made him culpable before God for his actions and how they impacted the nation.

While very few of us have a seat that gives us authority over a nation, we have all been afforded certain privileges and authority. For some it is the position as a father. This role grants us the responsibility of instructing our children in the word of God, guiding them in the ways of the Lord, and setting a godly example for them. Others have been given a position as co-worker, where we are able to establish relationships with…

Jeremiah 21:8

“Now you shall say to this people, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death.”‘”

The inhabitants of Judah had a choice to make. On the one hand, they had God’s way that carried a promise of life. On the other hand, they had their own way which could only lead to death.

Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.”

To make matters more difficult, the way that promised life included surrender to the Babylonians. Jeremiah declared that if they fought against the armies of Nebuchadnezzar, or if they fled from them, in an attempt to find safety somewhere else, they would die. The only hope for Judah was to surrender. Once surrendered, they would be captured, and once captured, they would ultimately become free…

Hebrews 10:7
“Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come— In the volume of the book it is written of Me— To do Your will, O God. ’”

Years ago I had a friend who worked in a local book store. Part of his job was to be familiar with the books so he could answer questions and make recommendations. The problem was he really did not enjoy reading. His solution was to read the book jackets which often gave a brief summary of the content of each book. While that did not make him an expert by any means, it did give him a good idea of what to expect if and when he ever ventured into reading one of the books. If the Bible contained an inspired summary of its content it would be but one word: Jesus.

John 5:39 “You search the Scriptures, for in them you…

Jeremiah 20:9
“Then I said, ‘I will not make mention of Him, Nor speak anymore in His name.’ But His word was in my heart like a burning fire Shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, And I could not.”

Due to his experiences, Jeremiah no longer wanted to publicly declare the Word of God. His message had been ignored and rejected, and now his listeners were becoming hostile. He was mocked, ridiculed, then arrested. It is not difficult to understand why he reached a point where he thought this is simply not worth it. Scarred, scared, and perhaps somewhat embarrassed by the lack of positive response to the message, Jeremiah declares emphatically, he is done. He will leave preaching to others and find something else to do.

I have to admit, I had my share of times when I felt as Jeremiah did. In…

Jeremiah 19:1
​”Thus says the Lord: ‘Go and get a potter’s earthen flask, and take some of the elders of the people and some of the elders of the priests.'”

Jeremiah 19:10-11  “Then you shall break the flask in the sight of the men who go with you, and say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts:’ “Even so I will break this people and this city, as one breaks a potter’s vessel, which cannot be made whole again; and they shall bury them in Tophet till there is no place to bury.””

Sometimes Jeremiah not only taught the Word, but he also illustrated it quite graphically. On this occasion, he was to take a flask in his hands as he spoke to the people. They would see themselves as the earthen vessel that had been created by the potter. At some point in his message, he cast…

Hebrews 9:23 

“Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.”

Hebrews is dealing with the superiority of Christ. Here in Chapter 9, we see Christ is clearly superior to the Old Testament sacrifices, for they must be offered continually, but He was offered once to take away sin. We are even told, while it is appointed for all men to die once, then to face judgment, Jesus took the penalty on the cross, rescuing all who believe in Him from the judgment to come.

In discussing the superiority of Christ, the furnishings of the Tabernacle are listed; we are told they are “copies of heavenly things.” In fact, the Tabernacle and it’s furnishings, become a perfect illustration of the way of salvation. In Exodus, as the Children of Israel…

Jeremiah 18:18
“Then they said, ‘Come and let us devise plans against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come and let us attack him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words.’”

The citizens of Judah no longer looked to the Word of God for direction in life. They had forsaken the Lord and His ways, seeking to become like the nations they were supposed to evangelize. Jeremiah arose to call the people back to the Lord. Over and over again, he reminded them of the folly of leaving the Lord, and the danger of sin. He compared life apart from the Lord to a shrub in the desert, while following the Lord was like being a lush and fruitful tree. He warned of the coming destruction on the…

Jeremiah 17:9
“The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?”

There are certain bedrock principles within the Bible, upon which we can build our lives. One of those is recorded here. Jeremiah explains, the heart is deceitful and as a result cannot be trusted. Like today, many ancient cultures referred to the innermost being of a man as the heart. They were not referring to the organ that pumps blood through the body, but of the central place of emotions, affection and the will. It is common today to be encouraged to follow our hearts. If we are in a relationship and don’t know if we should move forward, we are told to “follow our heart.” The same is true of almost every decision in life. If we can learn the principle that Jeremiah is seeking to teach us, we will not only avoid…

Hebrews 8:1

“Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, . . .”

Under the Levitical priesthood, on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest would enter into the Holy of Holies bringing atonement to the Lord on behalf of the people. His job was basically to represent the people to the Lord, and the Lord to the people. If memory serves me, I believe the Latin word for high priest means “bridge builder.” The role of the priest was to make a way for man to be right with God. Hebrews 8 reminds us, Christ is our High Priest and having made a way for us to be right with God, He is in heaven representing us to the Father.

As the…

Jeremiah 16:14-15
“Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “that it shall no more be said, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt,’ but, ‘The Lord lives who brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north and from all the lands where He had driven them.’ For I will bring them back into their land which I gave to their fathers.”

Jeremiah’s message was a warning of coming judgment and a call to return to the Lord. He predicted the Babylonians would soon overthrow Israel and take the people captive. He promised that those who turned to the Lord would experience the mercy of God, and one day the nation would be allowed to return to the land. It is here that a wonderful promise is made to the backslider. He declares, God will be known to…