20 August

Bible In 365 Days                                                                                                     

Jeremiah 30-31                                       

Jeremiah 30

Following this action of the prophet a word of Jehovah came to him which he was especially commanded to write in a book. In a remarkable way it first set forth two things side by side. The first and fundamental was the ultimate determination of God to accomplish His purpose, and restore His people. The second was the appalling condition of the people, so that there was no hope for them except this determination of God.

In setting forth the love that will not let His people go, in spite of all their waywardness and folly, this first movement stands without a rival in all the words of the prophets.

Jeremiah 31

Continuing, the Prophet dealt with the issues of restoration. He first described the restoration of the city. After affirming the ancient love of Jehovah for His people, he foretold the building of the city, and the planting of "vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria," proceeding to describe the return to the city and the country of the penitent people. He then turned to the surrounding nations, and declared to them the fact that Jehovah had ransomed and redeemed Jacob, foretold their prosperity and rejoicing, and the absolute satisfaction with which He would fill them.

The next movement tells of the passing of sorrow. The prophet first described that sorrow, and then uttered the promise of Jehovah which was intended to assuage the grief and stay the tears. He put into the mouth of Ephraim the language which indicated his sense of the meaning of his chastisement, and declared his repentance, and again affirmed God's memory on him and determination to have mercy on him. He then broke in on the poem with an urgent appeal to the people to turn from backsliding into the way of God's restoration.

Taking up the song again, he celebrated the new contentment which would take possession of the people in the day of return. It would be contentment with the divine government and administration. All the proverbs which seemed to reflect upon Jehovah would be abandoned. He then described the new covenant out of which the new contentment would grow. It would no longer be like the external one made with the fathers, but spiritual and internal, and based on an intimate knowledge of Jehovah.

The last movement of the song consists of the prophet's statement of the oath of restoration in which Jehovah appealed to the signs in the heavens, and repeated His promise of deliverance.