©Michael Player
Chapter 16:1-13 (ESV) - The word of the LORD came to me: “You shall not take a wife, nor shall you have sons or daughters in this place. For thus says the LORD concerning the sons and daughters who are born in this place, and concerning the mothers who bore them and the fathers who fathered them in this land: They shall die of deadly diseases. They shall not be lamented, nor shall they be buried. They shall be as dung on the surface of the ground. They shall perish by the sword and by famine, and their dead bodies shall be food for the birds of the air and for the beasts of the earth.
“For thus says the LORD: Do not enter the house of mourning, or go to lament or grieve for them, for I have taken away my peace from this people, my steadfast love and mercy, declares the LORD. Both great and small shall die in this land. They shall not be buried, and no one shall lament for them or cut himself or make himself bald for them. No one shall break bread for the mourner, to comfort him for the dead, nor shall anyone give him the cup of consolation to drink for his father or his mother. You shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink. For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will silence in this place, before your eyes and in your days, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.
“And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, ‘Why has the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?’ then you shall say to them: ‘Because your fathers have forsaken me, declares the LORD, and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, and because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of you follows his stubborn, evil will, refusing to listen to me. Therefore I will hurl you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.’
Question to consider: Why was Jeremiah not going to be able to get married and have children?
Throughout scripture, the LORD, closely equated idolatry with marital unfaithfulness, and Israel’s worship of the gods of the nations deeply hurt the LORD who established Israel, gave her a land flowing with milk and honey, and chose to dwell in her midst in a way that none of the gods of the nations ever did. The prophets not only received the word of the LORD but embodied His experience like no other people of their time.
In the case of Hosea, he experienced a wayward wife who bore children of other men which Hosea named: “Jezreel”, “Not my people”, and “No mercy” to reflect the judgment that the LORD was exacting upon the northern kingdom of Israel for their idolatry. In the case of Ezekiel, the judgment coming upon the southern kingdom of Judah to destroy her and the holy city of Jerusalem was embodied in the death of his young wife. Not only was Ezekiel kept from speaking anything other than the direct word of the LORD, he was not permitted to mourn for his bride.
In today’s passage, a young Jeremiah was told that he would never even have a wife or children in Jerusalem, for there would be death and disease throughout the land as the LORD lifted His hand of peace from them. No one would mourn or bury the dead because the city would be made desolate. Whoever was not dead would be made captives so the bodies of the dead would be left to rot and be food for the animals.
If this news was not difficult enough for Jeremiah to receive, the LORD had him tell of these things to the people of Jerusalem so that they would ask what they did to deserve this. Ultimately, the only thing the LORD did here was lift His hand of protection. It was the other gods that they worshiped who would hurl them out of the land and enslave them.
People want to accuse the LORD of great evil in these Old Testament judgments, but the truth is that all judgment is merely the LORD removing the restraints so that people carry out their wicked intents. We take for granted the fact that anything good that happens in the world is because of the LORD restraining evil and showing favor. We can see examples of it in our world today. When laws against stealing, using/dealing drugs, engaging in sexual immorality are lifted, there is a flood of dissipation and debauchery. This increases destruction, filth, and disease, and cities very quickly turn into unlivable cesspools.
As difficult as it was for the prophets to experience these hardships, they considered it all worth it to avoid the total annihilation of Israel. Even if only a remnant survived, it was the remnant through whom the LORD would bring the Messiah to pay the penalty of our sin and to reconcile people of every tribe and nation to the Father.
Dear heavenly Father, please restrain the evil that is advancing in the world and continue to turn people back to You. Help us to be Your light in the world that shows people their need for Christ Jesus. Amen.