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Chapter 46:13-28 (ESV) - The word that the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet about the coming of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to strike the land of Egypt:
“Declare in Egypt, and proclaim in Migdol;
proclaim in Memphis and Tahpanhes;
say, ‘Stand ready and be prepared,
for the sword shall devour around you.’
Why are your mighty ones face down?
They do not stand
because the LORD thrust them down.
He made many stumble, and they fell,
and they said one to another,
‘Arise, and let us go back to our own people
and to the land of our birth,
because of the sword of the oppressor.’
Call the name of Pharaoh, king of Egypt,
‘Noisy one who lets the hour go by.’
“As I live, declares the King,
whose name is the LORD of hosts,
like Tabor among the mountains
and like Carmel by the sea, shall one come.
Prepare yourselves baggage for exile,
O inhabitants of Egypt!
For Memphis shall become a waste,
a ruin, without inhabitant.
“A beautiful heifer is Egypt,
but a biting fly from the north has come upon her.
Even her hired soldiers in her midst
are like fattened calves;
yes, they have turned and fled together;
they did not stand,
for the day of their calamity has come upon them,
the time of their punishment.
“She makes a sound like a serpent gliding away;
for her enemies march in force
and come against her with axes
like those who fell trees.
They shall cut down her forest,
declares the LORD,
though it is impenetrable,
because they are more numerous than locusts;
they are without number.
The daughter of Egypt shall be put to shame;
she shall be delivered into the hand of a people from the north.”
The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, said: “Behold, I am bringing punishment upon Amon of Thebes, and Pharaoh and Egypt and her gods and her kings, upon Pharaoh and those who trust in him. I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their life, into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and his officers. Afterward Egypt shall be inhabited as in the days of old, declares the LORD.
“But fear not, O Jacob my servant,
nor be dismayed, O Israel,
for behold, I will save you from far away,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
declares the LORD,
for I am with you.
I will make a full end of all the nations
to which I have driven you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
I will discipline you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.”
Question to consider: When did Jacob return and have “quiet and ease”?
This prophecy was fulfilled about sixteen years after the siege of Jerusalem after Nebuchadnezzar spent thirteen years trying to take Tyre. While not successful in conquering Tyre, the LORD told Ezekiel that He was giving Egypt into his hands as a payment for humbling Tyre. (Ezekiel 29:17-21)
Migdol was above the Gulf of Aquaba to the East, Taphanes was at the northern tip of the Nile, and Memphis was to the west. So Egypt was not entirely destroyed, but it was enough that their gods (mighty ones) were thrust down with their faces to the ground by the LORD.
Like Israel, Egypt would be delivered into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar but not entirely destroyed. Even today Egypt still exists, but it never again regained the power it had at this time. The difference between Egypt and Israel, however, was that Israel received a promise from the LORD that it would be restored.
Obviously, its restoration after the fall of Babylon to the Medes and the Persians didn’t result in its sovereignty. Israel remained a vassal state to the Persians, then the Greeks, and then the Romans before the temple of Jerusalem was fully and completely destroyed in AD 70.
So what does this promise mean? Is it a future promise in which the Israel of today takes over the world? Does it mean that the temple will one day be rebuilt and animal sacrifices resume? There are certainly those who make this argument and think that Christ will begin his reign of a thousand years from this rebuilt temple.
If you went through my study of the book of Acts, I believe Luke proved to Theophilus that Jesus ascended to His throne 40 days after the resurrection, the apostles received the Holy Spirit ten days later, and the church was born. When Peter and John healed the paralytic at the Beautiful gate, Peter proclaimed to the religious leaders that the healing that was done in the name of Christ demonstrated that no other name brought salvation before God. Christ is the ruler (prince) of peace (shalom).
If Christ began His reign before Pentecost and has been ruling from the heavenly Mount Zion as told by the writer of Hebrews in chapter 12:18-24, the “full end of all nations” then referred to the fact that people from every tribe and nation are now welcome in Christ’s kingdom. He has paid for their citizenship by way of the cross. As Jesus said to the disciples, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28:18)
The promise for Jacob to have “quiet and ease” is the rest that has been given to us in Christ. It is a rest from the works of the Law because Christ has fulfilled the Law for us. His yoke is easy, and His burden is light, and in Him we find rest for our souls.
Dear heavenly Father, thank You for granting all authority in heaven and on earth to Christ. Thank You for our citizenship in His kingdom paid by His shed blood. Please stir up in us a desire to be ambassadors for this kingdom while we still draw breath here on earth. Amen.