THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION

Jeremiah: Prophet Of Judgment Followed By Blessing

Part VI: God's Charges Of Judah's Irresponsible Sins

(Jeremiah 2:26-3:5)

I. Introduction

A. Judah's apostasy was a series of wrongs that grew over time into a level of evil that God had to punish.

B. These sins were notably irresponsible acts, and we view them for our insight and application (as follows):

II. God's Charges Of Judah's Irresponsible Sins, Jer. 2:26-3:5 (Bible Know. Com., O. T., p. 1133-1134).

A. God charged Judah with irresponsibly seeking His help after following false gods for blessing, Jer. 2:26-28:

1. The Lord claimed that like a thief is shamed when caught, so all of Judah's people would be shamed, v. 26.

2. This shame was found in all these classes in Judah saying to a tree they worshiped, "You are my father" or to a stone they worshiped, "You gave me birth" in turning from the Lord to idols only then when trouble arrived, they tried turning back to the Lord and asking, "Arise and save us!" (Jeremiah 2:27)

3. Such sin left God telling Judah to turn to the gods they had served to see if they would help them, v. 28.

B. God charged Judah with irresponsibly bringing charges against Him of harassing her with His discipline when all of her people had sinned against Him, and He had struck them in vain since they failed to accept His intended correction in the disciplinary measures, Jeremiah 2:29-30a.

C. God charged that Judah had then slain the prophets He had sent her to call her to repentance, Jeremiah 2:30b.

D. God charged Judah with irresponsibly forgetting His past bountiful acts of goodness unto her, Jer. 2:31-33:

1. God asked if He had been a wilderness to Israel, a land of thick darkness in the sense of not blessing her, but that Judah had claimed she was free of God, that she would no more come to Him for blessing, v. 31.

2. Though a bride would not forget her wedding ornaments that signified she was a married woman, Judah had long forgotten God Who had blessed her and set her apart from the Gentile nations , Jeremiah 2:32.

3. In fact, Judah was so skilled in pursuing illicit idols that she could teach harlots her skills, Jeremiah 2:33!

E. God charged Judah with irresponsibly shedding innocent blood and yet claiming to be innocent, Jer. 2:34-35:

1. God complained that the clothing of His people was stained with the blood of the innocent poor they had murdered, yet she claimed she was innocent, that surely God's anger was turned away, Jer. 2:34-35a.

2. Instead, the Lord claimed He would bring them into judgment for claiming they had not sinned, v. 35b.

F. God charged Judah with irresponsibly following a fickle, self-defeating foreign policy, Jeremiah 2:36-37:

1. The Lord marveled at how irresponsible Judah was in having been shamed in trying to make a treaty with Assyria then to reach out to Egypt and come away with her hands on her head in shame, Jer. 2:36-37a.

2. God had rejected the sinful nations of Assyria and Egypt in whom His people had put their trust versus trusting in Him, so His people would not profit by such foreign policy moves, Jeremiah 2:37b.

G. God charged Judah with irresponsibly doing such bad sins that reconciling with Him was difficult, Jer. 3:1-5:

1. The Lord referred to the Deuteronomy 24:1-4 ruling that if a man divorced his wife and she married another, that the first husband would not return to her since that would pollute the land, Jeremiah 3:1a.

2. However, Judah had not only left the Lord for another husband, but she had committed harlotry with many husbands, many false gods, so God asked, "And would you return to Me?" (Jer. 3:1b ESV)

3. God claimed that His people had spiritually acted like a wayside Arab harlot in the wilderness, sitting by the road yearning for lovers to ravish her in vile spiritual whoredom, Jeremiah 3:2.

4. For this reason, God had withheld His blessings of rain, but Judah had the gall to refuse to be ashamed, calling to God as her "Father" and "friend of my youth" who would not be angry forever, Jeremiah 3:3-5a.

5. Though having spoken this way, the people of Judah had still done all the evil they could do, Jer. 3:5b.

Lesson: Judah was guilty of irresponsibly seeking God's help after she had turned to idols, of charging God with harassing her when she deserved His discipline, of killing His prophets, of forgetting God's past bounty so as to turn to idols, of murdering the poor innocent only to claim God would not be angry, of forming futile, ungodly treaties with Gentile nations and of committing such evil that reconciling with the Lord was difficult.

Application: May we examine our way to repent of irresponsibly seeking God's help after turning to false crutches, of blaming God for hardships He allows to discipline us, of mistreating God's messengers, of forgetting God's past bounty to turn to false crutches, of mistreating vulnerable, innocent people only to think God will not be angry, of relying on futile, false associations for fellowship and of sinning so greatly that reconciling with God is difficult.