Comments for July 13

ch.26 v.12 - We may wonder who was right. This is where the wisdom and godly heart of David comes to the fore. A deep sleep from God had come on the people who were with Saul (who, incidentally, again came with 3000 men against David's 600). I think most of us would have assumed as Abishai did that God had delivered Saul into our hands by this act. But David knew another principle which would override this thinking - that Saul was the Lord's anointed. So, when God seems to arrange circumstances to facilitate a move we might wish to make, we must also consider 'Is this a right thing to do?'. Our heart must be right, as David's was.

26 v.19 - There are a number of occasions when the LORD stirred up individuals. [1 Samuel 26:19 1 Kings 11:14 2 Chronicles 21:16 36:22 Ezra 1:1 Haggai 1:14] Rather than wondering how He does that we should appreciate that, in the case of faithful men who respond to His word, He is willing to work to encourage those who first respond to him, As we read elsewhere 'draw night to God and he will draw nigh to thee'. [James 4:8]

27 v.1 - David's flight to the Philistines through fear of Saul is a re run of an earlier incident [1 Samuel 21:10] when for fear of Saul David fled to Achish, king of Gath. Rather than reprove David in our own heart on this matter we do well to realise, like David, we often fall into the same problem that we think that we have dealt with.

27:1-7 - It is ironic that this 16 months of peace in David's life was in the camp of the enemy - the only way, it seems, to escape the wicked desires of Saul against him.

1 Samuel 26:16-20 The way that David spoke to Saul produced the response (1 Samuel 26:21) 'I have sinned …' This is clearly a case of the soft answer turning away wrath (Proverbs 15:1)

27:6 That Achish gave David Ziklag speaks volumes about the situation in the days of Saul. Ziklag was in the territory of Judah (Joshua 15:1, 31). And should not have been Achish's to give to David.

ch 26 -GOD'S TIMING
"I would not lay a hand on the LORD's anointed."
David had been hunted down by Saul over and over, yet God gave Saul into David's hands twice. This time they were sleeping when David and Abishai got right up to Saul and took Saul's spear and water jug. Yet David, even though he was the next anointed king would not kill King Saul because of his respect for god. Saul was the LORD's anointed and was to remain that way until God was ready to remove him - not David.
In the book of Daniel we read that "God changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them," and that, "the most high rules in the kingdoms of men and gives them to anyone he wishes."
David and Daniel both knew that God is in control of all his dealings with us. Therefore let us make sure that we don't go trying to change the course of history by our own will before God's time. God knows what is best to happen, when and how to do it. If we try to hurry things up we may find that the results are a disaster. David knew that Saul would be removed at the right time. We too can be confident that things will be right in our lives too.

26:7-11 Abishai was a blood thirsty man with little regard to the things of God. It was he, at a later date, who would have removed Shimei's head also (2 Samuel 16:9)

ch 27 - David's melancholy fear of death at the hand of Saul is typical of one who is depressed by long periods of uncertainty. We should not think of David's flight from Saul as a short adventure. It must have lasted some 12 - 15 years. All that time David feared for his life. He was always under great stress. When we realise this we will appreciate the more the strength of David's character in that he refused to take Saul's life on more than one occasion.

26:19 The 'inheritance of the Lord' that David lamented that he was not abiding in was not kingship. It was fellowship with God in tabernacle worship.

27:1 David's reaction 'I shall now perish by the hand of Saul' should encourage us. Whilst David was a man after God's own heart he had his doubts and times of deep despair - just like us.

26:15 The circumstance of David having penetrated to the centre of the encampment, through the circular rows of the sleeping soldiers, constituted the point of this sarcastic taunt, This new evidence of David's moderation and forbearance, together with his earnest and kindly protest, softened the stubbornness of Saul's heart.  

God is watching us, and knows as much about us as He knew about David. He knows about a dead sparrow, and He knows how many hairs we have on our head (Matt 10:29,30).  In today's chapter God had caused a deep sleep to fall on Saul and his men (1Sam 26:12), but was David aware of this? I doubt it. David dealt honourably all the time, stopping Abishai from killing "The Lord's anointed". It's the same idea as that expressed by Hagar, "Thou God seest me." (Gen 16:13,14)

27:8-11 David, in his attempt to preserve his life, flees from Saul and takes refuge with the Philistines.  This is an act of desperation as the Philistines were enemies of Israel and unwelcome occupants of the Land of Promise.  David, in trying to walk a tightrope, lies and deceives Achish as to his raiding activities.

26:8      Abishai did not seem to have the same values as David. Here and later – 2Sam 16:9– he wanted to avenge on behalf of David, clearly not appreciating that vengeance belonged to God Lev 19:18, Deut 32:35.

27:3      In saying ‘every man with his household …’ we appreciate that there were more than the 600 that are mentioned. The 600 are men. In addition there were wives and children. Possibly a company of 2,000!

26:11 So all these years that David has been fleeing for his life from Saul he still regarded Saul as ‘the Lord’s anointed’. A wonderful testimony to David’s loyalty to God. There may be times when we have ill feelings towards brethren and sisters. When we think thus do we bring ourselves up by remembering that our brother is called of God?

DRIVEN FROM THE LORD'S INHERITANCE
 
David's big complaint against Saul's pursuit of him was that if Saul's attitude against him came from other men, "They have now driven me from my share in the LORD's inheritance and have said, 'Go, serve other gods'" (1Sam 26:19) It was not the bad treatment David complained about, nor was it the absence from his family or friends, neither was it that he was kept on the run and had no home. David's complaint was that the running forced him away from God, and that by their actions, people were telling him to serve other gods.
 
When it comes down to the wire, being driven away from God to serve idols that are both worthless and lifeless is the biggest loss anyone could face.
 
Let's examine ourselves for a minute. Could it be that by our attitude, actions or words, we are driving someone from their share in the LORD's inheritance and giving them the message that they should go and serve other gods? Are we trying to keep our God too much to ourselves, being too selective as to who we preach to or welcome, either individually or as a church? Do we make those with us feel uncomfortable, perhaps because they are slightly different to ourselves?
 
Let's never drive anyone from the LORD's inheritance to serve other gods.

26:1   This historical event was the reason why Psa 54 was written.

God chooses who will rule: ...the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will (Dan 4:32).  David knew this, and, out of respect for Yahweh, did not kill his enemy Saul.  He had the opportunity to do so more than once, and the temptation would have been great. 

However, David knew that if he did kill Yahweh's anointed, he could expect the same treatment, as he was Yahweh's anointed also (Prov 26:27). 

There is a lesson for us here.  The brothers and sisters of Christ are also chosen of Yahweh (1Pet 2:9).  Therefore, out of respect for Yahweh, each one must be treated well and not harmed in any way.  Those doing otherwise will bring condemnation to themselves (1John 3:15).

26:5-7, :13-15 David’s act was not simply an act of foolish bravado to show that he was a better warrior than any of Saul’s men. David was vainly trying to show to Saul that he was not a threat to him. David, even though he had opportunity, did not kill Saul so there was no need for the king to fear David.

26:6 Abishai and Joab were David’s nephews as Zeruiah was David’s sister (1Chron 2:15,16). Asahel was also brother to Abishai and Joab, and we will pick him up later in the story (2Sam 2:18).

26:14 Abner was Saul’s cousin (1Chron 9:36).

26:21,25 After the first incident when David spared Saul’s life, Saul was also contrite and conceded that David was Yahweh’s anointed (Isa 26:21,25).   

27:1 David was aware that he could not trust Saul (Psa 146:3).

27:2 This is David’s second visit to Gath (1Sam 21:10).  As Achish was a generic term for a Philistine king, it cannot be assumed that this king was the same as the one of David’s first visit.  The fact that the king’s father, Maoch, is mentioned here suggests that this Achish could be a different king from the first.

27:6 Ziklag was a town originally given to Judah (Josh 15:31). Later, it was given to Simeon, as Simeon was encircled by the territory of Judah (Josh 19:5).  Ziklag, however, was never occupied by Israelites until this time.  The town was reclaimed by Judah after the captivity in Babylon (Neh 11:28).

27:8 David used Ziklag as a base to rout Israel’s enemies.

27:10 David lied to Achish, as to his activities, so as to appear pro-Philistine. Is anyone keeping score of how many lies David has made since he has been on the run?

27:11 To keep his deception air-tight, David made sure that every person died, in the towns he raided.

26:21 Saul’s response to David’s comments is an example of a principle which is later laid out in Scripture – Prov 15:1

27:2    David’s return to Achish highlights a human characteristic. He had experienced once already how the going to Achish was not a good idea – 1Sam 21:10- but he seems to have forgotten what he learnt. How often we are like this.

27:4  Saul’s fear of David and desire to kill him was not sufficient for him to venture into Philistine country!

27:5   David seeks to distance himself from the hospitality of Achish by requesting a town in which he could dwell.  David would have found it easier, living in Ziklag, a city which should have belonged to Judah, to go out against the Philistines on a regular basis as he clearly did at this time.

The growth of David's army at Ziklag

1Sam 27:6-7 It is not for nothing that David requested a place of his own. He seemingly wanted a quiet place, without interference, to build his own army and from which to go raiding. Ziklag is the place where David gathered his mighty men, as it says in 1Chron 12:1. Presumably these men all came to him during this 16 month period. We're also told that 600 men of Gath (Philistines) followed David (2Sam 15:18), and I presume these men came with him from Gath to Ziklag at this time.

27:7    We can conclude that David spend some years fleeing from Saul. However this is the only mention in all that time of a specific time period. 

27:12 We understand that Saul did not understand David. Clearly neither did Achish!

Notice in Abishai's words that he was prepared to die in the process of killing Saul. If he had struck him with the spear, Abner and the other bodyguards would have woken up and surrounded him and David. David's actions were both the Godly thing to do, and the most sensible, given that they were in the middle of an enemy camp surrounded by armed, trained soldiers.

27:8-9 So, whilst fleeing from Saul, David still had God’s promises in mind. The land was to be rid of these nations. Whilst Saul was not interested in doing that David was. This we see his spirituality compared with Saul’s Godless behaviour.

26:23   David, despite Saul’s evil intent, still viewed Saul as “the Lord’s anointed”. David resisted, more than once, urgings form his men to kill Saul. It was only because David recognised Saul’s status in the eyes of God that he resisted the temptation to kill Saul.

27:10   David is careful to say where he was warring without mentioning the nationality of those he was fighting against. And it seems Achish was not at all suspicious of David’s behaviour.

26:25 We are told here and on two other occasions about Saul and David going different ways. It highlights the difference between Saul and David. Saul “went home” but David continued to be a fugitive. The other occasions are 1Sam 23:28-29, 1Sam 24:22

26:21 this is the third time that Saul had acknowledged that he had done wrong – 1Sam 15:24, 1Sam 24:17 and here. However there is no change in his way of living. Repentance, of itself, is not sufficient.

26:21 Saul’s confession of sin is not as deep felt and understood as truly repentant individuals. The word he used for “erred” can just as well be translated “wandered” as it is in Psa 119:10. Saul does not see his behaviour as really sinful. This is consistent with how he has shown repentance in the past and then turned back on his repentance.

KNOW WHEN TO BE PATIENT

God can change circumstances just like that in a moment of time. When he changes our circumstances, he does it when he is ready and when he knows that we are ready for it. The problem is that we often think that we are ready for our circumstances to change before we actually are.

David's men were ready to kill king Saul for David at a moment's notice, but David would not let them. God would remove Saul in his good time. David wanted the time to be right both for God, for him and for his people. This is what he said, "Don't destroy him! Who can lay a hand on the LORD's anointed and be guiltless? As surely as the LORD lives ... the LORD himself will strike him; either his time will come and he will die, or he will go into battle and perish. But the LORD forbid that I should lay a hand on the LORD's anointed." (1Sam 26:9-11).

It may have felt like David might be an old man before Saul was out of the way, but there was only a year and a half to wait. Then God was ready for the change. Let us also have the wisdom to know when to make change and when to be patient.
 

26:1 Whilst we may despair at the treachery of the Ziphites in the way they betrayed David to Saul we should appreciate the pressure that the Ziphites were under. They doubtless were aware of the way that Saul sought to deal with those who harboured David and would also be aware of his wild mood swings. Sot their betrayal can be explained as a consequence of their understanding of Saul’s behaviour.

v.1 - Until you read the rest of the chapter there is a little confusion over the meaning of this first verse. It reads in English as though God is reprimanding Israel for returning to him, when they would not do the same among themselves, but in fact (and v.12 makes this clear) the is requesting them to return to him, even though they have been off with other gods and committed, as it were, spiritual adultery, and offering them forgiveness. It is the beginning of a theme that leads to the regathering of Israel being prophesied later in the book - ch.23:8, 31:8

v.3 - The withholding of the showers is a curse and punishment from God. It was a fulfilment of Deuteronomy 28:23 and as such was designed to bring about repentance. This appeal can be see repeated in Amos 4:6,8,9,10,11 marking that God expected Israel to respond to His chastening hand. How do we respond to His chastening?

v.8 makes a sad point. It seems that human nature refuses to learn from the experience of others. Judah stood by and watched as God 'divorced' Israel, but then went and did just the same things. We are just the same. We can be sure that the faults that we find most annoying in others are the ones we also possess, but when it is ourselves, we just don't see it until God causes us to be chastened into a recognition. Let us make the best of these opportunities God gives us.

:6-7 Judah had seen that Israel had been taken captive by the Assyrian and that they had been delivered through the faith of Hezekiah, yet they still did not learn. How often do we disregard the signs we are given?

RIGHT AND WRONG

The sins of Israel and Judah do not make pleasant reading. But worse than the parade of sins that is put forward in this chapter, is the fact that the people did not seem to realise that they were sinning at all. The conscience of the people seems to have been so unused that they had almost forgotten that they had one. We read that God said to them, "Yet you have the brazen look of a prostitute; you refuse to blush with shame." (Verse 3) And he says that they call God their Father and Friend, and ask him why he is angry with them, while at the same time doing all the evil that they can.

This is a real warning to us. If Israel and Judah, God's special people, could get so far into the habit of doing evil, and at the same time not recognise that they were doing evil, then we, as Gentiles, can easily fall into the same trap. It all depends on where we get our standards of good and evil from. If we say we are better than the world around us, that does not necessarily mean that we have reached God's standards - or are even near them. The only place we can truly measure our standards from is by the Word of God. We should not blindly trust our church leaders who tell us what to think and how to behave: Get it first hand from God's word yourself. Let Him open your eyes to what is really right and wrong.

:13 We noticed that :3 quotes the curses of Leviticus 26. 'Only acknowledge thine iniquity' is another quotation from Leviticus 26:40. There are numerous quotations from Leviticus 26 / Deuteronomy 28 in Jeremiah's prophecy. Many of them will be highlighted in your marginal references. We will not draw attention to all of them.

3:12 Even though the only kings named are kings of Judah (Jer 1:1-3) it seems that Jeremiah did go to the north and speak God's word.

V.18 Two distinct apostasies, that of Israel and that of Judah, were foretold (V.8; 10). The two have never been united since the Babylonish captivity; therefore their joint restoration must still be in the future. Isa 11:12-13, Eze 37:16-22

V.1 We see in this verse Israel being prefigured as the divorced wife of the LORD (Hos 2:1-5) , lured away by many lovers. The law forbade a man taking back his divorced and remarried wife, even if her second husband died or divorced her (Deut 24:1-4), how great was the grace of the LORD, who offered to take back shameless, unfaithful Israel if she would only turn from her sin. How many times in scripture do we see these pleas?

The Land of the North is usually used in Scripture to Babylon.  But you'll realise that Babylon is east of Israel, not north.  The reason is of-course that because of the desert travellers had to travel via the north, around the Fertile Crescent. But because of this, many of the prophecies about the North also apply to the real north, or Russia, in the latter days. So in Jer 3:18 the local application would be returning from Babylon, where they were shortly to go as captives in Jeremiah’s days; but the future meaning is for the Jews to come out of Russia  -  and that is something which we have only recently seen begin to happen.

3:6  In using the word ‘backsliding’ Jeremiah is reminding the nation of the words of the earlier prophet – Hos 4:16

V.12 Jeremiah prophesied between the times Israel had been taken captive by Assyria and before Judah had gone into exile, courtesy of Babylon.  Yahweh, in His mercy, sent a message of hope to the north (Assyria) promising restoration for captive Israel. 

Vs.16,17 The permanent restoration of Israel will occur when Jesus returns to rule.

God describes His relationship to the people of Israel in terms of a marriage so that we can readily understand His anger and sorrow at their unfaithfulness. The sin of adultery must be one of the hardest to come to terms with since the sorrow it brings is tied up in love for the adulterous spouse. And so in this symbology we can understand above all others the love and forgiveness of God, His patience and longsuffering, since His wife was not only unfaithful to Him once, but many times.

However, though God's mercy and ability to forgive is limitless, it is not without its requirements. In v12-13 we can see that an important pre-requisite of forgiveness is the confession of fault. When we ask God for forgiveness we should not quickly gloss over what we have done with a general "please forgive me for what I have done". We should acknowledge what we have done and tell Him exactly in what way we have offended Him. Surely if we value our relationship with Him we owe Him that courtesy at least? Daniel's confession is one of the best examples of this (Dan 9:5-6, 10-11).

3:3 The idea of not being ashamed is developed on other occasions in Jeremiah – Jer 6:15, Jer 8:3-10 and in the contemporary prophet Zeph 3:5

3:14 Though there may be but one Israelite in a city, that one will not be forgotten. (Amos 9:9) Likewise with spiritual Israel, our Heavenly Father gathers one from here, and one from there, yet as with natural Israel, not even the least one shall be lost. (Jer 24:5-7; Matt 18:14)

3:1 The law was very clear. Once a wife had been ‘put away’ she could not be married to the same man again – Deut 24:1-4 - however God did not work like that with Israel. Even though they had left Him he was willing to receive them back.

V.3 Yahweh has control over all natural events.  We are sustained by the food which is produced in the fields.  Rain is needed to make crops grow, and it is Yahweh who sends the rain (Job 5:10).  

Without the rain, drought would occur, no crops would grow, and we would starve.  Yahweh uses the lack of rain as a method of punishment.  He will use this method again in the future, when Jesus returns to set up His government.  Those nations that try to evade His leadership will experience drought (Zech 14:17).

3:17 The prophet speaks of a time yet future, when Israel will be restored. The behaviour of Judah, which is styled like that outlined in Gen 6:5 will be no more.

V.2 Israel’s waiting for lovers is likened to the Arab who waits in the desert to plunder those who would pass by.

V.3 The latter rain is the spring rain which comes in March.

V.6 It is supposed that this prophecy is given in the 18^th. year of Josiah’s reign, in 623 BC. If that were so, then it would have been received 4 years after Jeremiah had commenced his prophetic service.

V.8 See Eze 23:4,11.

V.13 There is always forgiveness for God’s people, if they would repent (Eze 14:6).  This not only applies to Natural Israel, but also to Spiritual Israel (1John 1:19).

V.14 There is a special relationship between Yahweh and His people Israel. (Hos 2:19,20).

V.16 The ark with its mercy seat pointed forward to Jesus. It will no longer be required in the temple in the Kingdom, as Jesus will be there.  Also, the division between the Holy and the Holy of Holies will have been taken away (Rev 21:22).

V.17 This will happen in the Kingdom, after the nations have been subdued by Jesus and the Redeemed (Zech 14:16).

V.18 See Isa 11:12,13.

V.25 See Ezra 9:7.

v17 First Principles>Sure Mercies of David>Capital City 
The Capital City is to be Jerusalem. Jer 3:17, Isa 24:23, Mic 4:2,7,8
Jerusalem, rebuilt and glorified, will become the metropolis of God's Kingdom which will embrace all nations. Psa 48:2, Isa 52:1, Isa 60:14, Jer 3:17, Zech 14:16, Matt 5:34-35
First Principles>Sure Mercies of David> For more details go to Isa 55:1-3.

3:2  I suppose Israel just did their evil practices with no thought about the impact it had on others. The prophet reminds them that even the land was polluted. But they might respond that the land was inanimate so could not be polluted. However the land was God’s and had to be cared for just like the community of believers today - 1Cor 3:17

3:3     That Israel ‘refused to be admonished’ shows that God was willing to chasten His people – Prov 3:11-12- rather than simply destroy them

Jer 3:14

“Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:”

Throughout the Bible, we encounter terms and metaphors relating to marriage and its vicissitudes. All of them relate to the intimate relationship God has made with Israel.

We read in verse 8 that God had put away (shalach) the children of Israel and gave her a bill of divorce (keriythuwth, a complete cutting off) yet; He says He is still married to them! How can this be? Please note that the word, "married" is Strong's # <1166>. baal, and is the same word used in Deut 24:4 for "her former husband," or ex-husband. Here the word, "husband" is Strong's # <1167>, from <1166>, baal. This is in sharp contrast to the "latter husband” in verse 3 where the present "husband” is Strong's # <376>, iysh (ish)! God is not saying He is married to them, but that He was married to them! He is their former husband; He was (past tense) "an husband unto them" (Jer 31:32).

This passage of Scripture literally reads thus: “For I have been married with (or to) thee.”  God explicitly tells Israel: “I married you,” and charges that she turned away from her God, and her Husband by turning to spiritual adultery in worshipping other gods. Jeremiah citing the northern house of Israel’s adulterous example, warned Judah, the southern house, to repent and return to God, or suffer the same fate. He warned Judah (verse 10) of how the former was given a “bill of divorcement and was “put away.” To “turn” and “repent,” they would have had to put away their idols and completely cut themselves off from worshipping other gods in order to be spiritually married to God. Otherwise, He would put them away and divorce them according to His own Law!

Those from both houses, who stayed rebellious and unrepentant, were completely cut off. Nevertheless, because of the promise God made to Abraham, these two nations shall not cease to exist, they shall once again be healed, and shall be united with each other and with their God when He makes a new Kingdom covenant with them (Jer 31:28,31-34).

3:18    Israel had been taken captive already by the Assyrians. Judah is to go into captivity, taken by the Chaldeans. Jeremiah here for the first time, speaks of the regathering of all Israel. Something yet future to our day. It is the time of the kingdom of God restored on earth.

3:9      It might seem strange that Israel’s sinful behaviour “defiled the land”.  However we must remember that the land is God’s and is the inheritance of His faithful children. Their behaviour is like the way our behaviour can impact upon the health of the community to which we belong.

3:10    Josiah was a good king and brought about reforms in Judah. However it is clear from God’s use of the word “feignedly” that the nation’s response was a sham. We might be able to deceive others with a show of piety but we cannot deceive God. 

3:14    The way in which God speaks of being “married” echoes what the earlier prophet Isaiah had said Isa 62:4

OUTLINE OF JEREMIAH

PART TWO -- THE PROPHECIES TO JUDAH (JEREMIAH 2:1 to 45:5)

I. The Condemnation of Judah (Jeremiah 2:1 to 25:38)

   A. First Sermon - Judah Sinned Willfully (Jeremiah 2:1 to 3:5):

      8. Jer 3:1-5 - V1 (KJV) "put away<7971>"; V1 in contrast to the loving marriage of Jer 2:1-3 we have a broken unfaithful marriage on the part of the bride; V2 the abundant evidence of infidelity; V3 (KJV) "latter rain<4456>"; V3 the lack of rain is punishment as noted by Michael Parry in his 2008 comments; V3 (NIV) "therefore the showers have been withheld" (Deut 28:1,12,15, 22-24;Jer 14:3-4); V3 God's correction did not produce reformed attitudes; VS 4-5 they professed devotion to their Heavenly Father, but were devoted to evil.

   B. Second Sermon - Judah To Be Judged (Jeremiah 3:6 to 6:30):

      1. Jer 3:6-10 - V6 (KJV) "backsliding<4878>"; VS 6-10 in Josiah's reign Judah saw what happened to faithless Israel but only changed superficially, they pretended to be reformed and pretended to turn to God, Judah foolishly took the same broad way to destruction as Israel.

      2. Jer 3:8,14 - V8 God gave Israel a bill of divorce (perhaps more like a separation as Israel and Judah will ultimately return to God and God hates divorce Mal 2:16), but Judah played the harlot also committing spiritual adultery/unfaithfulness; V8 (KJV) "backsliding<4878>", "bill<5612>", "of divorce<3748>"; V14 God, the metaphoric husband, pleads with His faithless people; V14 (KJV) "O backsliding children...I am married unto you"; V14 "O backsliding<7726>", "married<1166>"; V14 unlike modern time understandings, a family might be bigger than a city (Amos 3:1-2) thus one from a city and two from a family is appropriate/proportional with a small remnant being redeemed from each (Isa 1:9;Rom 9:27-29;Luke 13:24).

      3. Jer 3:11 - Judah was less justified than Israel, yet out of each kingdom would be an immortal remnant in the Israel of God (Gal 6:16); "the backsliding<4878>".

   B. Second Sermon - Judah To Be Judged (Jeremiah 3:6 to 6:30):

      4. Jer 3:12-14 - VS 12-14 Zion is always the objective, when Christ returns he will rule from David's throne in Zion; V12 it seems Jeremiah's message from God carried north of Jerusalem (see Peter Forbes 2004 comments); V12 does the north refer to the 10 tribes, or those in captivity in Assyria to return for God is merciful and will not be angry forever; V12 "thou backsliding<4878>"; V13 (as noted in Michael Parry's 2009 comments) forgiveness for God's people if they would repent (Eze 14:6) and this applies not just to natural Israel but spiritual Israel (1John 1:9); VS 13-14 eventually they will abandon Baalism when they enter the millennial land of promise (Deut 12:2-5 - Deut 12:3 "that place" will be desolate at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar and Rome but it will not be desolate forever Luke 21:24).

      5. Jer 3:15-18 - VS 15,17-18 millennial Zion; Jer 3:16-17 - the ark and the 1st covenant in the millennial era will have no significance (Heb 9:1-12), there will be a better ark and covenant when Christ returns to rule (John 2:20-21;Rev 11:14-19;Jer 31:33), the ark of the new covenant will not be captured by the Philistines due to the sins of Israel; V17 Israel and the Gentile nations will return to the Lord; VS 17-18 the reunion of Judah and Israel is predicted (Jer 50:4-5;Hos 1:11); V18 Judah and Israel will come from a northern land to the land of their inheritance - Judah would soon go to Babylon as captives, then be freed to return by Persian rule, but the real north is Russia and Jews have been emigrating from Russia to Israel in more recent years.

   B. Second Sermon - Judah To Be Judged (Jeremiah 3:6 to 6:30):

      6. Jer 3:19-25 - V19 (ESV/NIV) "thought<559>", the KJV perhaps translated better with "and I said<559>"; V20 with the metaphor of an adulterous wife God addresses unfaithful Israel though His purpose is perhaps to appeal to Judah; V22 (KJV) "Return, 'ye backsliding<7726>' children, and I will heal 'your backslidings<4878>'"; VS 23-25 acknowledging their generations of guilt of sinful idolatry.

3:10  The way in which Jeremiah speaks of the way that Judah had not turned to God echoes the historical record –2Kin 23:25

3:6     The reference to “backsliding Israel” is to an event at least 100 years earlier than the days of Jeremiah.

3:19   In speaking of a “pleasant land”  Jeremiah is reminding Judah of how the Psalmist had spoken of Israel turning away from God at the border of the land – Psa 106:24.

3:6-7    Whilst Jeremiah is speaking in Jerusalem about the wickedness of Israel and JudahEze 16 – speaks similar words to those in captivity.

3:1 Jeremiah’s appeal to rebellious Judah echoes what Hosea said to the northern kingdom – Hos 14:1. Judah had not learnt the lesson from watching the northern kingdom go into captivity. Nevertheless their merciful God was still looking to them to repent rather than destroy them.

3:6-11  Here we see an interaction between God and Jeremiah,. The behaviour of the nation is presented to the prophet as the reason why he should go and witness - :12

3:3 Jeremiah’s observation that the rain showers had been witholden should have reminded the nation of Deut 28:24 where Israel was told that the lack of rain would be clear evidence that they had turned away from God. They clearly saw the lack of rain but did not learn the lesson that God was teaching them. They should have been shamed by realising that they had strayed from His laws. But they were not. They clearly did not see God working in their lives.

Whilst we do not receive such clear indications as to whether we have strayed from His teaching or not we need to remember that God is still at work in our lives and that we should at all times seek to follow our Father’s instruction.

3:4  Josiah was a good king. However the nation were not as committed to serving God as was the king. But notice. Rather than just reject the people God, through the prophet, appeals to the nation to return to Him. Such is the mercy of the Creator. What He wanted was for the people to cry unto Him rather than unto the false Gods they were serving.

2:4  in speaking of “Jacob” and “Israel” it may be that the prophet is using the two names to speak of the kingdom of Judah. On the other hand it may be that Jeremiah is making it clear that he is addressing the kingdom of Judah and those who had migrated south from the kingdom of Israel during the days of wicked kings of Israel in the north.

3:12 God’s appeal is an amazing thing to contemplate. The nation’s behaviour was so bad that He was planning to take them into captivity. But he is still extending a hand to the nation in the hope that they might repent and turn back to Him!

v.29-32 - Surely this little scene is enacted to demonstrate for each one of us the power of God and the way in which that power is focused on care for those that love Him. We all lose faith and have to be saved from death - which would certainly have been Peter's end if Jesus had not caught him - and so we demonstrate our love by passing, as Peter did here, through water to be saved by the work of Jesus. At the end of it all, when we reach our desired end - in this case the boat, in our case the kingdom - there is a great calm - a stark contrast to the rocky life we have lived until that point - and there we can worship in spirit and in truth. Psa 138:7, Isa 63:12.

v.2 - 12 We should remember that this section of Matthew is in parenthesis. It provides, by way of explanation, the reason for Herod's disquiet. John had been beheaded before this point in the record.
v.4 Whilst Herod was not a Jew, he was an Edomite, John castigates him for breaking the Law of Moses. As ruler of the land he should have been setting an example for the people to follow. Maybe the whole matter of Herod's marital behaviour provided the local event which cause such questioning about divorce during the ministry of Jesus. [Matthew 5:31 19:3 7 Mark 10:2 4 Luke 16:18]

14:15 Whereas here Jesus' disciples made to 'send the multitude away' Jesus prevents such a response when He fed the 5,000 (15:32).

The feeding of the 5,000 took place at Passover time (John 6:4-14) Piecing together different gospel records of the same event can add information.

v31 "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?". Jesus had said exactly the same thing in similar circumstances earlier. It was when the disciples were afraid that the boat was going to sink as Jesus slept (Matt 8v26). But this time his rebuke seems a little harsh. Peter had walked on water after all! Peter seemed to have got the message from the earlier incident and had developed real faith in Christ. So why did Jesus rebuke his lack of faith?

But why did Peter do what he did? What good did walking out to Jesus him? Everything Jesus did was for the furtherance of his ministry, and according to his Father's will. Jesus didn't do anything for selfish motives. We can see this by considering why he was unwilling to provide bread for himself by miraculous means (4v4), but in this chapter is willing to do exactly that, because it was for others (v19-29). Jesus walking on the water was so that he could reach them in time to comfort them and help them. He remembered how scared they had been the last time that the sea had been so rough. In contrast, Peter had no reason to miraculously walk on the water, apart from trying to prove the strength of his own faith to his master. Did Peter have pride before a fall? Maybe this is why Jesus rebuked him.

14:28-31 We may well think that Peter had great faith in that he did get out of the boat. However Jesus reproves him for his ‘little faith’ – this should cause us to question how much faith is ‘little’.

V.30 As long as Peter concentrated his attention on Christ, all went well. But the moment he took notice of the boisterous winds and the surging waters he became frightened. We must notice however that when Peter sought Him, Christ was there with stretched out arms to assist him. Like wise for each one of us.

14:23 The comment here camouflages the true events that took place John 6:15 shows that the people wanted to make Jesus king. Doubtless this is why he sent the disciples away - lest they were carried away with the enthusiasm of the crowd.

V.13 The statement that Christ withdrew himself to a "desert place", does not mean that he crossed the sea by himself, without the disciples. The disciples were with him (V.15-19;22). What is being said, is that he wanted to get away from the multitude, to be alone with his disciples. The lonely or desolate place to which Jesus and his company withdrew to was in the neighbourhood of Bethsaida (Luke 9:10). 

Vs.15,23 Two evening events took place: the feeding of the multitude; and later when Jesus went up a mountain to pray.  The word for evening in Greek is opsios.  There are two meanings for opsios: late afternoon and nightfall.  Clearly, the first evening event was late afternoon (3 p.m. or later). The second evening event was nightfall (about 6 p.m.).                                                

The night was divided into four watches: (1) 6 - 9 p.m. (2) 9 p.m. - Midnight (3) Midnight - 3 a.m. (4) 3 - 6 a.m.  And so, we see that Jesus walked on the sea sometime between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. (v.25).

14:5 Herod would have killed Jesus, but he feared the people. The Jewish leaders would have killed Jesus, nut they feared the people Matt 21:46. Actions should not be performed or withheld because of what others think. Do we ever respond to a situation in a way which reflects our concerns about what others think? Or do we allow Divine principles to always govern our actions?

14:13 When we read that ‘Jesus heard of it’ we cannot but think that we are being told Jesus’ response to hearing about the death of John. However that took place sometime before the events recorded in the early verses of this chapter. Verses :3-12 is a digression.  So did Jesus ‘depart’ on hearing about John or when he knew about Herod’s hearing of the fame of Jesus?

V.13 This verse seems to say that, after the death of John, Jesus took a ship to a desert place alone.  In fact, He urged His disciples to remove themselves (with Him) to a quiet place (Mark 6:31).  After all, the disciples had just buried the body of John, and they must have been somewhat traumatised.

14:7 Herod would have done well to take heed to the wise man – Ecc 5:2 - do we every say things in haste without much thought that we later regret?

V.6 The name of the Herodias' daughter is not mentioned, but Josephus suggests it is Salome.  Salome the Dance of the Seven Veils has become popularized in the art world.

V.20 No  food fragments were to be left.  This miracle, of providing temporal food, mirrors the divine provision of manna in the wilderness.  There too, nothing was to be left over (Exo 16:17-19).  

Vs.15-21 The feeding of the 4000+, like the feeding of the 5000+, was a miracle.  Such a large group of people, in each case, was fed by such a small amount of food.  Moreover there was more food collected as fragments than the original amount of food.  In the case of the 5000+, twelve full baskets were collected, and with the 4000+, seven full baskets were collected. 

It should be pointed out that the baskets (Gr. kophinos) in the 4000+ example were smaller than the baskets (Gr. spuris) in the 5000+ situation.  Interestingly, the larger basket (spuris) was the same kind of basket that was used by Paul to escape (Acts 9:24,25).

The fact that more food was returned than given out is a reminder that whatever is given out by the Lord returns to Him as increase (Isa 55:10,11).  The Lord expects the same principle to apply to our efforts.  Consider the parable of the talents (Matt 25:14-30).

V.36 Touching the hem of Christ's garment was sufficient for healing. The example of the woman diseased with an issue of blood also comes readily to mind (Matt 25:20-22).  The Greek word translated hem is kraspedon which implies a border or fringe. 

Malachi also makes reference to this when he talks of Christ: But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall (Mal 4:2).

The word, wings, in Hebrew, is kanaph which means extremity or edge, particularly of a garment, and thus, a hem.  Kraspedon is equivalent to kanaph. 

Israelites had to wear blue on the borders (kanaph) of their garments (Num 15:38).  This colour represents heaven, the throne of Yahweh, from whence emanates all commandment and power.  Thus, the heavenly power to heal is embodied in the blue border of the garment.

14:15-21  The feeding of the 5,000 is recorded in all four gospel narratives. – Mark 6:35-44, Luke 9:12-17, John 6:5-14 – It is the only miracle recorded in all four gospel narratives.

14:25 The fourth watch of the night was early in the morning.

Matt 14:3-4

“For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias’ sake, his brother Philip’s wife. For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her.”

According to Historian Josephus, in his book, “Jewish Antiquities” XVIII pages 240-256 this was Herod Antipas. Herodias’ father, Aristobulus, was the son of Herod the Great by his second wife, Mariamne I, and her mother was her first cousin. Her brother was Herod Agrippa, who killed the apostle James.

Herodias first married her half uncle, her father’s half brother, Herod Philip, another son of Herod the Great by his third wife, Mariamne II. This uncle-husband of Herodias fathered Salome. Herodias divorced Philip and married his half brother, Herod Antipas, also a son of her grandfather Herod the Great, by his fourth wife, Malthace. Her marriage to Herod Antipas was unlawful because it was an incestuous relationship. She was also his niece!

The most comprehensive segment of the Old Testament dealing with unlawful relations is in Lev 18:6-18. In Lev 20:21, we read, "And if a man shall take his brother's wife, it is an unclean thing: he hath uncovered his brother's nakedness; they shall be childless." Josephus records that Herodias and Herod Antipas never had any children together! 1Cor 5:1-5, shows the apostle Paul advocated dis-fellowshipping the brother who clearly violated the law of Lev 18:8.

14:34   Notice where Jesus is. He is in Galilee This is important because when we see inMatt 15:1 that the scribes came from Jerusalem we can appreciate how far they travelled.

14:15   The disciple’s desire to send the people away is seen again in Matt 15:32. Jesus pre-empts this response later – Matt 15:32 – by telling the disciples that he will not send the people away. The disciples had not grasped that Jesus could provide, despite their experiences. Are we such slow learners?

 Matt 14:28-30

“And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid: and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.”

The following verses reveal first that Peter asked if the Lord was Christ; secondly, that Peter asked Christ to call him out of the boat; thirdly, that Peter waited for the Lord’s answer; and fourthly, it was only when Christ said, "Come," that Peter obeyed. It takes a lot of faith to have done what Peter did. Faith asks in prayer, faith seeks God’s will, faith waits on the Lord, faith trusts and obeys, and faith is zealous. Peter started off right, but he did not stay in that faith, which prompted Jesus to tell him, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt” (v.31)? What caused his faith to falter? Peter made the mistake of looking at the raging storm around him instead of staying focused on Jesus, and so he began to sink.

George Custer and 200 other men were killed because Custer focused on his victory and glory, rather than focusing on what was materializing right in front of him – thousands of highly agitated Sioux and Cheyenne warriors charging at him. His focus was wrong.

We are living in unstable times with the perpetual chatter of wars and rumours of wars. North Korea has formed an alliance with Iran and abrogated its peace treaty with South Korea. The supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei stated: “The Islamic Republic of Iran and North Korea have common enemies since the arrogant powers can’t bear independent governments.” Russia and China side with Iran and North Korea, America sides with South Korea. With threats from North Korea of nuclear missiles aimed at America, it is not a stretch of the imagination that such an action will have a domino effect that may well lead to WWIII.

Adam Kredo quoted in The Washington Free Beacon, March 8, 2013, Alireza Forghani, former governor of the Kish province of Iran as saying: “World War III will erupt… and that game will have no winners. Both sides will lose, because some countries on both sides have nuclear weapons” (www.freebeacon.com).

Then, there are talks of mega earthquakes unfolding in the not too distant future, and threats to planet earth from meteor and asteroid strikes. Wide spread apostasy, as the apostle Paul outlined in Gal 5:19-21, has become the standard modus operandi for mankind. What wakeup calls for us!

Fears may cause unbelief and stop us from obeying Christ’s call, but Christ will give us the strength and ability to be able to follow him. All we have to do is take great steps of faith and look to Christ and not to the difficulties of the circumstances that surround us. It is no longer our path in life we are to follow, but Christ’s, and he will hold out his hand to us too.

 Matt 14:19.

14:30 Peter’s call “save me” echoes David’s plea to God – Psa 69:1 – when he, metaphorically, felt overwhelmed by water. 

14:10  The death of John – Jesus’ cousin – doubtless had a great impact on him. However for John a swift death ended his imprisonment which was unlikely to end in freedom. John’s next waking moment will be the resurrection. Do we see our death as a blessed release or an inconvenience which interrupts our comfortable self indulgent life?

14:25   Job recognised that it was God who could tread on the waves – Job 9:8. So the way in which Matthew describes Jesus’ activity is designed to highlight Jesus’ status as Son of God.

14:12   That the disciples of John went to Herod and took away John’s body would indicate that they were not afraid of what Herod might have thought about the allegiance to John. Maybe they knew that Herod also liked to listen to what John had to say.

14:32    the disciples’ recognition of Jesus as “the son of God” is the first time in Matthew’s record that the disciples have said this.

14:24 Peter’s response to the storm on this occasion is less timid that we saw in Matt 8:24-25

WHEN WE LIKE BEING LIKED

I am the sort of person that likes to be liked. For that reason any criticism or negativity can hurt me quite deeply. I also don't like getting into arguments because I don't like conflict all that much. So if I can keep people happy and have them like me, it keeps me happy. But that doesn't mean I am right...

John the Baptist was described this way: "Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist." (Matt 11:11). In other words, John the Baptist is the greatest man that had ever lived up until that time (Jesus was obviously greater).

And this is where I fall down. One of the characteristics that made John the Baptist so great is that he did not count the praise of people to be important at all. Doing and saying what was right was much more important than being liked.

John was the one who told the leaders of his day that they were a "brood of vipers." (Matt 3:7). He told the people to repent (3:1), not a popular message. And he was the one who told Herod, the king, that his marriage was unlawful (14:4). Even though God's truth cost John his popularity and his life, John was faithful to the end.

Let us be people whose friendship with God means more to us than all the fickle friendships we could have in this world.
 

14:19 Isaiah shows that part of what John the Baptist had preached concerned grass: “The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of Yahweh bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass” (Isa. 40:6-7). John’s recent death was a reminder that indeed “flesh is grass”. The grass on which the people sat represented themselves with respect to their mortality, for "the people is grass".

14:15,18 these two verses seem to imply that at this time Jesus had moved away from the crowd. The disciples, on the other hand, seem to have been with the people and then went to Jesus who advised the disciples to gather the people to him.

Matt 14:23

“And after he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into the mountain apart to pray.”

There are mainly seven different words in the Greek for the word, pray. Pray here is deomai, # <1189>, and it is to “petition,” “plead,” “implore.” It is to pray deeply for something. It is the same word Jesus used in Luke 21:36 when he stated imperatively to, “pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” Christ showed us the manner of our pray in beseeching the Father to deliver us from the evils to come.

The other words for praying are:

Proseuchomai, # <4336>. It carries the main idea of worship, being intimate with God.

Deesis, # <1162>. It is an urgent request, a fervent prayer to meet one’s needs.

Parakaleo, # <3870>. It is to ask for consolation, comfort, or encouragement.

Erotao, # <2065>. It is either to question or to request.

Euchomai, # <2172>. It is praying in form of a wish; request for something.

Enteuxis, # <1783>. It is having a conversation with God or Jesus.

One can so readily appreciate the nuances of the different Greek words. There is nothing repetitive or redundant about prayers, but rather rich in their meaning.

When we pray about everything, and everything means everything, as evidenced by these different words (Phil 4:6), and bring our supplications and thanks face-to-face with God, we stop being anxious. We move from fear to victory, from turmoil to peace, and from defeat to victory.

14:15 Tired from a hard day of work and sorrowful having heard of the death of his cousin John the Baptist we can imagine ourselves in Jesus’ place seeking some peace and quiet. This may be why he went “apart” into a desert place (Matt 14:13). However seeing a need he met it in the healing of the crowd that came to him and then, despite the disciples’ suggestion, did not send them away.

How often do we excuse ourselves from some useful necessary activity on behalf of God because of personal circumstances?

14:2 We do not read of the death of John the Baptist in Mathew’s gospel record though the reader knows what happened because the inspired writer provides an explanation.

14:20-21 The feeding of the 5,000 took place at Passover time – John 6:4-10-and so we must realise that the people would, on thinking about the Passover and the wilderness journey see the connection with God’s provision of manna in the wilderness.