Comments for August 2

v21 - Shimei's cursings are recorded in ch.16:5-13. This was a sin against the Lord's anointed, as Abishai points out, knowing that he has good support from David himself for this argument. He knew this first hand from 1Sam 26:9-11. And yet this time he is reproached, and Shimei forgiven.

v.31 - Barzillai was one of those who helped David by providing sustenance for him in the wilderness [2 Samuel 17:27-29] He did this when it seemed that the king was going to be overthrown. As the king returned to Jerusalem he went part of the way with him [2 Samuel 17:22] but did not seek honour for himself. It was sufficient to him that he had been a friend of the Lord's anointed. How often do we help our brethren when they are in need? How often are we willing to forgo honour and have that honour conferred on other brethren and sisters instead?

v.12 - This language, also used in ch.5:1, goes back in its origins to Gen.2:23 and the words of Adam when Eve was created. It talks of a close connection as of marriage.

19:1 David's behaviour is bad here. He now shows his unhappiness that the deliverance he sought had been granted. Joab's concern was that the people would lose confidence in David. So despite David's feelings Joab's counsel was good.

GRACE

Grace is to be given something we don't deserve. Grace should also provoke in us a response of humility, thankfulness and sacrifice.

Mephibosheth recognized the grace that had been given to him by David. His words deserve our attention. He said, "All my grandfather's descendants deserved nothing but death from my lord the king, but you gave your servant a place among those who eat at your table. So what right do I have to make any more appeals to the king?" (2 Samuel 19 v 28)

We may think that we are not under grace in our lives. We may think that we have got to where we are by hard work, savings and effort. But in reality, we, like Mephibosheth, are nothing. We are sinners and deserve the punishment for our sins - death. Through Jesus, however, we have been offered a place at his table where we can receive forgiveness for our sins and a life that we did not deserve. We could never earn it for ourselves, it is only by God's grace that we have such a gift.

Let's recognize the grace we have been given, be humble, thankful, and pour out our love for our Lord, the giver of our grace.

:19:37 There is no record in the historical books that David's gift to Chimham was kept however there is a little comment (Jeremiah 41:17) which implies that it was - a little 'undesigned co-incidence'

It is noteworthy, that although Shimei was spared by David at this time, his disobedience later is rewarded with death. 1 Kings 2:8, David charges Solomon with these words "...you must not let him (Shimei) go unpunished; you are a wise man and will know how to deal with him to bring his grey head down to Sheol in blood."

19:5-7 Whilst Joab's words might seem very harsh and unfeeling he actually expressed the truth of the matter. David had, indeed, shamed his subjects. However one wonders whether the king thought that Joab would seek to take the throne if he did not go out to the people.

V.37 In later days, with the same human kindness that had characterised his father Barzillai, Chimham was to build at Bethlehem, to the honour of king David, an inn for travellers. There, but for the crowd, the great Son of David would have been born centuries later.Jer 41:17

Shimei cursed David, and threw stones at him (2Sam 16:5).  David had the grace to forgive him (2Sam 19:16-23) when he apologised.  But Shimei caused his own death at the commencement of Solomon'' reign.

V.17 Ziba, the servant of Mephibosheth, came to David on his way out of Jerusalem to Mahanaim with provisions (2Sam 16:1,2).  At that time, David asked Ziba where Mephibosheth was. Ziba then accused Mephibosheth of treason (2Sam 16:3).  As a result, David gave Ziba all of Mephibosheth's property (2Sam 16:4). 

Vs.24,25 On his return to Jerusalem, Mephibosheth came to meet the king.  David asked him directly why he had not come with him to Mahanaim. 

Vs.26,27 Mephibosheth replied that he had been deceived by Ziba.

V.29 David is now in a quandary to understand who was telling the truth, Ziba or Mephibosheth.  To solve the problem quickly with the least antagonism as possible, David had the two divide the land.   

19:4  The covered face is, like the covered head – 2Sam 15:30  – a sign of mourning.

19:1  Even though Joab’s advice is good one is left wondering whether he was also concerned to maintain David’s popularity to secure his own position.

ENCOURAGE
 
As David was mourning for Absalom, Joab told him in no uncertain terms how humiliated David had made the men feel. He concluded, "Now go out and encourage your men. I swear by the LORD that if you don't go out, not a man will be left with you by nightfall." (2Sam 19:7) So David got up and went out to encourage his men, and in doing so staved off any worse disaster.
 
David's men needed encouragement. Even though they were men who knew what the hardships of war were all about, though they were strong and valiant, they still needed encouragement from their leader. Without that encouragement they were nothing. David's encouragement kept his men loyal, motivated and strong.
 
The writer to the Hebrews tells us to "Encourage one another - and all the more as you see the day approaching." (Heb 10:25) Like David,  we need to encourage the people around us. We are not the king, so we are less likely to lose all our friends by nightfall, but without encouragement, our fellow believers could easily fall away.
 
Let's make the effort, just as David did, to encourage each other in God's ways. In doing so we can stand more united, stronger and more faithfully until our Lord comes.

19:40-43       Notice the repeated use of ‘Israel’ and ‘Judah’ whilst the kingdom did not divide until the end of the reign of Solomon the lines of the division are clear already.

Vs.1-7 Perhaps David might have been too pre-occupied with the death of Absalom.  However, Joab's pointed criticism of the king (probably accompanied by a harsh tone) did not sit well with David.  Joab was being too didactic and had crossed the line between monarch and servant. 

V.13 Therefore, David replaced Joab with Amasa as chief of the army. 

V.21 It is clear that David was displeased with Joab (and his brother Abishai) in his reaction to Abishai's statement.  The sons of Zeruiah were opinionated, aggressive, and ambitious.  David sensed that they were a threat to him and had to assert his royal self.

19:29 David’s response seems to indicate that he did not know who to believe about Mephibosheth’s intentions so exasperatedly leaves them to sort out the matter of the inheritance themselves.

V.1 Contrast David’s behaviour over the loss of Absalom with the loss of His baby with Bath-Sheba (2Sam 12:19-21).

V.8 Israel had fled relates to those who had supported Absalom.

Vs.9,10 There was much disarray and disunity in the Kingdom.  There were supporters of David; supporters of Absalom; and the rest who seemed apathetic to the whole monarchy.

V.11 David sent Zadok to try to pacify and unify the people.  Perhaps David thought that his own presence, at this delicate time, might not be appropriate.

V.14 Zadok’s message hit a chord of unity with Judah.

Vs.16,17 It seemed that Shimei was alone when he cursed David as David fled from Absalom (2Sam 16:6,7).  But, here we see him with one thousand men.  Shimei must have been a leader in Benjamin.  

Shimei cursed David alone, but he did not seek forgiveness on his own.  Perhaps Shimei’s bringing a contingent of Benjamites was to signal to David that Shimei could muster many men to either support or to oppose David.  Shimei was hoping that his strong showing would lead to respect and clemency.

V.23 Despite Abishai’s objection, Shimei received the pardon he sought from David.

Vs.41-43 Both Judah and Israel made premier claims on David.  Instead of focusing on national unity, they engaged in inter-tribal squabbling.

This sort of thing can happen in ecclesias also, where squabbling over various and sundry issues can lead to disunity.  We should always look at the big picture and make for peace.  It is probably that most issues in dispute are not really that important.  But, when a person becomes emotionally invested in something, his/her pride is on the line, and it is hard to back off.  Rancour can occur. If we find ourselves embroiled in such a situation, let us refocus on what really matters (1Pet 3:10,11).

19:24  Mephibosheth welcomes David back into Jerusalem, seemingly completely unaware of what Ziba had done –2Sam 16:1-4

2Sam 19:22 - "adversaries" [Heb. "satan" (7854) means "an opponent, adversary"].

2Sam 19:32 - Barzillai was somewhat like a kindly innkeeper providing food and shelter for David (who echoes Christ) and his followers who had travelled to and temporarily stayed at Mahanaim. 2Sam 19:37-38 - "Chimham" [(3643) means "pining, their longing" and perhaps his name reminds us of those who long for Christ] was a follower of Barzillai and possibly his son; apparently he followed in his father's footsteps (Jer 41:17) as there was a "habitation" [Heb. "geruth" (1628) means "lodging place, inn, temporary habitation"] of Chimham near Bethlehem where a group stopped enroute to Egypt - this echoes the Bethlehem birth and early days of Jesus (Luke 2:4-7;Matt 2:11,13,14) who was born in a manger (initially was no room at the inn) and later with his parents left a "house" [Grk. "oikia" (3614) means "residence, abode"] in Bethlehem enroute to Egypt.

19:8  So David came and sat in the gate and the people noticed. Herein is a lesson for us.  People notice what we do.  We should leave no occasion of reproach in the things we do.

The consequences of David's sin with Bathsheba have not just created disharmony in his own household, as Nathan decrees in 2Sam 12v10, but throughout the entire nation as we seen in 19v9-15 and v41-43.

19:11  Notice that David’s communication with the people about kingship is made via the appointed Levitical priests. David is concerned with God’s law. Not his own position

19:3    David’s lament for Absalom impacted on the people. They had valiantly fought for David as they wanted him to be their king. However David’s response to the death of Absalom confused them. They had no idea how to react.  So they went from the present of the king by going home. Do we ever give out mixed signals?

Why did David reject his friend Joab and embrace his enemies?

Q: Notice that the relationship between David and Joab has finally broken down. Joab, who appears to give excellent advice in v5-7 is replaced with Amasa in v13. Why? When Amasa fails at his given task, David turns to Abishai, Joab's brother, rather than Joab (2Sam 20:6). Why?

A: The reason for all this is that David was in the delicate position of potentially losing his reign, as several potential rulers were still at large (Mephibosheth, the heir of Saul, most notably), and David was isolated from his throne at Jerusalem. Israel had already anointed Absalom, and had been happy to go to war against David, so this left David in a very precarious position. Joab and Abishai didn't understand that the situation required acts of reconciliation and self sacrifice. I think David was fully expecting Mephibosheth to live up to his alleged claim and resume the battle against David:
"Today shall the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father" (2Sam 16:3)

Here's a summary of David's actions and why:

1. David's show of grief for Absalom was so that the people following him would take pity on David and reinstate him as King. Joab's advice went counter to this.

2. David's acceptance of Shimei was so that the followers of Saul would have no cause to reject David.

3. David's rejection of Joab was because he had been commander in the army fighting against the ten tribes of Israel. He would not be a suitable choice to reunite Israel under David.

4. David's choice of Amasa (2Sam 17:25) was because he had been Absalom's army captain, and therefore could reunite those who followed Absalom with David.

The whole chapter can be seen in this light. David sums up the stakes in this game when he says to Abishai

"do not I know that I am this day king over Israel?" (2Sam 19:22) and the result of getting any detail wrong can be seen in 2Sam 20:1 where most of Israel flee from David.

19:9   For some time, whilst Absalom was winning the hearts of the people  - 2Sam 15:6 – it would appear that David was not doing anything to correct Absalom’s behaviour. Now Absalom has risen against David and the people, not having had a clear message from David about Absalom, are at a loss.  This we see inactivity in resolving problems in their infancy has serious consequences later. 

19:22-23       Clearly Shimei was trying to preserve his life. Abishai saw exactly what Shimei was trying to achieve and so suggested that he be put to death. David is far more gracious.

19:18 The mention of a “ferry boat” crossing Jordan indicates that the river was wide enough and deep enough to prevent it simply being forded on foot.

19:13  In offering Amasa the position as captain of the host David is seeking to mend the rift that developed around Absalom’s rebellion. Amasa was a supporter of Absalom.

19:2    So the people now take their lead from David and his actions. Those that had opposed Absalom’s rebellion saw David as their king. But now seeing his despair they are left wondering. David’s personal emotion blurred his perspective. Whilst Joab’s approach was rough and might appear callous it was necessary to help David to re-focus on what really mattered.

19:15   So the great rift between the house of Judah was hailed. But why was there a rift in the first place? After all David was of the tribe of Judah. It would seem that David’s absence from the scene whilst Absalom sought to take David’s position had a major impact on Judah, possibly compounded by David’s foolish response to the death of Absalom. 

19:25 That Mephibosheth had not dressed his feet etc. since David fled Jerusalem is a powerful indication that Mephibosheth was telling the truth and Ziba was lying. He couldn’t suddenly appear with undressed feet if he had been taking care of himself.

19:25 That Mephibosheth had not dressed his feet etc. since David fled Jerusalem is a powerful indication that Mephibosheth was telling the truth and Ziba was lying. He couldn’t suddenly appear with undressed feet if he had been taking care of himself.

19:5-7 How do we present upsetting facts? Joab, though correct in what he said, showed no compassion to David. Joab’s tirade against David was confrontational rather than conciliatory – taking account of David’s loss of his favourite son. We may have to speak unpalatable truths. However we should take care to present them compassionately.

19:31-36  David continues his generous spirit which we saw at the beginning of his reign. Do we always remember those who have done us “kindnesses”? It is all too easy to simply accept kindnesses and then forget the person who has shown it. Whilst we might think there is no obligation to “repay” the spirit of Christ, and God’s example, will show us that a generous spirit on our part if godly.

v.1,2 - We find ourselves in this position with regard to preaching the word. Each one who knows the truth is responsible to preach it - to make it available to those with whom they come in contact. May we not be accused of 'scattering the flock and driving them away' as the pastors of Israel were. Eze. 34:2, Zech.11:17.

v.5 - 06780 Branch [Isaiah 4:2 Zechariah 3:8 6:12] are all prophecies of the coming and work of Jesus. The promise of the branch [Jeremiah 23:5 33:15] Forms the basis for what Zechariah is told [Zechariah 6:12 13]  

v.5 - As Bro. Peter points out below the word branch 06780 is significant. Here is a table showing all of its 12 occurrences in scripture, which is quite instructive

23:1 The sheep of my pasture quotes Psalm 79:13 - the third time we have noticed that this Psalm is quoted in Jeremiah (Chapter 11 and Chapter 14 being the two other places). Maybe a careful reading of this Psalm against the background of the destruction by the Babylonians would be profitable.

FAITHFUL TO THE END
"Teenage rebellion, sexual immorality, anger, violence - and that's just Christians." So begins an ad on Christian radio for a course on how to counsel people from their problems. But it is also a very sad reflection on the state of people in the church - whatever church - in these last days. In 1 Timothy 4, Paul gave Timothy a list of things to watch out for happening among believers in the last days. Some of those things may be done in secret, but it does happen and we have been warned that it will happen. It was the same when Jeremiah lived in the last days of Judah in the land. The prophets, the men who all the people were looking up to for direction, were prophesying lies by Baal, leading the people astray, committing adultery, strengthening the hands of evildoers and encouraging wickedness.
But we must stay faithful to the Lord and faithful to his word even when everyone around us is going astray. We are living in the last days so let us not get carried away with the crowd and caught out doing evil. Remain faithful and true to the Lord and he will faithfully reward us at the return of Christ.

:15 Wormwood and gall quotes Deuteronomy 29:18 as in Chapter  9. So Jeremiah is restating a warning which he has already given. God's message does not change.

23:6 That Judah would 'dwell safely' would have seemed an irony at the time of the siege but Zechariah (Zech 14:11) after the return from Babylon makes the same assurance. It will happen,  despite the rebelliousness of Judah.

V.5-6 Thus the one who was to bud, or grow up in David's house becomes known as the "Branch" Eze 29:21, We can see the same word tsemach 6780 used by the prophet Zechariah. Zech 6:12

WHERE IS GOD?
 
Where is God?  Do we move away from his presence when we leave church on a Sunday morning?  Is the only place he sees us in the building where we go to worship him?  Are we hidden from him in our bedrooms with the door closed?  Can we go on holiday and have a holiday from God - free from the burdens of prayer and Bible reading?
 
God asked Israel those same questions.  '"Am I only a God nearby," declares the LORD, "and not a God far away?  Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?" Declares the LORD.  "Do not I fill heaven and earth?" declares the LORD."' (Jer 23:23-24)
 
The answer to these questions is that God is everywhere, we cannot go where God is not.  He knows everything and sees everything - even the things we wish were secret.  These might seem like very basic questions and answers, but there is a big difference between knowing the answer and living as if we know it.  The answer must be shown in our actions. Judah acted as if God was only in the temple and no where else.  We must remember that God is always with us, he always sees us no matter where we are or what we are doing, and we must live as if he is right beside us at all times.

We have the lesson of both the true shepherd, and the false shepherd being used by the prophet in the opening verses as he points forward to the return of the good shepherd to gather both Judah and Israel from the four corners of the earth. 

A brief ray of hope from the Lord is channelled through the prophet’s voice. Jer 23:3-8 speaks of the future hope which we know as “The Kingdom”. Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely.  What a wonderful comfort this must have been to poor Jeremiah.  He knew that God would keep His promises to Abraham and David.  But most of the rest of Judah couldn't care less.

23:2  Jeremiah, in Jerusalem, spoke words of judgment against the false shepherds in Israel. Ezekiel – Eze 34 – speaks against the false shepherds in Babylon, at around the same time.

The "burden" of teaching the word of God

The word "burden" or "oracle" used here of the word of God, is used elsewhere to simply mean a burden to be carried. It appears in Num 4:47-49 to describe the service of the Levites in the Tabernacle. They were to serve in it, carrying and fetching so that the tabernacle could function as God had commanded.

In Jeremiah's day the burden to be fetched and carried was the word of God. It was this word of warning and instruction that would wash, cleanse, and sanctify the people. Yet those who carried this burden were not faithful stewards of it. In v30-32 we see that they had dreamed up lies from their own hearts. They were taking liberties with the word of God!

But we have the same thing back in Numbers with the physical burdens of the Tabernacle. God had specified exactly what He wanted doing, how, and when. So when the carriers of the burdens decided of their own hearts to modify God's commandments, fire came out from God and devoured them, see Lev 10:1-3.

So if the prophets of Israel were condemned when they took liberties with the word (burden) of God, and the priests were punished when they took liberties with the things (burdens) they carried, should we not be all the more careful with our handling of the word of God which has been entrusted to us to carry throughout the world? Perhaps we should ask ourselves the question, is it acceptable for me to come up with my own "opinion" or something I would like to believe but have no evidence for? James says:

"let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgement" (Jas 3).

Apologies today if the subject of this comment is a bit heavy ;0) I don't think we're supposed to be put off from teaching God's word, but perhaps we can each take the lesson that God cares a great deal about the accuracy and integrity of what He has written for us. Often it can be better for us to say "I don't know" than to give an opinion that might cause others to err in their understanding.

23:2-3 Whilst it was God who brought the Chaldeans against Judah the cause was the ineffective teaching of the ‘pastors’. However God would bring them back again – this is not particularly a reference to the return either in the days of Ezra or Nehemiah or the regathering in the last days. It is a reference to the ‘good shepherd’ – Jesus – who would feed them and care for them.

23:11 It is uncertain whether the wickedness was like that of Eli's sons, or such idolatry as we know was practised in Manasseh's time and later within the temple precincts (2Kin 21:5; , 2Kin 22:12). Possibly it was both, as most idolatry had immorality as its center; note V.14

23:9-10  The prophets who broke Jeremiah’s heart were not prophets of God. They were the false prophets who sanctioned the adultery and false worship that was being practised in the land in those days.

Vs.5,6 These verses are clearly talking about the Lord Jesus.   When He returns to earth from heaven, He will rule the whole world strictly, with justice and righteousness (Isa 32:1; Acts 1:11; Rev 2:27).

23:28 The way in which Jeremiah uses ‘wheat’ and ‘chaff’ is alluded to by John the Baptist – Matt 3:12, Luke 3:17

Vs.3,4 This is a latter-day prophecy. Yahweh will gather His people back to the land.  The formation of the State of Israel in 1948 was the beginning, but there is more in-gathering to come.

V.5 Jesus is called the Branch in many passages.  However there are two Hebrew words used. In this verse, branch comes from tsemach which means a sprout.  In other notable passages, the word Branch comes from netzar which means green shoot (Isa 11:1). 

The interesting thing about netzar is that it is the root word of Nazareth.  And so, if we look at the New Testament, we see an Old Testament reference to Jesus that seems not to exist (Matt 2:23). The connection is in netzar.  Nethanael doubted that anything good come from Nazareth (John 1:46).  But, Nethanael, probably, missed the subtle connection with Isa 11:1.

V.6 For other appellations of Jesus, see Isa 9:6.

V.8 Yahweh will gather His people from all over the world and bring them back to Israel to dwell in peace. This will happen after much end-time trouble (Isa 11:11).

V.9 etc. Yahweh is upset and angry about the prophets who spoke falsehoods in His Name.  He vows to bring destruction on false prophets.

Here, Yahweh addresses the false prophets of Judah.  However, Yahweh looks beyond Judah.  He has a reserved a day when the false prophet of the Apostasy will be destroyed. This will happen at the hands of Jesus when He returns (Rev 16:13; 19:20; 20:10).

V.24 See Psa 139:7.

Jer 23:5-6 First Principles>Sure mercies of David>King
The Branch is the Lord Jesus Christ who will be the King to sit on David's throne. For more about the King, go to 2Sam 7:12-16.

23:7-8 Here the prophet repeats, with slight differences, the word he has already spoken in Jer 16:14-15

23:4     In speaking about setting up ‘shepherds that will feed them’ Jeremiah is signalling a replacement for the Godless religious leaders of his day. This promise is developed in Eze 34:23 as ‘one shepherd’ who is Jesus.

23:29  Jeremiah had found – Jer 20:9 – that God’s word was like a fire in himself. Now Jeremiah is to tell the people of the unquenchable nature of the words of God judgement.

23:31   The false prophets, as if to give credibility to their words simply claimed that they were moved by Yahweh. The warning of 1John 4:1 was true throughout time.

23:33-36    The “burden” spoken of was a word from God. Jeremiah is saying that God will no longer speak to Israel because they are so astray from Him. 

23:12  The year of visitation that was to come upon the priests and false prophets was the taking into captivity into Babylon.

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)

   I. Ninth Sermon - Against Judah's Kings (Jeremiah 21:1 to 23:8):

      10. Jer 23:1-8 - V1 "pastors<7462>"; VS 1-2 bad shepherds will receive God's wrath; VS 1-4 God after dismissing Shallum Jehoiakim and Jehoiachin now proceeds to dismiss the pastors of Israel;  we think of the two great shepherds of Israel in David and Christ (1Sam 16:11-12;Psa 23:1;2Sam 7:12-17); VS 1-4 the coming Shepherd-King of Israel would be a manifestation of the Lord: the Son of God and the son of David (John 10:11;1Pet 5:1-4 Christ is the chief shepherd; VS 5-6 "Behold the days shall come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign..."); the striking contrast between the evil days of the of the kings and the day of Christ (2Thess 2:2;Isa 11:4,5,10); V6 "...he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS" (Psa 45:1,6,3,4;Heb 1:8;Psa 110:4;Heb 7:1-2;Isa 53:11;Luke 24:44-47), Christ could become "THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS" in that the remission of sins was preached in his name beginning at Jerusalem, and thus by the KIngdom of God, and by repentance and baptism into him (1Cor 1:30-31) - Jerusalem is also called "The Lord our righteousness" (Jer 33:16;Rev 3:12); V3 "remnant<7611>"; VS 3-4 God will gather and restore the remnant of His flock and install good shepherds; VS 3-8 as David Simpson notes in his 2005 comments, the future hope of "the kingdom" will have Judah saved and Israel dwelling safely; V4 "shepherds<7462>"; V5 "Branch<6780>"; VS 5-6 the Davidic Branch refers to Christ
(Jer 33:14-16;Zech 3:8;Zech 6:12-13;Isa 4:2;Isa 11:1-6) and a message of hope; V6 "RIGHTEOUSNESS<6664>"; VS 7-8 the exodus from Egypt would be utterly eclipsed on an international scale and ultimately Israel will be regathered from all parts of the earth as one family under Christ; V8 descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north will live in their own land (out of Russia, Germany, Poland, etc. Jer 33:7-9), and faithful Gentles ultimately will be heir to this promise also (Gen 12:1-3,7;Gen 13:14-15;Gen 15:4-5;Heb 11:8-16;Gal 3:7-9,16,26-29).  

   J. Tenth Sermon - Against Judah's False Prophets (Jeremiah 23:9-40):

      1. Jer 23:9-40 - lying prophets of Judah: V9 "Mine heart<3820>"; VS 9-15 from the leaders of state, Jeremiah turns to the religious leaders; VS 9-14 "Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets" - "Samaria<8111>" and "Jerusalem<3389>" were comparable to "Sodom<5467>" and "Gomorrah<6017>" (Isa 1:10;Eze 16:2,46-51); V10 physical and spiritual adulterers; V11 (NIV) "Both prophet and priest are godless..."; VS 11,14 the unclean lives of the religious leaders; V15 the false prophets will not go unpunished but will be fed "wormwood<3939>" and drink "gall<7219>" (perhaps aware he might be accused of being a false prophet, Jesus would not take what the false prophets receive Deut 29:18;Matt 27:34); VS 15-20 false prophets speaking of peace (V17) but there will be a whirlwind of the Lord gone forth in fury upon the head of the wicked (V19, Jer 25:32 and Jer 30:23); V16 "vain<1891>"; VS 16-17 words of the false prophets saying there will be peace, but it is uninspired optimism; V18 "counsel<5475>" but in Psa 55:14 the same word is translated "converse<5475>"; V20 in days to come you will understand God's anger and purposes clearly (does this refer to Nebuchadnezzar's sacking of Jerusalem, or the last days?); VS 21-22 the situation of the false prophets is summarized (not sent of God, not turning people from evil ways), but the function of true prophets is to cause people from evil to good, the foretelling of the future is a related but secondary work.

   J. Tenth Sermon - Against Judah's False Prophets (Jeremiah 23:9-40):

      2. Jer 23:9-40 - lying prophets of Judah con't.:

         a. Jeremiah 23:23-32 - stresses the distinction between the true and pretended word of God; VS 23-24 false prophets acting as if God was far off and unaware, also demonstrates the omniscience and omnipresence of God (Psa 139:7;Amos 9:2-3); VS 25-32 the "dreams" of the false prophets were based on lies but pretended to be the word of God (Jer 16:19), but the true word of God demolished the false prophets; V28 "What is the chaff to the wheat?" (Matt 13:24-30;Matt 3:12); VS 28-29 wheat is nourishment and hammer is the power of the true word of God.

         b. Jeremiah 23:33-40 - God to punish and forsake the false prophets and Jerusalem, rebuke and repudiation of 'the burden of the Lord', the worship of his own chosen people had become a nuisance to God (Matt 12:36-37); V33 (KJV) "burden<4853>" or (NIV) "oracle<4853>"; V40 (KJV) "everlasting<5769>", "perpetual<5769>".

23:11  The corrupt priesthood, aided and abetted by the false prophets, which was manifest even in the temple would have made it very difficult for the people to know what they should do and believe as it was the responsibility of the priest to teach – Mal 2:7. Hence Jeremiah’s work was to correct the error amongst the leaders.

23:33-40              Jeremiah had been speaking the word of God to the people. However they have questioned the validity of Jeremiah’s words. So God promises, through Jeremiah – the prophet the people ignored – the judgement of the Chaldean invasion and captivity.

23:17   The false prophets - those that despised God - still claimed that they were speaking His words! One wonder what exactly they thought would happen. Maybe they felt that if they said something often enough it would happen despite all the evidence.

23:3     Whilst it was the “pastors” who had driven Israel away from God  - :2 – It was God who drove them into captivity because of what the “pastors” had done. The “pastors” were responsible for their actions but the people also were responsible because they should have realised that what they were being taught was wrong.

23:1 we are so familiar with the concept of God’s people being “sheep” that we might forget the significance of this. A shepherd in Israel leads his sheep and speak sot them. They respond to his words. The ones who do not are the ones who end up “lost”.  Do we listen always to the words of our shepherd?

23:2 the lack of guidance from the religious leaders meant that the people sought out their own ideas. Consequently  they were “scattered”. We should realise that not teaching other is not a passive actions. Rather it is active. The lack of instruction and decision taking drive believers away from truth and goodness.

23:6 That Yahweh would be Israel’s righteousness is expounded by Paul as speaking of Jesus - 1Cor 1:30. See also Jer 33:16. Importantly the lesson is that no one can claim privilige because of their own “righteousness”. Israel, in doing that, did not submit to the truth of their need to be justified by God – Rom 10:2-3. Likewise we cannot be justified by our own actions. Rather we are justified by believing God’s promises and acting accordingly. – Rom 3:24-28

23:18 “Ah my brother” is a quotation from 1Kin 13:30 where the exact Hebrew phrase is found – “ah” here is “alas” there. The contrast is stark. The king of Judah will not be lamented whilst a prophet who disobeyed God’s word was!

23:13 We should appreciate that when God speaks of the prophets of Samaria that the northern kingdom had already some years ago been taken into captivity by the Assyrians. The mention of those prophets of Samaria now is because the teaching of those false prophets had permeated the thinking of the kingdom of Judah I the south as well.

This chapter has the most uses of ‘neum’<5002> in scripture (18x). Neum is used of ‘Oracle’ or ‘Utterance’ of YHWH.

The KJV translates neum as ‘saith’ and does not differentiate between 'neum' and the normal word, to say, ‘amar’ <559>(also translated ‘saith’).

The prophets use this special neum word to falsely say that their words are what YHWH has said. 
Jeremiah 23:31   ³¹ Behold, I am against the prophets, saith <5002> YHWH, that use their tongues, and say, He saith <5002>.

11 v.1-4 - Here we have clear teaching in the New Testament that Israel still have a place in God's plan. The inclusion of the gentiles, while being brought about by Israel's own waywardness, has not excluded them. The example of Elijah in the wilderness here seems an odd one for God to choose to use through Paul, but it emphasises for us that this analogy is appropriate and opens up to us a new area of study, looking at this part of the life of Elijah in this context of the saving of a remnant of Israel along with the saints in the kingdom. 1Sam.12:22, Ps.89:32-37.

Rom 10 - The way in which belief / faith and righteousness is developed in this chapter forces us to realise that faith is an emotional response to factual data. Once this faith is manifest it produces 'confession' v10. Israel's problem was that the word they read was not 'mixed with faith' [Hebrews 4:2]. We must beware lest we make our appreciation of Scripture too legalistic and forget the mercy of God. However, on the other hand, we must beware lest our 'faith' is not based on reason.

11 v.5-6 - Israel's failure to appreciate that they were to be saved by God's grace should stand as a warning to us. We are part of the 'remnant according to the election of grace'. As such we must realise that our salvation is based upon God's grace and not our own works. Romans 5:15 Ephesians 2:5,8.

Rom 10
Continuing the theme of God's children being the ones promised, not the ones born as Abraham's sons Paul now develops the argument that keeping the law as a ritual is of no value either.. If Christ is not seen in the keeping of the law then it is futile.

11:25 In speaking of blindness until the fulness of the gentiles be come in Paul is reflecting Jesus' words Luke 21:24 'until the times of the gentiles be fulfilled'. So the call of the gentiles is linked to the treading down of Jerusalem. So, as Paul has said elsewhere [11:20] we should not be high-minded because of being called.

Rom 10 - Following on the comment from Chapter 3 and our comment the first time we read Romans this year we see that Israel's problem was that they thought by their actions they could justify themselves rather than understanding that by their actions they, inevitably, condemned themselves.

11:1 'God hath not cast off His people' affirms the truth of Leviticus 26:44, Psalm 94:14 and Jeremiah 33:20-21, amongst other passages. However these passages should not be taken to indicate that Israel were, in some way exempt from punishment. Leviticus 26:44 makes the promise against a long list of punishments that will flow if the nation are disobedient. The assurance is given there lest anyone might think that in punishing Israel God would destroy them.

Is it really as simple as 10v9? Is it really as simple as John 3v14-15, and as easy as Mark 16v16? What about Acts 2v21? Could it really be that simple?

"Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price….. Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near… let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon" (Isa 55v1-7)

I suppose it's hard to understand, because "there's no such thing as a free lunch" in our world, but then again, what does the next verse say? (Isa 55v8-9)

10:5 Paul returns to the point he made (2:13) to contrast the man of righteousness – grace – with the man of works.

11:26 We should not presume that because ‘all Israel will be saved’ that God is going to accept the Jews without repentance. His principles do not change – but Israel will. They will turn to the redeemer who comes out of Zion when He returns (Isa 59:20, Zech 12:10)

 10:12 "For there is no difference between the the Jew and the Greek" God's love in Christ overearches distinctions with respect to race, nationality, sex, age, social and/or financial standing, etc. This verse is very clear on this point as is Gal 3:28

10:17  Against the background of many churches saying that our own personal ‘feelings’ are a determinator of truth we note that Paul says that knowledge about God come from hearing Scripture. We should not forget that.

11:13  In saying ‘I magnify mine office’ Paul is, whilst appealing to his position as apostle to the gentles, saying that in reality that he is the apostle to the gentile does not really make any difference to the status of his argument. His argument is true whether or not he is apostle to the gentiles because it is based on Scripture.

HEART AND MOUTH
 
Is it possible to be a silent Christian? Do we believe in our hearts that Jesus Christ died and rose again from the dead, but are afraid to tell others that we believe that Jesus is Lord? Paul tells us that both the heart and mouth must be engaged to be saved.
 
Paul quotes Deuteronomy as he says, '"The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming: That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.' (Rom 10:8-10)
 
So we see that we cannot have belief without action. Paul is not saying that we need to give a detailed account of every detail of our faith to everyone we see. What he is saying is that we should audibly confess that Jesus is our Lord so that it leaves no doubt about the conclusion in our hearts. Our belief must be followed up by our mouths expressing our belief.
 
Let's make sure our heart and mouth are co-ordinated in our faith and in the things that we say.

CH.11 One thing that we must not overlook as we read this account of the olive tree, is that there is only one olive tree. The olive tree represents both Jew and Gentile: Bond and free: Male and female. There is no national difference, no social difference, no sexual difference; we all share the same hope; The Hope of Israel; Heirs of the promises made to Abraham.

10:10 In saying ‘with the heart …’ Paul shows that keeping God’s laws is more than simply observing commandments. It demands an emotional response also.

11:6    The contrast between ‘grace’ and ‘works’ addresses the fundamental problem the Jews had. They thought that by ‘doing’ the law they would be acceptable. In reality they believed in justification by works. We must take care lest we fall into the same trap.

10:9 It is absolutely true that salvation depends upon believing that Jesus rose from the dead.  If He did not rise from the dead then our sins could not be removed (1Cor 15:17). 

By itself, believing that Jesus rose from the dead is not sufficient for salvation.  One verse, like 10:9, should never be taken as a standalone statement.  That is because other parts of scripture give other instructions. 

For example, baptism is essential for salvation (Mark 16:16). Baptism comes after belief in the gospel (i.e. the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, Acts 8:12).  Baptism brings a believer into a covenant relationship with Jesus and makes the believer part of Him (Gal 3:27).  

Only a person who has followed all the steps that the Bible requires is a true associate of Jesus.  Sadly, there are many sincere people who think that they are followers of Jesus who have not completed all the requirements for discipleship. 

It is important, then, for all believers to make sure that they have followed all the Biblical directives to become true followers of Jesus. When Jesus returns to earth, He will recognize only His own true disciples - the ones who have followed all His commandments (Rev 22:14). 

10:5 In quoting the law – Lev 18:5 – after showing the Jews in Romans 1 that they could not keep the law condemns them. So their boasting is all in vain. They were unable to do what this verse from Leviticus had required of them.

RICH BECAUSE OF ISRAEL

As Christians and Gentiles, it is easy to forget that we are not God's first choice and that it is only because of Israel's disobedience that we have had this opportunity to get to know God and be saved through his Son, Jesus Christ. But if we think we have received an overflowing of grace, which we have, think for a moment on the words of Paul. He says, "Again I ask: Did they stumble as to fall beyond recovery? Not at all! Rather because of their transgression, salvation has come to the Gentiles to make Israel envious. But if their transgressions means riches for the world, how much greater riches will their fullness bring!" (Rom 11:11-12)

Paul is telling us that we have only seen the beginning of the riches we have in being part of God's family. When Israel finally cares to accept the Lord Jesus as their Messiah, blessings will really start to flow!

Of all the prayers I have listened to and even given myself, prayer for Israel is not given a high priority by most. But when we realise that it is only when Israel finally listens to God, that God's blessings will really start to flow on both them and us, then we will be much more motivated to pray for God's people Israel.

Pray now, as Paul did, with his hearts desire that "they may be saved." (Rom 10:1) May God's blessing soon be poured out on the world.

Paul liberally quotes from the Old Testament:

10:8 See Deut 30:14.

10:11See Isa 49:23.

10:15 See Isa 52:7.

10:16 See Isa 53:1.

10:17 Faith cannot be derived from something not known.  One has to know something and firmly believe it to be true in order to develop faith. People believe in all sorts of things they cannot qualify. 

But, faith in Yahweh and His Son, and the promises which have been made concerning eternal life, must all, first, be based upon knowledge.  The only place to gain such knowledge is in the Bible.  There is no other place.

11:1,2 The Catholic Church contends that since the Jews rejected Jesus, they were, themselves, rejected by God.  But that is not what scripture is telling us.  When Jesus returns to the earth, He will save His people (11:26).

11:3,4 See 1Kin 19:14,18.

11:5 Yahweh did not discard His people, even after they crucified His Son. Yahweh’s covenant with Natural Israel is everlasting, and He will always preserve a remnant.

11:9,10 See Psa 69:22,23.

11:16 See 1Cor 15:20,23.

11:17-24 The natural olive tree is Natural Israel.  The wild olive tree is Spiritual Israel.  Because of Jesus, Gentiles can now be accepted into Israel, and can be heirs according to the same promises that once exclusively belonged to Natural Israel (Gal 3:27-29). The prophecy concerning this is found in Zech 4:3,11-14.

10:9 Believing in the heart was not the way of the law. The way of the law of Moses was by doing. However it is possible to ‘do’ things such as offer sacrifices without it affecting one’s emotions at all. It could simply be a dead action. God requires more of us than that. Our belief must affect our emotions – the way in which we behave towards others.

10:11  We might ask ‘ashamed of what?’ But Paul has already explained that those in Christ are ‘not ashamed’ – Rom 5:5  so the shame that is being spoken of here is the sort of shame that Adam had – a realisation that he was alienated from God.

10:4    In saying that ‘Christ is the end of the 'law’ Paul is not saying that the law of Moses is no longer of any value. He has already said it is ‘holy’, ‘just’ and  ‘good’– Rom 7:12– Rather Paul is saying that the coming of Christ is the fulfillment of the law of Moses and as such in emulating him  the believer is also fulfilling the law.

10:13  In quoting Joel 2:32 to make the point that it is the one who calls on God who will be saved Paul is turning upside down the traditional Jewish view. They thought that God had called them as a nation but now Paul is saying that what matters is a response from the individual to God.

11:27 The quotation – Jer 31:33-34 – about the way in which God takes away sins in the New Covenant makes it clear that forgiveness is of God, not due to any righteousness we might think we have. 

11:18 In saying “boast not against the branches” Paul is warning gentile believers to despise the Jews who did not accept Jesus as Messiah. Such an attitude would be so easy. After all, it might be reasoned, we understand their scriptures better than they do so we must be better than them. Such thinking would be wrong.

11:14  “emulation” here is jealousy. Paul is quoting Deut 32:21 which Israel should have realised spoke of the call of the gentiles due to their faithless.

Rom 10:12

“For there is no difference between the Jew {Yahudah} and the Greek…”

According to Jewish historian Josephus, the Israelitish high priest-king of Judah, John Hyrcanus "subdued all the Idumeans; {Edomites, Esau’s descendants} and permitted them to stay in that country {Judah}, if they would circumcise their genitals, and make use of the laws of the Jews; and they were so desirous of living in the country of their forefathers, that they submitted to the use of circumcision, and of the rest of the Jewish ways of living; at which time therefore this befell them, that they were hereafter no other than Jews, See Antiq. B. XIV. ch. 8. sect. 1; B. XV. ch. 7. sect. 9. Of the War, B. II. ch. 3. sect. 1; B. IV. ch. 4. sect. 5. This, in the opinion of Josephus, “made them proselytes of justice, or entire Jews, as here and elsewhere - Antiq. B. XIV. ch. 8. sect. 1. It should be noted they were not from the Hebraic line of Shem; there are not Semitic by race.

Later, in 740AD, the nation of Khazaria proselytized overnight into Jewry by Talmudic Jews from Babylon, but most of today’s Jews deny this and hurl accusations against those who believe this as being “white supremacists,” or “neo-Nazis.”

Then we have the Ashkenazi Jews who came mostly from central and Eastern Europe who also converted to Jewry. Concerning the controversy whether the Ashkenazi have Khazarian roots, David Goldstein, Geneticist, noted that the new study “does offer better resolution of the [mitochondrial DNA] than earlier ones, and so the suggested interpretation could well be right.” Regardless of whether they are or are not, it doesn’t change the fact that they are not of the Semitic race.

http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/37821/title/Genetic-Roots-of-the-Ashkenazi-Jews/

Most Jewish historians of note agree that only a tiny remnant of the so-called Jews today is from the line of Shem. Still, we know from Scripture that, “in every nation, he that feareth him {Yahweh}, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him {Yahweh}.”

10:10    We might say belief is a rational thing. Which, indeed it is. We believe because of evidence that shows something is true. We tend to associate the “heart” with emotion. Paul has already –Rom 4:19-21 – given us an example of a faithful man who emotions – his heart – responded to the facts he knew. Do we follow Abraham’s example by putting our faith into a way of living which shows we have faith in?

10:3     If we are not careful we will fall into the same trap that the Jews fell into. Namely that we will think and behave as if, in some way, we can earn salvation by our behaviour and thinking. God counts us righteous because of our faith in the risen Jesus. No more, no less. Of course we are required to lead an appropriate life – but it is Jesus’ life, not ours, that is the guarantee of salvation.

10:19    the quotation from Deut 32:21 spoken even before Israel entered the land of Canaan should have taught them that they would be rejected and that the offer that they held would be extended to others than Jews – the gentiles.

11:28 Having spoken of the way that the nation of Israel rejected God’s offer of salvation Paul has now been careful to teach the gentiles not to be arrogant. So the special place of the Jews is emphasized having already a few verses earlier spoken of the covenant when Israel’s sins will be forgive.

11:1  the question “hath God cast off His people?” is the end point of his reasoning which started earlier. But the focus is on the Jew’s response to God’s word, not their birth as Jews.

BELIEVE AND CONFESS

What are the things we need to know or do that are essential to salvation? There are two things listed in Romans 10. Paul says,"If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and  believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified and with the mouth one confesses and is saved." (Rom 10:9-10).

Let's imagine what it would be like to have one without the other, but not both.

What if we confessed that Jesus is Lord, but didn't believe in our hearts that he is Lord or that he was raised from the dead? We would be liars! Plenty of people have done that throughout history, and the results will not be pretty.

What about if we believe in Jesus, believe that he is Lord and that he was raised from the dead, but refuse to open our mouths to say it - either to ourselves or to preach or share our belief at all? Then we are also living a lie. We are living in fear and do not have the faith or courage to put our belief into action.

We need both faith and action (in this case, words). Let's let them both be seen and heard in our lives.
 

10:2 There are many professing Christians who are enthusiastic for their religion. However, without wishing to question sincerity, have little knowledge of what the Bible says. If the way that Paul writes of the Jews here is an indication such uninformed enthusiasm will not “save”. Hence Paul’s prayer. We must be careful to ensure that any enthusiasm we show is based on a correct understanding of what God requires – this can only come from a careful and regular reading of the bible.

11 The inspired apostle spends three chapters - 9-11 – on the position of the Jews in relation to Gods’ promises through Christ and their response.

Do we give the same amount of thought in our words and prayers about the positon of natural Israel in relation to God’s plan?

11:5-6  That there was a remnant of Jews who believed was evident as there were many by now in the first century who had been baptised into Christ. However there was a tendency for some of those Jews to return to trying to observe the Law of Moses, or at least parts of it. Hence Paul makes the point that even those Jews who had been baptised were, like gentiles, saved by grace.

Rom 11:25

“For I would not brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceit; that blindness in part is happened to Israel until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.”

What is taught and understood about this verse by so many sects is that it is about the last Gentile being saved, at which time, and only time, Christ will return. The problem here is how we interpret what the “fulness of the Gentiles” really means.  What about the last Jew coming to Christ?

When comparing other passages of Scripture, it becomes evident that this passage is not about a number, but national.

In Gen 15:16, we read about God withholding His judgments against the Amorites because “the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.”  “And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to a full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up…” (Dan 8:23).

When the cup of iniquity of the Gentiles is full, then Israel’s Messiah will return, and save the Israelite remnant, and restore Israel’s national blindness. It’s not about a number of Gentiles that must be saved before Christ may return. The Israelites spiritual blindness will be restored as with the nation of Israel, itself, when the “cup of iniquity” of the Gentile nations is full (Rom 11:25,26).