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Have you ever had a time in your life where things seem to be so bad that you couldn't possibly see any hope for the future or any light at the end of the tunnel? I know I have. Perhaps you recently lost your job and wonder how in the world you'll make it financially. Or perhaps you received a potentially fatal diagnosis on your health and you're wondering what to do. Hope is something we all need, and there is One who loves to provide it...His name is the Lord!
God is a God of Hope. Hope comes from Him. And if there's anyone who needed it badly it was the people of Israel and Judah. At this juncture, they are all exiled to Babylon. What Jeremiah told them would happen - happened! And God hears their cries. And like a loving father, within the next several chapters God's message is one of hope. Up until now, it's been one of doom. But, now it's about hope.
Jeremiah Arrested
Even though we find Jeremiah still in Jerusalem while everyone else has been taken away to Babylon, he's been arrested again, only this time it was King Zedekiah who arrested him. He was tired of Jeremiah's prophecies of doom. In spite of seeing all the doom around him and the incredible fulfillment of each of Jeremiah's prophecies, Zedekiah, like the rest of the people, blindly refuses to repent of his sin and follow God. Yet, Jeremiah finds hope as his cousin offers him to buy his land at a cheap price. God tells him to buy the land - even though the land was barren, desolate, and worthless at this point in time. Why? Because God is about to change everything and restore hope to the nation He banished to exile.
God's Message Of Hope
Like a gentle, loving father God sees the cries of His people while in exile at it warmly tugs at His heart. His people are now paying the price for their sinfulness, but God doesn't want them to be without hope. So, instead of the warnings of doom, God gives Jeremiah a different message - one of hope for His people.
Like a father who wants to reassure His love for His children, God has Jeremiah sharing a different message saying, "So do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant; do not be dismayed, Israel,” says the Lord. “For I will bring you home again from distant lands, and your children will return from their exile. Israel will return to a life of peace and quiet, and no one will terrorize them. For I am with you and will save you,” says the Lord." (30:10)
Listen to all the hope God gives to His people through Jeremiah:
1) I'll punish those who punished you! "All who plunder you will be plundered, and all who attack you will be attacked." (30:16)
2) I'll restore your health! "I will give you back your health and heal your wounds,”
3) I'll restore everything you've lost! "When I bring Israel home again from captivity and restore their fortunes, Jerusalem will be rebuilt on its ruins, and the palace reconstructed as before."
4) I'll restore your joy! "There will be joy and songs of thanksgiving,"
5) I'll prosper your children! "Their children will prosper as they did long ago."
6) I'll bring everyone back home again! "For I will bring them from the north and from the distant corners of the earth. I will not forget the blind and lame, the expectant mothers and women in labor. A great company will return!" (31:8)
7) I'll bless you abundantly! "They will be radiant because of the Lord’s good gifts—the abundant crops of grain, new wine, and olive oil, and the healthy flocks and herds. Their life will be like a watered garden, and all their sorrows will be gone."
While the nation of Judah and Israel did return to Jerusalem some 70 years later as prophesied by Jeremiah, all of these blessings of hope are actually referring to another time in the distant future - referring to the time of Jesus' coming as the Messiah and also quite possibly of the Millennial Reign of Christ yet to come.
Notice 31:15, "This is what the Lord says, “A cry is heard in Ramah, deep anguish and bitter weeping. Rachel weeps for her children, refusing to be comforted, for her children are gone.”
In fact, this prophecy was fulfilled in Matthew 2:18. According to Matthew, one of the disciples of Jesus, this prophecy was referring to the massive killing of babies two years and younger when King Herod heard that a future King of Israel had been born - referring to Jesus. In order to stamp out any future insurrection, he insanely had all Jewish male children two years and younger killed by the Roman army.
The next time you feel troubled, discouraged, depressed, or filled with anxiety - remember that God wants to instill in your heart His hope for a better tomorrow. Look at the 7 things listed above that God promised Israel and Judah. Realize those 7 things are the same items of hope He wants you to know and believe in as well. While trouble happens to all of us, God is a God of hope and wants to restore your joy and bless you abundantly. Don't forget that!
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