Jeremiah 50-51
Lest anyone think that Jeremiah really is a traitor, a sellout to the Babylonians and their gods, we see today how thoroughly mistaken such an idea is. Jeremiah tells us quite clearly that Babylon, the instrument of the LORD’s judgment on Judah (and the remnant of Israel), will herself be destroyed in good time. So no, Jeremiah is not rooting for the Babylonians.
Remember, this is very much in line with what God did with Assyria. The LORD raised up the Assyrians as a judgment against Israel and as a strong warning to Judah. Having accomplished His purposes through Assyria, the LORD used the Babylonians to destroy those evil Assyrians. Now the LORD raises up the Babylonians in judgment against Judah (and everyone else in the region), and when He is finished with them, He will destroy them, too. It’s the same idea. We might even call it a pattern.
The LORD raises up, and the LORD tears down, and the LORD accomplishes His purposes. We see this all throughout human history — not just ancient history, but modern history, too. Do you think God had nothing to do with the rise and fall of the Roman Empire? Do you think He was unaware of Genghis Khan or the Ming Dynasty? Do you think God was absent from World War I or World War II or the Holocaust? Or how about the Soviet Union? Or the People’s Republic of China? Is God aloof from American politics?
Whenever you think that the “bad guys” are winning, just wait. God will deal with them in His own time — which may not be as quickly as we might like. But in the meantime we should ask ourselves whether we are really the “good guys”. Or are we like Israel and Judah, in need of a little forceful “encouragement” to mend our ways? Or might we ourselves be Babylon?
Really good question this morning! Makes you really stop and think.