WWUTT 2319 None to Quench God's Wrath (Jeremiah 4:1-18)

The Lord said to Israel that if you return to me, if you remove the detestable things from my presence and do not waver, then they will be forgiven.

But if not, the judgment of God would come upon them when we understand the text.

This is When We Understand the Text, a daily Bible commentary to help encourage your time in the word.

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we feature New Testament Study, an Old Testament book on Thursday, and our

Q and A on Friday. Now here's your teacher, Pastor Gabe. Thank you, Becky. In our study of Jeremiah, we're on to chapter four, where God is going to continue to call

Israel to repentance, and then he's going to turn his attention toward Judah, warning them of the judgment that will come upon them because of their sin.

Just to kind of recap what we've read thus far, in chapter one, God calls this man Jeremiah to be a prophet, not only to the two households of Israel.

Remember, you have it split into two kingdoms. So the Northern kingdom is Israel, the Southern kingdom is

Judah, but Jeremiah is also going to prophesy to nations. First, we're dealing with the people of God.

So Israel has rebelled against God. They've worshiped false gods. Israel calls them out, or sorry,

Jeremiah calls them out for their sin, but also calls them to repentance. And we continue that call here at the start of chapter four, but then

Jeremiah is going to call out Judah, guilty of the same sins, and they need to recognize that judgment will come upon them as well.

So let me begin by reading just these first four verses here of chapter four, since this continues that call to repentance.

Hear the word of the Lord. If you return, O Israel, declares the

Lord, to me, you should return. If you remove your detestable things from my presence and do not waver, and if you swear as the

Lord lives in truth, in justice, and in righteousness, then nations shall bless themselves in him and in him shall they glory.

For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, break up your fallow ground and sow not among thorns, circumcise yourselves to the

Lord, remove the foreskin of your hearts, O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, lest my wrath go forth like fire and burn with none to quench it because of the evil of your deeds.

So there you have the continued call to Israel and then the segue transitioning to addressing

Judah, and that's where verse five will pick up too. With the promise of disaster that will come upon them if they do not repent.

So let's come back to verse one. Once again, continuing that call to repentance. If you return,

O Israel, declares the Lord, to me, you should return. If you remove your detestable things from my presence and do not waver.

So talking about the idols that they worship, the high places that they have raised up.

Remember that on the tops of hills is where these temples or shrines would be raised to these false gods.

And God is telling them to tear them down, remove the detestable things. The golden calves, the idols that they worshiped in the

North and in the South. There were two main areas of worship where there was a golden calf erected.

Do not waver, but it's as though God is saying, cold turkey, do it now. Get rid of this stuff.

Get this out of my face. And verse two, and if you swear as the Lord lives, in truth and justice and in righteousness, then nations shall bless themselves in him and in him shall they glory.

I thought it was kind of funny that it says in truth and justice and in righteousness. I grew up with Superman. So what was the common thing that Superman would say?

He's fighting for truth and justice and the American way. Well, the American way is not so terribly righteous, but this is specifically in truth, in justice and in righteousness.

If you swear as the Lord lives, and God is saying that you're swearing yourself to me, you're returning to me, must be genuine.

How will it show itself genuine? Because you return to me in truth. You believe the truth.

You know the law. You know the things that God has declared for you. The things that will result in your blessing if you follow them and will result in your cursing if you do not obey them.

In justice, so treating one another justly. Again, knowing the law and how you are to love your neighbor as a result of the law.

To those who are destitute, who are suffering, who are struggling, you know what you need to do according to the law to build them up, to love them, to strengthen them in the midst of their poverty.

Or even dealing justly with those that you had previously treated unjustly.

How do you make it up to those who had received injustice in the day that they should have been receiving justice?

And then finally in righteousness, which is, it's gonna be the continuation of this. It's gonna be the evidence of a real transformation that has happened in your heart.

It's not just something that you're doing externally for a time, but knowing righteousness is something that is gonna happen from the inside out.

It's not something you can merely manifest on the outside, but it is from a heart that desires these things.

Then the Lord says, nations shall bless themselves in him.

So when Israel repents, it's gonna be a testimony even to nations who will see the justice of God and will come to him and be blessed.

And in him, they shall glory. Now there is of course, something prophetic about this, obviously because it's coming from a prophet, but it can be speaking also to something messianic, to when

Christ comes and through Christ, the nations will be blessed.

How are the nations blessed through Christ? Because of all tribes, tongues and nations who come to him and adore him and love him and bow down to him and worship him.

And through him, the nations are blessed. All those who love

Christ Jesus, in him shall they glory. You and I have become followers of Christ this day and demonstrate even in our worship, the fulfillment of this as a prophecy towards something messianic.

Verses three and four, for thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, break up your fallow ground and sow not among thorns.

So after calling Israel to repentance, now he turns to face

Judah and Jerusalem. Remember that Jerusalem was kind of right there on the border from Judah to Israel, but it's on the

Judah side. So Jerusalem being the capital city, being that place where God's temple was built, he himself dwells there with his people.

He addresses them in this plural name of Judah and Jerusalem, which is pretty common.

That's the nature of the Hebrew poetic device that we call parallelism, things that are addressed in twos and pairs.

Israel will be called Israel and Samaria, since Samaria was kind of their capital city.

Judah will be called by Judah and Jerusalem. Break up your fallow ground and sow not among thorns.

Circumcise yourselves to the Lord. Remove the foreskin of your hearts, O men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem.

Now, this is similar to something that Moses said to Israel before they entered the promised land in the book of Deuteronomy.

They were going to be circumcised unto the Lord. That generation that was about to inherit the promised land had not been circumcised yet at all.

So they were going to be physically circumcised, but this was supposed to be the, it was supposed to be a picture of a spiritual reality that they would be circumcised in heart.

Moses said to Israel, be circumcised in your hearts. So cut off from the world and united to God.

Circumcise yourselves to the Lord, he says here. Lest my wrath go forth like a fire and burn with none to quench it because of the evil of your deeds.

Turn from your sin because the judgment of God is burning against such unrighteousness.

Now, this is not just an Old Testament personality of God that we don't see repeated in the

New Testament. You've heard some people say that before, right? God is kind of a tyrant in the Old Testament, but he's so meek and mild and gentle in the

New Testament. We have the same warnings given to us in the New Testament. Colossians 3 .5,

put to death therefore what is earthly in you, sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

Verse six, on account of these, the wrath of God is coming.

Same sort of warning God is giving to Israel and to Judah here. Remove yourself from being united to the world, to worldliness, to your flesh, to your own passions.

Circumcise your hearts and be united to God because if you are not, my wrath will go forth like fire and it will burn with none to quench it.

Same as Colossians 3 .6, on account of these, the wrath of God is coming.

Don't tell me that God is meaner in the Old Testament and he's just so nice and loving and gentle in the

New Testament. The same warnings are given on both sides of the Bible. You turn from your sin and God will not judge you.

You continue in your sin. You continue rebelling against God. You put the Lord your

God to the test. Oh, his judgment will come swiftly upon you on a day that you will not expect.

And in that day, there won't be anything you can do about it. The way that God says it in Jeremiah four, there will be none to quench the fire of God's wrath because of the evil of your deeds.

And it'll be your fault. It'll be no one else's fault, but yours. As God said through the apostle

Paul in Romans chapter two, do you presume on his kindness and forbearance and patience, not realizing that his kindness towards you is meant to lead you to repentance?

You haven't been wiped out yet because God is waiting for you to repent.

He's been kind to you. You continue in this sin and thinking, well, nothing's happening to me, so I guess

I'm okay to keep doing this. Well, God is patient. He is patiently waiting for you to repent.

But if you do not, then his wrath will come forth like fire. It is said in the book of Hebrews, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living

God. So while we have the opportunity to repent and turn to Christ for forgiveness, let us do so now.

Then the promise to Judah of the destruction that will come upon them if they do not repent.

Let me pick up here in verse five. Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem and say, blow the trumpet through the land, cry aloud and say, assemble, and let us go into the fortified cities.

Had a Superman reference a moment ago and now we have an Avengers reference. Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Yeah, continuing on.

Verse six, raise a standard toward Zion, flee for safety, stay not, for I bring disaster from the north and great destruction.

A lion has gone up from his thicket. A destroyer of nations has set out. He has gone out from his place to make your land a waste.

Your cities will be ruins without inhabitants. This is in reference to Babylon that will come from the north and invade

Judah. Now, Israel had the Assyrians. So Assyria came against Israel. That was also a

Northern enemy that came upon them, but Assyria was not able to take Judah. Babylon will, however, and that is, that's what

God is promising here. Verse eight, for this put on sackcloth, lament and wail for the fierce anger of the

Lord has not turned back from us. We were reading from the Beatitudes in the

Sermon on the Plain earlier this week, where Jesus said, you who laugh now, woe to you because a day is going to come in which you will weep.

Those who are filled with themselves, who think that because of their riches and their success and prosperity, that nothing is going to harm them.

I have everything that I need. I don't need anything else. Well, a day is going to come in which you're going to find yourself empty and you will weep in that day because you did not turn to the

Lord to be filled. You expected to be fulfilled and sustained by the stuff that you had, instead of turning to Christ who saves.

And the same sort of thing is being said here. Put on sackcloth, lament and wail.

You think you're fine now. You enjoy your laughter now, but a day is going to come in which you will be in mourning because you did not turn back to God and the fierce anger of the

Lord has not turned back from you. Verse nine, in that day declares the

Lord, courage shall fail both kings and officials. The priests shall be appalled and the prophets astounded.

Then I said, ah, Lord God, surely you have utterly deceived this people in Jerusalem, saying it shall be well with you.

Whereas the sword has reached their very life. At that time, it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, a hot wind from the bear heights in the desert toward the daughter of my people, not to winnow or cleanse and a wind too full for this comes for me.

Now it is I who speak in judgment upon them. And so Jeremiah responds with this statement,

God, you've deceived this people. You've said it shall be well with you. And then the sword has reached their very life.

Now this is very characteristic of Jeremiah to respond in such a way. Possibly what he has in mind is that in the days of Josiah, when there was great revival in Judah, the prophets that prophesied at that time said things would go well for Judah because they had repented, because they had torn down the high places to the false gods.

And there was great sweeping legal revival. It was kind of a revival of law that happened in Judah, but it did not really change their hearts.

And God knows that. God knows that Judah's hearts were not really turned toward him.

Yeah, there was a great legal revival, but not a spiritual revival. So Jeremiah is confused by that.

And he thinks, you've said that it would go well for Judah because they repented. But now you're saying that this judgment is going to come upon them.

And this is Jeremiah expressing his own limitedness in his human understanding, but it's not going to prevent him from doing his job.

As a prophet, he's still gonna be faithful to God. And he's still going to say what God is telling him to say, even though in the moment that God is revealing this word,

Jeremiah may not understand it. And God is patient toward Jeremiah to allow him to ask such a question, but never accusing

God of wrongdoing. Even that statement, you have utterly deceived this people is not accusing

God of sin, but just simply to say, you told them it would be fine. And now you're bringing judgment upon them.

And the Lord basically says in verse 12, yes, it is I who speak in judgment upon them. So in verse 13, behold, he comes up like clouds, his chariots like the whirlwind, his horses are swifter than eagles, woe to us for we are ruined.

Oh, Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil that you may be saved. How long shall your wicked thoughts lodge within you?

For a voice declares from Dan and proclaims trouble from Mount Ephraim. Warn the nations that he is coming, announce to Jerusalem, besiegers come from a distant land, they shout against the cities of Judah.

Like keepers of a field, are they against her all around because she has rebelled against me, declares the

Lord. Your ways and your deeds have brought this upon you.

This is your doom and it is bitter. It has reached, listen, it has reached your very heart.

So while Jeremiah is pleading and saying, you said this people would be fine if they turn back to you, it is the

Lord who knows their heart. And even though there has been this sweeping legal revival, it has not resulted in them turning their hearts back to the

Lord. God had told Josiah, because of Josiah's faithfulness, he would be rewarded, even he would not escape death, of course, but he would not receive condemnation for the same condemnation that would come upon the rest of Judah.

And of course, God would reward Josiah by making him one of the ancestors of the

Christ that would come through his line. Eventually down through the line of Josiah would come

Jesus who would truly bring in the great spiritual revival. Everyone who turns to the

Lord Jesus Christ has been forgiven and has been brought to God.

And Josiah would be rewarded in this way, but the rest of Judah did not turn their heart back to God.

As soon as Josiah died, Judah went right back to doing what they were doing before. And so though Jeremiah would plead on their behalf,

God knows the hearts when Jeremiah doesn't. And he says, the judgment that comes upon them, it's what they deserve.

They brought it upon themselves. It is their doom, it is bitter, but it has reached their heart, which has not really turned to the

Lord. Now, Jeremiah is going to respond to this in verse 19. My anguish, my anguish,

I writhe in pain. Oh, the walls of my heart. And this is why

Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet. Because he sees a people that he calls to repentance and knowing that if they would repent that God would spare them, but they don't.

And he knows that because God has prophesied that to him or has told him to prophesy that.

And it just causes such great anguish in Jeremiah's heart to have to see a people go to their destruction in this way when they could have listened to the

Lord and repented. You've probably experienced the same thing before watching a loved one that had turned from the

Lord and just continued in their own path of destruction. My friends, you must realize this warning upon yourself as well.

If there is a sin that is in your life that you must get rid of, do it cold turkey.

The way that the Lord had said it in the beginning in verse one, remove your detestable things from my presence and do not waver.

Do not even give it an inch. Do not leave one spare bit of ground that is devoted to an idol or a false

God. Everything, give it to the Lord, wipe it clean. And of course, to really accomplish that is gonna take the work of the

Holy Spirit in our hearts. When he comes in, he ransacks the place, tears down all of our idols, purifies us that we may seek

Christ. Maybe there's still some more deep cleaning that needs to happen. Turn to the

Lord, ask him to cleanse you. As David prayed in Psalm 51, wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.

And 1 John 1 .9 says, if we ask God to forgive us our sins, he will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Heavenly Father, continue to convict our hearts in your spirit. May we not go back to the world.

May we not go back to the desires of our flesh, but continually coming to Christ to be washed and renewed.

It is said in Ephesians 5, that he washes us with the word of your spirit.

And so may we hear the word of God, be convicted in our hearts of what we've read today, that we may turn from our sin to the

Lord Jesus Christ and live. It is in the name of Jesus that we pray, amen.

This has been, When We Understand the Text of Pastor Gabriel Hughes. For all of our podcasts, episodes, videos, books, and more, visit our website at www .utt

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