Jeremiah

Jeremiah 42:1-4

Johanan was fleeing to Egypt out of fear that the Babylonians would do when they find out of the death of Gedaliah.  Jezaniah is another commander that is mentioned as being with Johanan (I wonder if it is he that brought about this idea of seeking the Lord).  Something was on the mind of all these people, "What does the Lord want us to do?"  Yet, asking the question is easy, hearing the answer and responding to it is difficult.  It's fascinating that in this situation they feel the need to hear from the Lord.  'All the people' ask Jeremiah to intercede on their behalf.  We see what may be at least part of their thought process in the last part of verse 2; there were only a few left. Where they had once stood as many, there was meager few.  Fear was moving them. 

Jeremiah 42:5-6

The people invoke Yahweh as the witness in their oath, calling on him to be faithful in doing so if they fail.  These are brave and brazen words to speak, but speaking them does nothing.  The Lord's witness has always been faithful, his ways just and standard righteous; the problem was with the people whose witness was unreliable, whose justice was broken and whose standard wasn't standard at all but ever changing.

Jeremiah 42:7-18

Jeremiah waited on the Lord, as one speaking the Lord had to do.  Why ten days?  We don't know but I suspect the people's commitment to find out what the Lord wanted had already began to dissolve if not completely dissipate.  The Lord was probably showing them their inability to commit to the ways of God without exception.  On one day they make an oath, ten days later, they've forgotten why they made or that they even committed. 

Jeremiah gave them the word of the Lord. 

• To stay in the land, they would receive the Lord's care and protection.  In staying the God of all would build them up and plant them.
• To leave the land and flee to Egypt would incite the Lord to bring His judgment on them.  They would die of sword, famine and pestilence. 

The choice was really very simple and there really was no decision.  After all they had committed to what the Lord advised, they simply had to obey.  However, it appeared they would be exposing themselves to the Babylonians army.  To know be obedient was a clear indication that they feared men more than they feared God.  Why did the Babylonian threat seem more real than the judgment of God? 

They would be a curse and never return home. 

Jeremiah 42:19-22

Jeremiah told them it was a fatal mistake in asking him to intercede and promising to obey.  He told them but they hadn't obeyed.  They were weighing it out, mulling it over, seeing what their options were.  There is only one option.  Peter arrived at this conclusion as others walked away from Jesus; "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. ⁶⁹ We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God." (John 6:68)

©2019 Doug Ford