Jeremiah 31:27-40.  In yesterday’s reading Jeremiah apparently woke up from a dream and he was happy or satisfied.  The dream he had was a message from God about the return of the Israelites to the land.  The dream also seemed to have some parts of it that pointed to the future when the chosen future king from the family of David would become the provider and protector of the people.  Often the Bible uses the word king but sometimes we lose what that really means; in it’s best form a king is a provider and protector of his people; that is what the King from the house of David will be.  When God set up the Israelite people as a group he called them his people (he has used that sort of language here in Jeremiah at least 43 times).  In a perfect world God was to be the king of Israel.  In fact God is the king of Israel but Israel constantly rebels against him (Isaiah 43:15; 44:6).   But the promise to David was that one of his descendants would sit on his throne (the throne of Israel) forever.  We see pictures of a flesh and blood king and of God being king.  We also need to remember that the Israelite people are like a sample of all of us; in them we see how all of us would respond to God.  God is working a plan to turn the hearts of his subject to himself.  We do not live in a perfect world and none of us deserves to be a part of God’s forever kingdom (Isaiah 53:6).  In Isaiah 44:6 we see that part of God’s (LORD, Yahweh) function in our lives is to be our redeemer (Hebrew “goel”).  In the Law of Moses a redeemer (goel) was one who helped out members of his family when they were in need (Leviticus 25:25).  Also notice in that verse that Yahweh calls himself the “first and the last, there is no God except for him”.  In Revelation 1:1-17 we see language that is almost exactly the same identifying God as the first and last, calling him king of the nations and identifying him as Jesus.  Jesus not only was (and is) a real flesh and blood person but he is also fully God (Yahweh); in him we have the solution to the dilemma of the king; the eternal God-man, Jesus, is the king and redeemer not only of Israel but of all mankind (see 1 John 2:2, Romans 10:12-15).  Jeremiah seemed to have gotten some glimpse of all of this in his dream or vision.

In today’s reading the LORD (Yahweh, the one true God, the God of Israel) continues to teach Judah through Jeremiah about their future hope.  In verse 27 we see both the “house of Israel” and the “house of Judah” are mentioned.  Although this message was to the Southern Kingdom (Judah, house of Judah) we see God including the Northern Kingdom as well.  Although they had been scattered all over the ancient world over a century before, God had not forgotten them nor lost track of them.  God tells us in this verse that he will “sow” both of these kingdoms with the “seed of man and beast”.  Sowing is what a farmer does when he plants seeds.  He does this in order to see a field grow and produce.  “In days to come” God is going to make sure the Israelite kingdoms are restored and prosperous (the beasts refer to farm animals and represent the needs of the people, you might think of them as food and clothing).  In verse 28 we see that God  has been involved in the disasters that have come upon the people of Judah and Israel.  But he now assures the people of Judah (and Israel) that he will rebuild them.

In verses 29-30 God quotes a saying that must have been going around in Judah and among the exiles.  I like to eat a cucumber and tomato salad with Italian dressing on it.  I usually add extra vinegar and spices to the dressing.  It can be pretty sour (and very good). Sometimes when I am done with a batch there is left over dressing and tomato juice/seeds in the bowl and I’ll drink it.  Sometimes it is so sour my head sort of shakes and I make a little “wow” noise.  In the saying the parents were drinking the sour stuff but the kids were having the reaction.  The exiles and people left in Judah thought that they were suffering for the things their parents had done; that they were being punished for the sins of their parents.  That was the idea behind the saying.  God tells us that days are coming when people will no longer say such a thing.  Verse 30 tells us that people will die for their own wrong doing” in those days.  The end of verse 30 returns to the saying making it very clear that the saying was about disobedience and rebellion toward God.

Verses 31-34 start out the same as verse 29, “days are coming”.  The phrase is also used back in Jeremiah 30:3 and the idea is continued in Jeremiah 30:7, 8, 24; 31:6.  As we have seen theses reference may have had some fulfillment in the near future in Judah, but most if not all of them seem to point to a bigger event in the distant future and they involve the whole nation of Israel.  Verse 31 certainly involves both “houses” and it is about a “covenant”.  A covenant is a contract; a deal.  God calls this a new covenant; a new deal and he tells them in verse 32 it isn’t like the old deal he made with their ancestors (fathers).  Remember that the Bible is about a problem we have in our relationship with God; how it got started and how the problem can be fixed.  The problem is we have offended God, we constantly show him disrespect and disobey him.  The Bible uses the word sin, “missed the target”, to describe this problem.  A big part of fixing any problem is admitting it.  Another part is realizing what will and won’t fix the problem.  A lot of the Bible is about those two things.  In history God chose the family of a guy named Abraham to help us all learn.  In genesis 12:3 God promised Abram (Abraham) that his family would be a “blessing” to all the nations of the world.  In Genesis 15:18 God promised to give certain land to Abram’s descendants (by the way he was at least 75 at the time and had no children).  God called this promise a ‘Covenant”.  10 years later Sarai (Sarah), Abraham’s wife, decided that she was never going to give him children to she had her servant get pregnant by Abram.  Although Abram and Sari though they were helping God out they weren’t, God intended for Sarai to have a child and for that child to be the one who the promise would be fulfilled through.  In Genesis 17 we see the details of all of this.  In that chapter Abram name is changed to Abraham and Sarai’s name is changed to Sarah (see “What’s in a Name”).  We also see in that chapter that the “contract” reauired Abraham and his descendant do certain things (circumcision was the main thing at that point).  Another main part of the “contract” was that God would be the God of Abraham, although we like to look at the responsibilities that placed on God we need to remember that it required loyalty on Abraham’s part too. In Genesis 17:21 we learn that the child will be named Isaac and that the contract will pass to him.  In Genesis 22:16-18 we see again that obedience is a part of the contract.  In Genesis 28:13-14 the contract is passed on to Jacob (Israel).  Later in the history of Israel’s descendants more requirements will be given through Moses (one of his descendants) these requirements are often called the “Law” or the “Law of Moses”.  It is this covenant or contract that Jeremiah is talking about in Jeremiah 31:32.  One main requirement of this contract was obedience to certain rules or laws.  The Jewish people made the mistake of thinking that if they followed the laws closely enough that it would fix their broken Relationship with God.  In reality even one violation of the laws leaves a person eternally guilty.  The real purpose of the Law was to teach us that we have all failed to live up to God’s perfection (Romans 3:19-20, Isaiah 53:6).  A lot of this is in “The Old Testament Connection”.

In Jeremiah 31:33-34 we see that the new contract includes the “Law” of God inside of us rather than on paper.  God confirms that he will be our God but also says that we will be his people; care on his part, respect and obedience on our part.  In verse 34 we learn that part of the new contract is that we will not have to learn from others, probably due to the face that God’s law is in us.  I think the wording of the end of verse 34 is kind of interesting, it doesn’t say, “and I will forgive their sins”, it says, “for or because I will forgive their sins”.  It seems that God’s forgiveness of sins has something to do with us having his Law in us.    Exodus 34:7 tells us that God will not leave the guilty unpunished.  Since we all sin we all deserve punishment.  That is where Jesus comes in.  According to Isaiah 53:6 God will put all of our punishment on the Messiah, Jesus, the infinite God-man.  For those who accept him as their substitute forgiveness will be a reality.  Once forgiven God can put his “law” in our hearts through the actions of the Holy Spirit (see “Three or One?”).  Then we have the ultimate guide to the will of God right inside of us.  Awesome.  I have used “us” in this last description because the promise to the Israelites was really for all mankind. (See Romans 10-11).  Remember the original contract with Abraham and his descendants through Jacob included a “blessing” to all the nations of the world.

In verses 36-37 we see God confirming his original contract to give the Israelites the land and a forever kingdom by reminding them who he is, the creator of the universe and the permanent laws of nature.  His promises are as good or better than physics and chemistry.  He also encourages them by telling them he will not punish them for their sins, he will forgiven.  Only if the impossible can be done by us would there be any chance of him not forgiving.  Even if we did manage to “measure the universe” it would not erase this promise since the example is only an example and only as strong as the understanding of the original readers, if it would have been impossible in their mind then that is what we need to understand too.

Verses 38-40 are interesting in that they expand the city limits of Jerusalem beyond what they had ever been in ancient times.  Even in Jesus time the valley of the dead bodies was not part of the city, in fact that would have been offensive to Jewish people observing the Law of Moses since dead bodies were unclean and would make the place they were left unclean.  But here we see that even the “dirtiest” place imaginable would be a part of God city and considered holy or dedicated or special to God, and that new city would be, forever.

I’m so glad there is a new contract.  It is clear to me that none of us could satisfy God’s just and perfect nature under the old one.  The old contract made it clear that we need personal help, help that could only come after we were “cleaned up”; the penalty of our sins dealt with.  I’m so glad Jesus did that for me.  I’m so glad he made forgiveness available to everyone.  It is sad that many will reject his sacrifice and keep trying to be good enough.  I’m glad that Jesus made my life a proper place for the Holy Spirit.  I’m glad that the Holy Spirit is willing to pour himself into each believer and help up know and honor God.  I guess I see why these chapters are chapters of hope; that hope has made me glad.  Thank you God for bring hope to a lost and dying world.  Thank you for bringing hope into my life.  Help me share that hope with others.   Let my life shine as a beacon of your love and forgiveness.

Jeremiah 31:15-26.  We have been looking at a section of Jeremiah where the author seems to be trying to give hope to the people in Jerusalem and the exiles in Babylon.  In yesterday’s reading we saw that a lot of the hope had to do with the faithfulness of God and a promised future restoration of Israel (all the tribes to their land).  In previous reading we also saw a part of the hope involved a future king from the family of David.  That particular hope seemed to be very far in the future (even beyond the 70 years Jeremiah had been telling them the captivity in Babylon would last).   Today’s reading doesn’t start out very hopeful, and it does contain some stuff that shows that the people were depressed about their situation but it end on a good note.

In verse 15 we hear (or rather God, Yahweh, hears) crying in Ramah.  It is sad crying, very sad.  My translation says there was “lamentation and bitter weeping”.  That word “lamentation” means, “wailing”.  That is very desperate crying.   We are told that Rachel is crying for her children and she will not be comforted.  Jacob or Israel had two wives and two mistresses.  The twelve tribes of Israel were the twelve sons he had by these four women (God didn’t approve of these sorts of things, but if God only used perfect people none of us would have a shot)(see “The Twelve?”).  Rachel had two sons Joseph and Benjamin.  Joseph is identified later in the history of Israel through his two sons Ephraim and Manasseh.  The Southern Kingdom, Judah, was composed of two tribes; Judah and Benjamin.  Benjamin was a rather small tribe and was located in somewhat vulnerable location.  Benjamin bordered the Northern kingdom but was grudgingly aligned with Judah.  Ramah was a town in Benjamin’s territory and may be the place where Rachel was buried.  The people of Benjamin certainly would identify with Rachel.  Here the reference to Rachel is probably a reference to the Southern Kingdom, Judah, and the children refer to the people taken as captives to Babylon.  At least that is what the people of Jeremiah’s day would have seen in this message.

In verses 16-17 God assures them that the children will come home from the land of the enemy.  Many scholars believe that this prediction was fulfilled at the end of the 70 years of captivity when many of the exiles returned home.  That part of the story is told in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah.  I didn’t find any suggestion as to what “work” God is talking about in verse 16.

In verses 18-19 God is listening to Ephraim (Rachel’s grandson) and likes what he hears.  Ephraim seems to be very sorry for his rebellion against God.  Interestingly Ephraim was part of the Northern Kingdom (as was Manasseh).  Rachel forms sort of a bridge between these two kingdoms.  Judah always thought of themselves as the true kingdom, and in a certain sense they were.  But all the tribes were God’s people and that needs to be remembered.  By bringing a northern tribe into the message God is keeping the entire nation alive, at least prophetically.  Rachel might have been crying over exiled children from Benjamin, but there were also tears among her descendants in Ephraim; real God honoring tears.  It is interesting that 600 years later Jesus would have a discussion with a descendant of one of the ‘Northerners” left behind, the Samaritan woman.  That woman was still placing her hope in promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  She was looking for the Messiah, too.  Evidently she realized Jesus was that guy because in John 4:36 Jesus tells his followers that she is reaping rewards that include eternal life (see John 4:37-42).

So we see there is more to this section than just hope for the exiles in Babylon.  When the nation split in two the first king of the Northern tribes was a guy named, Jeroboam.  He was from the tribe of Ephraim.  In verse 20 we see God confirming that he has not abandon the Northern tribes represented by Ephraim. God still considers them his “children”.  Even though God has had to “deal” with their disobedience and disrespect he still loves them and wants a good relationship with them.  Because of that he will have mercy on them.

So these verses should give home to the exiles in Babylon, and to the scattered people of the Northern Kingdom, but wait there’s more.  Remember that Samaritan woman in John 4.  Samaritans were the descendants of Israelites left in the North but forced to marry outsiders.  The descendants of the people who eventually returned to the Southern Kingdom hated the Samaritans; they though of them as spiritual defectors and half-breeds; not 100% Israelite.  But that woman was still waiting for the chosen one (the Messiah or Christ).  God knew she was waiting and looking, maybe she was even grieving (like Ephraim in verse 18).  In verses 21-22 God tells the people of Israel to set up signs to direct themselves back to the land, and by extension back to him.  The LORD (Yahweh) then tells us something king of mysterious, a new thing in the earth; “a woman will surround a man”.  From the context the woman is probably a symbol for Israel.  The word surround an often mean protect.  The word for man is a word that contrasts the man from women or children, some believe the idea is strength or fighting ability.  Some experts think that the idea here is that Israel, who has been protected by various strong nations would become the protector and provider.  That idea is certainly true in that all the nations of the world will learn to honor the one true God and will honor him in Jerusalem.  But the real protection that Israel provides to the world is in Jesus.  In Revelation 12 we see a battle between a woman who is going to give birth and Satan.  The child who is born is clearly the messiah and the woman is Israel.  Further investigation will show us that Jesus is that child.  In his earthly life Jesus would have been protected and cared for within the Jewish nation.  In that way the woman is the protector of the child who would “rule the nations with a rod of iron”.  But, as the “mother”, of the messiah she would also be providing the one way all mankind could be protected from the wrath of God and find peace in eternity.

If we look back to verse 15 when Rachel cried for her children it is interesting that that verse was applied to the life of Jesus when Herod   had all the children in and around Bethlehem, 2 years and younger, in an attempt to execute Jesus (Matthew 2:18).  Ramah would have been in the area of Bethlehem and clearly Matthew though that Jeremiah 31:15 applied to the situation.  Here at the end of this section which seems to focus more on Ephraim than on the exiles God asks the “faithless daughter” how long she will wander around looking, check out the new thing, the strong man who is protected by the woman.  For the Samaritan woman at the well Jesus was that strong man, that savior of the world, and he is for us too.

Verses 23-25 could apply to the exiles as they return to Jerusalem from Babylon or they could apply to that time in the future when all Israel is restored to their land with their forever king.  I think it is one of those predictions that would find fulfillment more that once.  In any case the vision was a comfort to Jeremiah who seems to have been seeing it all in a dream.  He woke up very happy.

This stuff can be very involved but in the end the message is simple.  God cares, God loves, God has a way back to him.  Jesus is that way (John 14:6).  But he is a strong warrior who will take over the world too and vanquish all who oppose him.  He will protect us and provide for us forever.  In Romans 8:30 Paul tells us that those who God saw would turn to him he protected and provided for so that they could live for and honor him.  That is very cool, the creator of the universe caring for any who will trust him to.

God thank you for caring.  Thank you for caring even though we are wild and rebellious.  Thank you for “yearning” for me.  I am sorry for the times I offend you.  Help me do it less.  Thank you for protecting and providing for me.  Let me become a better and better child of your. Thank you for that eternal kingdom.  Let my life lead other to you.