Jeremiah 4 FSI - HEAR, O EARTH

> [!title|noicon] **Jeremiah 4 Notes** > [[Jeremiah 3 FSI|<Prev]]   [[Jeremiah 5 FSI|Next>]] > [[Jeremiah 4|Verse list view]] > [Jeremiah 4:1](Jeremiah%204.md#^1) note > > The conversation continues from chapter 3:20-25. God repeats what He has said in chapter 3, "If thou wilt return." In one sense He is speaking to the congregations. But it's as though God is speaking to the wind because they are not going to put away their abominations, and God knows the end from the beginning. It's fruitless. Ultimately, God is speaking here to the elect to return to Him. Returning, like the situation with the prodigal son, has to do with coming back as a saved person into the eternal kingdom of God Whom we, along with humanity, have rebelled against. So not only must they come out of the congregations and churches that have come under the judgment of God, but they must yet return to *Him* for salvation, not relying on the institutions to bring them into the kingdom of God. ^jer4-1 > [Jeremiah 4:2](Jeremiah%204.md#^2) note > > Not only should they put away their abominations as we read in verse 1, but they are to swear, "The LORD lives, in truth, in judgment and in righteousness." We are to recognize that it is Christ Who lives. He is the Truth and the Life. He is our righteousness if we become saved, He is the One who is altogether righteous. He is the Judge of all the earth. And in this manner shall the nations (those who have become saved out of the nations) bless themselves in Him and in Him shall they glory. ^jer4-2 > [Jeremiah 4:3](Jeremiah%204.md#^3) note > > "Break up your fallow ground" - Fallow ground is unplowed, hard ground. It is not prepared for sowing seed. And this represents our hard hearts which have to be broken so that the seed of the Gospel might take root there. There is similar language in [Hosea 10:12](Hosea%2010.md#^12). This is a plea for salvation lest we come under *judgment* (verse 4b). > > "and sow not among thorns" - Thorns have to do with the wrath of God ([Isaiah 5:6](Isaiah%205.md#^6)), with the curse on this world, with being unsaved and in bondage to the kingdom of Satan. With Isaiah 5:6, it's like saying, "sow not in a vineyard of wild grapes (stinking fruit), sow not in a church or congregation that has been broken down and come to an end." > > So God is assuring us in verses 1-4 that even though the time has come that the vineyard has been destroyed, the time that the churches and congregations have come to an end, it is not the end yet for salvation. ^jer4-3 > [Jeremiah 4:4](Jeremiah%204.md#^4) note > > "Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart" - cp [Deut 10:16](Deuteronomy%2010.md#^16). To circumcise means to cut off -- and this represents that our sins must be cut off, and it involves the shedding of blood. And only *God* can cause us to be circumcised in heart ([Deut 30:6](Deuteronomy%2030.md#^6)), only He can save us, as this has to do with becoming saved. > > Practically speaking, we must read the Bible and pray that God will give us wisdom in and obedience to it. That's how we can break up the fallow ground and not sow among thorns (verse 3). But only God can save us through the hearing of His Word, only He can circumcise our hearts. ^jer4-4 > [Jeremiah 4:5](Jeremiah%204.md#^5) note > > Judah and Jerusalem are the churches and congregations, the Judah and Jerusalem "which are now" ([Gal 4:25](Galatians%204.md#^25)). There is to be a strong cry there, a blowing of the trumpet in the land. The trumpet is announcing the fact that the enemy is approaching, we are to be ready! We are to go to where there is protection, to the defensed or fortified places, to the strongholds. And God tells us where this is in verse 6. ^jer4-5 > [Jeremiah 4:6](Jeremiah%204.md#^6) note > > "Set up the standard toward Zion" - The standard is the ensign or the flag or banner of the kingdom of God, of the Lord Jesus Christ. Zion is Jerusalem. And as in this case God has us set up the standard *toward* Zion, it represents the heavenly Jerusalem -- ultimately to Christ Himself. We cannot place our trust and safety in the earthly Jerusalem represented by churches and congregations that have come under judgment. Our trust and security must be fully in Christ Himself, in the heavenly Jerusalem. He is the only One Who can protect us from the judgment that is coming. > > "retire, stay not" -- this repeats what was said in verse 5, "gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go". They are to gather together to flee out (as we see in similar language in [Isaiah 10:31](Isaiah%2010.md#^31)) of the visible churches and congregations to Christ alone. They are to move without delay! > > "for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction" - And this is exactly why we are to get out, to flee. God is bringing the kingdom of Satan, and Satan himself, to destroy the churches and congregations. This continues in verse 7. ^jer4-6 > [Jeremiah 4:7](Jeremiah%204.md#^7) note > > This is the dismal language of God's judgment upon the churches. And it begins first of all with the destroyer, Satan, coming against them to ravish them. Satan thinks he is winning the battle against God but God is actually preparing them for judgment and final destruction by Christ on the last day. See [Revelation 20:7](Revelation%2020.md#^7), [8](Revelation%2020.md#^8), [9](Revelation%2020.md#^9) and [10](Revelation%2020.md#^10). > > "The lion is come up from his thicket" -- See note under [Jeremiah 5:6](Jeremiah%205.md#^6), cp also [Jer 2:30](Jeremiah%202.md#^30). ^jer4-7 > [Jeremiah 4:8](Jeremiah%204.md#^8) note > > What an ominous statement, to come under the fierce anger of God. This is *not* a time of happiness. This is a time of great sadness when judgment day has arrived. It has begun on the churches and will transition into the last day. And we weep and mourn as we think of our loved ones and friends who are under the judgment of God. And this isn't just something that will happen "some day" -- it is happening *now*, *today*. It's not something we can just dismiss as a theological idea, it's very real. ^jer4-8 > [Jeremiah 4:9](Jeremiah%204.md#^9) note > > There is *no* protection any longer. Whereas in the past there had been a security for those who were in a congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ -- there were those who had the unction from God, who had the spiritual oversight and the commission to bring the Gospel to the world as the custodians or the stewards of the Word of God -- now there is no security of any kind. Those who are ruling in the churches and congregations (the kings and princes) and remain there shall perish, they do not have eternal life. This is the second death, eternal damnation. And the all of the members, the priests and prophets, shall be astonished and wonder that God is no longer using them. They're going to be astounded, they will be surprised and filled with dismay at what is happening, there will be no more mercy ([Rev 6:15](Revelation%206.md#^15), [16](Revelation%206.md#^16), [17](Revelation%206.md#^17)). They're under the wrath of God if they continue there and there is no purpose any longer. ^jer4-9 > [Jeremiah 4:10](Jeremiah%204.md#^10) note > > We might at first be amazed when we read this statement. It sounds like Jeremiah is accusing God of wrongdoing, that he is making an indictment against God that He has told lies. But we know that God is perfect and does not lie ([Romans 3:4](Romans%203.md#^4)), so we have to read this statement in the light of everything else in the Bible. And it is God Himself Who put this in the Bible, Jeremiah isn't just writing his own feelings here. > > The fact is, if we do not pray for wisdom and understanding for God to reveal Truth to us through His Word as we spend time in it, and for obedience to it, the Bible is written in a spiritually-based manner as if there are contradictions that lead people astray in their own unbelief. That's why there are so many false doctrines to begin with as people come up with their own teachings and trust in the wrong things as they misinterpret Scripture. So there is an apparent deception in the reading of the Bible if we do not prayerfully follow the Bible's own prescription for interpretation to compare spiritual things with spiritual, as we see in [Isaiah 6:9](Isaiah%206.md#^9) - [10](Isaiah%206.md#^10), [28:13](Isaiah%2028.md#^13) and [2 Thessalonians 2:10](2%20Thessalonians%202.md#^10). That is, it requires that God give us spiritual understanding to perceive Truth. And God is not neutral, when people go their own way He sends strong delusion upon them that they will not believe the Truth. > > Now what God is actually doing here is putting Jeremiah in the place of Judah, and more particularly in the place of the churches and congregations of our day, as though he is speaking on their behalf. When they insist that God is deceiving them it is actually because they have come to their own conclusions instead of searching the Word and praying for wisdom. They trust in their own doctrines and systematic theology that their church fathers have set up. So when they insist on going their own way it becomes a delusion to them, it is something that does not bring salvation regardless of how secure they felt on their own path and identified as being in a right relationship with God. See [Matthew 7:21](Matthew%207.md#^21), [22](Matthew%207.md#^22) and [23](Matthew%207.md#^23). > > So as God uses this language He is warning us, "Look out! Look out! Don't be deceived!" ^jer4-10 > [Jeremiah 4:11](Jeremiah%204.md#^11) note > > This message goes both to the churches and congregations (Jerusalem now) as a warning, as well as to the elect (Jerusalem above) for understanding. It is a message of judgment against the high places, that is, against the doctrines of men which were formulated by theologians and Bible teachers who think they have the mind of God but have not tested their doctrines against the Word of God, saying, "Thus saith the Lord," when the Lord has not said. God is sending a dry wind, not to fan, or winnow, nor to cleanse -- it is no longer the time of separating the wheat from the tares and bringing salvation cleansing in the midst -- it is now the time for judgment. Salvation has past, the mercy of God has ended, the night has come when no man can work. ^jer4-11 > [Jeremiah 4:12](Jeremiah%204.md#^12) note > > When God is ready to pronounce His sentence it is judgment day. The end has come. ^jer4-12 > [Jeremiah 4:13](Jeremiah%204.md#^13) note > > He shall come up as clouds ([Rev 14:14](Revelation%2014.md#^14), [15](Revelation%2014.md#^15), [16](Revelation%2014.md#^16), [17](Revelation%2014.md#^17), [18](Revelation%2014.md#^18), [19](Revelation%2014.md#^19), [20](Revelation%2014.md#^20) -- this is talking about judgment day). He comes with His whirlwind and His horses are swifter than eagles, they are coming for judgment. The day of grace has passed! > > "his chariots _shall_ _be_ as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled" - That is, "We are plundered, we are ruined, we are destroyed," it is too late for any mercy of God. > > As we read this we all ought to be trembling, regardless of whether we are a child of God or not. What if we are not ready? If we aren't saved we should be shaking in abject fear because Judgment Day is almost here! ^jer4-13 > [Jeremiah 4:14](Jeremiah%204.md#^14) note > > Jerusalem, remember, is made up of the churches and congregations. They are the Jerusalem that is now in bondage with her children [Gal 4:25](Galatians%204.md#^25), represented by Old Testament Jerusalem but continuing through the New Testament as the churches. > > "wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved" -- God is saying they needed to have their sins washed away. He is declaring that they are unsaved and judgment is coming. Sadly, they will not turn to Christ in the Scriptures in reality, so He is giving them warning and purpose to the judgment that is coming. The Bible is not their true authority. The church doctrines, creeds and confessions are their authority and they are leading them astray. ^jer4-14 > [Jeremiah 4:15](Jeremiah%204.md#^15) note > > Dan was a tribe located to the north of the 10 tribes, Ephraim was located to the south. So God is bracketing the whole nation of Israel. The word *affliction* in the Hebrew is *wickedness*, and it's the same word translated *vain* in verse 14. We see Ephraim again in [Hosea 5:1](Hosea%205.md#^1), [2](Hosea%205.md#^2) and [3](Hosea%205.md#^3), and again spiritual adultery or whoredom is highlighted. Why? See [Hosea 5:4](Hosea%205.md#^4) along with [James 4:4](James%204.md#^4). Whenever someone goes their own way or says, "Thus saith the Lord," when the Lord has not said, they are going after Satan, they are going after their own minds and the mind of the world. Then see [Hosea 5:5](Hosea%205.md#^5) how they are in deep trouble with God. The churches and congregations are not the pillar and ground of Truth, they are not the authority, their confessions are not the authority, the Bible alone is the Authority ([Phl'p 2:13](Philippians%202.md#^13)). > > Then see the ultimate sadness in [Hosea 5:6](Hosea%205.md#^6). God has withdrawn Himself from them. Once Satan has come into the churches the Holy Spirit is withdrawn, God Himself is withdrawn from them and it is the end, we must come out of them. > > So here in Jeremiah 4:15, God is reminding us to remember what happened to Israel. Israel were God's people, it wasn't just any ol' nation. God brought them mightily out of Egypt and cared for them and so on. They were His special people. But He destroyed them for their wickedness, and again did the same to Judah. The same thing is true of the churches and congregations when they fall away from Christ and wickedly go their own way. ^jer4-15 > [Jeremiah 4:16](Jeremiah%204.md#^16) note > > This is not something that is done in secret or in a corner. It is declared to the whole world that God's judgment is upon the churches and congregations, against Jerusalem, as a warning that judgment is coming soon upon the world as well. > > The word *watchers* in the Hebrew is a word that is normally translated *keeper*. But it's a different word than what is translated *keepers* in verse 17. But they are synonyms that have to do with *preservation* or guarding the flock, there are those who are set up by God to preserve the field (verse 17). And here the watchers come from a *far country* against the cities of Judah. The far country is mentioned in [Isaiah 13:4](Isaiah%2013.md#^4) - [5](Isaiah%2013.md#^5). And in Isaiah 13 the setting is speaking about Christ Himself as He comes from Heaven, as He is riding on the white horse with a sword protruding from His mouth as the Word of God, as the judge of all the earth. Heaven is a far country from this sin-cursed earth. > > Another place where we read of a far country is in [Jeremiah 8:16](Jeremiah%208.md#^16), [17](Jeremiah%208.md#^17), [18](Jeremiah%208.md#^18), [19](Jeremiah%208.md#^19) and [20](Jeremiah%208.md#^20), which is a spiritual parallel to Revelation 20 when Satan is loosed to come against the camp of the saints as a *judgment* of God, as we see in Jeremiah 8 where God releases serpents and cockatrices, or poisonous snakes, against them to bite them, as He did with the serpents in the wilderness ([Num 21:6](Numbers%2021.md#^6), [1 Cor 10:9](1%20Corinthians%2010.md#^9)). And those serpents are the false teachers and false prophets that come in from Satan to deceive them ([Mt 23:33](Matthew%2023.md#^33), [Rev 20:2](Revelation%2020.md#^2)). So Satan has been loosed by God to be used to carry out His plan of judgment. ^jer4-16 > [Jeremiah 4:17](Jeremiah%204.md#^17) note > > The churches have been going on too long saying, "Thus saith the Lord," when the Lord has not said. So finally God has His keepers, those He is using to accomplish His perfect plan. And for those who insist on going their own way, He looses Satan against them as judgment, who brings Gog and Magog (the nations of the world) to compass the camp of the saints ([Rev 20:7](Revelation%2020.md#^7), [8](Revelation%2020.md#^8), [9](Revelation%2020.md#^9)). ^jer4-17 > [Jeremiah 4:18](Jeremiah%204.md#^18) note > > Their own way and doings have procured these things. They only have themselves to blame for the bitter wickedness in their heart. This wickedness isn't superficial, it is pervasive, it is deep -- in the very heart there is a rottenness, it is intensely wicked with no real desire to do God's will. They are content with their way, with their confessions and so on -- they want to be left alone about what the Bible really says. ^jer4-18 > [Jeremiah 4:19](Jeremiah%204.md#^19) note > > "My bowels, my bowels!" - ([Lam 2:11](Lamentations%202.md#^11)) - This is language indicating intense distress, sorrow and suffering -- like from a terrible disaster that is so bad you're sick in the pit of your stomach, you're so shocked by what has happened. And this is *God* Who is speaking! > > "I am pained at my very heart" - You see how God echoes that it's right in the very *Essence* of His Being. > > "my heart makes a noise in me" - This is like saying, "My heart is disquieted in me, there is enormous upset in me." ([Ps 42:11](Psalm%2042.md#^11)) > > As God brings judgment at the end of the church age, as He looses Satan against the churches which eventuates in the judgment upon the world, it is *not* a happy idea to God. It is a matter of intense pain to God ([Lk 19:41](Luke%2019.md#^41), [42](Luke%2019.md#^42), [43](Luke%2019.md#^43), [44](Luke%2019.md#^44) -- this is spiritually speaking of the churches and congregations represented by historical Jerusalem). Yet God's holy justice demands that this happen: > > "I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war." -- It is the time of judgment! God's perfect integrity and justice demands that it must be! This continues into verse 20. ^jer4-19 > [Jeremiah 4:20](Jeremiah%204.md#^20) note > > To be spoiled means to be plundered in war, it is total destruction upon destruction. And these are God's tents and curtains, a figure from the Old Testament of the tabernacle of the congregation. And it's the *whole land* that is spoiled -- *every* church and congregation is impacted (v22) -- "in a moment" ... in a *moment*, it's all gone! Satan has been loosed, he has taken his seat there, the Holy Spirit has left and it is complete destruction and plunder. And God is not at all happy, He is weeping, but justice must be done. ^jer4-20 > [Jeremiah 4:21](Jeremiah%204.md#^21) note > > The standard is the ensign or the flag that represents the kingdom of God that is coming in judgment, beginning with the house of God. ^jer4-21 > [Jeremiah 4:22](Jeremiah%204.md#^22) note > > In this context it's very obvious that this isn't speaking about the true believers, even though God is calling them His people. These again are the visible churches and congregations, the external representation of God on earth, that have gone their own way. See [2 Peter 2:1](2%20Peter%202.md#^1) -- there it speaks of false prophets that rise up within the churches and who deny the Lord, and yet God says that He bought them. This does not mean that they were true believers within the churches, but they are God's people in that they are a part of the institution that God designed just as He called national Israel His people, yet they remained unfaithful and came under judgment. God has an intimate relationship with the corporate body of the churches and congregations even though there are many within who are not true believers throughout the New Testament period, until the end when they finally come under judgment and the true believers must come out. > > So in this verse God says that they have not known Him, that is, it is not the true believers who are in view here who are coming under judgment. "For my people *is* foolish, they have not known me; they *are* sottish (foolish, stupid) children, and they have none understanding: they *are* wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge." This is the characteristic of those who are unsaved, the worldly-wise. They are wise in the ways of the world, in their pride they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge ([1 Cor 1:18](1%20Corinthians%201.md#^18)). The world thinks it is improving and solving all of its problems. To speak about sin and judgment is foolishness to them. But God isn't just speaking about the world "out there" here, He is talking about the churches and congregations, He is talking about *His* people. They believe they are nice, decent people. They are making plans for their communities as they provide recreation and events for their local families, loving the Lord, and it's all wonderful. They are wise in their *own* eyes, in their own knowledge. The preachers and theologians have designed their own salvation plan, according to their own formulas. They have figured it out, they know better than God (they think) as they search their own minds to find what they hold as truth. But they don't know that they have no knowledge in God's Wisdom. That's why they are so foolish, it is based on the wisdom of the world, not in the wisdom of Christ, so they don't really know God (as verse 22 says), they have none understanding. And the essential knowledge is to know Christ and His cross, His true salvation plan as God applies His Word to our hearts. > > Then see [1 Corinthians 1:19](1%20Corinthians%201.md#^19), [20](1%20Corinthians%201.md#^20). These are the wise-guys, those who think they know based on their own logic. Out of all the wisdom and all the religions in the world, not one individual has come to understand how to get right with God outside of the Bible and the true Gospel declaration ([1 Cor 1:21](1%20Corinthians%201.md#^21)). > > God is not just telling us this analytically. He is weeping, this is grievous. As God calls them His people it is a phrase of His love toward them as a visible institution of God. They have the Bible but they do not have the wisdom of Christ, they have the wisdom of the world. They do not know Him, they are still under the wrath of God subject to judgment as they are wise to do evil -- evil being *anything* that is in rebellion against God, including false doctrines and false teachings that come from the minds of men. Any time someone says, "Thus saith the Lord" and He has not said, it is an evil doctrine. [Romans 3:10](Romans%203.md#^10), [11](Romans%203.md#^11), [12](Romans%203.md#^12) is evident in the churches as much as in the world as we approach judgment day. So this is the pain that God is experiencing as He brings the church age to an end, just as Christ wept over Jerusalem. > > "to do good they have no knowledge" -- To do good comes from the Holy Spirit [Philp 2:13](Philippians%202.md#^13)), and once the Holy Spirit has left the churches, how can they do good? This is why there are so many crazy and worldly things going on in the churches and congregations today. ^jer4-22 > [Jeremiah 4:23](Jeremiah%204.md#^23) note > > This verse hearkens back to [Genesis 1:2](Genesis%201.md#^2) - [3](Genesis%201.md#^3) (see [Without Form, Void, Darkness](Without%20Form,%20Void,%20Darkness.md)) -- This is the outcome of what we've read in the previous verses leading up to this one. > > In Genesis 1 God already outlines His whole plan of salvation. Remember Christ is the Lamb slain from before the foundation of the world ([Jn 17:14](John%2017.md#^24); [Rev 13:8](Revelation%2013.md#^8)). At that "time" God named those whom He planned would become saved ([Eph 1:4](Ephesians%201.md#^4)). The earth was without form and void, which was a picture of being under judgment -- it was a place of darkness, a place without order, a picture of utter chaos. Unbelievers will be cast into outer darkness. See also [Ps 82:5](Psalm%2082.md#^5). > > But unlike Genesis 1, here there is no mention that the Spirit will move upon the face of the waters and of God bringing light, which is a picture of salvation out of that darkness. Here we see the opposite -- they had no light and that's it, it is the end and there is no more hope of salvation in this condition for the churches and congregations. Judgment begins with the house of God and it transitions into judgment upon the whole world. ^jer4-23 > [Jeremiah 4:24](Jeremiah%204.md#^24) note > > This is language that the kingdoms of the world are ready to collapse. ^jer4-24 > [Jeremiah 4:25](Jeremiah%204.md#^25) note > > "I beheld, and, lo, *there was* no man" -- In the original this verse says that there is "not one man." And in [Jeremiah 5:1](Jeremiah%205.md#^1) God speaks of finding "a man" and He will pardon. And the only Man for whom God will pardon is the Lord Jesus Christ. But here there is *not* a man, that is, Christ is absent. They might still talk about Christ and hold the Bible and all of that, but if Christ Himself is not there, if the Holy Spirit is not there, then there is not a Man that can provide pardon. > > "and all the birds of the heavens were fled" -- See [Psalm 115:3](Psalm%20115.md#^3) where God speaks of the heavens. And when we look at birds, there are unclean birds, carrion eaters like vultures and so on. But those aren't the birds in view here, those are the kind of birds that remain to pick at the corpses. In this case it's the birds of the heavens that are fled, and those represent the believers that have left the churches and congregations ([Ps 124:7](Psalm%20124.md#^7). > > So this verse is underscoring that Christ is gone, the believers have fled and it is now a place of destruction. This is why God is weeping over His people as to the churches and congregations. ^jer4-25 > [Jeremiah 4:26](Jeremiah%204.md#^26) note > > This is the time we are living in as God is finished with the church age. There is not one stone left upon another that is not thrown down. There are *no* exceptions. It is a wilderness, it is laid waste. Just as national Israel came to its end when God was finished with the Old Testament era, so in like manner do the churches and congregations come to their end when God is finishing up with the New Testament era and judgment begins with the house of God. ^jer4-26 > [Jeremiah 4:27](Jeremiah%204.md#^27) note > > The whole land shall be desolate -- not just parts of it, not just most of it -- all of it. > > "yet will I not make a full end" -- God is not contradicting Himself here. The whole land will indeed be desolate. But outside of the churches and congregations, in the highways and hedges, God will call the remaining elect into His Kingdom (see Luke 14:16-24, esp [Lk 14:23](Luke%2014.md#^23)), a large multitude which no man can number, during the latter rain, during the final harvest. And this is a huge shaft of sunlight that comes into the doom and gloom of this language of judgment. But immediately in the next verse God returns to the doom and gloom as it is the focal point here. ^jer4-27 > [Jeremiah 4:28](Jeremiah%204.md#^28) note > > When the heavens above are black it means there is no light. They no longer have the light of the Gospel and the earth is mourning. God has spoken it, He has purposed it. He will not repent nor turn back from it! It is going to happen, judgment is going to come. God will not change His mind about this ([Jer 7:16](Jeremiah%207.md#^16)). He is driving home the point that when judgment comes upon the churches and congregations, that is *it*. If they would even call together enormous amounts of people to cry out in sackcloth and ashes, weeping and wailing and pouring out their hearts to God, He *will not* change His mind. This is terrible, ugly language. It is past the point of what we read in [Jeremiah 18:7](Jeremiah%2018.md#^7) - [8](Jeremiah%2018.md#^8) where throughout the history of the world, if a people turn from their wickedness (like Nineveh) then God would turn away His wrath. Now, in this point in time, God is saying this principle does not apply, He will not repent, He will not turn from what He purposes to do because they will not repent. This is like when God purposed to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and He indeed destroyed it. And when God was ready to destroy the world in Noah's day, He destroyed it. And we see when God destroyed Jerusalem in 587 BC. There was no repentance. ^jer4-28 > [Jeremiah 4:29](Jeremiah%204.md#^29) note > > Here we read that the *whole* city (and *every* city), like we read in verse 27 about the *whole land*, "shall flee for the noise of the horsemen and bowmen; they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city *shall be* forsaken, and not a man dwell therein." This is the language of judgment, it is the final battle where God gets the victory. > > The word translated *thickets* here is normally translated clouds, and Christ comes on the clouds of heaven in judgment. So they are going into judgment here where it says they go into thickets. Thorns and thistles carry the same connotation as they represent the curse upon the earth for sin. And the word translated rocks is found in [Job 30:6](Job%2030.md#^6), [7](Job%2030.md#^7), [8](Job%2030.md#^8), a similar idea there where God is again speaking of judgment. > > "every city *shall be* forsaken, and not a man dwell therein" -- The unsaved will be driven away from the Presence of God and remembered no more as if they had never existed ([Ps 88:5](Psalm%2088.md#^5), [Job 24:20](Job%2024.md#^20), [Eze 21:32](Ezekiel%2021.md#^32)). ^jer4-29 > [Jeremiah 4:30](Jeremiah%204.md#^30) note > > This verse is the language of a harlot, but spiritually, of those who are trying to prove that God's judgment is not upon them: > > "Though thou clothest thyself with crimson" -- Look how holy we are, we are clothed with crimson ([Prov 31:21](Proverbs%2031.md#^21)). The red/scarlot/crimson clothing represents the blood of Christ, it is what the believers are clothed with who are under His blood. And these who are trying to prove they are clothed with Christ are like those in [Matthew 7:21](Matthew%207.md#^21) - [22](Matthew%207.md#^22), arguing that they should be saved based on their own salvation program when they were not saved. Only *God* can clothe us with the robe of Christ's righteousness, only He can cover us with the blood of Christ. They can attempt to clothe themselves with crimson, but none of their own formulas or doctrines can make them to be saved. > > "though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, though thou rentest thy face with painting" -- Though you try to make yourself look more glamorous and super beautiful, like a harlot does (and the eyes become so important in this), though you try to make yourself to be something you actually are not... > > "in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; *thy* lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life" -- This will only lead to hatefulness and eternal death. True beauty of the kingdom of God comes from God Himself, from Christ through His Word. This phrase again goes back to [Ezekiel 16](Ezekiel%2016.md):14-26, where they have taken the precious things of God's Gospel and have turned them into their own kind of gospel, where they use the language of the Bible but in a setting where they are really in charge rather than God. And thus they are playing the harlot against God. And "thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life" -- those they are trying to entice and to bring in wind up destroying them as they drag them even further astray from the Gospel for their worldliness. The only true Lover who will maintain absolute fidelity and never betray us is the Lord Jesus Christ. But if we try to find our spiritual hope, strength or life from any other place, trusting in a doctrine or a man or a church or a theology or whatever, it will betray us, we will end up under the wrath of God if we remain there. ^jer4-30 > [Jeremiah 4:31](Jeremiah%204.md#^31) note > > This is language of final judgment, that judgment day has come ([1 Thess 5:3](1%20Thessalonians%205.md#^3), [Jer 49:24](Jeremiah%2049.md#^24), [Jer 50:43](Jeremiah%2050.md#^43)). There is extreme anguish of childbirth particularly with the firstborn child. The mother knows it's going to happen soon, but she doesn't know precisely when. And when it begins, there is nothing she can do to stop it. And the same is true of judgment day as we saw in the second half of [verse 28](Jeremiah%204.md#^28). We know the anguish is coming but there is nothing we can do to prevent it. > > "the voice of the daughter of Zion, *that* bewails herself, *that* spreads her hands" -- 'spreads her hands' is a curious phrase used in a number of places as an appeal or entreaty to God. See [Exodus 9:29](Exodus%209.md#^29), [33](Exodus%209.md#^33); [1 Kings 8:22ff](1%20Kings%208.md#^22). It is to plead for God's blessing or that His will might be done. > > God also uses this language in *His* entreaty toward man to turn to Him in mercy ([Isaiah 65:2](Isaiah%2065.md#^2)) as we saw in [verse 19](Jeremiah%204.md#^19) that He is pained for His people even as they are under judgment. > > But here God is talking about those who are under judgment spreading her hands, "*saying*, Woe *is* me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers." This language is developed in Lamentations 1, speaking of the exact same context. Lamentations is a lament written by Jeremiah at the time of the destruction of Judah which further develops God's wrath upon the churches and congregations. See [Lamentations 1:15](Lamentations%201.md#^15), which is language of judgment. Then in [verse 16](Lamentations%201.md#^16) she is weeping, just as we see in our [present verse (Jer 4:31)](Jeremiah%204.md#^31) that Zion bewails herself, because the Comforter, that is, the Lord Jesus Christ, is far from her. Christ is gone and the enemy, that is Satan, has prevailed against her. Satan has prevailed because God has loosed him against her for her sins and there is no more spiritual blessing ([Rev 13:7](Revelation%2013.md#^7)). > > So then we see in [Lamentations 1:17](Lamentations%201.md#^17) again that Zion spreads forth her hands, directly parallel to what we read in Jeremiah 4:31. She is pleading with God but finds no comfort! "Does this have to be?" Remember in [Jer 4:28](Jeremiah%204.md#^28) that God has purposed it and will not turn back from it! We can cry that God won't destroy every single church, every single congregation, but He has purposed it. God says the same in [Lam 1:17](Lamentations%201.md#^17) that He has commanded this that His adversaries should come among them because they have become as a menstruous, or unclean, woman. She has become a spiritual harlot, that is, those who are in rebellion against God. We cannot plead with God to change this, we can only come out from among them. > > We can see this yet again in Isaiah 1. The setting again is the same subject where God's judgment is upon them, as we see in [Isaiah 1:14](Isaiah%201.md#^14) where they are putting their trust in the ceremonial keeping of the Law rather than in God Himself. Then in [verse 15](Isaiah%201.md#^15) we see the parallel language with Jeremiah 4:31 of spreading the hands in prayer to God, but He will not hear. > > "saying, Woe *is* me now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers" -- We've already seen that the enemy, Satan, has come in and overrun the churches and congregations to destroy them as part of God's judgment against them. ^jer4-31 Tags: #Old_Testament #Jeremiah #Gods_judgment_on_His_people #FSI