JEREMIAH LESSON 7


     We will begin this lesson in Jeremiah 6:1 "O ye children of
Benjamin, gather yourselves to flee out of the midst of Jerusalem, and
blow the trumpet in Tekoa, and set up a sign of fire in Beth-haccerem:
for evil appeareth out of the north, and great destruction."

     The city of Jerusalem was part of Benjamin. Benjamin was favored
greatly of God, because the temple grounds were in Benjamite
territory.  The temple had been spared before, but this time, even the
temple will be attacked. Judah's land was on the outskirts of
Jerusalem.  Jeremiah is telling them to flee to the south for safety.
If they were to leave immediately, they would have time to take
possessions with them.  You remember the trumpet blowing was to
assemble the people. Tekoa was a town south of Jerusalem. The
Babylonians will be coming from the north, so the road to the south is
the way of escape.  Beth-haccerem is about half-way to Tekoa from
Jerusalem. The fire would delay the attackers. The people should
gather to the trumpet blown.

     Jeremiah 6:2 "I have likened the daughter of Zion to a comely and
delicate [woman]."

     "Comely" means suitable, or beautiful. God is the Father and it
is not unusual for Him to call His own daughter, or son. "Zion", as we
have seen before, indicates Jerusalem, but also, signifies the church.
It would appear here, He is speaking of the church, since He says
daughter. The church is spoken of as a woman. The daughter could,
also, be speaking of the God's people fleeing Jerusalem.

     Jeremiah 6:3 "The shepherds with their flocks shall come unto
her; they shall pitch [their] tents against her round about; they
shall feed every one in his place."

     God is still trying to help His people. The shepherds will gather
around them to protect them, if they will go to the south, as He has
instructed them. The great Shepherd takes care of the sheep. Jesus is
the great Shepherd, and the Christians are His sheep. The "her" in
this is speaking of God's children.

     Jeremiah 6:4 "Prepare ye war against her; arise, and let us go up
at noon. Woe unto us! for the day goeth away, for the shadows of the
evening are stretched out."

     This has jumped to the Babylonians urging them to prepare for
war.  We must remember, in this, God is causing the Babylonians to
come against Jerusalem and Judah. Noon time is generally a time of
rest in Jerusalem. They would not be expecting them to come at that
hour. This battle will go on until the evening.

     Jeremiah 6:5 "Arise, and let us go by night, and let us destroy
her palaces."

     It seems from this they will march at night, to keep from being
seen.

     Jeremiah 6:6  "For thus hath the LORD of hosts said, Hew ye down
trees, and cast a mount against Jerusalem: this [is] the city to be
visited; she [is] wholly oppression in the midst of her."

     The city of Jerusalem has a wall surrounding it. If the gates
were closed, they would need the trees felled to be able to mount the
wall. God is going to bring great oppression to Jerusalem, because of
her great unfaithfulness to Him.

     Jeremiah 6:7 "As a fountain casteth out her waters, so she
casteth out her wickedness: violence and spoil is heard in her; before
me continually [is] grief and wounds."

     This is a very serious battle. The whole thing is happening to
Jerusalem for her people to repent and cast their sins away. Their sin
had been so great, the only way to rid them of it was for great loss
of life to occur. This is a drastic act of God upon a people He loved,
because their sin had been so drastic. Their is much grief in this
type of war.

     Jeremiah 6:8 "Be thou instructed, O Jerusalem, lest my soul
depart from thee; lest I make thee desolate, a land not inhabited."

     God is pleading with His people, through the mouth of Jeremiah,
to learn a lesson from this, and not get back into sin. He is begging
them to repent, so He can stop this terrible suffering. If they do not
repent after all of this, He will just destroy them all. God loves His
family, and He loves Jerusalem. He wants them to learn a lesson, so
further punishment will not be necessary.

     Jeremiah 6:9  "Thus saith the LORD of hosts, They shall throughly
glean the remnant of Israel as a vine: turn back thine hand as a
grapegatherer into the baskets."

     We learned in our lessons on Leviticus, that there were always a
few grapes left after the gleaning. We see that a few of God's
children are left here. He tells Babylon to leave a few. We saw in an
earlier lesson, that Jeremiah was one of the few spared.

     Jeremiah 6:10 "To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they
may hear? behold, their ear [is] uncircumcised, and they cannot
hearken: behold, the word of the LORD is unto them a reproach; they
have no delight in it."

     It is not so much, who will Jeremiah speak this to, as it is, who
will take heed to what he says. He is speaking, but very few will
listen and understand what he is saying. They have trained their ears
toward worldly things {uncircumcised}. They are not interested in what
God has to say. They have been seeking help from the world and the
false gods of that world. They do not have high regard for the Word of
God. They are disobedient to God. They find His Word of no importance
to them.

     Jeremiah 6:11 "Therefore I am full of the fury of the LORD; I am
weary with holding in: I will pour it out upon the children abroad,
and upon the assembly of young men together: for even the husband with
the wife shall be taken, the aged with [him that is] full of days."

     Jeremiah has wearied of these people, also. God is speaking
through Jeremiah, and the people are not heeding the warning. Everyone
is to taste of the wrath of God in this Babylonian attack. The
children, young men, and the old alike will be affected by this
overthrow of Jerusalem. The young men will, perhaps, be captured and
turned into slaves. All ages and all relationships will feel this
terrible punishment coming on these unfaithful people.

     Jeremiah 6:12 "And their houses shall be turned unto others,
[with their] fields and wives together: for I will stretch out my hand
upon the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD."

     All they possess shall go to the captor. The wives will be taken
to the homes of the Babylonians. In many instances, the husbands will
be slaves in another area. The captors will spoil the land of all they
can carry. The things they cannot keep, they will destroy. Remember,
all of this happens, because God has stretched out His hand against
them.

     Jeremiah 6:13 "For from the least of them even unto the greatest
of them every one [is] given to covetousness; and from the prophet
even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely."

     God has raised His hand against them, because they are all caught
up in a sinful way of life. The sin has even reached into the house of
God. The priests and prophets are guilty, as well as their followers.
All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

     Jeremiah 6:14 "They have healed also the hurt [of the daughter]
of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when [there is] no
peace."

     These leaders in the church had spoken peace to the people to
make them believe them. There is no peace, and will not be any peace,
until the King of Peace {Jesus Christ} brings peace to the earth. We
might take a lesson from this ourselves. Man cannot bring peace, only
God brings peace.

     Jeremiah 6:15 "Were they ashamed when they had committed
abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither could they
blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall: at the time
[that] I visit them they shall be cast down, saith the LORD."

     We discussed, in a previous lesson, how their conscience had been
seared over with a hot iron. They had sinned so much, their conscience
was not even operating. They were not even sorry for the sin they
committed. Repetitious sin deadens the conscience.  Those who blush,
blush because their conscience tells them what they have done is
wrong. Blushing has innocence connected with it. These are hardened to
sin. "Saith the LORD" just reaffirms this punishment is from God.

     Jeremiah 6:16 "Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and
see, and ask for the old paths, where [is] the good way, and walk
therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will
not walk [therein]."

     There is a straight and narrow path that leads to righteousness.
There are few that find it, or even want to find it. I have said so
many times, salvation is not a one time happening, but a walk through
life with the Lord. It is important to live saved. Sin should not be
in the vocabulary of the saved. The LORD made the path for all of us,
as well as for them to walk in. That is the only way to heaven. When
we walk in His Light, we find rest for our souls. These were a
rebellious people who chose to walk their own way, rather than to walk
in God's path. Their way leads to destruction.

     Jeremiah 6:17 "Also I set watchmen over you, [saying], Hearken to
the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken."

     These watchmen gave warning of impending danger. Jeremiah and
Isaiah were two of the watchmen. These people would not answer the
call to assemble when the trumpet blew. I can easily relate this to
the time when the trumpet will blow in the sky to gather God's people.
Jesus is coming for those who are looking for Him. It would be
terrible not to answer the call of the trumpet at that time.

     Jeremiah 6:18  "Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O
congregation, what [is] among them."

     God's people are spoken of as the congregation. He tells them,
because you have been warned of what is to come, listen and respond.
Not only must you listen, but understand.

     Jeremiah 6:19 Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this
people, [even] the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not
hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.

     Not only, would the houses of Judah and Benjamin notice what has
happened to the unfaithful, but it is for all to see. This could be
even be speaking to our generation. God is patient and long-suffering,
but there is a time when He says it is enough. They had not only
broken God's law, but kept their minds on evil things, as well.

     Jeremiah 6:20 "To what purpose cometh there to me incense from
Sheba, and the sweet cane from a far country? your burnt offerings
[are] not acceptable, nor your sacrifices sweet unto me."

     God does not want an outward show of their loyalty to Him. He
will not accept sacrifices from them, or from anyone else, when their
hearts are not in the sacrifice. It is but a shallow gesture, when
they sacrifice from duty. God wants our love. God wanted His people to
love Him, as He loved them. Jesus said it this way. Mark 7:6 "He
answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you
hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with [their]
lips, but their heart is far from me."

     Jeremiah 6:21 "Therefore thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will lay
stumblingblocks before this people, and the fathers and the sons
together shall fall upon them; the neighbour and his friend shall
perish."

     We can see from the Scripture above, and the one following, that
they caused the stumblingblock to be there, because of their
unfaithfulness to God.  Revelation 2:14 "But I have a few things
against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of
Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children
of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit
fornication."

     Jeremiah 6:22 "Thus saith the LORD, Behold, a people cometh from
the north country, and a great nation shall be raised from the sides
of the earth."

     It seemed the enemy of God's people always came from the north.
This, of course, is speaking of Babylon. Babylon was a great nation by
world standards. We will see in a later lesson, that Babylon is judged
of God and is destroyed itself.

     Jeremiah 6:23 "They shall lay hold on bow and spear; they [are]
cruel, and have no mercy; their voice roareth like the sea; and they
ride upon horses, set in array as men for war against thee, O daughter
of Zion."

     This is just speaking of the fierceness of Babylon's attack on
Jerusalem.  The roaring like the sea, speaks of the large number of
people who come against Jerusalem. The "sea" is, many times, speaking
of large numbers of people.

     Jeremiah 6:24 "We have heard the fame thereof: our hands wax
feeble: anguish hath taken hold of us, [and] pain, as of a woman in
travail."

     When a woman gives birth, her pain is severe and it comes on her
quickly. This is what is spoken of here, the suddenness of the attack,
and the severity of the attack. The people have heard of the fame of
Babylon, and are too weak to resist the onslaught.

     Jeremiah 6:25 "Go not forth into the field, nor walk by the way;
for the sword of the enemy [and] fear [is] on every side."

     This is just saying, after the battle begins, it will be too late
to run. There will be no place they can run and be safe.

     Jeremiah 6:26  "O daughter of my people, gird [thee] with
sackcloth, and wallow thyself in ashes: make thee mourning, [as for]
an only son, most bitter lamentation: for the spoiler shall suddenly
come upon us."

     Again, it is too late to put on sackcloth and wallow in the ashes
after the battle has started. They are mourning, but they began to
mourn too late to stop the battle. Their grief will be as bitter as it
would be, if they had lost their only son. God's grief is great in
this, also, He has lost His children to these false gods.

     Jeremiah 6:27 "I have set thee [for] a tower [and] a fortress
among my people, that thou mayest know and try their way."

     Jerusalem was to have been a morally upright city. They were to
be an example to all the rest. God had set them on high to watch over
His people.

     Jeremiah 6:28 "They [are] all grievous revolters, walking with
slanders: [they are] brass and iron; they [are] all corrupters."

     The leaders have gone bad. They have revolted against God who
gave them their high positions. Those who were to lead, were walking
in darkness themselves. They were leading the people into evil, not
good. Brass has to do with judgement. It appears they were judging
others, and needed to be judged themselves. Their judgement was hard
{iron}.  We are judged by the judgement we give others. They were,
too.  Those who are corrupt themselves cannot lead others to
righteousness. They have lost the path that leads to righteousness.

     Jeremiah 6:29 "The bellows are burned, the lead is consumed of
the fire; the founder melteth in vain: for the wicked are not plucked
away."

     There is no purification coming from this fire. The lead just
melts, instead of being separated. The trash is not removed from the
metal. It is melted in the metal.

     Jeremiah 6:30 "Reprobate silver shall [men] call them, because
the LORD hath rejected them."

     "Reprobate", here, means to spurn, disappear, cast away, contemn,
or reject. All of these meanings fit this silver. Silver is purified
by heating, and then skimming the dross from the top. Silver
symbolically means redemption. In the Scripture above, God has
rejected salvation for them, because of their impure life. Even the
world will call them castaways, because it is obvious God has spurned
them.








                         Jeremiah 7 Questions


1.  Who, in verse 1, did God speak to specifically?
2.  Where were they to blow the trumpet?
3.  What was the trumpet blown for?
4.  Where was Beth-haccerem located?
5.  What had He likened the daughter of Zion to?
6.  What does "Zion" indicate?
7.  What does "comely" mean?
8.  Verse 3 says, the ________ shall come unto her.
9.  Who is verse 4 speaking to?
10. What were they to do to cast a mount against Jerusalem?
11. Why is this happening to Jerusalem?
12. What does verse 8 tell Jerusalem to do?
13. What is the remnant likened unto in verse 9?
14. What kind of ear did God say they had?
15. Where had they been seeking help from, instead of God?
16. Who is verse 11 speaking of, who was full of the fury of the LORD?
17. What will happen to the wives of those of Jerusalem?
18. How many of the people had been guilty of covetousness?
19. They had said _______ _______, when there was no ________.
20. Why were they not ashamed of their sins?
21. Repetitious sin deadens the ____________.
22. What was the good way?
23. The straight and narrow path leads to _______________.
24. What should not be in the vocabulary of the saved?
25. Who had God put over them, to try to get them to listen for the
    trumpet?
26. They were not only to listen to the warning but to ____________,
    as well.
27. Why were their sacrifices unacceptable?
28. What did God lay before the people?
29. Quote Revelation chapter 2 verse 14.
30. The enemy of God's people came from the _________.
31. What is said about the character of the Babylonians in verse 23?
32. The "sea", many times, is speaking of what?
33. What is he saying, in verse 24, when he compares the trouble to
    child birth?
34. What were signs of mourning in verse 26?
35. Jerusalem was to have been a __________ __________ city.
36. What had happened to their leaders?
37. "Reprobate", in verse 30, means what?