Jeremiah 43-44 Israel had come from captivity to freedom, yet they wished to return to Egypt. What irony and foolishness is this! In 1776 our nation was born out of conflict and bondage to a foreign government. Yet here in 2020, we find some that want us to return to that same bondage. They burn, loot, and say let us turn to socialism even though the evidence is overwhelmingly negative. It seems that men never learn except through hardship.

 Jeremiah 42 is an example of men who refuse to believe their prophet even though his words have come true repeatedly. They have lived through the desecration of their temple and palace. Their leaders are no more, and the Babylonians have set up a provisional government, yet these rebels would have none of it. They seek guidance from God, but when it does not match their ideas, they rebel, kidnap Jeremiah, and force him and Baruch to march to Egypt. What a show of hypocrisy and foolishness!

But, God, in His grace, speaks again to their heart. At the outset, God had said they would not listen, and today it is the same. Yet, like Jeremiah, we must steadfastly keep our eyes on God because He has sent us to tell that gospel message even when men blatantly say, “We will not listen to you!” Remember this:

“the gospel is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes.” [Rom 1:16] 

Oh the grace and mercy of our God.