Like the shame of a thief when he is caught, so the house of Israel has been put to shame. They, their kings, their officials, their priests, and their prophets say to a tree, “You are my father,” and to a stone, “You gave birth to me.” For they have turned their back to me and not their face, yet in their time of disaster they beg, “Rise up and save us!” But where are your gods you made yourself? Let them rise up and save you in your time of disaster if they can, for your gods are as numerous as your cities, Judah. Jeremiah 2:26-28
With the worldwide number of cases of COVID-19 going beyond the half-million mark, people are seeing in this sickness something that has never been seen in their lifetime. There is this sense of looming disaster, but it pales in comparison to the looming disaster that was the context of Jeremiah. He was an interesting prophet who lived in the darkest days of Old Testament Israel. He lived in a time after the Assyrians had wiped out the northern 10 tribes of Israel leaving only a vassal state. This same invading nation had come to the very gates of Jerusalem (the capital for the Southern Tribes) and by God’s miraculous intervention were turned back. Yet, Judah did not learn her lesson and she continued to reject God for idolatry. Now Jeremiah stares down the face of an even greater threat, the Babylonian Kingdom, and he prophesies that they will be the end of Jerusalem and God’s people. Jeremiah saw good times and hope of a permanent revival in the days of Josiah, but he sees bad times and despair in the days of Josiah’s sons who reject God and all the reforms of their father.
One has to be careful with the book of Jeremiah because I think it is one of the most misinterpreted books in the entire bible. People love to take promises or judgments that were made specifically to people in this book and apply them directly (out of context) to today. I think the reason why this mistake is so easily made, though, is because the words of Jeremiah seems like a mirror of what is happening today. He prophesied to a nation who once loved and followed God but now had left true worship for idolatry. Yet, all the religious forms; false worship, false priests and false prophets were still in place. The people thought they were good and the people thought they were God’s people, but in reality, they were detestable in His sight because of their hypocrisy. Does that sound familiar? While we need to be careful with how we handle the book of Jeremiah, there is definitely truth here for us today. It might have been written to Israel, but it was included in the canon of the bible for all of us.
In the above text, Jeremiah criticizes the people for their hypocrisy. They have shame, but it is the shame of a thief who is caught; not sorry for what he did but sorry that he got caught doing it. Many today have a worldly sorrow like that, but not a Godly sorrow. (See 2 Cor. 7:10) Jeremiah says God’s people had turned their backs in rebellion instead of turning their faces in repentance. They worshipped idols they made with their own hands, and the idols were too numerous to count. Yet, when disaster loomed they cried out to God, “Rise up and save us!” In the news today, I see nations who have forgotten God, who have worshipped at the altar of their own pride, selfishness, and licentiousness crying out to God to “rise up and save them.” Yet, like Jeremiah, I wonder if it is truly a Godly sorrow that leads to repentance or a desire for the danger to pass so they can get back to their lives of living without God. What are you asking God for today and is your commitment to Him as genuine as it should be? We cannot save ourselves any more than a tree or stone could save Judah.
