Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+052
 

Jeremiah 52 (ESV)

²⁸ This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year, 3,023 Judeans; ²⁹ in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem 832 persons; ³⁰ in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Judeans 745 persons; all the persons were 4,600.

³¹ And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. ³² And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. ³³ So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, ³⁴ and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.

 

REFLECTION:

The king of Babylon treated Jehoiachin kindly, took him out of prison in 561 BC, and let him eat with the king of Babylon. Jehoiachin was treated kindly not by accidental luck, but by God’s unchanging promise. God continued to treat King David’s descendants with love, even on the day of their captivity. In the eyes of the world, Jeremiah’s life is not at all successful. He has neither money nor family and friends. Although he has repeatedly prophesied that his country will be perished, the capital will be sabotaged by the enemy, and the temple will be destroyed, but no political or religious leader listens to his advice, and people do not support or obey him. However, when we look back on history, we can clearly see that this weeping prophet successfully fulfilled the mission entrusted to him by God in his life. Success is not measured by popularity, reputation or wealth, because these things are fleeting. Take the King Zedekiah as an example. He only sought personal gain and achievement, and ended up with nothing. God measures success by obedience, loyalty, and righteousness. If we can fulfill God’s commission to us faithfully and unswervingly throughout our lives, we will be successful people in God’s eyes. Pray that every brother and sister will become such a person.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to lead you and make you understand His commission to your life; whether this commission is great or humble in the eyes of people, ask God to give you a loyal and courageous heart so that you can dedicate your time and strength in your whole life to accomplish the mission God ordained you.

 

HYMN:

I Surrender All – youtu.be/iu7UwhTwF0c

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+051
 

Jeremiah 51 (ESV)

⁵⁹ The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster. ⁶⁰ Jeremiah wrote in a book all the disaster that should come upon Babylon, all these words that are written concerning Babylon. ⁶¹ And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, ⁶² and say, ‘O Lord, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be desolate forever.’ ⁶³ When you finish reading this book, tie a stone to it and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, ⁶⁴ and say, ‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, and they shall become exhausted.’”

Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

 

REFLECTION:

Regardless of his situation, Jeremiah will bring God’s words to his fellow captives. Because he could not visit Babylon in person, Jeremiah entrusted Seraiah, the quartermaster, to bring his message to the place. Seraiah is probably Baruch’s brother. In Jeremiah’s last message, we once again see two major themes throughout the book: first, God has absolute sovereignty; second, God will impose a righteous judgment. Although God temporarily tolerated Babylon’s abuse of the people of Israel, He must judge its sins; God saves good people from their sins and must severely punish all evil ones. When we live in this generation, we will also face the oppression of various evil forces. Although the evil forces will triumph for a while, we must not give in because of its strength, nor should we be deceived by it, and go along with it, otherwise we will inevitably receive God’s judgment.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to enlighten you, so that you can know more clearly that He is your God, you are His people, He has absolute sovereignty over you, and absolute sovereignty over mankind; ask God to give you greater faith and strength, so that you will not succumb to the evil power in your life, and you will never go along with it, and hold on to your faith in all your encounters, good or bad.

 

HYMN:

He Will Hold Me Fast – youtu.be/936BapRFHaQ

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+050
 

Jeremiah 50 (ESV)

¹⁷ “Israel is a hunted sheep driven away by lions. First the king of Assyria devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has gnawed his bones. ¹⁸ Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, as I punished the king of Assyria. ¹⁹ I will restore Israel to his pasture, and he shall feed on Carmel and in Bashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead. ²⁰ In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, iniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

 

REFLECTION:

In its heyday, the Babylonian Empire was so majestic that it seemed unshakable. However, after this empire achieved God’s purpose of judging Judah’s sins, it was also punished by God for its own sins and was destroyed by Medes-Persia in 539 BC. God will punish Babylon for Israel, just as it punishes Assyria before. Assyria once ruled Babylon, but was later destroyed by Babylon; Babylon also ruled Medes-Persia for a time, and was later defeated by Medes-Persia. This passage typifies the rebuilding of Israel when Messiah is in power. At that time, all those who seek God will be forgiven, and Israel will be cleansed from sin. The Holy Spirit often uses Babylon as a symbol of sin, and God destroys Babylon, a sign that God will execute a great and righteous judgment in the last days and completely eliminate all sins in the world. If we feel that this world is as sinful as a mountain that cannot be shaken for a while, we should live out God’s holiness in the filth with firm faith, and look forward to the day when God seeks vengeance and repays. It is also the day when the righteous followers of God receive rewards and be with God in eternal glory.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to enlighten you and make you understand that God is always with you when you are sad and weak; pray that God will give you beautiful hope and make you understand that God has prepared a better home for you in heaven, where there is no pain, tears, crying, and death of God, God’s love will last forever; ask God to transform the hope in your heart into the courage in your life, and inspire you to sail against the current and bear a beautiful testimony for God in the world.

 

HYMN:

Turn Your Eyes – youtu.be/ZJDELcuYX3g

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+049

 

Jeremiah 49 (ESV)

¹ Concerning the Ammonites.

Thus says the Lord:

“Has Israel no sons?
Has he no heir?
Why then has Milcom dispossessed Gad,
and his people settled in its cities?
² Therefore, behold, the days are coming,
declares the Lord,
when I will cause the battle cry to be heard
against Rabbah of the Ammonites;
it shall become a desolate mound,
and its villages shall be burned with fire;
then Israel shall dispossess those who dispossessed him,
says the Lord.

³ “Wail, O Heshbon, for Ai is laid waste!
Cry out, O daughters of Rabbah!
Put on sackcloth,
lament, and run to and fro among the hedges!
For Milcom shall go into exile,
with his priests and his officials.
⁴ Why do you boast of your valleys,
O faithless daughter,
who trusted in her treasures, saying,
‘Who will come against me?’
⁵ Behold, I will bring terror upon you,
declares the Lord God of hosts,
from all who are around you,
and you shall be driven out, every man straight before him,
with none to gather the fugitives.

⁶ “But afterward I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites, declares the Lord.”

 

REFLECTION:

Similar to the Moabites, the Ammonites were descended from the incest between Lot and his younger daughter. The Moabites were judged because they occupied the land of the tribe of Gad, the people of God, worshipped the idol Moro, and offered their children as burnt offering. Both Rabbah and Heshbon were originally the prosperous metropolis of the Ammonites. Under the judgment of God, they eventually became a wasteland. Today, we are often attracted by the prosperity of the world, taking worldly wealth as our support. From the historical outcome of the Ammonites, we should have spiritual insights to understand that God is in power throughout human history, and the entire world has been under God’s judgment from ancient times to the present. No matter how dazzling the vanity and treasure of the world may seem, the glitz of seduction is just like dew on the grass, and the sun evaporates it without a trace. We should follow the teachings of the Lord Jesus, lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven, set our minds on things that are above, and have an inheritance that is imperishable.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to give you spiritual eyesight, not to be obscured by the vanity of the world, to see through everything in the world is nothing but vanity; only seeking God and living in God’s truth is the true purpose of life. Pray for God to lead you, Increase your inner strength, and make you a person who rely on God and is blessed by God throughout your life.

 

HYMN:

All I Once Held Dear – youtu.be/oxpPIa-BskY

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+048
 

Jeremiah 48 (ESV)

¹ Concerning Moab.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:

“Woe to Nebo, for it is laid waste!
Kiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken;
the fortress is put to shame and broken down;
²     the renown of Moab is no more.
In Heshbon they planned disaster against her:
‘Come, let us cut her off from being a nation!’
You also, O Madmen, shall be brought to silence;
the sword shall pursue you.

³ “A voice! A cry from Horonaim,
‘Desolation and great destruction!’
⁴ Moab is destroyed;
her little ones have made a cry.
⁵ For at the ascent of Luhith
they go up weeping;
for at the descent of Horonaim
they have heard the distressed cry of destruction.
⁶ Flee! Save yourselves!
You will be like a juniper in the desert!…

⁴⁵ “In the shadow of Heshbon
fugitives stop without strength,
for fire came out from Heshbon,
flame from the house of Sihon;
it has destroyed the forehead of Moab,
the crown of the sons of tumult.
⁴⁶ Woe to you, O Moab!
The people of Chemosh are undone,
for your sons have been taken captive,
and your daughters into captivity.
⁴⁷ Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab
in the latter days, declares the Lord.”
Thus far is the judgment on Moab.

 

REFLECTION:

This chapter predicts the punishment of Moab. The Moabites were the descendants of the incest between Lot and his eldest daughter (cf. Gen. 19:30-37). They tempted the Israelites to worship idols (cf. Num. 25:1-3) and joined Nebuchadnezzar’s army in attacking Judah in 602 BC, but in the end Moab was destroyed by Babylon. Chemosh (v46) is a false god worshipped by the Moabites, and the most important part of its worship ceremony is the sacrifice of children as a burnt offering. This evil act aroused God’s fierce anger and incurred severe punishment from God. We should understand that our God is a jealous God. The first commandment in the Ten Commandments is not to worship other gods. The sin of idolatry is a blasphemy against the true God and the sin that offends God the most. We should be vigilant in this world filled with all kinds of tangible and intangible idols, we must not be tempted to follow the world in idol worship and evil deeds in the process of idolatry, and otherwise we will incur severe punishment from God.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to enlighten you and enable you to examine all aspects of your life and your thoughts to see if there are any tangible or intangible idols that are injuring your life; pray that God will remove these idols and cleanse you, and heal the injury caused by the idols; ask God to help  you live a holy life, to be a good witness for Him, so that your friends and relatives who are still worshipping idols will realize the great harm of idols, and you can bring them to God.

 

HYMN:

God and God Alone – youtu.be/plxNqgvbg74

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+047
 

Jeremiah 47 (ESV)

¹ The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the Philistines, before Pharaoh struck down Gaza.

² “Thus says the Lord:
Behold, waters are rising out of the north,
and shall become an overflowing torrent;
they shall overflow the land and all that fills it,
the city and those who dwell in it.
Men shall cry out,
and every inhabitant of the land shall wail.
³ At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his stallions,
at the rushing of his chariots, at the rumbling of their wheels,
the fathers look not back to their children,
so feeble are their hands,
⁴ because of the day that is coming to destroy
all the Philistines,
to cut off from Tyre and Sidon
every helper that remains.
For the Lord is destroying the Philistines,
the remnant of the coastland of Caphtor.
⁵ Baldness has come upon Gaza;
Ashkelon has perished.
O remnant of their valley,
how long will you gash yourselves?
⁶ Ah, sword of the Lord!
How long till you are quiet?
Put yourself into your scabbard;
rest and be still!
⁷ How can it be quiet
when the Lord has given it a charge?
Against Ashkelon and against the seashore
he has appointed it.”

 

REFLECTION:

Philistia was located in the plains along the coast of Judah. ​​It had always been a strong enemy of Israel, and there were constant wars between the two countries. The Philistines were an idolatry nation, did not know the true God, and were cruel and fornicating. They had always harboured hatred against God’s people, and would not be satisfied until Israel was destroyed. The Philistines were so strong that the Israelites were frightened and felt powerless against them. However, it is not possible with humans, but everything is possible with God. This passage foretold that God would remove the Philistines, protect His people, and give them peace. Those who try to destroy the people of God will eventually be destroyed by God. Today, we live in an environment where there is no war and live a rich and comfortable life, but we also face powerful enemies. A wide variety of worldly values ​​permeates our society. As the people of God, we are experiencing a difficult spiritual battle. The power of darkness is the “Philistines” we face today. Sometimes its powerful forces often make us feel powerless and even fearful. However, let us not forget that God will protect us. The devil’s defeat is set, and its ultimate end is to be wiped out by the Lord like the Philistines at that time, and fall into the bottomless pit forever. Therefore, we should be brave and fearless, victorious by the Lord, and strive to live a holy life in the filth and darkness.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for the Lord to strengthen your heart, give you courage and strength, so that you can stand firm in the turbid currents of the world; pray for the Lord to walk with you, so that you can always look to Him in your daily life, gain strength from God to overcome sin, and live a holy life that bear a beautiful witness for the Lord.

 

HYMN:

Christ the Sure and Steady Anchor – youtu.be/WDsh4sqRXOA

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+046
 

Jeremiah 46 (ESV)

²⁷ “But fear not, O Jacob my servant,
nor be dismayed, O Israel,
for behold, I will save you from far away,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
²⁸ Fear not, O Jacob my servant,
declares the Lord,
for I am with you.
I will make a full end of all the nations
to which I have driven you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
I will discipline you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.”

 

REFLECTION:

The six chapters after Chapter 46 are Jeremiah’s prophecies to the nations, from which we can see that God has a beautiful plan for the world. We can learn more about God’s divine nature from this passage. Although God specifically chooses the Israelites to fulfill His will, He loves all people and wants people all over the world to return to Him. At the same time, we also see that God is holy and will not tolerate any sin. God’s judgment is not based on prejudice and revenge, but on the principles of justice and equality. We also see that God does not like to judge people. He is more willing to show grace and mercy, and use His love to save all those who are willing to return to Him. Whether in ancient times or in the present, God will discipline His people out of love, in order to guide them back to Him. When we are faced with God’s discipline, we should not be afraid, but should receive the lessons humbly. We should understand that God disciplines us to love us, to purify us, and to make our lives more holy and abundant.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to give you a humble and repentant heart, sincerely confess your transgressions to Him, and be willing to live a holy life from now on; pray that God will give you the confidence and courage to be free from fear and disobedience to God’s discipline, and humbly receive His teachings in His discipline, through which we will be purified, and our lives will grow more.

 

HYMN:

Lord Prepare Me To Be A Sanctuary – youtu.be/LVKHqq6uoMM

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+045
 

Jeremiah 45 (ESV)

¹ The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke to Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these words in a book at the dictation of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah: ² “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, to you, O Baruch: ³ You said, ‘Woe is me! For the Lord has added sorrow to my pain. I am weary with my groaning, and I find no rest.’ ⁴ Thus shall you say to him, Thus says the Lord: Behold, what I have built I am breaking down, and what I have planted I am plucking up—that is, the whole land. ⁵ And do you seek great things for yourself? Seek them not, for behold, I am bringing disaster upon all flesh, declares the Lord. But I will give you your life as a prize of war in all places to which you may go.”

 

REFLECTION:

This chapter was written between 605-604 BC. Baruch was the scribe who was responsible for recording Jeremiah’s information on the scroll. Baruch had long served Jeremiah, the unpopular prophet, and wrote down the Book of Jeremiah, a book full of struggles and judgments. At this time, the scribe seemed to have reached the end of his way, extremely discouraged and depressed. However, God used Jeremiah to tell him not to worry about personal honor and benefits, and said that if Baruch would follow God’s guidance, he would be protected by God (“I will give you your life as a prize of war in all places to which you may go” means to save his life from disaster). It is inevitable that we will experience disappointment or even pain and despair in our life and ministry. This passage tells us that the secret to getting out of the predicament is to focus on God’s promise. Once our attention leaves God, it is easy to lose the joy of serving God, because the less we see God, the more discouraged we will be. When we serve God, we should be careful not to focus solely on what we sacrificed, or to plot conspiracy without seeking God’s will. If we fall into this situation, we should ask God for forgiveness, and then return our attention to God.

 

PRAYER:

Pray for God to attract your attention and make your mind and heart linger on God’s grace, love, and beauty; pray for God to make you forget all the pain and sacrifice in your life and service, so that you can understand that what you do is for God, not to please people but to please God; ask God to make you long for Him more, as a deer pants for flowing streams, living in God’s truth all day long.

 

HYMN:

Great Is Your Faithfulness – youtu.be/ZYBBAF4SfV4

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+044
 

Jeremiah 44 (ESV)

¹ The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Judeans who lived in the land of Egypt, at Migdol, at Tahpanhes, at Memphis, and in the land of Pathros, ² “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: You have seen all the disaster that I brought upon Jerusalem and upon all the cities of Judah. Behold, this day they are a desolation, and no one dwells in them, ³ because of the evil that they committed, provoking me to anger, in that they went to make offerings and serve other gods that they knew not, neither they, nor you, nor your fathers. ⁴ Yet I persistently sent to you all my servants the prophets, saying, ‘Oh, do not do this abomination that I hate!’ ⁵ But they did not listen or incline their ear, to turn from their evil and make no offerings to other gods. ⁶ Therefore my wrath and my anger were poured out and kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, and they became a waste and a desolation, as at this day. ⁷ And now thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel: Why do you commit this great evil against yourselves, to cut off from you man and woman, infant and child, from the midst of Judah, leaving you no remnant? ⁸ Why do you provoke me to anger with the works of your hands, making offerings to other gods in the land of Egypt where you have come to live, so that you may be cut off and become a curse and a taunt among all the nations of the earth? ⁹ Have you forgotten the evil of your fathers, the evil of the kings of Judah, the evil of their wives, your own evil, and the evil of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? ¹⁰ They have not humbled themselves even to this day, nor have they feared, nor walked in my law and my statutes that I set before you and before your fathers.

 

REFLECTION:

These messages were announced by Jeremiah in 580 BC, and this was the last time Jeremiah prophesied. At this moment, the great mistake of the people of Judah has been made, and the country has fallen. Jeremiah was forcibly taken to Egypt, but he kept reminding the people that worshiping other gods would lead to the ruin of the country. Jeremiah pointed out that because they fled to Egypt against the will of God, they would never be able to return to their home country of Judah. However, the rebellious and hard-hearted people did not learn from the disasters caused by their own sins, and still went their own way. Even though Jeremiah warned them with the evil deeds of the ancestors of Judah, they still had no regrets and no fear. This past episode reminds us what attitude we should have to face the mistakes we made in the past. If we fail to learn from the past failures, we will repeat the same mistakes. We should understand that our lives are growing in constant failures, and our relationship with God is deepened in constant falls. Past failures are not only our pain, but also our medicine in God’s grace and love. May we gain humility and wisdom from the experience of failure, and guide us on the path of walking with God.

 

PRAYER:

Ask God to comfort us so that you can come out of the depression and pain of past failures; ask God to enlighten you and give you wisdom so that you can learn valuable experience and lessons from failures and see your weaknesses and shortcomings more thoroughly. In order to obey God’s guidance with a more humble attitude, avoid repeating the same mistakes, regain strength from God, and continue to move forward bravely.

 

HYMN:

Forgiven – youtu.be/9d4m9f4Saps

 

Read chapter in full: biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Jeremiah+043
 

Jeremiah 43 (ESV)

¹ When Jeremiah finished speaking to all the people all these words of the Lord their God, with which the Lord their God had sent him to them, ² Azariah the son of Hoshaiah and Johanan the son of Kareah and all the insolent men said to Jeremiah, “You are telling a lie. The Lord our God did not send you to say, ‘Do not go to Egypt to live there,’ ³ but Baruch the son of Neriah has set you against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon.” ⁴ So Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces and all the people did not obey the voice of the Lord, to remain in the land of Judah. ⁵ But Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces took all the remnant of Judah who had returned to live in the land of Judah from all the nations to which they had been driven— ⁶ the men, the women, the children, the princesses, and every person whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan; also Jeremiah the prophet and Baruch the son of Neriah. ⁷ And they came into the land of Egypt, for they did not obey the voice of the Lord. And they arrived at Tahpanhes.

 

REFLECTION:

Johanan and others were afraid to obey God’s instructions, insisted on continuing to go to Egypt, and forcing Jeremiah to go with them, thinking that being with Jeremiah God would not bring harm to them. Jeremiah has been a prophet for forty years, and many of his prophecies have been fulfilled. He even gave up the opportunity to enjoy a comfortable life in Babylon and was willing to return to his fellow countrymen to share their suffering. However, his compatriots still stubbornly rejected his words from the heart, and did not listen to a word. The purpose of Johanan and his group’s coming to Jeremiah was not to ask God for guidance, but they had already had their own ideas and hoped that God would approve of them. If there is no obedient heart in prayer, it is no different from asking idols and fortune-tellers, using the almighty God as one’s own tool. We should be wary of making the same mistakes – requesting God to grant us the things that we wish, instead of seeking His will and guidance. We should fear God and not despise His sovereignty. Unless we are willing to let God lead, all plans are in vain; unless we are willing to accept God’s answer, all prayers are useless.

 

PRAYER:

Come to God humbly, ask God to give you a heart of obedience, and be willing to be led by God throughout your life and live in God’s word; imitate the Lord Jesus’ prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane, and pray to God for the difficulties in your heart; ask God to grant or not grant your request according to His will, not your own will.

 

HYMN:

Your Will Be Done – www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qt-29pGIw1k