The Chaldeans are coming to fight and to fill those places with the corpses of the men I will strike down in My anger and in My wrath. I have hidden My face from this city because of all its wickedness. The Chaldeans will come to fightThe term "Chaldeans" refers to the Babylonians, a powerful empire known for their military prowess and significant role in the history of Israel. Historically, the Chaldeans were a Semitic people who rose to prominence in the late 7th century BC. Their coming to fight signifies God's use of foreign nations as instruments of judgment against Israel. This reflects the biblical theme of divine sovereignty, where God orchestrates events to fulfill His purposes, even using pagan nations to discipline His people. to fill those places with the dead bodies This phrase paints a grim picture of the consequences of disobedience and rebellion against God. The "dead bodies" symbolize the severe judgment that results from persistent sin. In the Hebrew context, the presence of unburied bodies was considered a great dishonor and a sign of divine curse. This serves as a stark warning of the seriousness of turning away from God and the inevitable outcome of such actions. of those I will strike down in My anger and in My wrath The words "anger" and "wrath" highlight God's righteous indignation against sin. In Hebrew, "anger" (אַף, aph) and "wrath" (חֵמָה, chemah) convey intense emotions that are not capricious but are responses to moral and spiritual corruption. This reflects the holiness of God, who cannot tolerate sin and must act justly. It is a reminder of the balance between God's love and justice, where His wrath is an expression of His commitment to righteousness. I have hidden My face from this city The phrase "hidden My face" is a Hebrew idiom indicating the withdrawal of God's favor and presence. In biblical theology, God's face represents His blessing, guidance, and protection. When God hides His face, it signifies a break in the relationship due to sin. This is a call to repentance, urging the people to seek God's face once more through humility and obedience. because of all its wickedness "Wickedness" refers to the moral and spiritual corruption prevalent in the city. In the Hebrew context, this encompasses idolatry, injustice, and covenant unfaithfulness. The use of "all" emphasizes the pervasive nature of the sin, indicating that it is not isolated but systemic. This serves as a sobering reminder of the consequences of collective sin and the need for communal repentance and reform. Persons / Places / Events 1. JeremiahA prophet called by God to deliver messages of judgment and hope to the people of Judah. 2. ChaldeansAlso known as Babylonians, they were a powerful empire used by God as an instrument of judgment against Judah. 3. The CityRefers to Jerusalem, the capital of Judah, which was under threat due to the people's disobedience. 4. God's Anger and WrathRepresents God's righteous judgment against sin and wickedness. 5. The Dead BodiesSymbolize the consequences of sin and the physical manifestation of God's judgment. Teaching Points Understanding God's JudgmentRecognize that God's anger and wrath are responses to persistent sin and rebellion. His judgment is just and serves as a call to repentance. The Consequences of SinAcknowledge that sin leads to separation from God and can result in severe consequences, both spiritually and physically. God's Sovereignty in JudgmentTrust that God is sovereign and uses nations and events to fulfill His purposes, even when it involves judgment. Hope Beyond JudgmentRemember that God's ultimate desire is for restoration and reconciliation, as seen in the broader context of Jeremiah 33, which promises future hope and renewal. Call to RepentanceUse this passage as a reminder to examine our own lives, repent of sin, and seek God's face to avoid spiritual separation. Bible Study Questions 1. How does understanding the historical context of the Chaldeans' invasion help us grasp the seriousness of God's judgment in Jeremiah 33:5? 2. In what ways can we see the consequences of sin in our own lives, and how does this passage encourage us to seek repentance? 3. How does the theme of God hiding His face due to wickedness challenge us to maintain a close relationship with Him? 4. What other biblical examples illustrate God's use of nations or events to carry out His judgment, and what can we learn from them? 5. How can we find hope and assurance in God's promises of restoration, even when facing the reality of His judgment? Connections to Other Scriptures Jeremiah 21:4-7This passage also speaks of the Chaldeans coming against Jerusalem, emphasizing God's use of them as a tool for judgment. Lamentations 2:5Describes God's anger and the resulting destruction of Jerusalem, providing a poetic reflection on the events Jeremiah prophesied. Ezekiel 39:23-24Highlights the theme of God hiding His face due to the people's unfaithfulness, similar to the message in Jeremiah 33:5. Isaiah 59:2Discusses how sin separates people from God, causing Him to hide His face, which aligns with the reason for judgment in Jeremiah 33:5. People Babylonians, Benjamin, David, Ezekiel, Isaac, Jacob, Jeremiah, LevitesPlaces Jerusalem, Negeb, ShephelahTopics Anger, Babylonians, Bodies, Carcases, Chaldeans, Chalde'ans, Corpses, Covered, Dead, Death, Evil, Evil-doing, Face, Fight, Fill, Filled, Full, Fury, Hid, Hidden, Hide, Kept, Killed, Passion, Slain, Slay, Smite, Smitten, Town, Whereon, Wickedness, WrathDictionary of Bible Themes Jeremiah 33:5 1255 face of God 6717 reconciliation, world to God Library A Threefold Disease and a Twofold Cure. 'I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against Me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against Me.'--JER. xxxiii. 8. Jeremiah was a prisoner in the palace of the last King of Judah. The long, national tragedy had reached almost the last scene of the last act. The besiegers were drawing their net closer round the doomed city. The prophet had never faltered in predicting its fall, but he had as uniformly … Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy ScriptureThings Unknown "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not."--Jeremiah 33:3. GOD'S PEOPLE WILL NEVER THRIVE on anything less substantial than bread from heaven. Israel in Egypt might live on garlic and onions, but Israel in the wilderness must be fed with the manna that came down from heaven, and with the water that gushed out of the rock, when it was smitten by the rod of God. The child of God, while he is yet in his sins, may, like other men, revel in them, … Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 46: 1900 Discerning Prayer. INTRODUCTORY. BY D.W. WHITTLE. To recognize God's existence is to necessitate prayer to Him, by all intelligent creatures, or, a consciously living in sin and under condemnation of conscience, because they do not pray to Him. It would be horrible to admit the existence of a Supreme Being, with power and wisdom to create, and believe that the creatures he thought of consequence and importance enough to bring into existence, are not of enough consequence for him to pay any attention to in the troubles … Various—The Wonders of Prayer The Royal Priesthood Gerhard Ter Steegen Jer. xxxiii. 18; Rev. i. 6 The race of God's anointed priests shall never pass away; Before His glorious Face they stand, and serve Him night and day. Though reason raves, and unbelief flows on, a mighty flood, There are, and shall be, till the end, the hidden priests of God. His chosen souls, their earthly dross consumed in sacred fire, To God's own heart their hearts ascend in flame of deep desire; The incense of their worship fills His Temple's holiest place; Their song with … Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others The Best of the Best "I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys."--Song of Solomon 2:1. THE time of flowers has come, and as they are in some faint degree emblems of our Lord, it is well, when God thus calls, that we should seek to learn what he desires to teach us by them. If nature now spreads out her roses and her lilies, or prepares to do so, let us try, not only to see them, but to see Christ as he is shadowed forth in them. "I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys." If these are the words … Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 42: 1896 Nature of Covenanting. A covenant is a mutual voluntary compact between two parties on given terms or conditions. It may be made between superiors and inferiors, or between equals. The sentiment that a covenant can be made only between parties respectively independent of one another is inconsistent with the testimony of Scripture. Parties to covenants in a great variety of relative circumstances, are there introduced. There, covenant relations among men are represented as obtaining not merely between nation and nation, … John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting Putting God to Work "For from of old men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen a God beside thee who worketh for him that waiteth for him."--Isaiah 64:4. The assertion voiced in the title given this chapter is but another way of declaring that God has of His own motion placed Himself under the law of prayer, and has obligated Himself to answer the prayers of men. He has ordained prayer as a means whereby He will do things through men as they pray, which He would not otherwise do. Prayer … Edward M. Bounds—The Weapon of Prayer Be Ye Therefore Perfect, Even as Your Father which is in Heaven is Perfect. Matthew 5:48. In the 43rd verse, the Savior says, "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy; but I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you, that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward … Charles G. Finney—Lectures to Professing Christians The Sermon of the Seasons "Oh, the long and dreary Winter! Oh, the cold and cruel Winter!" We say to ourselves, Will spring-time never come? In addition to this, trade and commerce continue in a state of stagnation; crowds are out of employment, and where business is carried on, it yields little profit. Our watchmen are asked if they discern any signs of returning day, and they answer, "No." Thus we bow our heads in a common affliction, and ask each man comfort of his fellow; for as yet we see not our signs, neither does … Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 32: 1886 Twentieth Day for God's Spirit on the Heathen WHAT TO PRAY.--For God's Spirit on the Heathen "Behold, these shall come from far; and these from the land of Sinim."--ISA. xlix. 12. "Princes shall come out of Egypt; Ethiopia shall haste to stretch out her hands to God."--PS. lxviii. 31. "I the Lord will hasten it in His time."--ISA. lx. 22. Pray for the heathen, who are yet without the word. Think of China, with her three hundred millions--a million a month dying without Christ. Think of Dark Africa, with its two hundred millions. Think … Andrew Murray—The Ministry of Intercession Truth Hidden when not Sought After. "They shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."--2 Tim. iv. 4. From these words of the blessed Apostle, written shortly before he suffered martyrdom, we learn, that there is such a thing as religious truth, and therefore there is such a thing as religious error. We learn that religious truth is one--and therefore that all views of religion but one are wrong. And we learn, moreover, that so it was to be (for his words are a prophecy) that professed Christians, … John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII Cleansing. As there are conditions requiring to be complied with in order to the obtaining of salvation, before one can be justified, e. g., conviction of sin, repentance, faith; so there are conditions for full salvation, for being "filled with the Holy Ghost." Conviction of our need is one, conviction of the existence of the blessing is another; but these have been already dealt with. "Cleansing" is another; before one can be filled with the Holy Ghost, one's heart must be "cleansed." "Giving them the Holy … John MacNeil—The Spirit-Filled Life Curiosity a Temptation to Sin. "Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away."--Proverbs iv. 14, 15. The chief cause of the wickedness which is every where seen in the world, and in which, alas! each of us has more or less his share, is our curiosity to have some fellowship with darkness, some experience of sin, to know what the pleasures of sin are like. I believe it is even thought unmanly by many persons (though they may not like to say … John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII Jeremiah The interest of the book of Jeremiah is unique. On the one hand, it is our most reliable and elaborate source for the long period of history which it covers; on the other, it presents us with prophecy in its most intensely human phase, manifesting itself through a strangely attractive personality that was subject to like doubts and passions with ourselves. At his call, in 626 B.C., he was young and inexperienced, i. 6, so that he cannot have been born earlier than 650. The political and religious … John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Jeremiah 33:5 NIVJeremiah 33:5 NLTJeremiah 33:5 ESVJeremiah 33:5 NASBJeremiah 33:5 KJV
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