Hath God cast away his people?

Jeremiah prophesied of the deportation of Judah to Babylon and the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in chapters 1-29. Then beginning of chapter 30 his theme was the return of the people and the restoration of Jerusalem. As prophesied, the Babylonian captivity lasted 70 years, but I noticed promises that seemed to look to a time beyond Babylon, to a greater return and restoration, one that involved the son of David.

Does Israel still have a future as a nation? Or, Hath God cast away his people? A friend of mine commented on one of my Christ in Jeremiah posts, “the promises to Old Covenant Israel were either made void, were fulfilled in Christ, or remain in Spiritual Israel which is the True Israel, the Church.” Is this true? Did God spend all those years making all those promises only to void them? I’m no fan of John MacArthur but I do agree with what he said about this issue, “Now, the question of God keeping those promises is a bigger question than just dispensational debate. The question of God keeping those promises is a question of divine integrity because if God has obviated, cancelled, changed His promises to Israel, we're all in a lot of trouble because we have a God who can't be trusted and who may as readily change His promises to us as He did to them.  Now that's the bottom line consideration in understanding what's before us in this chapter.” (you can read the entire message here.)

As I read through Jeremiah I found two passages where God addressed this very question

Jeremiah 31:35-40
35 Thus saith the LORD, which giveth the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divideth the sea when the waves thereof roar; The LORD of hosts is his name:  
36 If those ordinances depart from before me, saith the LORD, then the seed of Israel also shall cease from being a nation before me for ever.  
37 Thus saith the LORD; If heaven above can be measured, and the foundations of the earth searched out beneath, I will also cast off all the seed of Israel for all that they have done, saith the LORD.  

Jeremiah 33:19-26  
19 And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying,  
20 Thus saith the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season;  
21 Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers.  
22 As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.  
23 Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying,  
24 Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.  
25 Thus saith the LORD; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth;  
26 Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.

This looks to me like God is saying He will not cast off the seed of Jacob nor the seed of David.

What about Jesus? Hasn’t he negated all the promises to Israel? Or spiritualized them? Were they all fulfilled in Him? What about Paul? Wasn’t he clear that God is through with Israel? The answer for both Jesus and Paul is, No. Paul takes up the question of Israel and the Gospel in Romans 9-11. I want to consider chapter 11 because, well, the chapter begins with my question, Hath God cast away his people? I don’t want to attempt to exegete the chapter, that would take a while, I only want to get the gist of what he says because I’m convinced that will answer our question.

1  I say then, Hath God cast away his people? God forbid. For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
2  God hath not cast away his people which he foreknew. Know ye not what the scripture saith of Elias? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying,
3  Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life.
4  But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal.
5  Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.
6  And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work.

Has God cast away his people? Paul doesn’t simply jump into the deep end, this is where chapters 9 & 10 have brought him. Israel has stumbled by unbelief and the gospel is going out to Gentiles, so this is a timely question, Is God done with Israel as a people? He answers his own question twice in the first two verses: (1) God forbid; or if you prefer the NKJV, Certainly not! or the ESV, By no means! We’ll just say, No. (2) He declares it plainly, God hath not cast away his people. In defense of this he offers first himself, he is an Israelite and he believes; then using Elijah he mentions the remnant, even so at this present time also there is a remnant. I think everyone would agree so far - individual Jews can and are being saved. Others might object ‘Yeah, individuals, not the nation.’

7  What then? Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were blinded
8  (According as it is written, God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear;) unto this day.

Israel has been judged by the Most High. It’s not that they wanted to believe and He wouldn’t let them, they refused to believe so he gave them the spirit of slumber. Not all, as in rejection of them as a people, for there is a remnant who believe in Jesus.

11  I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy.
12  Now if the fall of them be the riches of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of the Gentiles; how much more their fulness?
13  For I speak to you Gentiles, inasmuch as I am the apostle of the Gentiles, I magnify mine office:
14  If by any means I may provoke to emulation them which are my flesh, and might save some of them.
15  For if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be, but life from the dead?

Have they stumbled so as to fall away, to be cast off? Is this spirit of slumber God’s final word on them? God forbid. Actually, this judgment on them opens the door for the Gentiles, through their fall salvation is come to the Gentiles. Then he offers a couple of ‘if…then’ :

if the fall of them be the riches of the world…how much more their fulness?

if the casting away of them be the reconciling of the world, what shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead?

Israel is the covenant people of God, God gives them the spirit of slumber and salvation comes to the rest of the world! When they are received back it will bring life from the dead, the resurrection! Is God through with Israel? Oh no, Israel still has a future!

16-24 He pictures the people of God as a cultivated olive tree: Abraham is the root, Israel is the branches. But because of their persistent unbelief the branches of Israel were cut off. When the gospel came to the Gentiles and they believed, the branches of this wild olive tree were grafted in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree. This is where the concept spiritual Israel comes from. Notice all of what he says here: we were grafted in by faith, they were broken off because of unbelief; we can also be cut off because of unbelief, and if they believe they can be grafted back in.

This fall of Israel is not total - there is a remnant, nor is it irreversible – they can be grafted back in.

25  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

This is one of the mysteries of the New Testament: blindness in part has happened to Israel until. It is not total, it is only in part. It is not permanent, it is temporary. When the fulness of the Gentiles be come in that blindness is lifted. Israel has a future.

26  And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:
27  For this is my covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins.

All Israel shall be saved. There you have it. Hath God cast away his people? No, all Israel shall be saved. Is the blindness total? No, there is a remnant. Is it permanent? No, all Israel shall be saved. God is not finished with Israel.

There is no way we can spiritualize this to mean the church, throughout the chapter he has been distinguishing between Gentiles and Israel. It is Gentiles who are saved in v 25, and Israel who is saved in v 26. I confess, I don’t know how God will determine all Israel, just like I don’t know when or how many the fulness of the Gentiles is. I just accept what he says, and that means the promises aren’t voided. God made covenants and promises to Abraham and to Israel and He will keep those promises.

When? He quotes Isaiah 59:20 (LXX), There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer. In other words, when Christ comes again and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob. How will this work? I believe Zechariah described it: And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn... In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. (12:10, 13:1)

This is my covenant with them, when I shall take away their sins – This is Jeremiah 31:31-34. He’s compacted it, reduced it to the basics, but clearly the new covenant applies to them.

28  As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes.
29  For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.

God called them and has not changed his mind.

30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

He repeats what he said earlier. We received mercy through their unbelief, and through our faith they will receive mercy. God will once more have mercy on them all.

How will this work? I don’t know. I just know God made promises to Israel which he is going to keep. Yes, we have been grafted in and now partake of the promises, but we obviously don’t exhaust them because the Holy Spirit says clearly, And so all Israel shall be saved.


(Here is an interesting article on this)

The Branch of Righteousness

33:14-18 The Branch of Righteousness  
The verses of interest are 14-17, but this is so good that I simply want to let you read the passage, followed by Insightful Comments.

The Word of the Lord
1  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,
2  Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD [is] his name;
3  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
4  For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the mounts, and by the sword;
5  They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but [it is] to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city.
6  Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.
7  And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.
8  And 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.
9  And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it.
10  Thus saith the LORD; Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say [shall be] desolate without man and without beast, [even] in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant, and without beast,
11  The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD [is] good; for his mercy [endureth] for ever: [and] of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.
12  Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing [their] flocks to lie down.
13  In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth [them], saith the LORD.
14 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.  
15 In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.  
16 In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.  
17 For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;  
18 Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.


Insightful Comments
3  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not. Amen and amen. This is my prayer a lot these days.

It is easy to see that verses 1-13 speak of the return from Babylon. Yet I suspect they foreshadow a greater return and restoration. Beginning with verse 14 we surely have that greater restoration, one that has not yet occurred.

I will perform that good thing which I have promised. God has not forgotten his promises to Israel.

the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David. The Branch is the Messiah. (see Interesting Note at the End)

Messiah’s kingdom is characterized by judgment and righteousness, salvation and safety. I believe this is his reign on the earth.

David shall never want (lack) a man to sit upon the throne.  A son of David has not sat on the throne since their captivity to Babylon. Christ is the next one to sit on the throne, and the last, Of his kingdom there shall be no end.

And this is the name wherewith she shall be called, the LORD our righteousness – in chapter 23 it was the Branch whose name was called YHWH tsidkenu, here it is Jerusalem that is called YHWH tsidkenu. Is Jerusalem the Messiah? No. In chapter 23 the righteous Branch shall be called YHWH tsidkenu, the LORD our righteousness, because He is Himself our righteousness, he justifies us by imputing His own righteousness to us. Here in 33 Jerusalem is called by this name because His righteousness is her glory, in YHWH I have righteousness (Isa 45:24) is her confession.

These are the days of Messiah, when we shall say, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.


Interesting Note at the End
The Hebrew word for Branch occurs twelve times in the Old Testament; five of those times (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Zechariah) it is translated branch. It is interesting that in Jeremiah and Zechariah the Septuagint (also called LXX; Greek translation of the Old Testament) uses the word Άνατολην (Anatolēn) for Branch. It doesn’t mean branch, it means dawn or rising.

The Septuagint ends chapter 33 at v 13, so there is no mention of the Branch in this chapter. There is also no translation of YHWH tsidkenu in ch 33 because this verse is missing. In 23:6 YHWH tsidkenu is rendered, and this is his name which the Lord shall call him, Josedek. I have no idea what that might mean but it would explain why the LORD our righteousness is never mentioned in the NT.

But back to the word the Septuagint uses for Branch, Άνατολην (Anatolēn; dawn or rising). Jeremiah 23:5 in the LXX, reads, Behold, days are coming, says the Lord, and I will raise up for David a righteous dawn… That’s interesting enough on its own, but what is really neat is Luke 1:78 uses this very word, and seems to me to be a clear reference to this prophecy:

Luke 1:78 Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring (aνατολη) from on high hath visited us

Amen.


Next: Hath God cast away his people?

The New Covenant

31:31-34 The New Covenant
31 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Juda:  
32 not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day when I took hold of their hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; for they abode not in my covenant, and I disregarded them, saith the Lord.  
33 For this is my covenant which I will make with the house of Israel; after those days, saith the Lord, I will surely put my laws into their mind, and write them on their hearts; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.  
34 And they shall not at all teach every one his fellow citizen, and every one his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them: for I will be merciful to their iniquities, and their sins I will remember no more. +

This is an amazing prophecy and promise! This passage is referred to by Jesus and quoted in Hebrews. But before we see that, let’s just see what Jeremiah says.

- I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah

- not according to the covenant I made with their fathers. They broke that one. ‘I led them out of Egypt, made a covenant with them, they broke that covenant.’

Details of the covenant:
(1) I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts
The Old was external, written on tablets of stone, the New will be internal, written on their hearts. This is being born again (Ezekiel 36:25-27; John 3).

(2) I will be to them a God and they shall be to me a people
This is the fundamental intent of every covenant God makes with anyone, ‘I will be your God, you will be my people.’

(3) all shall know me
This is interesting, it would seem that it was possible to be a covenant person but not know God under the Law, thus they could encourage someone to know the Lord. The new covenant will be internal and personal, every member will know the Lord.

(4) their sins will I remember no more
Forgiveness of sins. The full implication of this is spelled out in the book of Hebrews.

What a promise! When will this happen? And what does this have to do with Jesus?

Jesus referred to this at the last supper, And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink from it all of you; For this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. New covenant, remission of sins? Every one who knew the Scriptures would recognize this as a reference to Jeremiah. Jesus established the new covenant by his death on the cross. The epistle to the Hebrews explores this thoroughly:

Hebrews 8:6-13
6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.  
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.  
8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:  
9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.  
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:  
11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. 
13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.

Paul++ does not exegete the passage here, he uses it to support his point that we are under a new covenant. He says Jesus has a more excellent ministry, is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises (6). A new covenant demonstrates the insufficiency of the first covenant, and he quotes Jeremiah to show this (7-11). In verse 13 he stresses his point – We have a new covenant; this makes the first covenant old; being old the first covenant is ready to vanish away.

In chapters 9 and 10 he elaborates on this, comparing the inability of the first covenant with the power of the new. In 9:13-15 we read:

13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:  
14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?  
15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

Jesus is the mediator of the new covenant which was established by the blood of Christ; that blood purges our conscience, redeems us from transgressions, and gives us eternal inheritance. He continues in chapter 10:

1-4  For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

5-9 Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. By do thy will he means offer himself as the sacrifice for sins.

He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. By his death on the cross he brings the first to an end and establishes the second or new covenant.

10-14 His sacrifice, the offering of the body of Jesus Christ, is efficacious.
10 By the which will (covenant) we are sanctified 
11-13 this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God
14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.  

This is the power of the new covenant. It was established by the death of Christ, and the blood of Christ cleanses us from sin. Now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. (9:26)

Then he again quotes our passage in Jeremiah:

15 Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,  
16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;  
17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.  
He quotes Jeremiah as a witness not only of the establishing of the New Covenant, but also of its efficacy – through it God forgives our sins, which the first could not do.

18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.
This is the New Covenant. Jeremiah prophesied it, Jesus said he was establishing it by his blood, the Apostle shows us its efficaciousness. Christ was sacrificed once for all time and our sins can now be forgiven. Hallelujah!

Jeremiah said it would be made with Israel and Judah and they shall benefit from it, but clearly the covenant now controls God’s dealings with all peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations. Jesus offered himself a sacrifice for all and anyone who believes in him will have their sins forgiven.
The New Covenant – Jesus came to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
The Gospel – Believe in Jesus and your sins will be forgiven.

To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name 

whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.

+ This is from the Septuagint (LXX), the translation the Jews made of the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek. And why am I using this? This is the translation the epistle to the Hebrews quoted. The similarity is even more noticeable in Greek.

++ Did I really say Paul was the author of Hebrews? Sure did. I accept the earliest tradition that he wrote it. You may say, “Scholars today say that nobody knows who wrote it.” Well, if they’re right then you can disagree with me, but you can’t say I’m wrong. Haha!

Next: 33:14-18 The Branch of Righteousness

They shall serve David their king

30:3-11 They shall serve the Lord their God and David their king
3 For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.  
4 And these are the words that the LORD spake concerning Israel and concerning Judah.  
5 For thus saith the LORD; We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace.  
6 Ask ye now, and see whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into paleness?  
7 Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.  
8 For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him:  
9 But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.  
10 Therefore fear thou not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for, lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity; and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid.  
11 For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.

This is the beginning of the Return and Restoration section. And what a wonderful beginning!

I think it is clear that the first thing that would come to anyone’s mind is the return from Babylon. I will bring again the captivity of my people...and I will cause them to return to the land. Amen. They did return from Babylon and Jerusalem was restored. Ezra and Nehemiah record it. As did Haggai and Zechariah. But there is something in this passage that hints at a greater fulfillment:

9 But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.  

Jacob shall return to the land, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid, AND they shall serve David their king. That means Christ. This most definitely is not what is described in Ezra and Nehemiah. This is the last days.

This puts verses 5-7 in a new light: voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace; as a woman in travail; time of Jacob’s trouble. This is the final conflict described in Zechariah 12-14. But he shall be saved out of it. How? David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. This is Christ. Now, Christ has come and brought salvation, yet this has not been fulfilled. This refers to the end times, the last days, the second coming of Christ. Yes, the second coming of Christ ushers in the millennial kingdom, the thousand year reign of Christ on the earth, when Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make him afraid.

What? Do I really believe in a one thousand year kingdom on the earth, with Israel back in the land, believing in Jesus and serving Him. Yes. Some might object, But I thought all the blessings of the gospel were spiritual. Let’s just take a brief look at the story of salvation:

Creation – God creates the earth. Man is created as body, soul, spirit so he is fit for life on earth and fellowship with God. They sin. What is the punishment for sin? Physical death.

Abraham – God calls Abraham and from him creates a nation, Israel, through whom the Deliverer can come. He gives them a land and promises related to this land.

Incarnation – The Deliverer comes. How? By becoming a man. He didn’t sit on a cloud and issue new commandments, no, he took on flesh, became one of us.

Ministry – The ministry of Christ included healing the sick, raising the dead, restoring sight to the blind, hearing for the deaf, healing the paralyzed and lame, casting out demons, feeding the hungry. Not simply spiritual platitudes, but ministry to the needs of the body.

Resurrection – After dying on the cross, he was raised from the dead. His body of flesh raised.

Holy Spirit – Now the Holy Spirit comes to live in our bodies; he quickens our mortal flesh; he heals us; he leads us to minister to the sick, hungry, thirsty, naked, needy.

Second Coming – Jesus returns to the earth with the body that died and rose. Then he will raise our bodies from the dust.

The story of God’s salvation is definitely a physical one. Even the last chapter of the story is a new heaven and a new earth. Besides all this, He made promises to Israel which have not yet been fulfilled - that they will serve Messiah, they will dwell in the land, they will be at peace. That’s the millennium, the thousand year reign of Christ on the earth.

Adam Clarke, while definitely not pre-millennial, was nevertheless faithful to the Scriptures. Here is his introduction to Jeremiah 30:

"This and the following chapter must relate to a still future restoration of the posterity of Jacob from their several dispersions, as no deliverance hitherto afforded them comes up to the terms of it; for, after the return from Babylon, they were again enslaved by the Greeks and Romans, contrary to the prediction in the eighth verse; in every papistical country they have labored under great civil disabilities, and in some of them have been horribly persecuted; upon the ancient people has this mystic Babylon very heavily laid her yoke; and in no place in the world are they at present their own masters; so that this prophecy remains to be fulfilled in the reign of David, i.e., the Messiah; the type, according to the general structure of the prophetical writings, being put for the antitype. The prophecy opens by an easy transition from the temporal deliverance spoken of before, and describes the mighty revolutions that shall precede the restoration of the descendants of Israel, Jer 30:1-9, who are encouraged to trust in the promises of God, Jer 30:10, Jer 30:11. They are, however, to expect corrections; which shall have a happy issue in future period, Jer 30:12-17. The great blessings of Messiah's reign are enumerated, Jer 30:18-22; and the wicked and impenitent declared to have no share in them, Jer 30:23, Jer 30:24."

"This and the following chapter to refer to the future restoration of both Jews and Israelites in the times of the Gospel; though also touching at the restoration from the Babylonish captivity, at the end of seventy years. Supposing these two chapters to be penned after the taking of Jerusalem, which appears the most natural, they will refer to the same events, one captivity shadowing forth another, and one restoration being the type or pledge of the second."

And then his comments on v 9:

"But they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their King - This must refer to the times of the Messiah and hence the Chaldee has, "They shall obey the Lord their God, and they shall obey the Messiah, the Son of David." This is a very remarkable version; and shows that it was a version, not according to the letter, but according to their doctrine and their expectation. David was long since dead; and none of his descendants ever reigned over them after the Babylonish captivity, nor have they since been a regal nation. Zerubbabel, under the Persians, and the Asmoneans, can be no exception to this. They have been no nation since; they are no nation now; and it is only in the latter days that they can expect to be a nation...

Christ is promised under the name of his progenitor, David, Isa 55:3, Isa 55:4; Eze 34:23, Eze 34:24; Eze 37:24, Eze 37:25; Hos 3:5."


But they shall serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them. 
Hallelujah! When? When Christ comes again and establishes his kingdom on the earth. Yes, we inherit the promises of Christ, kingdom, salvation, but we don't exhaust them.

Next: 31:31-34 The New Covenant

The LORD our righteousness

23:1-8 A Righteous Branch; The Lord Our Righteousness (Yahweh tsidkenu)
5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.  
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.  

This is a most amazing prophecy! This prophecy declares four things, but I will present them as five, and you will soon see why.

(1) I will raise unto David...
This chapter and prophecy comes immediately after chapter 22 and the curse on Coniah. So, however we understand that word of the Lord to Coniah, it most definitely did not signal the end of the Davidic line and the Messianic promise to David.

(2) I will raise unto David a righteous Branch
Branch is a very clear Messianic reference. The Hebrew word for Branch occurs twelve times in the Old Testament, and five of those times it is translated branch: Isaiah 4:2, Jeremiah 23:5, Jeremiah 33:15, Zechariah 3:8, Zechariah 6:12  Here is a really good article on Branch.

(3) A king shall reign and prosper
This righteous Branch will be a king who will reign and prosper. This prophecy is uttered at a time when the line of David is “laid off” as it were and the people are about to go off into captivity. All is not lost, I will raise unto David a king who shall reign and prosper. This is Christ.

(4) In his days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely
King Messiah will bring salvation and security, Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell safely. The coming of Christ and the kingdom of God will bring salvation. As Zacharias prophesied at the birth of his son John:

That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us... That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.

This is the kingdom of God Jesus introduced at his first coming. But the salvation now is spiritual, just the first-fruits of what is to come. When he returns he will establish this kingdom on the earth, and Israel will be saved and dwell safely as promised. Then the New Heaven, the New Earth, New Jerusalem. Of his kingdom there shall be no end!

(5) The LORD our righteousness
As you may know, the King James, whenever it comes to the personal name of God, YHWH, uses Lord in all caps, LORD. In Hebrew this is YHWH tsidkenu, YHWH our righteousness. The old way of pronouncing this is Jehovah tsidkenu. Nowadays people tend to say, Yahweh tsidkenu. No matter how you say it, this is awesome!

Jeremiah is clearly preaching the gospel!

What is righteousness? Righteousness is "conformity to a standard; the state of him who is such as he ought to be."+ Another way of saying this is, Righteousness is that which God requires of us, which we don't have. The promise here is that God will Himself provide for us what He requires of us, which we lack - it is the Lord himself who will be our righteousness.

Now, while the New Testament nowhere uses this as a name for Jesus, the Apostle Paul makes it abundantly clear the gospel is about righteousness:

Romans 1:16-17 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ... For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. 

Philippians 3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

This is why Paul speaks so often of justification. In our English Bibles we have justify, righteous, righteousness, justification. It looks like they are translations of different Greek words. But in Greek it’s all one family: justify is the verb, just and righteous the adjectives, righteousness and justification  the nouns. Justify means “to declare righteous.”

Romans 4:1-25 is very interesting here. A word occurs eleven times that is translated counted, reckoned, imputed. We are justified or declared righteous by imputed righteousness. And what righteousness is reckoned to our account? The righteousness of God. I remember hearing early in my Christian life that justification meant just as if I’d never sinned. That’s forgiveness. But forgiveness merely removes my failure to be what I ought to be. That’s not sufficient, I need a positive righteousness, and that is what God does when He justifies me, he imputes righteousness to me, just as if I’d always obeyed. Christ paid my sin debt by his death on the cross - there is forgiveness through his blood; but he also obeyed for me – his righteousness is imputed to me. In a sermon on Jeremiah 23:6 Charles Spurgeon said, "Just as the merit of his blood takes away our sin, so the merit of his obedience is imputed to us for righteousness." That is justification.

Ok. How am I justified or declared righteous? or, What must I do to be justified?

Romans 3:21-26
21 But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets;  
22 Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:  
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;  
24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:  
25 Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;  
26 To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

This is the gospel: God now offers righteousness to the one who believes in Jesus; through faith in Christ we are justified (forgiven of our sins and righteousness imputed to us) freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. As Paul himself concludes:

Romans 5:1
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

This is Jeremiah's prophesy: Christ will come and we will call him YHWH tsidkenu, the LORD our righteousness. That which was promised by the prophet is now proclaimed in the gospel. Christ has come and offers us righteousness, His righteousness, so that we may be saved and restored to God. As the Holy Spirit says, The righteous by faith shall live.

Have you believed in Jesus and been justified by God?

Next: They shall serve the Lord their God and David their king


+ ISBE International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

Coniah: Write ye this man childless

This is the first of six prophecies I will be looking at in Jeremiah.

22:24-30 Coniah 
24 As I live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence;  
25 And I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them whose face thou fearest, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans.  
26 And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bare thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die.  
27 But to the land whereunto they desire to return, thither shall they not return.  
28 Is this man Coniah a despised broken idol? is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure? wherefore are they cast out, he and his seed, and are cast into a land which they know not?  
29 O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.  
30 Thus saith the LORD, Write ye this man childless, a man that shall not prosper in his days: for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah.

What in the world does this have to do with Jesus being Christ?

Coniah, also known as Jeconiah and Jehoiachin, was the son of Jehoiakim, who was the son of Josiah, who are all in the line of David, to whom God promised Messiah. And to be the Christ, one has to be the son of David.

The New Testament opens with these words, The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. And in v 11 we find, And Josias begat Jechonias and his brethren (Matthew 1:1, 11). So right at the beginning we are confronted with this possible problem: Jeremiah said, for no man of his seed shall prosper, sitting upon the throne of David, and ruling any more in Judah, and then in Matthew we read that Jesus of Nazareth has Jeconiah in his lineage. Is Jesus hereby disqualified from being Christ?

Let’s consider this:

1) Coniah in Jeremiah
In 24-28 we see that even if Coniah was the signet ring on God’s right hand, yet would he be plucked off, that he will go into captivity, and that he will not return to the land.
Verse 30 is the left hook: not prosper - he only ruled for 3 months and spent the rest of his life in Babylon; no seed of his on the throne – there has been no king in Israel since his day. Wow! But childless? He had seven children. It says, write this man childless, maybe childless in that none of his seed assumed the throne after him.

2) According to an interesting article by Jews for Jesus, “The Problem of the Curse on Jeconiah in Relation to the Genealogy of Jesus” which you can read here:

“There are three parts to the curse on Jeconiah (who is also called Jehoiachin or Coniah):

- that he would be childless
- that he would not prosper in his lifetime
- that none of his descendants would rule in Judah

The Scripture shows that in fact none of these took place.

Though the Hebrew literally reads, “Record this man childless,” Jeconiah in fact had children.

The descendants of Jehoiachin the captive: Shealtiel his son, Malkiram, Pedaiah, Shenazzar, Jekamiah, Hoshama and Nedabiah — 1 Chronicles 3:17-18

He did prosper in his day.
In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the year Evil-Merodach became king of Babylon, he released Jehoiachin from prison on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month. He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honour higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. — 2 Kings 25:27-28

His grandson Zerubbabel prospered and ruled. In fact the same words God used in rejecting Jeconiah were deliberately used in establishing Zerubbabel.

“As surely as I live,” declares the LORD, “even if you, Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were a signet ring on my right hand, I would still pull you off. — Jeremiah 22:24

“‘On that day,’ declares the LORD Almighty, ‘I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will make you like my signet ring, for I have chosen you,’ declares the LORD Almighty.” — Haggai 2:23

Though Zerubbabel did not sit on the throne as king, the fact that Haggai 2:23 uses the same terminology as Jeremiah 22:24 shows that Haggai intended to indicate a reversal of the curse.

We have to conclude that in Jeremiah 22:30, “in his lifetime” qualifies the following phrases, and “for” explains that no descendant of his will prosper and rule during his lifetime.

We find rabbinic sources which also agree that God reversed the curse on Jeconiah, which they attribute to repentance on Jeconiah’s part. We even find the idea that the Messiah will descend from Jeconiah – exactly the opposite of what some say is impossible!"

This is comforting! But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.

3) But, in the final analysis, while Coniah was in Joseph’s line, Jesus was not the son of Joseph. He was born of the Virgin Mary, who was descended from David through Nathan.

My entire Christian life I have only ever heard the third explanation, that the curse was permanent and that Jesus received his identity as Son of David through Mary. I won’t argue with anyone about this, but I am now inclined to options one and two. It makes sense, even Manasseh, who reigned for 55 years and did astonishing evil, found forgiveness when he repented. Oh how the mercy of God is magnified!

I began with this prophecy, not because it speaks directly of Jesus, but because it is sometimes offered either as a contradiction or a disqualifier for Jesus to be the Christ. But it does not. So, the angel Gabriel, without fear of contradiction, can announce to Mary:

Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. (Luke 1:30-33)

Amen! He is great! He is the Son of the Highest! He is King!

All hail, King Jesus!
All hail, Emmanuel!
King of kings
Lord of lords
Bright Morning Star.
And throughout eternity
I’ll sing your praises
And I’ll reign with you
Through out eternity

Next: A Righteous Branch; Jehovah tsidkenu

Christ in Jeremiah

Justin Martyr (100-165), an early Christian apologist, wrote in his First Apology † (addressed to the Emperor Titus Ælius Adrianus Antoninus Pius Augustus Cæsar), “these God predicted by the Spirit of prophecy as about to come to pass, in order that, when they came to pass, there might be no unbelief, but faith, because of their prediction.” He was talking specifically about one prediction, the virgin birth, but this is a principle – God announced, through the prophets, the coming of Christ, so that when it came to pass we might believe in him.

Tertullian (155-220), in his third book against Marcion said that the Old Testament prophecies are required in order to fully understand the two advents of Messiah and to identify Jesus of Nazareth as that Messiah. He stressed that the miracles of Jesus are not sufficient to identify Him as Messiah - the added weight of fulfilled prophecy is necessary.

Justin would have agreed, “For with what reason should we believe of a crucified man that He is the first-born of the unbegotten God, and Himself will pass judgment on the whole human race, unless we had found testimonies concerning Him published before He came and was born as man, and unless we saw that things had happened accordingly.”

We are looking in Jeremiah for these testimonies concerning Him published before He came and over the next two or three weeks I will post what I found. I’m very excited about this! I’ve already been blessed and I pray that everyone who reads these posts will be blessed as well.

First, the Outline of Jeremiah, so you can see the flow of the book:

1:1-10         The Call of Jeremiah
1:11-29:32  The Destruction of Jerusalem and Captivity of Judah
30:1-45:9    The Return and Restoration of the Jews
46:1-51:64  The Word of the Lord Against the Gentiles
52:1-34       The Fall of Jerusalem

I would encourage everyone reading this to read Jeremiah. We read many amazing things here: the interaction between Jeremiah and God; how God deals with mankind - holding out the hope of repentance almost to the last minute (18:8 If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them” / 26:3 If so be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings);  and of the power of praying for others. It is shocking to hear God tell Jeremiah, Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee. Three different times God said this to him. But this encourages me, Don’t stop praying for someone until God tells you to stop.

Jeremiah prophesied the coming destruction of Jerusalem, the captivity of the people in Babylon, that this captivity would last seventy years, and that after seventy years the people would return to the land. All of these things came to pass. He also prophesied of the coming of Messiah: his salvation and the full restoration of Jerusalem in His millennial reign on the earth. And that’s what I want us to look at, Christ in Jeremiah.


Next: Coniah: Write ye this man childless


† The First Apology of Justin Martyr, written between AD 155 and 157. You can read it here.

Apology comes from the Greek word ἀπολογία (apologia) which means "verbal defense." The purpose of an apology is to present historical, reasoned, and evidential bases for Christianity, defending it against objections. Justin begins thus, “I, Justin . . . present this address and petition on behalf of those of all nations who are unjustly hated and wantonly abused, myself being one of them.”