Visual effect from Jeremiah

JEREMIAH      CHAPTER 19

The Lord told Jeremiah to go buy a clay jar and ask the leaders and priests to follow him to the valley of the son of Hinnom by the Potsherd Gate. Then he said to give them the message from the Lord saying that a terrible disaster will be on them, because they had forsaken the Lord and turned the valley into a place of wickedness. They burned incense to idols and filled this place with the blood of innocent children. Someday, he said,  this valley will no longer be called Topheth or the valley of the son of Hinnom, but the Valley of Slaughter. I will, he said, let invading armies slaughter these evil people and wipe Jerusalem off the face of the earth.

The Lord told Jeremiah, that as the crowd of leaders and priests watched and listened, he was to smash the clay jar and say to them that this is what the Lord will do to the people of Judah and Jerusalem beyond all hope of repair.  Then Jeremiah came back from Topheth where he had delivered the message  and he stopped in front of the Temple of the Lord. He said to the people there that the Lord, God of Israel would bring disaster upon the city and its surrounding towns because they refused to listen to the Lord.

BIBLE NOTES SHOW: The horrible carnage that Jeremiah predicted would happen twice: in 586 B.C. during the Babylonian invasion under Nebuchadnezzar and in A.D. 70 when Titus destroyed Jerusalem. During the Babylonian seige, people became cannibals, eating their own children.

HOW DOES THIS CHAPTER RELATE TO US TODAY?  This chapter shows that God does warn us. He gives us a message to change or be destroyed. Can you feel a rising of evil in the world today? Remember that Satan plays a very large part in the rising of evil. Can you see false prophets here today or on the near horizon? God does not just forsake his people without giving them a warning; a chance to redeem themselves before it is too late.

In this chapter, Jeremiah gives the leaders and priests the message of the Lord. I was surprised that the leaders and priests came to hear him. By now, I thought they would tire of his ranting and not show up. But it is a testament to Jeremiah's great oration, that they did show up. However, it was too late. He gave them an excellent visual effect. He didn't have the magic of television or electronic communication. Can you imagine him carefully choosing a clay pot for his effect? Bet it was a large one. Imagine him lifting it above his head in wrath and smashing it with all his might against the rocks. The sound of the impact echoing through the valley, the shards flying in all directions to indicate the scattering of the people to all corners of the earth.  What a great way to show what was coming!

Yours in Christ,
Mary

Prayer Requests are needed for:


HEALTH: Pray for Gabe.

Pray for Gary my insurance man who has prostate cancer that entered his bones.

Pray for Arlene’s nephew David and for my neighbor Al who is nearing the end of his life.

Pray for Carolyn’s brother Ronald who has cancer and for her sister Wanda’s soul which went to heaven.

Pray for our friend Michelle who was diagnosed with a form of MS.

Pray for Robert Sargent who is quite ill with lung cancer.

Pray for Gary Summers, my friend from church, who has cancer.

Pray for Judy’s husband who was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. Pray for her too, that she can deal with the side effects of his illness.

Pray too for Charly’s husband Robert who has been undergoing chemo. Pray also for Charly who longs to be 100 percent again and walk without an aid.

Pray for James’s sister Cynthia whose chemo has lost its effect as the cancer grows powerful.

SPIRITUAL UPLIFTING: Gail, Mary

RESTORATION OF FAITH: Al, John

LOVE AND SUPPORT: Claire, Hunter, Brian

SUPPORT: Pray for our country’s leaders and our military people who die each day for our freedom. Pray for our famers and those who raise livestock during this terrible drought.