Jeremiah used the last
chapter in his book called Lamentations to pray to the Lord and the
people who were affected by the overthrowing of the nation of Judah
and the city of Jerusalem. Widows, orphans, masters, servants,
fathers, women, maids, princes and elders were all within the list of
the beginning of his prayer. In chapter five and verse thirteen
Jeremiah adds “young men” and “children” to his
list where he wrote:
They took the young men
to grind, and the children fell under the wood.
The
verse begins, “They took the young men to grind,...” If we
use our imaginations for a moment, we can picture “young men”
who were more than likely in their pre-teen or teen years “to
grind” which refers to “grinding as in a mill”. Millstones
were used to grind wheat into fine powder, and these stones had to be
retrieved for use. More than likely the enemy of Jerusalem used the
young men to carry these huge millstones which may have forced them
to overuse their backs and become miserable in the rest of their
lives.
The
verse goes on to say, “and the children fell under the wood.”
Not only were “young men” afflicted by the enemy, but
also “the children” who were the elementary and younger
aged boys and girls were abused. These children were made to carry
their fire “wood”, and although the burden of such a task
was daunting to the children, the enemy had no concern. No doubt as
the people of Jerusalem watched as their children did this
servant-like work they regretted turning against the Lord.
When we
think about the conditions of these “young men” and
“children”, we may be horrified that people can do this to
one another. The difficult part is that this could have been avoided.
If the people of the nation of Judah would have simply heeded the
warnings of prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and others, they
could have avoided watching their children become slaves. But alas,
they continued in their own ways rather than the Lord's way, and
their children paid the price. As we ponder these words of Jeremiah,
perhaps an examination of our own lives is in order. Are we in
rebellion that would lead to eventual demise not only of us but
possibly of those whom we love? It is one thing to see others go
through these horrific results even if it is in our imaginations, and
it is quite another thing to experience these things ourselves. May
the Lord lead us to examine ourselves before we see the results of
turning away from Him.
Next
time we see more of the elders and young men, so read ahead, and we
shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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