As Jeremiah overlooked the
devastation which occurred in Jerusalem, he wrote specifically of the
taking away of the tabernacle, the places of assembly, the feasts and
the sabbaths. Jeremiah continued his list of losses in chapter two
and verse seven where we read:
The Lord has cast off
his altar, he has abhorred his sanctuary, he has given up into the
hand of the enemy the walls of her palaces; they have made a noise in
the house of the LORD, as in the day of a solemn feast.
The
verse begins, “The Lord has cast off his altar, he has abhorred
his sanctuary,...” We can almost envision Jeremiah overlooking
the city of Jerusalem and enumerating the devastation as he included
“the altar” where people worshiped the Lord by bringing
sacrifices at one time. He said the Lord had “cast off” or
“rejected or spurned” that very sacred place, and in addition
“abhorred” which in it's root means “to be cursed or
rejected” “his sanctuary”. When the judgment of God
fell, nothing was off limits to elimination.
The
verse continues, “he has given up into the hand of the enemy the
walls of her palaces;” As we try to imagine Jeremiah's
thoughts, we note that his eyes look to “the walls” of the
palaces of the city. The Lord had lifted His mighty hand of
protection, and “the enemy” was now in control of the once
defensive barriers of the palaces. Palaces once seemed secure, but
when God took away His protection, they became as nothing in the site
of the enemy.
The
verse goes on to say, “they have made a noise in the house of
the LORD, as in the day of a solemn feast.” As Jeremiah
continued his overlook, he noted that instead of the people of
Jerusalem making “a noise in the house of the LORD”, the
enemy was celebrating inside. Where there was once feasting by the
people of God in worship toward Him, there was now festivities by
their enemies. Oh how it must have torn Jeremiah's heart as he
watched the enemies of Jerusalem and Judah partying in the LORD's
house.
What
would it be like if we watched the enemies of our country overtake
our sanctuaries, palace walls and places of worship? Can we imagine
the pain within as we observed the facilities where we worship God
being overtaken and made to be party places? Can we put ourselves
into the overlooking view of Jeremiah for a moment and consider what
this devastation would feel like should this happen to us? Perhaps
our thoughts should be directed to giving thanks and gratefulness to
our Heavenly Father that through Jesus Christ He has kept His
protecting hand upon us, and may our pray be, “O' Sovereign Lord,
we thank you for watching over us and extending your grace to our
country. May our lives and homes always be within your provision of
protection. In Jesus' name, Amen.”
Next
time we will see how the walls of the city were destroyed, 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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