Jerusalem and Judah were
taken captive, and Jeremiah was looking over the defeated city of
Zion. The people were few, and the princes ruled no more. No one was
attending the feasts; the priests were sighing; the virgins were
afflicted, and there was bitterness everywhere. This sad state
resulted in Jerusalem remembering her former days as we see in
chapter one and verse seven where we read:
Jerusalem remembered in
the days of her affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant
things that she had in the days of old, when her people fell into the
hand of the enemy, and none did help her: the adversaries saw her,
and did mock at her sabbaths.
The
verse begins, “Jerusalem remembered in the days of her
affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant things that she had
in the days of old,...” As the “miseries” and
“affliction” occurred to Jerusalem, those within the city
remembered the way things used to be. They thought of the “pleasant
things” or “desirable and precious” things that formerly
were theirs to enjoy. At one time there was abundance, and now there
was only restlessness, straying, wandering, and the state of being
refugees.
The
verse continues, “when her people fell into the hand of the
enemy, and none did help her:” The loss of these wonderful
things from the past occurred when “the hand of the enemy”
defeated them. Though they were once strong and able to defend, they
were now taken captive by those who opposed them. As this transpired,
no one came to her aid. There wasn't an ally to depend upon as Judah
went into captivity. Those who might have claimed friendship in the
past were no where in sight when the trouble came around.
The
verse goes on to say, “the adversaries saw her, and
did mock at her sabbaths.” Not only was the nation taken
captive, removed from “all her pleasant things” from the
past, but when the enemies saw her and considered her religious
practices of the Sabbaths, they “did mock” which means
“laughed, played, jested and danced” over them. In other words as
the foes of Judah discovered their Sabbath day practices, they made
fun of them, joked about them, and laughed at the inadequacy of their
holy days.
One of
the natural tendencies for those who experience devastating loss is
to look back and remember how “things used to be”. Grieving has
that effect, and as we think about Jeremiah's words perhaps we have
begun to remember something from our past that we considered a
“pleasant thing”. Regret, guilt, shame, sadness, and
melancholy behavior are not at all unusual when we lose something we
valued. While we consider these words of Jeremiah perhaps we should
bow our heads and give praise to the Lord Jesus that though we may
have lost things that were valuable in the past, He still has a
future that is without compare for those who trust in, rely upon and
cling to Him. May we evermore put our faith in the one who holds our
future in His hand.
Next
time we will learn why this happened to Jerusalem and the results of
the reason, 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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