Our English word “church” (and the German “kirche” and Scottish “kirk”) comes from the Greek word kuriake, meaning ‘belonging to the Lord’. It is only used twice in the New Testament,
Continue reading...It was a raucous, angry, confused meeting, with many people shouting, many people in stunned silence, and no order at all. It could have been a local church business meeting, but it wasn’t. It was
Continue reading...Jeremiah’s prophecies had all predicted the conquering of Judah and Jerusalem by Babylon, something the false prophets and priests denied, inciting, no doubt, Zedekiah to revolt against Babylon. This
Continue reading...We discover that this oracle against Babylon was given during the fourth year of Zedekiah and presented to Israel in exile when Jeremiah accompanied Zedekiah on a trip to Babylon. Zedekiah rebelled
Continue reading...This is the third quarter of this four-part oracle against Babylon. Why so long? Because though Babylon was the “sword of Yahweh” to implement His judgment on Judah and the nations, he is not exempt
Continue reading...The first part of this judgment oracle against Babylon focused on arrows shot against the Babylonians from a distance. This part focuses on the sword, which must be used up close. It all pictures the devastating,
Continue reading...This is the last of the oracles against the nations, and it is the longest. Babylon was the “sword of Yahweh” used by Yahweh to judge the nations mentioned in the oracles (Jeremiah 47:6), but now she
Continue reading...Question: In John 12:31 Jesus says “Now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” I have read several commentaries that say “the prince of this world” refers to Satan. They say the verse means
Continue reading...Of the nations mentioned here in Yahweh’s judgment, only Damascus seems to have had any relationship to Israel, mostly as an enemy. The Israelites knew of these other nations but may not have known
Continue reading...Edom was descended from Esau, Jacob’s twin brother, son of Isaac. The nation had often opposed Israel, and after Babylon’s defeat of Judah, Edom had slain her refugees and looted the spoils left after
Continue reading...The Ammonites were another people coming from a son of Lot with his younger daughter (Genesis 19:38). Like Moab, they lived east of the Jordan River. When Israel came to conquer Canaan, they first engaged
Continue reading...You will note that the oracle against Moab is much longer than that against Philistia. And unlike Philistia, many reasons are given by Yahweh for Moab’s judgment. Moab was the product of the incestuous
Continue reading...The Philistines shared a long history with Israel, most of it as enemies. They came from Crete and settled on the coastline of Canaan, taking land parceled out to the tribes of Israel. They had an unsettled
Continue reading...Jeremiah was told by Yahweh that he should take a cup of the wine of God’s wrath and make all the nations drink of it (Jeremiah 25:15-29). Here are his prophecies against the nations. The Zondervan
Continue reading...Baruch was the faithful assistant and scribe of Jeremiah for many years. He was with Jeremiah even when Jeremiah was forced to go with the Jews to Egypt. This prophecy was given early on in Jeremiah’s
Continue reading...