- Flee, turn back, dwell in the depths, O inhabitants of Dedan! For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, the time when I punish him. Jeremiah 49:8 – In this chapter we see the Lord have messages for many nations that surrounded Judah, and the messages were ones of destruction. These nations had refused to help Judah in their time of need or worse they assisted the enemies of Judah. Now judgement was coming upon them for their sin and rejection of God. In speaking to the nation of Edom God tells them to run, turn, and “dwell in the depths.” The King James Version says “dwell deep”. Possibly with a little sarcasm the prophet is telling the people to try and escape the punishment of God by dwelling deep in the earth, knowing though that no depth of earth would save them from the wrath of God. From this chapter we see that strengths of armies, strategic locations, powerful idols, or even the depths of the earth couldn’t save these nations from God’s judgement. There is only one place we can go to find an escape from God’s wrath on our sin, and it’s dwelling deep in God Himself. Yes, the very one bringing the judgement is who we need to go deep with. Only through a relationship with the Father can we find forgiveness over our sins. We will never be able to escape the wrath of God in any other way, and if we choose to deal with His wrath ourselves then our future is condemnation in Hell for eternity. Yet this same God who condemns sin also provided a means of having all sin forgiven through His Son Jesus. Any who follow Jesus and proclaim Him Lord will be forgiven of all sin and the wrath of God will be stayed over them. Refuse to dwell deep in any other place trying to escape God’s wrath your way, instead dwell deep in Jesus. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 3279
- For thus says the Lord: “If those who did not deserve to drink the cup must drink it, will you go unpunished? You shall not go unpunished, but you must drink. Jeremiah 49:12 – While it’s not pleasant that the faithful have to endure the consequences of sinful choices made by others, it’s encouraging to know God isn’t going to let their actions go unnoticed. They are going to have their eyes opened to their sin and as a result see the hopelessness of what they have been pursuing. So for you who are trying to live faithfully yet are running into struggles caused by other’s sinful choices, trust God isn’t going to make your struggle pointless. He’s going to use all that to help them see how much they need Him. This should be a silver lining to when we face struggles like this. That God is using it to bring others face to face with Him and they may turn to follow Him as a result. If that’s a possible outcome, I’d go through some unpleasantness in life and I’m sure you would to. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 968
- The horror you inspire has deceived you, and the pride of your heart, you who live in the clefts of the rock, who hold the height of the hill. Though you make your nest as high as the eagle’s, I will bring you down from there, declares the Lord. Jeremiah 49:16 – Jeremiah hasn’t had it easy up to this point, but now he’s been given the mission to share the coming destruction on many other peoples than just Israel. What we learn from this chapter though is important. God sees everything and no one gets away with their wrongs. Yes, sometimes it sure appears that some get away with things. They oppose God, live sinfully, and reject anything good, yet their life seems so good. I think we all know some people whose life looks so blessed yet their life is so far from a faithful walk. Just know their sin will be dealt with sometime. Just like our has been dealt with, theirs will be too. No one gets off free of having to have their sin covered. Sadly, for many, the way their sin will be dealt with is punishment in Hell for eternity when they die. This should break our hearts because that path doesn’t have to be their future. Jesus has offered to take care of their sin for them, to take the punishment of their sin in His shoulders so they can live free of sin. Pray for the people then in your life who are so caught up in the treasures of this world and the sin that so easily entangles. They are being deceived to death. Pray their eyes are open to the truth of Jesus and be willing to show them if the opportunity arises. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2181
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