Word of the LORD Fulfilled

Jeremiah 51 ended with verse 64, which said,

Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

And that likely marked the end of the record of Jeremiah's prophecies.

And chapter 52, which Justin just read for us, is really an epilogue of the book.

The final chapter of Jeremiah is based largely on 2 Kings, chapter 24, verse 18, to chapter 25, verse 30.

2 Kings 24:18

So that's kind of an important reference because I'll be continually referring back to that.

Because a large chunk of it, most of it really is word for word taken from those two chapters of 2 Kings.

And the only difference being really the verses 22 to 26 of chapter 25 of 2 Kings,

which is the story of the assassination of Gedaliah, the governor of Judah,

governor of the new, I guess, province of Babylon.

Judah is a province of Babylon.

Because that was already covered extensively earlier in chapters 40 to 41 of Jeremiah.

And the reason why the editor of the book seems to have added this ending epilogue to the prophecies

seems to be to show that the word of the Lord through Jeremiah has been fulfilled.

That Jeremiah's prophecies, every single one of them was fulfilled.

And you can see in the structure of this chapter that one by one,

everything that Jeremiah prophesied was fulfilled.

You can see the destruction of Jerusalem, the despoiling of the temple,

the deportation of Judah, and the discharge of Jehoiachin.

And all of this is intended to show us that those who believe in God's promises

can have hope even in desperate situations.

That let me just pray.

I seek God's help as we go on.

God, we submit this time to you.

We need you to speak.

For your word to pierce through the division of bone and marrow, soul and spirit.

To have its effect on us.

And to build our faith in you and our hope in your promises.

So won't you please do that in us as your church this morning in worship.

In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen.

So verses 1-2 give us a concluding assessment of King Zedekiah's legacy.

He was the last king of Judah.

So read with me.

Verses 1-2, chapter 52.

It says,

Zedekiah was 21 years old when he became king.

And he reigned 11 years in Jerusalem.

His mother's name was Hamotel, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libna.

The Jeremiah of Libna mentioned here is not Prophet Jeremiah.

Jeremiah, as you may have assumed.

So who is Jeremiah of Anaphoth.

That's the prophet.

So Zedekiah is definitely not Jeremiah's grandson.

And further, the prophetic assessment of King Zedekiah was this.

That he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.

According to all that Jehoiakim had done.

The comparison with Jehoiakim is a little bit surprising at first.

If you remember what kind of King Jehoiakim was throughout the book of Jeremiah.

Because we saw in chapter 36, Jehoiakim is the defiant king who cut up the scroll of Jeremiah's prophecies.

And burned it piece by piece in his own furnace.

And not only that, after doing that, he ordered the arrest of Jeremiah and his scribe Baruch.

And he was also the king, as we found out in chapter 26.

Who had earlier killed one of the prophets of the Lord, Uriah.

And so he is Jehoiakim by all accounts is an evil king.

Zedekiah, however, is a little bit more complicated if you look at him.

Because he's, on multiple occasions, he has sought out the support of Jeremiah.

He sought his counsel.

In fact, as we saw in chapters 37 and 38, Zedekiah was kind of a closet supporter of Jeremiah.

He believed Jeremiah.

But nonetheless, because Zedekiah, due to his fear of the nobility in his nation.

And his fear of the masses, he kept Jeremiah in prison under house arrest.

And he did not obey the word of God.

And because of that, he receives the exact same verdict as Jehoiakim in God's eyes.

Zedekiah did what was evil in the sight of the Lord according to all that Jehoiakim had done.

Good intentions that don't translate into actionable steps that show that you had no intention of doing good.

So God's assessment of Zedekiah is the same as that of Jehoiakim.

So, Christian brothers and sisters, I want to exhort you.

The Spirit of God dwells in you.

And you know what the Lord requires of you.

But if you intend to do it without making any plans to do it and actually doing it, then it is no different from Zedekiah.

As James 1.22 says,

Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.

Jesus says in John 15.9-10,

It doesn't matter in the end how much we claim to love God.

It doesn't matter how well we present ourselves to others as mature believers.

If we are not keeping Christ's commandments, then we are not abiding in the love of Christ.

So then do we daily find God's mind in His word and seek to obey everyone of His commands?

What is the Holy Spirit bringing to your mind right now?

Let us be doers of the word, not hearers only like Zedekiah.

That's a sight point that's coming up as we read.

And then the consequence of Zedekiah's disobedience is given in verse 3.

4.

Because of the anger of the Lord, it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He cast them out from His presence.

The disobedience of Judah was so severe and the Lord's subsequent anger so intense,

it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that God cast them out from His presence.

And that phrase here of God casting them out from His presence is exactly the same phrase in Hebrew that was used in chapter 7, verse 15,

where God said to the people of Judah that if they persist in their sin, I will cast you out of my sight.

Slightly different in the English, but in Hebrew it's exactly the same phrase.

And this is explicitly stated here in verse 3 to show that that prophecy was fulfilled.

As God had threatened, He has cast them now out from His presence.

That prophecy has been fulfilled.

In the first half of verse 3 tells us that it was God who cast them out from His presence due to His anger.

And that's the ultimate and divine reason for the disaster that befalls Judah.

But there's a second reason also.

The second half, read what it says, the second half of verse 3.

And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

That's the immediate human reason for the disaster that befalls Judah.

And those two reasons are not mutually exclusive.

Why did Jerusalem fall?

Why was Zedekiah captured?

Why was the temple destroyed?

The divine reason is that God expelled Judah from His presence because of their sin.

And the human reason is that Zedekiah foolishly rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar.

The Bible always simultaneously affirms divine sovereignty and human responsibility.

They are not mutually exclusive.

So yes, God is, in an ultimate sense, sovereignly responsible for everything that happens in your life and in this world.

But in an immediate sense, you are humanly responsible for everything that you say and do.

And the one does not negate the other.

That's what we see here in verse 3.

And then starting in verses 4 to 6, we are told what happened when the Babylonians invaded Jerusalem.

Read with me.

It says,

To destroy all the surrounding stronghold cities, one by one, as we saw in chapter 34, verse 7.

And that effectively severed all communication and supply lines to Jerusalem and made them basically famished.

It brought about a famine in the city.

And during that, we can state that's when Nebuchadnezzar focused his assault on the city walls.

And it says in verses 7 to 9,

Then a breach was made in the city.

And all the men of war fled and went out from the city by night by the way of a gate between the two walls by the king's garden.

And the Chaldeans were around the city.

And they went in the direction of the Arabah.

But the army of the Chaldeans pursued the king and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho.

And all his army was scattered from him.

Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the land of Hamath.

And he passed sentence on him.

The Babylonians had surrounded the city.

But apparently there was some kind of a secret gate between the two walls by the king's garden.

And Zedekiah and his fighting men used that to sneak out in the middle of the night.

But the Babylonian army catches wind of this and overtakes them.

And Zedekiah, when they are overtaken, is deserted by all his soldiers and is captured.

And then the sentence he receives in Riblah is severe.

It says in verses 10 to 11,

The king of Babylon slaughtered the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes.

And also slaughtered all the officials of the Judah at Riblah.

He put out the eyes of Zedekiah and bound him in chains.

And the king of Babylon took him to Babylon and put him in prison till the day of his death.

It's this cruel punishment.

He kills his own sons and then takes his eyes out.

That's the last thing he sees before he rots away in prison.

And this too is the fulfillment of chapter 38 verses 14 to 23.

Jeremiah had warned Zedekiah that if he surrenders that he would survive.

That he would not be taken.

But because he does not surrender to Babylon and refuses the word of the Lord.

He is caught and brought to the face of Nebuchadnezzar as Jeremiah prophesied.

And his children are slaughtered as Jeremiah prophesied.

Again, this is a fulfillment of the word of the Lord.

And then verses 12 to 16 tell us about the destruction of all the landmarks in Jerusalem.

It says,

In the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that was the nineteenth year of the king Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon.

Nebuchadnezzar, the captain of the bodyguard who served the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem.

Now, if you compare it, you may have seen some people bring this up.

Second Kings 25.8, which is basically a parallel.

It tells us that Nebuchadnezzar, the captain of the bodyguard, came to Jerusalem in the fifth month on the seventh day of the month.

Unlike this verse, which says he came on the tenth day of the month.

And the difference, I think, is that 2 Kings 25.8 tells us that Nebuchadnezzar came to Jerusalem on the seventh day.

That's the day he arrived.

But here in Jeremiah 52.12, it's telling us that Nebuchadnezzar entered Jerusalem on the tenth day.

So he came, he arrived on the seventh day, but does not enter until the tenth day.

I mentioned that in case you noticed it, because to show you that it's not a contradiction.

Nebuchadnezzar then arrived on the seventh day, but did not enter the city until the tenth day, possibly waiting for the intensity of the battle to subside.

And especially considering the fact that Jeremiah 52 and 2 Kings 25 are almost word for word identical,

I find it hard to imagine that that slight change was accidental.

I think that's a deliberate change.

After he entered Jerusalem, he says in verse 13,

So the Babylonians were not merely about quelling a rebellious state.

They wanted to demoralize them as a nation and break their pride.

And so they burned the house of the Lord, the great temple of Jerusalem.

Apparently there was no one from the UNESCO World Heritage Committee there in Babylonian camp to designate the Jerusalem's temple as a protected historic site.

And that's significant because 1 Kings 9.10 tells us that it took Solomon 20 years to build a temple and the king's palace.

20 years.

To give you some perspective, it only took 8 years to build the Colosseum in Rome.

10 years to build the temple of Artemis in Ephesus.

Only comparable ancient construction is the Pyramid of Giza, which took 20 years, like the temple and palace.

So all this to say, the temple and the royal palace that Solomon built were constructions of epic proportions.

And if it hadn't been for the Babylonians who destroyed them,

they would have certainly been numbered among the world's ancient wonders of the world.

So this calamity is too, again, prophesied by Jeremiah.

He had said regarding the temple and the city of Jerusalem in chapter 26, verse 9,

This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate without inhabitant.

Shiloh was the Israelite city where the tabernacle of God, the dwelling place of God before the temple was built,

was set up after the conquest of Canaan.

And even though Shiloh was the dwelling place of God at that time in Israel's history,

due to Israel's sin, God abandoned it and the Israelites were defeated by the Philistines.

And the Ark of God was captured and the Covenant was captured and the city, Shiloh, was reduced to a heap of ruins.

And Jeremiah had prophesied that that would happen exactly to Jerusalem and to the Jerusalem temple.

And that word of the Lord has been fulfilled.

Jeremiah, verse 14, 52 verse 14, recounts even further destruction.

It said,

And all the army of the Chaldeans who were with the captain of the guard broke down all the walls around Jerusalem.

The word broke down is a key word in this book, in the book, especially in Jeremiah's commission as a prophet.

When God first called Jeremiah to the prophetic ministry, he said in chapter 1, verse 10,

See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms to pluck up and to break down,

to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant.

Similarly, in chapter 18, verse 7, God declared that it is his prerogative as the sovereign creator to pluck up a nation and to break it down as he sees fit.

And God repeated that regarding his own people in chapter 31, verse 28,

And it shall come to pass that as I have watched over them to pluck up and break down, to overthrow, destroy and bring harm.

So I will watch over them to build and to plant, declares the Lord.

So the breaking down of the walls of Jerusalem, which represents the breaking down of the kingdom of Judah,

it was an integral part of Jeremiah's commission.

So that too is a fulfillment of the word of the Lord.

So that's a destruction of Jerusalem.

And then we see the despoiling of the temple in verses 17 to 23.

This was not the first time that the Babylonians looted the temple.

After their first invasion of Jerusalem in 597 BC, they carried away various temple furnishings and utensils.

And that's recorded in 2 Kings 24, 13.

But they did leave some things behind.

And it may have been because some of these items were too large and too heavy to take back.

They had come prepared for war, not necessarily to carry back a caravan.

And some of the looted items were probably replaced as well by this time, 586 BC,

when the second Babylonian invasion of Jerusalem took place.

And so there were plenty of spoils for the Babylonian army inside the temple to enjoy.

And you might recall from chapters 27 and 28 that some false prophets in Judah were prophesying

that the Lord will soon bring back all the vessels of the temple that were carried off during the first invasion,

Babylonian invasion.

But then Jeremiah said this in chapter 27 verses 19 to 22.

For thus says the Lord of hosts,

concerning the pillars, the sea, the stands, and the rest of the vessels that are left in this city,

which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon did not take away when he took into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon,

Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah,

and all the nobles of Judah in Jerusalem.

Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel,

concerning the vessels that are left in the house of the Lord in the house of the king of Judah and in Jerusalem.

They shall be carried to Babylon and remain there until the day when I visit them, declares the Lord.

Then I will bring them back and restore them to this place.

So now keep that in mind, this prophecy from chapter 27 in mind as you read our present passage,

chapter 52 verses 17 to 19.

It says,

And the pillars of bronze that were in the house of the Lord,

and the stands and the bronze sea that were in the house of the Lord,

the Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried all the bronze to Babylon.

And they took away the pots and the shovels and the snuffers and the basins and the dishes for incense

and all the vessels of bronze used in the temple service.

Also the small bowls and firepans and the basins and the pots and the lampstands

and the dishes for incense and the bowls for drink offerings.

What was of gold, the captain of the guard took away as gold,

and what was of silver as silver.

The things that Jeremiah had prophesied would be carried off to Babylon

were the pillars, the sea and the stands which supported and the rest of the vessels.

And in exactly that order, verses 17 to 19 tell us that the valuable items in the temple

were all carried off to Babylon in fulfillment of the word of the Lord.

And Jeremiah wants to make sure that we understand that these were not just trinkets,

little earrings,

and these are significant items, treasures of great value.

So verses 20 to 23 tell us this.

It says,

As for the two pillars, the one sea, the 12 bronze bowls that were under the sea

and the stands which Solomon the king had made for the house of the Lord,

the bronze of all these things was beyond weight.

As for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was 18 cubits,

its circumference was 12 cubits, and its thickness was four fingers, and it was hollow.

On it was a capital of bronze.

The height of the one capital was five cubits.

A network and pomegranates of all the bronze were around the capital.

And the second pillar had the same with pomegranates.

There were 96 pomegranates on the sides.

All the pomegranates were 100 upon the network all around.

So the bronze of all these things was beyond weight.

That might explain why they were left behind after the first Babylonian invasion.

It was simply too much for them to haul home.

But this time they came prepared.

The Chaldeans broke in pieces and carried all the bronze to Babylon.

The bronze sea was designed,

intent originally to hold water,

representing the forces of chaos,

and subdued and brought to order by the Lord at creation.

And it was used for ritual washing.

And 1 Kings 7, 23 to 26 described this bronze sea as a magnificent piece of metallurgy,

about 15 feet in diameter and 7 feet high,

all in cast bronze 3-inch thick.

It held about 10,000 gallons of water.

And that enormous bronze sea rested on top of 12 bronze bulls,

grouped in threes arranged on each side of the stand.

And the pillars were about 18 cubits with 12 cubits in circumference.

That's about 40 feet tall and over 4 feet in diameter.

And these massive columns were decorated with ornate capitals,

which are the heads, the topmost parts of the pillar that touch the surface that it's supporting.

And according to 1 Kings 7, 17 to 19,

there were lattices of checker work with wreaths of chain work for the capitals on the tops of the pillars.

Likewise, he made pomegranates in two rows around the one lattice work to cover the capital that was on the top of the pillar.

Now the capitals that were on the tops of the pillars in the vestibule were of lily work.

So it's a little bit hard to follow that.

Let me explain.

The capitals were decorated with lattices of checker work,

like the lattices of like an apple pie,

and a pattern of wreaths chained together.

And on top of that were rows of pomegranates, 96 to be exact, according to verse 23.

And then the pillar was topped off with lily work, sculpted like a lily flower.

So this was an exquisite piece of metalworking.

And these expensive, beautiful items made of gold, silver, bronze,

and these sacred items set apart for the worship of the Lord

were all broken in pieces and carried off to Babylon to be melted and repurposed.

Now why are all these details provided?

All of these are gone now, right?

Broken to pieces and carried off as spoils of war.

So I think these descriptions are included here to convey that sense of loss and longing

that the Judeans were feeling.

There's a mournfulness in these descriptions,

almost like a couple that's describing their luxury car,

their pride of possessions that they had,

which had been totaled in an accident,

is now being towed off to a junkyard.

It's like, oh, like, that's the kind of longing,

that loss is being conveyed here in all these descriptions,

detailed descriptions of the furnishings that were lost.

This, the furnishings within the temple represented Israel's worship.

Israel's past history and their future hope as a nation

were all wrapped up around the temple in Jerusalem.

And so these inscriptions convey a sense of dashed hopes, crushed dreams.

We're supposed to feel the tragedy of it all.

And after the despoiling of the temple,

we read about the deportation of Judah in verses 24 to 30.

But before Nebuchadnezzar sends people into exile,

he kills all people of stature

in order to cripple Judah's ability to reorganize and form a coalition.

So that's what he does in verses 24 to 27.

He strikes them down.

And then in verses 28 to 30 is recorded the number of exiles.

The Judeans were reported, it seems,

in mass to Babylon on three specific occasions.

Read verses 28 to 30 with me.

It says,

This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive.

In the seventh year, 3,023 Judeans.

In the 18th year of Nebuchadnezzar,

he carried away captive from Jerusalem 832 persons.

In the 23rd year of Nebuchadnezzar,

Nebuchadnezzar, the captain of the guard,

carried away captive of the Judeans 745 persons.

All the persons were 4,600.

So again, if you compare it to its source material, 2 Kings 24.

2 Kings 24, 14 tells us that the total number of exiles

at the first deportation was 10,000 people,

which is significantly larger than the 3,023 recorded here.

Most likely, the difference is that 10,000 people

is a rounded estimate that includes men, women, and children,

while 3,023 is a more precise figure

that only includes the men who are counted.

This was a standard way in the ancient world

to estimate a large crowd size.

You just count the men, and then you multiply it by two,

and add a percentage, and you have this population

of men, women, and children.

So if 3,023 Judeans represent only the men,

the other two numbers, 832 and 745,

probably also represent only the men.

So while it says here in verse 30

that all the persons that were deported were 4,600,

if you count the women and children,

it's probably in the range of 15,000 to 20,000.

That's not a large number.

This is a tiny and very discouraging number.

You're supposed to be discouraged

by this number as you're reading this.

Because in the modern world, right,

a city has a population between 20,000,

I mean 100,000, 300,000 people,

which is why Cambridge is a city.

A population of 20,000 to 100,000

is considered a large town,

like Concord, North Reading, or Newburyport.

And then Judah, I mean,

and then a population of 1,000 to 20,000,

which is what the range of this population of exiles is,

is considered a town, right?

A large town, it's a smaller town.

And so Judah's population has been decimated by the war,

and likely a good number of them died

as they were going to Babylon as well.

And so they're now a size of a small town.

To give you a perspective,

in Numbers chapter 1, verse 46,

Numbers 1:46

it tells us that the total number of men

who came out at the time of the exodus from Egypt

was 603,550.

That's only the men.

So the Judean exiles in Babylon

are now about 2.5% of the number of people

that originally came out of Egypt as a nation.

This is a tragic state of things.

And look again at the last sentence of verse 27.

It says,

So Judah was taken into exile out of its land.

That makes it sound as if the entire nation of Judah

was sent off into exile.

Even though some Judeans remained in the land

because God had declared in Jeremiah 24

that the future of Israel

lay with the exiles in Babylon.

It lies with the exiles in Babylon

and not with the remnant of Judah.

So this pitiful number of exiles,

in a real sense,

represents the totality of the nation.

All of Israel.

Now a small town

going pathetically into exile in Babylon.

This too is a fulfillment

of the word of the Lord.

It's devastating if you think about

and connect back to Israel's history.

Israel's covenant relationship with God

began with the promises that God made to Abraham.

And what did he promise him in Genesis 12?

God called Abraham to leave his country,

his people,

and his father's house

and promised to give him,

if he did that,

a land and a nation.

A people and a place

and promised his presence

to dwell among them.

A people,

a place,

and the presence of God among them.

And chapter 52

is a systematic undoing

of that promise.

The people are decimated

and deported,

the place is destroyed,

and the presence of God

has deserted them.

The destruction of Jerusalem,

the despoiling of the temple,

and the deportation of Judah

represent the dashed dreams

and hopes of Israel.

But there's a glimmer of hope

in the last four verses of Jeremiah 52.

It says in verses 31 to 34,

And in the 37th year

of the exile of Jehoiachin,

king of Judah,

in the 12th month,

on the 25th day of the month,

Evel Merodach,

king of Babylon,

in the year that he began to reign,

graciously freed Jehoiachin,

king of Judah,

and brought him out of prison.

And he spoke kindly to him

and gave him a seat

above the seats of the kings

who were with him in Babylon.

So Jehoiachin put off

his prison garments,

and every day of his life

he dined regularly

at the king's table.

And for his allowance,

a regular allowance

was given to him by the king,

according to his daily needs,

until the day of his death,

as long as he lived.

As Jeremiah prophesied

in chapter 22, verse 27,

Jehoiachin,

also known as Jehoiachin,

will never return from exile.

And that too is a fulfillment

of the word of the Lord.

It's a fulfillment

of the word of the Lord.

But for those who are not

looking out for the promises of God,

this is an insignificant event, right?

I mean, he's still in exile.

The entire nation

is still subject to Babylon.

What's the big deal?

The king gets a nice treatment

in the palace.

But it's significant

because the discharge

of Jehoiachin,

which is included here,

is intended to give

the Judean exiles hope.

Because throughout

the book of Jeremiah,

all the prophecies,

the side-by-side

with the prophecies

of judgment

were always promises

of restoration.

And this seems to be

the initial stirrings

of that.

And God had promised

in chapter 24

that I will regard

as good the exiles

from Judah

whom I have sent away

from this place

to the land

of the Chaldeans.

I will set my eyes

on them for good

and I will bring them

back to this land.

I will build them up

and not tear them down.

I will plant them

and not pluck them up.

I will give them a heart

to know that I am the Lord

and they shall be my people

and I will be their God

for they shall return to me

with their whole heart.

So this is beginning to be,

it's showing the beginning

of God's favor

and perhaps that hope,

for people who are holding

on to that hope

of restoration,

this is a sign for them.

And throughout chapter 52,

Jeremiah made it a point

to prove that every single word

of the Lord was fulfilled.

And if the judgment

that God threatened

was fulfilled,

then the restoration

that he promised

will also be fulfilled.

And that's why

even in the book of Jeremiah,

written at the lowest point

of Israel's history,

it ends with a note of hope.

Because those who believe

in God's promises

can have hope

even in desperate situations.

And this hope

is not disappointed

because God had promised

in chapter 33

that he would raise up

a king from the line of David

who will execute

justice and righteousness

and restore God's people.

And the Gospel of Matthew,

Matthew 1:12–16

chapter 1,

verse 12 to 16,

it connects the genealogy

of the Messiah,

Jesus Christ,

from,

it traces it from Jehoiachin,

who was just freed

by Evo Merodach

during the Babylonian exile.

And so Jesus

is the king that comes,

the last,

ultimate,

an eternal king

who reigns forever.

And he's the one

who fulfills the hope

of the Judean exiles.

So the people

in Jeremiah's day

were mourning

the destruction

of the temple,

the despoiling of the temple,

and the deportation of Judah.

But Jesus is the one

who brings the restoration

of all these things.

And let me show you.

First,

after the deportation

of Judah,

Judah ceased to exist

as a sovereign nation.

But Jesus brings about

the restoration

of God's people

by forming a new Israel

that includes

both Jews and Gentiles.

In Hosea 11, 1,

God said,

When Israel was a child,

I loved him,

and out of Egypt

I called my son.

Here, God's using

the language of sonship

to describe

the nation of Israel.

But in Matthew 2,

Matthew 2:13–15

verses 13 to 15,

we see that Jesus,

along with his earthly parents,

fled to Egypt

and stayed there

until the murderous

Herod died.

And Matthew tells us

about that incident.

This was to fulfill

what the Lord

has spoken

by the prophet Hosea.

Out of Egypt

I called my son.

Matthew is quoting

from Hosea

to say that God,

what God said

about the nation of Israel,

essentially,

he's applying it to Jesus.

Jesus is the new Israel,

the son of God,

who succeeds

where the nation of Israel

had failed.

And unlike Israel,

Jesus obeys his father

perfectly,

even unto death

on the cross,

and so that through

his death on the cross,

Jesus makes way

for sinners

to be forgiven

and reconciled to God.

And all those

who repent of their sins

and believe in Jesus

for salvation

are united with him

and who is the new Israel

and become part

of that true Israel

as adopted children of God.

That's what Ephesians 2

and Romans 9 tells us.

So Jesus fulfills

this promise.

Likewise,

Judah mourned

the despoiling of the temple.

But Jesus restores

the temple of God

and the worship of God

in himself.

In John chapter 2

John 2:21–22

verses 21 to 22,

Jesus says that his body

is the temple of God.

He says his body

is the temple of God

and that he will die

and be raised up

on the third day.

Because in the Old Testament,

the temple was the focal point

of all worship.

It was uniquely indwelled

by the presence of God.

And therefore,

believers from all over the world

had to gather

at the temple in Jerusalem

to worship.

And the believers' communion

with God,

their walk with him

was in a real sense

confined to that locale.

But it was mediated

by the temple.

But now Jesus says

after he's come

and after he dies

and is raised from the dead,

he says he replaces

the temple.

And the proper worship

will be given

no longer through the temple

but through Jesus

because the Son

reveals the Father.

He's indwelled,

mutually,

they mutually indwell

one another.

And he is the abode of God

on earth,

the new center of worship.

And just as formerly

sacrifices were made

in the old temple

to atone for the sins

of God's people,

in this new temple,

the ultimate sacrifice

is made

and Jesus is sacrificed

on the cross

as the unblemished

Lamb of God

to cover our sin

and he's raised up

for our justification.

So that all those

who repent of their sins

and believe in Jesus

are united with him

and themselves

become the temple

of God

indwelled by the Spirit.

That's why

1 Corinthians 3,

16 to 17

said,

Do you not know

that you are

God's temple

and that God's Spirit

dwells in you?

If anyone destroys

God's temple,

God will destroy him

for God's temple

is holy

and you are that temple.

And finally,

Judah mourned

the destruction

of Jerusalem

but this too

is being restored

by Jesus.

In Revelation 21,

1 through 5

tells us that

about new Jerusalem

will come

and that new Jerusalem

is described

as the bride of Christ.

It's the church of God.

Jesus is the one

who constitutes

a new Jerusalem

and all his people

are part of that

new Jerusalem

that's being fulfilled.

And he says

in Revelation 21,

it's the new heavens

and a new earth

and I heard

a loud voice

from the throne

saying,

Behold,

the dwelling place

of God

is with man.

He will dwell

with them

and they will be

his people

and God himself

will be with them

as they are God.

He will wipe away

every tear

from their eyes

and death

shall be no more.

Neither shall there

be mourning

nor crying

nor pain anymore

for the former things

have passed away.

And he who was

seated on the throne

said,

Behold,

I am making

all things new.

Also he said,

Write this down

for these words

are trustworthy

and true.

So Jesus

is the Savior

and King

who restores

the dashed hopes

and dreams

of all Israel

and he is our

Savior and King

who restores

our dashed hopes

and dreams

as well.

What are your

dashed dreams?

Maybe you've been

disappointed

or you're depressed

because your life

is not what

you thought

it would be.

You thought

you would be

a globetrotting

successful businessman

or a freelancer

but instead

you feel like

your work

is mundane

and purposeless.

You thought

you would be

a picture-perfect

mom with

little

picture-perfect

well-dressed

darlings.

But instead

your days

involve a lot

of sleepless nights

tantrums

soil diapers

stained clothes

whining

crying

and cleaning

after these

little

yet tireless

agents

of chaos.

You thought

you would be

an acclaimed

artist

musician

writer

photographer

or photographer

but instead

you feel like

you're always

pulling teeth

just to get

some

payment

just to get

some

publication

and you face

a lot of

rejections

and criticisms.

Earthly hopes

and dreams

never quite

looked like

what we had

imagined them

to be

even

for the most

successful

people.

The world

is fallen

and the

curse

of sin

means that

as God

said to

Eve

in Genesis

3.16

there will

be pain

in child

bearing

including

I think

child

learing.

And the

curse

of sin

means

as God

said to

Adam

in Genesis

3.17

to 19

in pain

you will

eat

of the

fruit

of your

labor

all the

days

of your

life.

By the

sweat

of your

face

you shall

eat

bread.

Pain

is part

of earthly

existence.

Work

is never

easy.

Whether

you're

a

homemaker

or a

bread

winner

that's

the

nature

of

living

in

a

fallen

world.

And

anyone

who

tells

you

otherwise

is

lying.

Or

they're

so

rich

that

they're

actually

not

doing

any

work.

They're

paying

someone

else

to

do

their

work.

Relationships

are never

easy

because of

the

sinfulness

of our

hearts.

There

is

strife

and

stress

in

all

parenting

all

marriages

all

dating

all

friendships.

every

day

we

feel

that

this

world

is not

the way

it's

supposed

to be

and

we're

supposed

to feel

that way

because it's

not the

way

it's

supposed

to be.

we live

in a

sinful

fallen

world

and

if we

place

our

hopes

and

dreams

on

it

it

will

crumble

under

our

expectations.

Jesus

is the

only

one

who

can

free

us

from

the

penalty

and

power

of

sin

and

he

is

the

only

one

who

can

make

all

things

new.

The

only

hope

that

will

never

be

disappointed

for

you

is

that

hope

in

Jesus

Christ.

The

new

Israel

the

new

temple

and

the

new

Jerusalem

and

because

of

Jesus

according

to

2nd

Corinthians

1.20

all

the

promises

of God

find their

yes

in

Christ

as we

were

saying.

That

is

why

it

is

through

him

that

we

utter

our

amen

to

God

for

his

glory.

We

believe

those

who

believe

in

God's

promises

can

have

hope

even

in

the

most

desperate

situations.

What

are

some

promises

of

God

that

you

can

remember?

What

has

God

promised

to

you?

Isaiah

14

29

to

31

He

promised

us

He

gives

power

to

the

faint

and

to

him

who

has

no

might

he

increases

strength

even

youth

shall

faint

and

be

weary

and

young

men

shall

fall

exhausted

but

they

who

wait

for

the

Lord

shall

renew

their

strength

they

shall

mount

up

wings

like

eagles

they

shall

run

and

not

be

weary

they

shall

walk

and

not

faint

are

you

faint

and

weary

Deuteronomy

31

8

says

it is

the

Lord

who

goes

before

you

he

will

be

with

you

he

will

not

leave

you

or

forsake

you

do

not

fear

or

be

dismayed

are

you

afraid

to

feel

forsaken

Romans

8

28

says

and

we

know

that

for

those

who

love

God

all

things

work

together

for

good

for

those

who

are

called

according

to

his

purpose

Proverbs

Proverbs 3:5–6

chapter

3

verses

5

to

6

trust

in

the

Lord

with

all

your

heart

and

do

not

lean

on

your

own

understanding

in

all

your

ways

acknowledge

him

and

he

will

make

your

paths

straight

Matthew

6

31

33

therefore

do

not

be

anxious

saying

what

shall

we

eat

or

what

shall

we

drink

or

what

shall

we

wear

for

the

Gentiles

seek

after

all

these

things

and

your

heavenly

father

knows

that

you

need

them

all

but

seek

first

the

kingdom

of

God

and

his

righteousness

and

all

these

things

will

be

added

to

you

promises

of

God

do you

feel

guilty

this

morning

are you

coming

with

shame

and you

feel

like

there's

a

barrier

between

you

and

God

first

John

1

9

if

we

confess

our

sins

he

is

faithful

and

just

forgive

us

our

sins

and

to

cleanse

us

from

all

unrighteousness

and if

you

are not

yet

a follower

of

Jesus

you

have

not

put

your

faith

in

Jesus

yet

here's

a

wonderful

promise

from

Romans

10

9

to

10

if

you

confess

with

your

mouth

that

Jesus

is

Lord

and

believe

in

your

heart

that

God

raised

him

from

the

dead

you

will

be

saved

for

with

the

heart

one

believes

and

is

justified

and

with

the

mouth

one

confesses

and

is

saved

God

holds

out

these

promises

to

you

not

as

a

no

or

if

or

maybe

perhaps

but

as

yes

in

Jesus

Christ

yes

so

that

we

can

respond

with

our

amen

we

believe

so

take

a

moment

if

you

would

close

your

eyes

you

can

if

it

helps

you

take

a

moment

to

reflect

on

your

disappointments

your

defeats

your

desperate

situations

and

then

raise

your

eyes

the

eyes

of

faith

unto

Jesus

Christ

Christ

Thank you.