BIBLE STUDY -- YHVH’S PROPHETS

IMPRISONED

JEREMIAH’S RESCUE FROM PRISON

From Jeremiah 37-38

In December of 598 B.C., King Jehoiakim died and was buried in disgrace, as Jeremiah had predicted. Jehoiakim’s son Jehoiachin, who was also called Coniah and Jeconiah, became king. He ruled only three months, for by March of 597 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar had captured Jehoiachin and had taken him to Babylon, appointing Zedekiah in his place. However, King Zedekiah and his officials in the land refused to listen to Jeremiah’s messages from Adonai. Occasionally Zedekiah would send Jehucal the son of Shelemiah and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest to Jeremiah and ask Jeremiah to [pray for us to Adonai our YHVH.] At this time Jeremiah was not in prison, so he moved freely among the people. About this time Pharaoh Hophra of Egypt sent his army to help Judah. When his army appeared at the southern borders of Judah, the Babylonian army withdrew from Jerusalem. Then Adonai spoke to Jeremiah. [Take this message to the king of Judah,] Adonai said. [Tell him that the Egyptians will flee back to Egypt, and the Babylonians will then return to Jerusalem, capture it, and burn it completely. I warn you not to think that the Babylonians will stay away, for they will not. Even if you defeated the Babylonian army, leaving only a few wounded men in their tents, these men would soon return and burn this city completely.] During the time that the Babylonian army had retreated because of the Egyptians, Jeremiah set out for Anathoth to see the land he had bought. As he was going through the Benjamin Gate, a guard at the gate, Irijah the son of Shelemiah and grandson of Hananiah, arrested him, charging that he was [deserting to the Chaldeans {Babylonians}]. [No, I am not deserting to them,] Jeremiah insisted. But Irijah would not listen and took him before the nobles. The nobles were very angry and had Jeremiah beaten and thrown into the house of Jonathan the secretary, which had just recently been made into a prison. There Jeremiah remained for many days. But one day King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah and held a secret meeting with him. [Is there any word from Adonai?] the king asked. [Yes, there is,] Jeremiah answered. [You will soon be captured by the king of Babylon.] Then Jeremiah spoke further to the king. [What have I ever done to you or your servants or people to deserve this imprisonment?] he asked. [Where are those false prophets who lied to you, telling you that the king of Babylon would not come against you and this land? I plead with you not to send me back to that prison, for I will surely die there.] The king gave orders that Jeremiah should be placed instead in the court of the guard, or palace prison. He further ordered that Jeremiah should be given a small loaf of fresh bread each day from the baker’s street as long as there was bread left in the city. Thus, Jeremiah remained in the palace prison where the king had sent him. Some of the nobles soon became disturbed when they heard what Jeremiah was saying about the destruction of the city and the capture of the king. These included Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashur, Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashur the son of Malchiah. They rushed to the king and told him how Jeremiah had been saying that the city would be burned and that the king would be captured. [Let us put this man to death,] they insisted. [His words are weakening the will of the soldiers and the people to fight. As it is, we don’t have many soldiers left in the city. This man is hurting our people, not helping them.] [Do what you think is best,] the king answered. [I will not stop you.] These men took Jeremiah from his prison and let him down by ropes into a cistern which belonged to Malchiah, the king’s son. There was no water in the cistern, only mud, and Jeremiah sank clown in the mire at the bottom. When Ebed-melech, an Ethiopian eunuch in the king’s house, heard what had happened, he ran out to the Gate of Benjamin where the king was sitting. [My lord, the king,] he pleaded, [these men have done evil in putting Jeremiah into the cistern; he will die there of hunger, for there is not much bread left in the city.] Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, [Take thirty men with you and pull Jeremiah out of the cistern before he dies.] Ebed-melech gathered thirty men and went with them to a palace storehouse where old clothing was stored. They took some of the old clothes and rags and let them down by ropes into the cistern where Jeremiah was imprisoned. [Put these rags and old clothes under your armpits to keep the ropes from hurting you,] Ebed-melech called to Jeremiah. When Jeremiah did as they said, they pulled him from the cistern and took him back to the palace prison. In time King Zedekiah called for Jeremiah again to meet him secretly at the third entrance to the temple. [I have a question for you, and I want you to hide nothing from me,] the king said. But Jeremiah answered, [If I tell you the truth, you will surely put me to death. If I tell you what you should do, you will not do it.] The king swore before Adonai that he would not kill Jeremiah. [As Adonai lives, who made our souls, I will not put you to death or let those who want to kill you do it,] he said. [Then here is the message from Adonai,] Jeremiah answered. [If you surrender to Babylon, you and your household will be spared, and Jerusalem will not be burned. But if you do not surrender to the nobles of Babylon, then this city will be captured by them; they will burn it to the ground, and you will not escape from them.] [But I am afraid of the Jews who deserted to the Chaldeans,] the king said. [If the Chaldeans hand me over to them, they will torture me.] Jeremiah replied, [This will not happen if you obey the voice of Adonai now. Surrender, and your life will be spared. Refuse, and the vision Adonai gave me will come to pass. In this vision the women of your household were being led out to the nobles of the king of Babylon. They were saying: [Your trusted friends of Egypt have deceived you and turned against you. Now that your feet are sinking in the mire, they turn away from you.] [Your wives and sons will be led out to the Chaldeans and you also will be taken before them. You will be seized by the king of Babylon, and the city of Jerusalem will be burned to the ground.] Then the king said to Jeremiah, [If you want to live, tell no one what you have told me. The nobles may learn that I have spoken to you and may come to ask you what we have said. If they threaten to kill you if you won’t tell, simply answer that you begged me not to send you back to the prison at Jonathan’s house, lest you die there.] Before long, the nobles did come to Jeremiah and asked him what he and the king had talked about. Then Jeremiah answered as the king had instructed him. They left without learning what really had happened, for the conversation between Jeremiah and the king had not been overheard. Jeremiah remained in the palace prison until the day that Jerusalem was captured again by the Babylonians.

COMMENTARY

ANCIENT PRISONS

Although life in prison long ago meant filth and discomfort just as it often does today, people in ancient prisons were not always there to be punished. Prison was to keep suspected or accused persons from doing harm; they were “guilty until proven innocent,” and very few were ever proven innocent. A prisoner was held until his trial. But no laws limited how long that could be. Some prisoners waited several years, and many sickened from disease or malnutrition and died. Others, like Jeremiah, suffered the additional pain of being flogged, or put in chains or stocks. Israelites before the Exile probably did not have special buildings that served as jails. They imprisoned people in rooms of the royal palace or in houses of high court officials. The most despised prisoners were kept in pits, cisterns and dungeons. After the Exile -- as it is today -- imprisonment became a form of punishment; it was most commonly used to punish those who could not pay back loans. In Babylonia prisoners often were confined in storerooms along with caged animals and supplies. In Egypt and Assyria, however, officials probably kept offenders in public buildings set aside for that purpose, like modern jails. Accused of being a traitor for advising the king to surrender to the Babylonians, Jeremiah was locked in a cell adjoining a dungeon in the house of Jonathan the scribe. The king later transferred the prophet to the court of the guard, probably the quarters of the sentry who guarded the palace. For a short time, he was imprisoned in a cistern, but was then returned to the palace prison.

Thought for Today: Sunday October 05

YHVH Elohiym gave us our conscience. Its very presence is a reflection of YHVH in the human soul. Sin however, can dull or even distort our conscience, silencing its voice and leading us astray. But YHVH’s Word can purify and sharpen our conscience – and when that happens; “He leads us in paths of righteousness for His Name sake” (Psalm 23:3) Is this happening in your life?

Here's a primer on the Feast of Tabernacles including it's history for the last 100 years in the US and that those on earth who don't keep it in the future will starve.

https://firstcenturychristiani....ty.net/sukkot-aka-th

Here's First Fruits Ministries sermon for the Sabbath on 10/04, called "Who Is Yeshua? Part 6: The First Born God:

YouTube:

"Be wise, and guide in the way thine heart."
חֲכָם וְאַשֵּׁר בַּדֶּרֶךְ לִבֶּךָ

Pr 23

BIBLE STUDY -- YHVH’S PROPHETS

SCRIPTURE DESTROYED

THE KING BURNS JEREMIAH’S SCROLL

From Jeremiah 36

Another message came from Adonai to Jeremiah during the fourth year of King Jehoiakim’s reign over Judah. This is what Adonai said, [Write all My messages about Israel, Judah, and the other nations on a scroll. Start with My early messages during the reign of Josiah and record them all until now. It may be that the people of Judah will read these judgments which I am about to bring upon them and will turn from their evil ways so that I can forgive them.] Jeremiah called for the scribe Baruch, son of Neriah, and while Jeremiah dictated the words of Adonai, Baruch wrote them on a scroll. When the work was done, Jeremiah told Baruch what to do with the scroll. [Since I am no longer allowed to go into the temple,] Jeremiah said, [you must go there on the next day of fasting and read the words of Adonai from this scroll to all the people of Judah who gather there. It is possible even yet for them to repent of their evil ways and plead with Adonai to forgive them, even though His anger and wrath have already been predicted against them.] Baruch obeyed Jeremiah and read the scroll in the temple on the next fast day, which was in the ninth month {December} of the fifth year of King Jehoiakim’s reign over Judah. On that day people had gathered at the temple from all over Judah. While the people listened, Baruch read from the scroll as he stood in the room at the temple used by Gemariah the son of Shaphan, a scribe. This room was near the upper court close to the New Gate, where people entered the temple. When Micaiah the son of Gemariah and grandson of Shaphan heard what Baruch was reading from the scroll, he went down to the king’s house where many of the nobles were gathered. These included Elishama the scribe, Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, Elnathan the son of Achbor, Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, as well as others. Michaiah told the nobles what he had heard Baruch read from the scroll. The nobles sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah and grandson of Shelemiah and great-grandson of Cushi to Baruch, and they asked him to read these messages to them. [Sit down and read,] they said. Baruch read these messages from the scroll to all the nobles. The nobles were frightened when they heard these words. When Baruch had finished, they turned to one another and said, [We must report all this to the king.] But first they asked Baruch, [How did you happen to write all these things? Did Jeremiah dictate them to you?] [Yes, Jeremiah dictated them to me,] he said, [and I wrote them with ink on this scroll.] [Then you and Jeremiah had better hide,] they warned. [Don’t tell anyone where you are.] The nobles placed the scroll in the room with Elishama the scribe and reported what had happened to the king. The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, so Jehudi took it from Elishama’s room and read it to the king with all the nobles in his presence. It was a cold December day as the king sat there in the winter quarters of his palace listening to the words of the scroll. Before him a fire burned in a brazier. Each time Jehudi finished reading three or four columns of the scroll the king cut that part of the scroll off with his penknife and threw it into the fire. He kept doing this until the entire scroll was destroyed. The king and his servants were not afraid as they did this, and they did not tear their clothing to show repentance. No one cautioned the king not to burn the scroll except Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah. But the king would not listen to them. Then the king ordered Jerahmeel the son of Hammelech, Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel to arrest Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah. But Adonai had hidden them, and they could not be found. After the king burned this scroll, Adonai spoke again to Jeremiah. [Write all these same words on another scroll,] He Commanded. [Write in it that King Jehoiakim has burned the first scroll, demanding to know why Jeremiah wrote that the king of Babylon would come and destroy the land and all that is in it. Therefore, I am telling King Jehoiakim, king of Judah, that none of his descendants will rule as king in the lineage of King David. His dead body will be thrown out to lie in the heat of the day and the frost of the night. I will punish him and his family and his servants for their sins and bring upon them and upon the people of Jerusalem and Judah all the terrible punishments which I have promised, for they will not listen to My words.] Jeremiah gave another scroll to Baruch the scribe, and he wrote on it the words which Jeremiah dictated to him. These included all the words in the scroll which King Jehoiakim of Judah had burned, as well as many others.

COMMENTARY

SCROLLS: BOOKS ON PAPYRUS

The story of Jeremiah, Baruch and King Jehoiakim reveals how an Old Testament book was written. This was not a book like those known today, for books with pages bound together did not appear until our Moshiach’s era, and paper was not invented until the tenth century A.D. in China. Thousands of years ago, Baruch probably used a scroll of papyrus to record all that YHVH had told Jeremiah. Papyrus was being used in Egypt as a writing surface for at least a thousand years before it replaced the clay tablet in Palestine. No papyrus documents have survived the damp climate of Palestine, but vast amounts were preserved in the dry air of Egypt, where they have been found in tombs or on ancient garbage heaps. In Bible times papyrus grew in Egypt, in Italy, India and probably Syria and Palestine. Today the reed thrives in the Sudan, west of Egypt. Ancient people made sheets of papyrus cheaply from strips of the papyrus stem. Strips close to the centre of the stalk made a better-quality surface. After one row of strips was laid across another, the two layers were moistened, hammered flat and dried in the sun. The top surface was smoothed with a piece of ivory or shell and became the writing surface. Scribes wrote on single sheets of papyrus; sometimes sheets were glued or sewed together to form rolls about thirty feet long or more. Two rolls found in Egypt measured over one hundred feet long. Handles at each end were used for winding. The Greeks called papyrus scrolls {biblos,} the origin of the words {Bible} and {book.} Scribes wrote in vertical columns a few inches wide so that readers could roll up each column as they read. Writing symbols were painted with pens made of reeds that had softened fibres at one end. Like most people in ancient times, probably neither the king nor Jeremiah could read or write. Scribes were therefore important and carefully trained people. They spent long years learning their trade and received honour in return. Some helped people write letters and transact business, while others rose to a rank of importance, something like modern secretaries of state. After the Exile, scribes in Israel gained more and more power. They became both students and teachers of the Law of Moses. It was from this tradition that the scribes of the New Testament arose.

BIBLE STUDY -- YHVH’S PROPHETS

THE LESSON OF THE RECHABITES

From Jeremiah 35

During the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, the son of Josiah, Adonai spoke again to Jeremiah. [Go visit the community where the Rechabites live and have a talk with them,] Adonai said. [Bring them to the temple, and there in an inner room offer them a drink of wine.] I brought Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah and grandson of Habaziniah along with his brothers and sons, representatives of the Rechabite clan, to the temple. We went into a room used by the sons of Hanan the prophet, the son of Igdaliah. This room was next to the one used by high officials and above the room used by Maaseiah the son of Shallum, doorkeeper of the temple. While we were there, I set jugs of wine and cups before the Rechabites. [Have some wine to drink,] I offered. [But we do not drink wine,] the Rechabites answered. [Our father Jonadab the son of Rechab ordered us never to drink wine, and not only us but our descendants. He also commanded us never to build houses or plant fields or own vineyards or farms, but to live in tents always. He assured us that if we obey him, we would live long and be prosperous in this land. We have obeyed our father Jonadab the son of Rechab in all that he commanded us. None of us -- including our wives, sons, or daughters -- drink wine or build houses to live in, or plant fields or vineyards. We all live in tents, obeying all that Jonadab our father commanded us. But now Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has come against this land, and we are afraid. We have agreed to move into Jerusalem because we are afraid of the armies of the Chaldeans and the Syrians. That’s why we are now living in the city.] Then Adonai spoke to Jeremiah saying, [Adonai of hosts, the YHVH of Israel, orders you to take this message to the people of Judah and Jerusalem, ‘Why aren’t you willing to learn from Me and listen to My words? The Rechabites have listened carefully to their father and have obeyed his commands completely, refusing to drink wine as he instructed them. But I have repeatedly told you what I want, and you will not listen to Me. ‘Time after time I sent you a prophet who warned you to turn from your evil ways and stop worshiping and serving other gods so that you might live peaceably in this land. But you will not listen to Me. The Rechabites listen to their earthly father, but you will not listen to Me. Because you will not listen or obey Me, I will send on Judah and Jerusalem all the evil that I have warned that I would send.’ Then Jeremiah spoke to the Rechabites. [Adonai of hosts, the YHVH of Israel, says, ‘Because you have faithfully followed the command of your father Jonadab and listened to his teaching, your father will always have a descendant who will stand faithfully before Me.’

COMMENTARY

THE RECHABITES: IN THE WAYS OF THE ANCESTORS

For generations the Rechabites remained faithful to the command of one of their forefathers not to drink wine or settle in cities. How different from the people of Judah, who would not be faithful to the Commands of Almighty YHVH! Jeremiah held up the Rechabites as an example of faithfulness. They had turned from the wine cups, the wine jugs, and the ways which struck against their conscience. He promised them a blessing. And YHVH through Jeremiah promised unfaithful men judgment. The Rechabites did not build homes, own land or farm it, or drink wine. They lived in tents in the desert, until Nebuchadnezzar’s army forced them to move to Jerusalem for their safety. No one is certain where the Rechabites came from or what their customs meant. One view says Rechab, the group’s ancestor, was a Kenite nomad who joined the wandering Israelites. Some think both the Kenites and Rechabites were metalworkers who had to keep moving from place to place as they used up the supply of ore in each place. Some say that they did not drink wine lest they reveal trade secrets when drunk. But the Rechabites’ customs evidently showed their devotion to YHVH. It is likely that the Rechabites’ founder, Jehonadah, set down these rules for the first Rechabite family in order to prevent pagan Canaanite influences from taking hold. He would have known that many Israelites, who had learned farming from the Canaanites, had also adopted Canaanite gods. Thus, the Rechabites continued in a nomadic life to represent and maintain a time when Israel was pious and obedient. Some historians say Rechabite ways are common to all nomads. Nomads live in tents and they do not farm. Since they do not grow grapes, they don’t make wine; not to drink it, then, makes a virtue of necessity. Rechabites were greatly outnumbered in Israel. But with the whole small group before him, Jeremiah promised them that their descendants would survive. Even today, travellers in the Middle East say they have found desert people who claim to be Rechabites.

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