Year in the Bible Week 35

Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem by Rembrandt (1630), one of the most famous works from his Leiden period.

Today I encourage you to take a long look at the Rembrandt’s painting of Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem to see how well he captures the feeling of loss. Only the true masters of the craft can capture the human experience so well! You can feel the overwhelming sorrow of Jeremiah as he contemplates the desstruction of Jerusalem and the temple built by Saul. After God’s presence left, the temple that was regarded with fear and trembling for centuries was just another building. It was easy to strip tons of bronze and other precious metals from it and burn it to the ground.

The remnant left in Jerusalem continued to hear from God through Jeremiah, but people were not listening. Ignoring God’s warnings, they run down to Egypt, thinking that they were escaping a reprisal by Nebuchadnezzar. Once again, disobedience would only lead to destruction.

Back in Babylon, Ezekiel was also giving unwelcome advice. God’s word says Ezekiel was regarded as an entertaining street performer who would say and do scary things, but no one heard the lessons, and nobody applied the teaching. Remember that Ezekiel was the son of a chief priest, and his words would have carried a lot of weight if not for the hardened hearts of the people.

After Jerusalem is destroyed, God will move quickly to bring his chosen people back to the promised land. In the next two weeks of reading, God will smite Egypt, remove Nebuchadnezzar, and start sending his people home. He is faithful!