The weeping prophet

We come to the book of Jeremiah, chapter 36, and it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah, that this word of the Lord came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel and against Judah, and against all the nations from the day that I spake unto thee, from the days of Josiah even unto this day. It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them, that they may return every man from his evil way, that I may forgive their iniquity and their sin. Then Jeremiah called Barak, the son of Neriah, and Barak wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the Lord which he had spoken unto him upon a roll of a book, and then he commands Barak to go and read the words to the people, which he does, and then there is the request of the princes, verse 14, Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi, the son of Nethemiah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, unto Barak, saying, Take in mine hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people, and come.

So Barak the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand and came unto them. And they said unto him, Sit down now, and read in our ears. So Barak read it in their ears.

Now it came to pass, when they heard all the words, that they were afraid, both one and the other, and said unto Barak, We will surely tell the king of all these words. So now it comes to the king, verse 22, Now the king sat in the winter house in the ninth month, and there was a fire on the hearth burning before him. And it came to pass that when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, or columns, he cut it, that's the roll, with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.

And then the Lord gives instruction again to Jeremiah to repeat the process, and write again in the roll. Now come back to Isaiah chapter 50 please. Isaiah chapter 50, and we'll read at verse 4. Concerning the Lord Jesus, the Lord God has given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary.

He wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear, to hear is the learned. The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away by him. I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hairs.

I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord God will help me, therefore shall I not be confounded, therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed. Now one more from the New Testament, 2nd Timothy 4. 2nd Timothy chapter 4, set against the background of chapter 3, where men will be lovers of their own selves, covetous and so on, having a form of godliness, denying the power of their wrath.

Chapter 4 verse 1, I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom, preach the word. Be instant in season and out of season, recruit, recruit, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. Now the Lord will bless to us the reading from his word.

I thought to follow just briefly further from Jeremiah, the weeping prophet. Jeremiah was noted for his lament over the people of Judah and in particular over the city of Jerusalem, just like the Lord Jesus who wept over Jerusalem. He spoke of judgment that would come upon the people and it moved his heart to grieve and lament and to weep.

Because the action of the people in apostasy will always call forth the judgment from God. Turning away from truth has consequences and we see that firmly established in the ministry of Jeremiah. He was a prophet from about the year 627 BC.

He lived right through the Babylonian captivity, at least the early stages began in 605 BC when Daniel was taken. Then there was the second phase and the destruction of the temple ultimately in 582 BC. So Jeremiah was a man who, sorry 586 BC and then died probably around 582 BC.

So he lived through, my point is he lived through the spiritual meltdown of the kingdom of Judah. He lived through it. He wrote about it.

He preached against it but the people didn't respond and he lived to see the consequences of it. So we've read here today about a leader of the people of God in that day who actually burned the word of God. A leader who burned the word of God.

King Jehoiakim, he took that role that Jeremiah had dictated to Barak and that role that Barak had read before the people and had read before the princes and they were moved as they heard the words of the Lord how that this nation, this people are going to be carried away in captivity. But the king, he didn't take it kindly to it and when he had heard about three or four columns of the role of the words of the Lord, he took a penknife and he chopped it out and he put it into the fire that was upon the hearth and he burned the room. He burned the word of the Lord and not content with that then he sought Jeremiah to put him to death.

Jeremiah went and hid and the Lord preserved his life and he is then instructed to go ahead and write a second role and in chapter 36 verse 29, thus saith the Lord, thou hast burned this role saying why hast thou written therein saying the king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land and shall cause to cease from thence man and beast. But it was the word of the Lord. The king didn't like it.

He wasn't comfortable with it. So he burned the word of the Lord and he sought to take the life of the messenger Jeremiah. Now as a result Jehoiachin himself was cursed.

He would never have a son as his successor and that in fact turned out to be the case simply because he did not hear the plain word of God. Now I think that has been established in this conference, brothers and sisters, haven't it? The importance of listening to the word of God. The importance of bringing that word of God into our hearts, internalizing it, making it the man of our counsel, living by it, obeying it, implementing its truth not only in our own personal lives but also corporately as we gather with the people of God.

That will be our preservation. That was the promise of the Lord through Jeremiah to the people. If they would listen to his word they would be preserved and if not consequences would follow.

Now we do live in a day where as we have been hearing there is a sharp and rapid decline in assembly testimony in some places. The Bible anticipated it. Paul wrote to Timothy in 2nd Timothy, it's his last letter, and as he looked forward by the spirit of God he wrote this, for the time will come.

We're here. The time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine but after their own lusts shall they heave unto themselves teachers. The people of the itching ears.

Now notice this. And they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables. Now what I want to simply notice there is there's an attitude identified there.

An attitude identified. Turning away their ears from the truth and being turned unto fables. They have simply set themselves not to listen to the truth.

Can you see that? That's an attitude. What a contrast to the Lord Jesus. We read from Isaiah that he wakeneth morning by morning he wakeneth mine ear to hear the learn.

The Lord God has opened my ear. The Lord Jesus he had saturated his soul in the scriptures, the old testament scriptures that were then available. The Lord Jesus was constantly being directed by the word of the Lord.

Certainly by what had already been recorded and what was freshly revealed to him in his intimate communications with the father. Now in view of that the Lord Jesus knew exactly what Isaiah 53 said. He would be despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

He knew that from the scriptures certainly in his own soul that he would be wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities. What was his reaction to such a word concerning him? And I was not rebellious neither turned away by. I gave my back to the smiters and my cheeks to them that plucked out the hair.

I hid not my face from shame and spitting for the Lord God will help me. Therefore shall I not be compounded. Therefore have I set my face like a flint and I know that I shall not be ashamed.

Now there's the heart of the Lord Jesus. The word of God that was before him at least and what he knew in his own soul what lay before him but he didn't rebel against it. He didn't rebel against it.

He bowed his soul in submission to it. He set himself to hear what God would say. He was taught by God and instructed morning by morning and every morning his ear was open to receive I believe the instructions from his father for that day.

The word of God was the man of his counsel. Now if that was so concerning the Lord Jesus how is it for you and me? Do we have that time that we spend every day? Do we always have an open ear to hear his word? Is our heart always receptive to the teaching of the Bible that we might be instructed that we might learn from him and that we might implement that word in our lives day by day living for his glory. That was the Lord Jesus.

So Paul now he's writing to Timothy and he's anticipating a day when they will not endure the word and he has covered that already in chapter three. So Paul tell us now what do leaders do when they don't want to hear the truth? When the word of God comes so close that it's going to make us feel uncomfortable and it maybe will separate us from our friends. It might divide a family.

The people might get offended. What are the leaders among the people of God to do whenever that occurs? He gives the answer. I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ who shall judge the living and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom devote to come preach the word.

Be instant in season when they will hear it. I'm not of season when they won't hear it. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering.

Present the word of God to the people. That's our only hope of preservation. When the people of God absorb that and adhere to it and are governed by it and seek to obey it in humble submission to the word and the will of God as they do his work from day to day.

Now that was a leader who burned the word of God. Very quickly let me take you to a leader who was afraid to obey that or the word of God. Zedekiah.

Turn over to chapter 38. Chapter 38 of Jeremiah. I've got my eye on the clock.

Now they take Jeremiah, they put him into the dungeon and there's a man by the name of Ebed-Melech in verse 8. Jeremiah 38 verse 8. Ebed-Melech went forth out of the king's house and spake unto the king saying my lord the king these men have done evil and all that they have done unto Jeremiah the prophet whom they have cast into the dungeon. He is like to die for hunger in the place where he is for there's no more bread in the city so he goes and treats the king. Jeremiah then is taken up out of the pit out of the dungeon and in verse 16.

So Zedekiah the king swears secretly unto Jeremiah saying as the lord liveth that made us this soul I will not put thee to death neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life. He wants a word from Jeremiah. Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah thus saith the lord God of hosts the God of Israel if thou wilt assuredly go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes then thy soul shall live and this city shall not be burned with fire and thou shalt live in thine house but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes then this city shall be given into the hand of the Chaldeans and they shall burn with fire thou shalt not escape out of their hand.

Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen to the Chaldeans lest they deliver me into their hand and they mock me but Jeremiah said they shall not deliver thee obey I beseech thee the voice of the lord which I speak unto thee so it shall be well with thee and thy soul shall live ultimately he doesn't obey I guess his eyes stood out so he had asked the he had asked Jeremiah to pray unto the lord our God for us so here's a man who is seemingly interested in the lord's protection but we read in chapter 37 verse 2 but neither he nor his servants nor the people of the land did hearken unto the words of the lord which he spake by the prophet Jeremiah the princes went about to kill Jeremiah they take him they put him into the dungeon because he brought them a message they didn't want to hear they would shoot the messenger after a man was speaking they put him into the dungeon brethren that are still faithful in the things of God and faithfully present to us the word of God know what it is to be the object of such an attack still happens they still shoot the messages whether he's guilty of all he's accused of or not he still gets accused these things ought not to be but notice this man Ebad Melech he entreats the king for the prophet and with 30 men he draws up Jeremiah out of the dungeon there is a promise that is made to him in chapter 39 if you have your bible open you might want to reference it at the end of chapter 39 verses 15 through 18 because of what Ebad Melech has done he is quietly taking a step taking a stand for the prophet the messenger of the lord and he has entreated him the promise is made at the end of that chapter i will surely deliver thee says the lord because thou has put thy trust in me says the lord so here's a dear man who quietly took his stand for Jeremiah he entreated the king he stood his ground in a day when the princes were turning away and he has a promise from the lord i will surely deliver thee because i have put thy trust in me saith the lord now it is good when brethren and sisters stand their ground too often there's been a swing for a different line of things and older brethren sometimes get tired you know you form the heat and the burden of the day for many years and like we have been hearing there's a danger that might lose heart no more fight end up and much that they would want to do but they just don't want to have the struggle on their hands so they leave the oversight and others are laughing to carry on i think we could learn from Ebad Melech he stood his ground not in a boorish stubborn arrogant carnal sort of a way what says paul with all long suffering and doctrine keep on presenting the truth preach the word that alone will preserve the people of god that alone will preserve testimony for god and not only preach it but pray it in that there might be a response of heart to that same word that the people of god might be instructed in it and seek to live their lives and preserve testimony for the glory of our lord jesus until he comes again so there are warnings for us even today from the weeping prophet from jeremiah and we would do well to adhere to it and to seek to live for his glory till we see his face