Jeremiah 25:1-3
This King Is Coming
Outline:
I. \\#Jer 1:1-19\\ Jeremiah’s Calling
II. \\#2:1-37\\ God’s Case Against Judah
III. \\#3:1-25\\ Israel’s Three Time Zones
IV. \\#4:1-6:30\\ Sins and Judgments
V. \\#7:1-\\ Some Specific Messages
A. \\#Jer 7:1-34\\ A Message to the Religious
B. \\#Jer 8:1-22\\ A Message to the Continuous Backslider
C. \\#Jer 9:1-10:25\\ A Message to the Believer
D. \\#Jer 11:1-12:6\\ A Message About Jeremiah
E. \\#Jer 12:7-17\\ A Message to the Pastors
1. \\#Jer 12:7-9\\ An Astonishing Statement
2. \\#Jer 12:10-13\\ A Horrendous Failure
3. \\#Jer 12:14-17\\ A Strange Invitation
F. \\#Jer 13:1-7\\ A Message of Ruin
G. \\#Jer 15:15-21\\ Message to Self - Feet of Clay
H. \\#Jer 21:1-7\\ A Message to Zedekiah - The News
I. \\#Jer 22:1-2, Jer 24:1-3\\ A Message to the People -
Don’t Miss the Ride Out
J. \\#Jeremiah 25:1-3\\ A Message about Nebuchadnezzer -
The King Is Coming
\\#Jer 45:1, 46:2\\ These chapters were given at this same time.
Starting in Jeremiah 21, we moved into a section where Jeremiah’s
messages are being associated with kings. It is for that reason that
I have spend time in the last two messages sharing some basic
information with you about the last five kings of Judah. By referring
to these kings, we get a better idea of when Jeremiah might have
preached a message, what order some of his sermons were given, and
conditions at the time the sermons were given. That is the case
tonight.
I. The time
A. The first 20 chapters of Jeremiah were messages given to
the people about the condition of the nation.
B. Notice that two kings and three times markers are
mentioned.
1. \\#1\\ This message was given in the 1st year of King
Nebuchadnezzar.
a. The great king and world conqueror of Babylon.
b. This is the king who reigns when Judah falls and
while Daniel and Ezekiel are taken captives.
c. \\#Jer 52:12\\ Some 19 years later, Jerusalem will
fall.
d. You might remember that Egypt had been controlling
Israel for it was the predominant power.
(1) In fact, Jehoiakim had been put on the throne
by Egypt.
(2) As soon as Nebuchadnezzar comes to the throne,
the political scenery begins to change.
Jer 46:1 The word of the LORD which came to
Jeremiah the prophet against the Gentiles;
2 Against Egypt, against the army of
Pharaohnecho king of Egypt, which was by the
river Euphrates in Carchemish, which
Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the
fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah
king of Judah.
(3) The River Euphrates is in Babylon. If you
are fighting in your land, that means things
have not been going your way of late! So
Egypt was close to conquering Babylon when
Nebuchadnezzar inherited the throne.
2. Jeremiah also gave the year of Jehoiakim’s reign.
a. It was his fourth year.
b. Within four more years, Nebuchadnezzar’s might
will be so great that Egypt withdraws from Israel
and Babylonian takes control \\#2Ki 24:1\\.
2Kings 24:7 And the king of Egypt came not again
any more out of his land: for the king of Babylon
had taken from the river of Egypt unto the river
Euphrates all that pertained to the king of
Egypt.
c. So just four years later, the roles are completely
reversed.
3. \\#3\\ Jeremiah gave the number of years that he had
been preaching.
a. 23 years.
b. In 19 more, the nation would fall.
II. In this message, God gave some very specific information.
A. \\#Jer 25:4-7\\ Cause of Judah’s Demise
1. It is two fold.
a. They turned from God.
b. They refused to return to Him.
2. Every sin that God ever charged Israel with are summed
up in this two. fornication, false worship, thief,
violence, injustice, greed… everything!)
3. The sad reality is that once those who knew God turn
from Him, they are not likely to return.
a. We can understand that from a logical point of
view.
(1) It takes a lot of inertia to move a resting
object; but once you get that object
rolling, especially downhill, it requires
even more effort to stop it and roll it back
uphill.
(a) Israel had gone from being a nation that
was close to God to rolling downhill.
(b) God had sent His prophets to stop them
and to turn them back, but it was not
doing any good.
(c) With every rotation away from God, the
chances that Israel would ever return
got smaller and smaller.
(2) So it is with each individual and nation.
(a) People don’t understand how the momentum
of sin carries them.
(b) We like to think the "small" sins are
safe, but there is no such thing as
small sins, just first ones; for those
first sins always carry us to other
bigger sins.
(c) Don’t see how close to sin you can live
without getting pulled away. See how
far away you can live without getting
pulled at all.
b. We can also understand that from a spiritual point
of view.
(1) When a Christian turns from God, the are
effects.
(a) The conscience becomes seared.
(b) The spirit becomes hard.
(c) The will becomes determined.
(2) To overcome all of these requires a powerful
encounter with God.
(3) Yet, those rolling down the hill are not even
will to put themselves in a position to hear
from God.
(4) So it was with Judah.
B. \\#Jer 25:7-38\\ Consequences of Judah’s Sin - God has
been telling Judah was going to happen to them this
entire book but in this message He gave three new
details.
1. \\#9\\ This king is coming
a. Jeremiah revealed, probably for the first time,
that Babylon and specifically that King
Nebuchadnezzar would come to destroy Judah.
(1) Nebuchadnezzar had been mentioned in the book
before.
(a) \\#Jer 21:2\\ but that message was given
during the days of Zedekiah.
(b) \\#Jer 22:25\\ but that message was
given during the days of Jehoiachin.
(2) Both of these messages, although listed first
in Jeremiah, were given after this one.
(3) Jeremiah orders his book more by topic than by
chronological order.
(a) The first 20 chapters seem to be messages
and reactions of the people.
(b) This section seems to be more messages
and reactions from the rulers.
Jer 25:34 Howl, ye shepherds, and cry; and
wallow yourselves in the ashes, ye principal of
the flock: for the days of your slaughter and of
your dispersions are accomplished; and ye shall
fall like a pleasant vessel.
35 And the shepherds shall have no way to flee,
nor the principal of the flock to escape.
(c) That change seemed to occur once Jeremiah
began recording the details of his
persecutions and arrest by the priests
and kings in Jeremiah 20-21.
(d) I suppose those beatings and arrests gave
him access to take his message from the
people to the rulers—yet another
situation where the devil meant it for
bad but God used it for good.
b. So from the first year of Neb’s reign, Judah will
hear that he is the king that will destroy them.
c. As I have already pointed out, it should not have
been hard for the people to believe as Neb arose
in dominance so quickly.
2. \\#Jer 25:15-17\\ God revealed that Neb would destroy
nations—not just Judah.
a. This was to be a far more reaching judgment than
others had revealed.
b. Jeremiah, either in a vision or with an
illustration, describes the extent of what
Nebuchadnezzar will do.
(1) God gave to Jeremiah a cup of fury.
(2) Jeremiah made all the nations to drink from
it.
(3) So Jeremiah was not just to preach a message
to Judah but to the world.
c. \\#18-26\\ The nations which would fall are
specifically named. (I won’t describe the area
of each country named but suffice it to say that
this covers the Babylonian Empire.
d. \\#29\\ If someone would ask why God would punish
so many others with Israel, God answered that
question.
Jer 25:29 For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the
city which is called by my name, and should ye be
utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished:
for I will call for a sword upon all the
inhabitants of the earth, saith the LORD of
hosts.
e. There is a saying that is often true.
(1) "As things go for Israel, so they go for the
world."
(2) Often, when God is able to bless Israel, He
blesses the world with them.
(3) But often, when God must curse Israel, He
curses the world with them.
(4) Hence, we ought to pray for the peace and
prosperity of Israel. By doing so, we may
be praying for our own peace and prosperity.
f. So God was to bring judgment upon kings far and
near \\#26\\, to the ends of the earth \\#31\\,
and from nation to nation \\#32\\.
3. \\#Jer 25:11-14\\ God revealed for how long Babylon
would dominate the world.
a. It was to be for 70 years.
b. This is an amazing precise prophecy which God’s
people soon accepted.
Da 9:2 In the first year of his reign I Daniel
understood by books the number of the years,
whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the
prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years
in the desolations of Jerusalem.
(1) Some like to say that the Bible was not
accepted until it had been around for
hundreds of years and then some council put
it together.
(2) If that is the way it happened then the Bible
is worthless anyway for it declares that the
godly accepted it almost (it had been 89
years) immediately.
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