O Egypt, You Have Fallen!

O Egypt, You Have Fallen!

Jeremiah 46:13~28

 

□ Praise and Sharing

 Hymn 310 Oh, by the grace of God

 

How was your last week?

 

The reason Judah fell to Babylon was because they did not rely on God and served idols. However, Judah relies on Egypt like an idol to avoid the current disaster. They try to overcome the crisis by relying on external forces rather than faith and obedience. Past history does not teach them any lessons. Egypt can never guarantee Judah's safety. Because Egypt is also subject to judgment. In times of discipline, repentance, not flight, is the answer.

 

□ Words and Sharing

1. Egypt, which Judah believed in, will be burned and devastated (verses 13-19)

1) What did God say to Jeremiah about Egypt? (verses 13-17)

 

 (Jer 46:13) ○ This is the word of the Lord, which He spoke to Jeremiah the prophet regarding Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon coming and attacking the land of Egypt: Jer 43:10, Jer 43:11

(Jer 46:14) Proclaim in Egypt, and proclaim in Migdol, and in Nob, and in Tabaneth, saying, Stand firm, and be ready, for the sword hath devoured you round about. Jer 43:8, Isa 1:20

(Jer 46:15) Why are your warriors fallen? They cannot stand, because the LORD has driven them out. Isaiah 66:15

(Jer 46:16) He caused many to fall, and one fell upon another, saying, “Arise, let us return to our people and to our own country, that we may escape from the sword of violence.”

(Jer 46:17) They cried there, Pharaoh king of Egypt is ruined; he has lost his opportunity.

 

Egypt will be surrounded on all sides by the armies of Babylon, and will fall by the sword and be destroyed.

 

2) What happens to Egypt when the Babylonian army shows its might (verses 18-19)?

 

(Jer 46:18) Thus saith the king, who is called Jehovah of hosts, As I live, he will come as Tabor in the mountains, and as Carmel by the sea.

(Jer 46:19) O daughter of Egypt, pack for yourself the burden of the captives: for Nob shall be desolate, scorched with fire, without an inhabitant.

 

Egypt will be burned and devastated by the Babylonian army.

 

<Sharing 1> Judah held on to Egypt, thinking it would be a source of salvation, but even Egypt was judged by God and burned like Jerusalem. If you have an experience where something you firmly believed in and relied on did not help or was actually harmful, let's share.

 

The use of credit cards and the purchase of officetels have actually added to economic difficulties.

 

2. God leaves us hope for salvation even during judgment (verses 20-28).

 

1) What do the heifer, horsefly, snake, and lumberjack each symbolize? (verses 20-24)

 

 

(Jer 46:20) Although Egypt is a very beautiful heifer, swarms of flies will continue to come from the north. Hosea 10:11

(Jer 46:21) And the hirelings among them were like fattened bulls; they turned and fled together, and did not stand; for the day of calamity has come, and the time of punishment has come.

(Jer 46:22) The voice of Egypt will be like the voice of a serpent; for their armies will come like fellers with axes.

(Jer 46:23) They will cut down his bushes, which cannot be numbered, because they are more numerous than locusts, declares the LORD. Judges 6:5

(Jer 46:24) The daughter of Egypt will be put to shame and given into the hand of the people of the north.

 

(1) Heifer (verse 20): Egypt

(2) Swarm of stable flies (verse 20): Babylon

(3) Snake (verse 22): Egypt

(4) He who cuts down trees (verse 22): Babylon

 

2) What grace did God leave behind while judging Egypt? (verses 25-26)

 

(Jer 46:25) Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will punish Amon of Noh, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, and the gods of Egypt, and the kings, even Pharaoh, and them that trust in him. Jer. 44:30, Ezekiel 32:11

(Jer 46:26) I will deliver them into the hand of those who seek their lives, even into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and into the hand of his servants; then the land will be inhabited as it was before, declares the LORD.

 

He will deliver Egypt into the hands of Babylon, but after that, He will allow Egypt to be populated as before.

 

3) Even though God disciplines the people of Judah, what hope does He leave behind? (verses 27-28)

 

(Jer 46:27) Do not fear, my servant Jacob; do not be dismayed, O Israel; behold, I will save you from afar, and I will save your descendants from the land of captivity; and Jacob will return and live in peace and without worry. No one will make him afraid. lira

(Jer 46:28) Do not fear, my servant Jacob, for I am with you, declares the LORD. I will destroy all the nations where I have scattered you, but you will not pass away. I will discipline you according to my judgment, and I will not hold you guiltless. He said he would do it.

 

Even if the country that took the people of Judah into captivity falls, God will save the people of Judah from there.

 

<Sharing 2> God promised to restore the people of Judah after disciplining them. Therefore, when you are disciplined by God, you should not avoid it but repent. If you have an experience where you realized it was God's discipline and repented, let's share it.

 

After failing to go on a short-term missionary trip abroad without my wife's permission during the coronavirus pandemic, I repented to God.

 

□ Let's pray together

 

Dear God, may we rely only on You, the only faithful God, instead of relying on changing and shakeable things.

Rather than trying to avoid the moment of discipline, please help us have the godliness to honestly repent!

 

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