Day 58: Jeremiah 48:1-Lamentations 1:22 - 90 Day Challenge

The Lord Follows Through



Our reading today begins with destruction. First with Moab, then Ammon, then Edom, then Damascus, then Kedar and Hazor, then Elam, then Babylon, and finally Jerusalem. Moab, Ammon, Elam, and Jerusalem will eventually be restored. Edom, Damascus, Kedar and Hazor, and Babylon are not so lucky. 

In fact, all of the end of Jeremiah is just filled with the destruction of these cities and what will happen to them. After describing the fall of Babylon, Jeremiah sends Seraiah to read the scroll that the destruction is written on to the Babylonians. Then he tells Seraiah when he finishes reading the scroll, to tie it to a rock and throw it into the Euphrates river, then tell the Babylonians, "So your city will sink to rise no more." And that's where the words of Jeremiah end,  but not where the book of Jeremiah ends. 

The last chapter of Jeremiah is about the fall of Jerusalem. It's one of the most detailed chapters I think I've read in the Bible thus far, it talks about the famine of the people, and the ultimate destruction of the Lord's Temple. The Babylonians absolutely destroyed it. I recommend reading the chapter completely, to have a full understanding of the detail here, because it's also one of the most tragic parts of the Bible. But remember, the Lord has already promised to save them. 


Our reading ends with the first chapter of Lamentations, and the sadness continues. Lamentations is literally, well, lamentations of Jeremiah (at least, that's who's believed to have wrote Lamentations). And in it, he mourns for his fallen country, and the poor decisions they've made. Much like how many of us may look at the world now and think, "What has the world become?"

Tomorrow's reading: Lamentations 2:1-Ezekiel 12:20
Have a wonderful day!
Jill Jafarace
Director of Student Ministries
New Leaf UMC

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