Egypt – Be Still…

Ezekiel 30:1-19 – Who is Your Ally?

Read Ezekiel 30:1-19

We don’t get a time stamp on this reading, and any attempts at dating it are only speculative. What we do see are four oracle pronouncements by the Sovereign God. God is on the move, and his divine intervention will be in battle. The result he promised was a total collapse of Egypt and their allies. “All of Egypt’s allies will fall, and the pride of her power will end.” What a message!

Can you imagine? From exile in Babylon, God was using Ezekiel to announce the fall of a powerful civilization. We still marvel today at those pyramids! Many generations prior to Ezekiel’s words, God had boldly brought an Egyptian ruler to his knees. You may recall how God used Moses to rescue God’s people from slavery and oppression in Egypt. Continue reading “Ezekiel 30:1-19 – Who is Your Ally?”

Ezekiel 29:1-16 – Egypt Beware!

Read Ezekiel 29:1-16

You may have noticed the time stamp of this reading comes before Ezekiel’s previous message to Tyre. And while after the prophecy about Jerusalem’s fall in the 9^th year of captivity, the fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians was not yet complete. This timeline sheds some light on the mindset of the audience hearing these words from Ezekiel in real time.

The siege on Jerusalem would be underway, however there would still be hope among the exiles and those remaining in Judah that rescue would still happen. Historically, the Israelites looked to Egyptian power and protection rather than trusting in God’s plan. This prophecy would send the message that Egypt was not the proper choice. Egypt, too, was a target of the LORD’s judgment and would not be coming to set them free from the Babylonian conquest. Continue reading “Ezekiel 29:1-16 – Egypt Beware!”

Jeremiah 43:1-13 – Choosing the Dud!

Read Jeremiah 43:1-13

looking down on feet on the street with arrows going straight or turning left or right

Do you remember the show, “Let’s Make a Deal”? The premise was that there were always a few good deals but many more duds. People had to make choices without having any idea which was which. The people hearing Jeremiah’s words had a choice before them: stay put with God’s blessing or leave for Egypt and face doom. They knew which was the “dud” but chose it anyway.

The people wanted to do their own thing so much they made the bad assumption Jeremiah was lying about what God said. Anybody who knows Jeremiah’s character would also know he would never give false testimony. I’m sure there were plenty of times when Jeremiah would rather have delivered an entirely different message. God knew from the beginning Jeremiah would be a reliable one to speak for him.