The Strand Study Bible

JEREMIAH 16:12

JEREMIAH 17:4

1170

12 And ye have done worse than your fathers; for, behold, ye walk every one after the imagination of his evil heart, that they may not hearken unto me: 13 Therefore will I cast you out of this land into a land that ye know not, neither ye nor your fathers; and there shall ye serve other gods day and night; where I will not shew you favour. P The promise of Israel’s restoration (Fulfilled - Rev 20:4) 14 Therefore, behold, 2 the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be said, The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; P 15 But, The 2 LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them: and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. P 16 Behold, I will send for many fish- ers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunt- ers, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks. 17 For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity hid from mine eyes. 18 And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double; because they have defiled my land, they have filled mine

inheritance with the carcases of their detestable and abominable things. 19 OLORD, my strength, andmy fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction, 2 the Gentiles shall come unto thee from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. P 20 Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods? 21 2 Therefore, behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know mine hand and my might; and they shall know that my name is The LORD. P Jeremiah 17 1 The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond: it is graven upon the table of their heart, and upon the horns of your altars; 2 Whilst their children remember their altars and their groves by the green trees upon the high hills. 3 O my mountain in the field, I will give thy substance and all thy treasures to the spoil, and thy high places for sin, throughout all thy borders. 4 And thou, even thyself, shalt discontinue from thine heritage that I gave thee; and I will cause thee to serve thine enemies in the land which thou knowest not: for ye have kindled a fire in mine anger, which shall burn for ever. The utter depravity of the human heart (Note - This portion of Jeremiah’s prophecy took place in the 6th year of King Jehoiakim’s reign) Date Written - c. 603 BC/AM 3397

1. Fulfilled - II Ki 25 (Fall of Judah) 2. Fulfilled - Rev 20:4 (Israel’s Restoration)

17:4 God is a person. He has a mind to think, a heart to feel, and a will to act; thus He can experience anger. The goal of every creature, created in His image, is NOT to “fan the flame” ( kindled a fire ) of that anger. We know it’s there, so why would anyone in their right mind want to “ignite” it? Question is: What angers God? Chances are what angers you doesn’t anger God; for His anger is “justified,” whereas our anger is “just because.” According to the Bible, there are a number of things that “ignite the fire” of God’s anger: 1. Breaking God’s Word (sin – vs 1 and Deut 9:18-21) – Improper reaction to the Word of God is an act of pride, i.e., sin (I Ki 21:17-29, II Chro 12:2-12 & 30:1-11 & 33:10-23 & 34:27, II Ki 20:14-19 and Jere 13:15-18), and pride angers God (Prov 6:16-19). That is what sin is –it’s breaking God’s Word due to pride (I Ki 8:44-49). 2. Bargaining with God (Gen 18:22-30) – Bargaining is nothing more than an act of selfishness; an act of trying to benefit from dealing. God doesn’t do deals; He, because of His omniscience, just does. To try and thwart what He does for what you want Him to do angers Him, and Abraham knew it (vs 30). Abraham knew he was taking a chance by bargaining with God. Because he selfishly wanted to try and salvage his nephew (Lot), which was his will (not God’s), Abraham tried to negotiate certain terms. Interestingly enough, the bargaining did little to change the outcome in Lot’s life (Gen 19:24-38). 3. Breaking God’s pictures (Deut 1:37 & 4:21) – The reason God was angry with Moses is because Moses broke God’s picture ( Exo 17:6 and Num 20:11 -12). God gets angry with anyone who tries to break His pictures: * His picture of salvation , illustrated by water coming out of the ROCK (Exo 17:6/Num 20:11-12 and I Cor 10:1-4) * His picture of the SAVIOR , illustrated by the lamb (Gen 4:1-13 and Mal 1:6-10) and by the elements used in the Lord’s Supper (I Cor 11:23-30) * His picture of service to the SAVIOR , illustrated by the tabernacle (Lev 10:1-2) NOTE – If you want to avoid the wrath of God’s anger, then you must avoid those things that “fan the flame.”