Jeremiah 5
January 12, 2024 3:15 PM
Solitary Man
solitaryman.substack.com/
20240112
(Please refer to the Preface and Introduction sections found in the Jeremiah Chapter 1 commentary for some general information about this chapter by chapter study of Jeremiah).
Chapter 5
Jer 5:1 Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment (mishpat), that seeketh (search by any method, strive after, beg for) the truth (moral fidelity, faithfulness, unshakeability); and I will pardon (spare) it.
It got so bad that not one truly righteous man could be found. This is reminiscent of the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, where God was willing to spare those uniquely wicked cities, even if only 10 righteous were found.
When we turn on the mainstream media, can we doubt that God is asking the same thing of us today? Is there any out there in authority who is truly righteous? At best we may find a few who are a mixture of good and bad. I wonder if God was including Jeremiah in this indictment – he was only asking for one righteous man – didn’t Jeremiah fit the bill? If God judged that even Jeremiah fell short, then woe unto us in the body of Christ! It would not surprise me in the least that our standard of repentance may fall far short of what God is looking for. Why do I say that? Because of the evidence of the calamities and the unanswered prayer all around us this day.
Jer 5:2 And though they say, The LORD liveth; surely they swear falsely.
We talk a good game, we know the doctrines of salvation, healing and deliverance. We say we’re disciples of Jesus, yet can the sinner tell that there is something truly different about you when you come into their presence?
Jer 5:3 O LORD, are not thine eyes upon the truth (whoever is steadfast and immovable)? thou hast stricken (beat, wounded, slaughtered) them, but they have not grieved (sorrowed); thou hast consumed them (ended them, taken them away), but they have refused to receive correction (chastisement, reproof, warning, instruction, rebuke): they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return (shoob – to turn back to the starting point).
What a lot of hard truth to unpack here. First, we need to ask ourself if we meet the criteria of the first sentence. God’s eyes are on those whose faith is immovable. All we need to do is recount how we behaved at the first sign of hardship or unanswered prayer. Did we still cling to God, or were we offended?
From 2020 onward, God has stricken us in a significantly severe way, yet most in the church have refused to repent and admit that we’re under judgment. They have hardened their heart to the truth of God’s wrath that is being displayed right before their very eyes.
If we don’t mourn when we see people suffering all around us due to the jab, the consequences of refusing the jab, the price people are paying for standing up for righteousness, then we haven’t learned a thing. God says we have hardened our own hearts. I become alarmed regularly at how easy I find myself not weeping for the dead, the dying, the blinded in this awful era. I think we’re experiencing in a tiny way what it must of been like to live in a concentration camp in the 40’s. At how evil was so pervasive, so common, that one must of ran out of tears at some point. A numbness sets in. When this occurs, I run back to my prayer closet and ask God to reawaken the compassion of Jesus in my heart, as it’s too easy to let the evil of the world overwhelm you and you start to lose your humanity, bit by bit.
This is part of the interpretation of the verse that says the antichrist will wear out the saints (Dan 7:25).
I found that interesting that when God asks us to return, he wants us to return to the starting point. Let’s go back to the foundations of the faith, found only in the word of God and not in your particular brand or flavour of Christianity. Also, he wants us to remember what it was like when we first got saved – how on fire most of us were, how we just couldn’t shut up about Jesus. Let’s stop getting caught up in some new thing like the Athenians (Ac 17:21) or always running after strange new doctrines (Heb 13:9).
Jer 5:4 Therefore I said, Surely these are poor (weak, thin, needy); they are foolish (slack): for they know not the way of the LORD (Yehovah) nor the judgment (mishpat) of their God (Elohim).
In the historical context, the poor were uneducated, had little access to proper learning, and generally relied upon their betters to instruct them about important things like proper worship. In reality, it is not Jeremiah that is speaking here, but God. God knows the answer to every query he poses, but for dramatic effect he may pose a statement such as this one, to emphasize his point of universal corruption.
I like the alternate meanings of some of the words above. We wouldn’t judge the financially poor to be at a particular disadvantage in knowing the ways of God today, but we would not expect the weak and needy, or the slacker to know much. So, we would search out the so called great men of God that are well known in the land.
Let us recall that the way of the Lord is tied in with his judgments (Dan 4:37). Note the word ‘nor’ is in italics, so it really reads as ‘they know the way of the Lord, the judgment of their God.’ In other words, the way of the Lord is the judgments of God.
Jer 5:5 I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the LORD, and the judgment of their God: but these have altogether broken the yoke, and burst the bonds (restraints).
Same thing is found here in verse 5, the ‘and’ is in italics, so it can read ‘the way of the Lord, the judgment of their God.’ Saying the same thing 2 different ways, as the second part of the phrase simply expands upon the meaning of the first. This truth here is repeated, as God knew that the church would have a tough time with this truth – God’s ways (his manner of thinking, behaviour, actions) are found in the study of his judgments. You want to know how God operates – look to what he does when he judges mankind.
Verse 5 reveals to us the real problem. The leaders in the church and in our culture have made the people blind, because they are blind to God’s mishpat – his verdicts, his decrees, his sentences on our behaviour and the punishments declared. I cannot stress this enough. Why has the church found it so easy to sin and continue in sin during this Laodicean church age? Because of what we’ve been taught. Grace, grace and only grace. In response to some of the legalistic churches we were brought up in, we gravitated to those places that only talked about how much God loves us and has a wonderful plan for your life. About how much he desired to bless, and only bless you. As is typical of human nature, we discarded one extreme, only to plunge into the opposite error.
Can anyone deny that the western church has broken Jesus yoke of discipleship off our necks (which he said was easy to bear), and burst the restraints of holy living off our souls?
Jer 5:6 Wherefore a lion out of the forest shall slay them, and a wolf of the evenings shall spoil them, a leopard shall watch over their cities: every one that goeth out thence shall be torn in pieces: because their transgressions are many, and their backslidings (apostasies) are increased.
Seems as if it doesn’t matter where God’s people would turn, enemies would find them and tear them to pieces. Doesn’t quite sound like ‘kingdom theology’ coming to pass, does it?
Jer 5:7 How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots’ houses.
In North America especially, God blessed us like no other people ever before in history. But we refused to repent, or even see the need for repentance in the first place. Instead we turned to self-indulgence, creating doctrines with no mishpat, no sentences of judgment, and thus could not acknowledge the judgment of God that is occurring all around us. In response, God asks us how can there be forgiveness when there is not even the recognition of the need for genuine repentance?
Here is an example where forgiveness is not always available. We could do a study on all the scriptures where forgiveness is not possible, such as Esau, Saul, Romans 1 and Hebrews 6, but I leave it to the reader to do so.
Jer 5:8 They were as fed horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour’s wife.
A self centred life is one that becomes controlled by one’s lusts. This reminds me of the Ez 16:49, where the sin of Sodom was described by 3 primary things – one of which was fullness of bread. Prosperity is far more spiritually dangerous than most preachers give it credit for. A wise believer should be more wary of material wealth than eager to acquire it.
Jer 5:9 Shall I not visit for these things? saith the LORD: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?
Fascinating that the word nation is goy – a Gentile nation. When God sees his people acting like the heathen, he calls them just that – Gentiles, or those who are outside the covenant of God.
Jer 5:10 Go ye up upon her walls (fortifications), and destroy (ruin, waste); but make not a full end: take away her battlements; for they are not the LORD’S.
We love to quote verses about how God is a hedge of protection all around, about how he sends angels to guard us. How come we never preach on this verse, where he commands our fortifications to be destroyed? For the apostate church, our protections were not of God. We trusted in our prosperity doctrines, we trusted in our bank accounts, we even trusted in our medical and law enforcement systems. These are all now being destroyed completely. We don’t know what it means to trust in God alone for our defence. We are about to find out.
Jer 5:11 For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have dealt very treacherously against me, saith the LORD.
God considers the church that refuses to acknowledge his judgments (which are his ways) as traitorous.
Jer 5:12 They have belied (lied to, lied about, disowned, deceived) the LORD, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword nor famine:
Let us stop and meditate upon this verse until it sinks deep into our souls: God says that we have either lied to him or lied about him, in that these judgments that we see all around us is not the Lord. It’s all from men, or the cabal, or the government, or the devil, or the nephilim, or who knows what. It’s all temporary, God will deliver us just like he delivered Daniel from the lions den, like he delivered the 3 Hebrew boys from the fire, like he delivered Jehoshaphat when he praised the Lord, like he delivered David from the lion and the bear, and from Goliath, like he delivered the Israelites from Egypt, and on and on, etc, etc. How we lust after whatever portion of scripture we wish to be true, yet ignore the obvious and plain meaning of those passages that accurately fit our situation, because we don’t want them to be so.
We can continue to believe that God will restore to us the seven mountains of influence in Babylon, or we can humble ourselves, admit our error, and embrace the truth of the appropriate scriptures for the time that we find ourselves in. Jesus said that we shall know the truth, and the truth will set us free. He did not say that the truth will always be pleasant, or what we want to hear.
Jer 5:13 And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them: thus shall it be done unto them.
False prophets are the order of the day. Wind is the word ruach – usually a very positive term meaning breath or spirit – here it simply means wind, as in windbag.
Do we want to continue to listen to the windbags, giving out meaningless personal prophecies on your favourite Christian tv show, or will we finally put off these childish things and take our place as adult soldiers in this end time battle that is now upon us?
Jer 5:14 Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.
God now switches from speaking about the false prophets, and gives a word to Jeremiah. God’s true word will devour the sinful nation by exposing their lying ways. Alternately, some would interpret this as God still addressing the false prophets, whose lying words will end up destroying the people, who are dry spiritually, and a strong wind would kindle any spark and utterly consume them.
Jer 5:15 Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far, O house of Israel, saith the LORD: it is a mighty nation, it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language thou knowest not, neither understandest what they say.
Jer 5:16 Their quiver is as an open sepulchre, they are all mighty men.
Jer 5:17 And they shall eat up thine harvest, and thy bread, which thy sons and thy daughters should eat: they shall eat up thy flocks and thine herds: they shall eat up thy vines and thy fig trees: they shall impoverish thy fenced cities, wherein thou trustedst, with the sword.
I don’t think it takes much imagination or discernment to see that these verses are being fulfilled right before our very eyes. With our open borders, God is bringing the worst of the heathen to overrun our land. Our traitorous governments are making this happen, and giving them all an abundance of free money, which of course is our nation’s current and future wealth. They are helping to accelerate the bankruptcy of our nation, thus depriving our children of any future inheritance. Our cities are becoming garbage heaps and no go zones, not primarily because of the great reset, but because of the righteous judgments of God upon his sinful people. You may not agree with that, you may hate that statement, but you will not escape the consequences that we are all in the midst of.
Jer 5:18 Nevertheless in those days, saith the LORD, I will not make a full end with you.
At this point in the text some of you don’t know if you can take anymore Jeremiah! I encourage you to not lose heart. There will be moments like these where we will at least find some hope. We are all not doomed to die. We will see later on that if nothing else, God does preserve his own, even it it means the loss of temporal, earthly wealth.
Jer 5:19 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say, Wherefore doeth the LORD our God all these things unto us? then shalt thou answer them, Like as ye have forsaken me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.
Two things come to mind. For Judah, they would be deported to a land that was not their own, a strange land. Yet the text says we shall serve strangers in a land that is not yours. God does not necessarily have to carry us off, he could simply turn our land over to someone else. It seems as if God is choosing this latter punishment for us, as individuals lose more and more property, and foreigners and enemies keep buying up more and more of our lands.
The second point is that there will be many in the body of Christ that will be genuinely bewildered at what is going on around them. One would think that after all the obvious nefarious deeds of the wicked that have already been done, more people would be catching on that we are in a battle for our very continued existence. Yet it is dishearteningly shocking to see how many, even in the church, still have no idea that their lives are forever altered, that their country is already lost. Soon, things will occur that will make it impossible for even the most ignorant to not notice. All those hyper grace, badly taught mega church loving types will finally wake up and wonder where is God. God will answer that it is far too late for you, off to slavery and oppression will you go. There will come a time that even those in the Laodicean church will finally realize that God is against them.
Jer 5:20 Declare this in the house of Jacob, and publish it in Judah, saying,
Jer 5:21 Hear now this, O foolish (silly) people, and without understanding (labe – heart, intellect); which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not:
Most of the church in 2024 is still living in the matrix.
Jer 5:22 Fear ye not me? saith the LORD: will ye not tremble at my presence, which have placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree, that it cannot pass it: and though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail; though they roar, yet can they not pass over it?
How is it possible that you don’t fear God, the one who created everything around you, and controls it by his fixed laws and decrees?
Jer 5:23 But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious (disobedient, bitter) heart; they are revolted (departed, rebelled) and gone (walked away).
God forbid that the Lord would ever say this of us individually, though I dare say he does see large portions of his church in this light today.
Jer 5:24 Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the LORD our God, that giveth rain, both the former and the latter, in his season: he reserveth (guards) unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest.
Why is it so hard to embrace the true fear of the Lord? God guards our blessings in reserve for us, but will only release them when our hearts are turned back to him.
Jer 5:25 Your iniquities have turned away these things, and your sins have withholden good things from you.
Those locked up blessings stay locked up because of our sins. This is step one in prayer. Forget any answers until known sin is dealt with.
Jer 5:26 For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men.
Christians are some of the most naive people on the planet. Because we teach so much about gentle Jesus, we start to believe all people really want to be nice and good. I believe that it is also a lack of genuine masculinity in the church that contributes to this problem. Not just that most of the church is composed of women, but that most men are not real men. They have been coerced, and propagandized not only by the world, but by the unwritten rules of church conduct itself, that male aggressiveness is somehow ungodly. Thus, we have way too many effeminate pastors who have no courage, and contribute to this naivete. But I digress (forgive me!).
To get back on point, Jeremiah says wicked men are amongst my people. Let’s forget about the wicked men outside the church, let’s just talk about those within. Why do they go undetected? Why are they allowed to set traps? Because of false teaching. Men are supposed to protect their families, by almost any means possible. Shepherds are supposed to protect their flocks. This presupposes some male aggressiveness, and a willingness to stop being nice and confront. Yet we don’t like confrontation, we don’t want to offend. We also do not see the wicked because we teach wicked things, like God is so loving he accepts everyone, regardless of lifestyle. You can come up with your own list of doctrines of devils that allow the wicked to flourish within our midst.
Jer 5:27 As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit: therefore they are become great, and waxen rich.
Jer 5:28 They are waxen fat, they shine: yea, they overpass (pass over, look the other way) the deeds of the wicked: they judge (plead) not the cause, the cause of the fatherless (the lonely), yet they prosper; and the right (mishpat) of the needy (destitute) do they not judge.
Of course, this describes the globalists to a tee, their greed and malevolence obvious for all to see. Deception has overtaken all the world, and the deceivers are stealing away all the world’s wealth.
Yet we need look no further than in the church. In Canada, most pastors accepted financial payouts from the government to keep their churches closed during the plandemic, which was the training of the world to accept unlawful and irrational mandates. They locked out the desperate, those who lost their jobs due to mandates, those who were isolated and alone, especially if they did not have a vax passport. Their mishpat was opposite to God’s mishpat. Is it no wonder God allowed 96 churches so far in Canada to be burned or vandalized? These are not churches anymore, but dens of thieves.
Of course, this also applies to all those western heretics that make money the be all and end all of their sermons. (I am about to go on another rant – it seems to be the day to do so, so again, please forgive me!). If I hear one more sermon on Mal 3:10 I think I will scream. I would wager that none of them know any other verses in the book of Malachi, but only the one that they shamelessly use to increase their wealth. Do they know that the entire book is God’s indictment against the priests – the pastors of his day? How come they never preach on Mal 2:3:
Mal 2:3 Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it.
No one wants to talk about how God is so outraged at the priests (pastors) corruption, that God wants to spread dung on their faces! What a sermon that would make!
Moving along, let’s finish the chapter:
Jer 5:29 Shall I not visit (with hostile intent) for these things? saith the LORD: shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation (goy – Gentile) as this?
I think we all know what the obvious answer is. Note again how God calls his own people Gentiles.
Jer 5:30 A wonderful (ruinous, desolate) and horrible (fearful) thing is committed in the land;
Jer 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely (untruths, a sham, a lie), and the priests bear rule (tread down, subjugate, have dominion over) by their means (power); and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the (uttermost) end thereof?
The sense is that the priests rule by their hands – ie, the false prophecies of the false prophets. The priests love to exercise power in this fashion. The saddest thing of all is that the people in general love this system of lies and deceit. Having itching ears, they accumulate leaders to themselves that tell them what to hear. The pastors love it because they get rich off fleecing the sheep. The false prophets have a platform as these corrupt pastors give them a place to minister. They give false prophecies, the people love to hear about how God is always going to bless, heal and prosper them, the pastors get fat off of all the emotionally manipulated offerings – everyone wins!
Yet God leaves us with the final question: What will you do at the uttermost end – when you are about to breathe your last breath, and in a lightning flash of insight and stark illumination, you come to understand exactly what is waiting in store for you as your reward.
Solitary Man
https://solitaryman.substack.com/
