By Eugene Garner

JEREMIAH - CHAPTER 34

THE PROFANATION OF JEHOVAH'S NAME

    This chapter is dated by the reign of Zedekiah - following the taking of Jeconiah, as a captive, to Babylon. Jerusalem (along with Lachish and Azekah - the only two fortified cities remaining in Judah) is surrounded by an international army, under the dominion of Nebuchadnezzar, which marched against the Holy City in response to the rebellion of Zedekiah, (588 B. C. comp. 2 Chron. 36:11-16).

    The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth of his dominion, and all the people, fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities thereof, saying, 2 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire: 3 And thou shalt not escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou shalt go to Babylon. 4 Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah; Thus saith the LORD of thee, Thou shalt not die by the sword: 5 But thou shalt die in peace: and with the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings which were before thee, so shall they burn odours for thee; and they will lament thee, saying, Ah lord! for I have pronounced the word, saith the LORD. 6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spake all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem, 7 When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah.

    1. Jeremiah is sent to inform the King of Judah that God has given Jerusalem into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar (king of Babylon) who will burn it with fire, (vs. 1-2; comp. 32:29; 37:8-10).
    2. Nor will King Zedekiah escape out of the hands of Nebuchadnezzar (vs. 3; 21:7; 2 Kings 25:1-5); he will also be taken, as a captive, to Babylon.
    3. Zedekiah, however, will NOT fall victim to the sword (vs. 4a); he will die in peace, and will receive an honorable burial, (vs. 4b-5; 2 Chron. 16:14; 21:19).
    4. Jeremiah delivered this message to the king of Judah while the Babylonian army fought against Jerusalem and the remaining strongholds of Judah, (vs. 6-7; comp. 2 Chron. 11:5-12).

    8 This is the word that came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people which were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them; 9 That every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being an Hebrew or an Hebrewess, go free; that none should serve himself of them, to wit, of a Jew his brother. 10 Now when all the princes, and all the people, which had entered into the covenant, heard that every one should let his manservant, and every one his maidservant, go free, that none should serve themselves of them any more, then they obeyed, and let them go. 11 But afterward they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids.

    1. Under the strain of crisis, and quite possibly in an attempt to appease the wrath of God upon the nation's sin, Zedekiah induced all those to whom their Hebrew brethren had contracted themselves as bondservants to solemnly swear to their liberation, (vs. 8-10, 14, 17; comp. 2 Kings 23:2-3; Neh. 5:1-13; Lev. 25:10, 39-46).
      a. Perhaps God would view their act with such favor that He would cause the siege to befitted miraculously!
      b. Beside this, a freedman would be much more apt to fight courageously for the defense of the Holy City!
    2. Shortly after the release of their bondservants the siege was temporarily lifted - obviously due to the distraction of the Babylonians by the advancing army of Egypt, which appeared to be coming to the defense of Judah and Jerusalem, (37:3-9).
    3. When it appeared that Jerusalem had been miraculously spared, and that danger was past, many former slave-holders revoked their solemn pledges of liberty to their brethren and forcibly compelled their return to positions of servitude! (vs. 11; comp. Psa. 78:34-41; Hosea 6:4-7).
    4. It should be noted that God expects men to take their vows seriously - regardless of the circumstances under which they are made. (Psa. 76:11; Eccl. 5:4-6).

    12 Therefore the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, 13 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondmen, saying, 14 At the end of seven years let ye go every man his brother an Hebrew, which hath been sold unto thee; and when he hath served thee six years, thou shalt let him go free from thee: but your fathers hearkened not unto me, neither inclined their ear. 15 And ye were now turned, and had done right in my sight, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before me in the house which is called by my name:

    1. God is highly displeased with the unfair treatment of these bondmen whose liberty has been revoked!
      a. He reminds the nation of the covenant made with their fathers when He had liberated them from the house of bondmen in Egypt, (vs. 13; 31:32; Ex. 20:2; 24:3; 7-8; Deut. 5:3, 27).
      b. According to that covenant, a Hebrew who (having fallen on hard times) contracted himself out to the service of another was to be released from that contract when he had served six years (vs. 14a; Ex. 21:2-11; Dt. 15:1, 12-18; Lev. 25:39-46; I Kings 9:22).
      c. But the nation has constantly refused to hear and obey the word of the covenant in this matter, (vs. 14b; comp. I Sam. 8:7-8; 2 Kings 17:13-14).
    2. God had been pleased with the covenant they had made before Him in the temple, in the midst of the siege - to release the slaves, (vs. 15).
    3. But, when these brethren were again forced into servitude (contrary to that covenant) the Lord regarded the action as a PROFANING of His own Holy Name! (vs. 16, 11; comp. Ezek. 18:24; Ex. 20:7).
      a. The "name" of God is a term symbolizing His character, honor and authority; it suggests His respect for man, as man, and His care for the creature made in His own image.
      b. To "profane" that name is "to bore, to pierce" and, by implication, "to wound, or wrong" - as the defacing of an image or superscription on a coin.
      c. Thus, the action of the nation has libeled (falsified) the name of Jehovah - robbing Him of His honor, and challenging His sovereign authority! And there is a threefold sense in which they had done this.
        1) In the long, persistent disobedience of the nation in their treatment of the slave - while the name of God stood for their CARE, and the law of God required their release after six years of service.
        2) In the selfish motive of Judah's leaders that brought about this release in the midst of the siege - thinking that God could, somehow, be bribed into favoring them, while they were thinking only of their own physical welfare.
        3) In the violation of the oaths they had taken, and their return to willful disobedience, as soon as outward circumstances temporarily removed the fear in which their oaths were rooted.

    17 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Ye have not hearkened unto me, in proclaiming liberty, every one to his brother, and every man to his neighbour: behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the LORD, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will make you to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 And I will give the men that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed the words of the covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in twain, and passed between the parts thereof, 19 The princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, and the priests, and all the people of the land, which passed between the parts of the calf; 20 I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life: and their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth. 21 And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which are gone up from you. 22 Behold, I will command, saith the LORD, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire: and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation without an inhabitant.

    1. Since Judah has acted falsely, with regard to God's covenant, and the release of their bondmen, the Lord will liberate them, (vs. 17); having perverted her own liberty into license, she has, by her self-will, loosed herself from the sphere of God's protecting providence to become enslaved (Lev. 26: 34-39; comp. Matt. 7:2): to the sword, (32:24; 38:2), to pestilence, to famine and to captivity - being scattered among "all the kingdoms of the earth", (29:18; comp. Deut. 28:25, 64).
    2. The covenant that God had made with them was ratified, on their part, by the cutting in half of a calf (their "cutting" of that which symbolized the covenant), and passing between the two parts, (vs. 18-19; comp. Gen. 15:10): this was their solemn pledge to abide by the stipulations of the covenant.
    3. Since they have "transgressed the covenant" (Deut. 17:2; Hos. 6:7; 8:1) in failing to do as they had promised, the Lord will deliver them into the hands of their enemies (comp. 11:21-23; 21:7; 22:24-26) where their dead bodies, like that of the calf, will "be meat for the fowls of the heaven" and the beasts of the earth, (vs. 20; 19:7; comp. I Sam. 17:44-46).
    4. Though the army of Babylon has temporarily lifted the siege against Jerusalem, Jeremiah insists that the Lord will still deliver Zedekiah and his princes into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, (vs. 21; 32:3-4; 39:6-8; 2 Kings 25:18-21; Ezek. 17:16-21).
    5. The Lord Himself will command the Babylonians to take Jerusalem, to burn it with fire, and to make the cities of Judah so desolate that they will be without inhabitant, (vs. 22; 4:7; 33:10; 44:22).
    6. God's name may still be profaned by:
      a. Despising and rebelling against His right to lordship over our lives;
      b. Libeling His character - in professing to practice all sorts of wickedness in His name; and
      c. Robbing Him of the honor and glory that are rightfully due him, by failing to render such faithful, humble and joyful service as should be inspired by His very GOODNESS toward us! And the cost of such profanation is exceedingly high! (Heb. 10:26-31).

    The "Name of God" still stands as a revelation of His character, His honor and His authority - all of which are summed up in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord! Every name and title of God found in the Scriptures is a suggestion, and unveiling, a REVELATION of what God is! His name was SACRED, (Ex. 20:7; Neh. 9:5-6; Prov. 18:10; Isa. 50:10; Mal. 1:11-12). And blessing was associated with His name, (Num. 6:23-27).

I. IT STANDS AS A SYMBOL OF DIVINE RESPECT FOR MEN.

    A. JESUS CLEARLY IDENTIFIED HIMSELF WITH MEN in His incarnation, and in the humbling of Himself in obedience, even unto death, FOR OUR SIN!

    B. The true glory and worth of humanity is revealed in His voluntary laying aside of His divine rights and privileges that He might be tempted "in all points" as we are - triumphing over it all IN OUR BEHALF!

C. Humanity is NOT degraded by the stripping of the Son of Man in our behalf - nor by His loneliness and poverty in human life; instead it is ENNOBLED: He manifested the divine outlook upon humanity -revealing GOD'S RESPECT FOR MAN!

    D. When Jesus was in the world He was not attracted by poverty or wealth; He loved and respected men AS MEN! The "Name of the Lord" also stands as:

II. A SYMBOL OF GOD' S LOVING CARE FOR MANKIND - a care that is manifested in His giving to every man adequate opportunity for the realization of his highest potential in life. THAT is the real MEANING OF SALVATION!

    A. Salvation is NOT some METHOD whereby God reaches down to a depraved, ruined sinner - transforming him into an entirely different being with a different nature.

    B. Nor is it that by which God takes hold of one who is a BEAST and transforms him into an ANGEL!

    C. SALVATION is that whereby God reaches down to man and makes it possible for him TO BE SUCH A MAN AS MAN WAS INTENDED TO BE!

    D. We talk about being "born again"; we OUGHT to talk about it; it is our Lord's teaching - the revelation of the Gospel; but, the New Birth is the way whereby man is RE-ADMITTED into the potentialities and possibilities of his ORIGINAL CREATION!
      1. Man must be viewed as the very "offspring of Deity!
      2. But, we have, through sin, LOST OUR BIRTHRIGHT - and, with it, our sense of relationship with God, and the powers inherent in that relationship.
      3. Salvation comes in our RESTORATION to that which has been lost - that each of us may FIND and REALIZE experimentally the TRUE MEANING OF LIFE!
      4. THIS is God's care for man - as symbolized in His very NAME!

What Practical Bearing Ought this to Have on Our Living?

I. IF WE USE THE NAME OF GOD, let us make sure that we HALLOW IT instead of PROFANING it; there is the terrible possibility of our profaning that holy name while IMAGINING that we are hallowing it.

    A. The name of God is not profaned so terribly by the man from the slum - born with the language of vulgarity on his lips - as by the one who prays in the house of God, but fails to recognize that the hallowing of God's name involves RIGHT ATTITUDES toward his brother, his sister, and his fellow men! To USE the Lord's name, or His word, as a WEAPON for forcing others into a mold of our own making, is to PROFANE His holy name!

    B. TO "HALLOW" GOD'S NAME IS:
      1. To REVERENCE His character.
      2. To defend His honor, and
      3. To OBEY His authority.

    C. THE REAL TEST COMES IN ONE'S ATTITUDE TOWARD HIS FELLOW MEN. We hallow God's name when we respect one another, care for one another, and endeavor to lovingly SERVE one another.

    D. One of the most difficult commandments in the entire New Testament is that which admonishes: "Honor ALL men!"

II. THOUGH ONE EMPLOYS THE WORDS OF THE MODEL PRAYER, in expressing the desire to "hallow" God's name, while holding contempt within his heart for some other person, THAT HOLY NAME IS PROFANED IN THE VERY ACT OF PRAYING!

Contempt of another person, UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES, is NOT Christianity; it is a PROFANING OF THE NAME - the character, honor and authority OF GOD!

III. BECAUSE ISRAEL HAD NEGLECTED JUSTICE AND RIGHTEOUSNESS - component parts of LOVE - God said: "I will give you to the liberty of the sword, and pestilence and famine!"

IV. If the covenant nation so defaces, as to obliterate, the divine image and superscription upon their national character - through a scandalous neglect of humanity - THEN GOD WILL REMINT THE COIN in the furnace of affliction! (Jas. 5:1-6; 1 Jn. 3:15-19).