Through Jeremiah in Jerusalem, Daniel in Babylon, and Ezekiel on the banks of the Chebar, the Lord in mercy made clear His eternal purpose. That which He had said He would do for those who proved true to Him, He would surely bring to pass.
(SS 243.1)
In the wilderness wandering the Lord had made abundant provision for His children to keep in remembrance His law. After settlement in Canaan the divine precepts were to be repeated daily in every home. They were to be set to music. Priests were to teach them, and the rulers were to make them their daily study. The Lord commanded Joshua concerning the book of the law: “Do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” Joshua 1:8.
(SS 243.2)
Had this counsel been heeded through the centuries that followed, how different would have been Israel’s history! It was regard for the law that gave Israel strength during the reign of David and the earlier years of Solomon’s rule. Through faith in the living word, reformation was wrought in the days of Elijah and Josiah. And to these same Scriptures, Israel’s richest heritage, Jeremiah appealed in his efforts toward reform. He met the people with the plea, “Hear ye the words of this covenant.” Jeremiah 11:2.
(SS 243.3)
As the armies of the Chaldeans came for the last time to besiege Jerusalem, hope fled from every heart. But God left not to hopeless despair the faithful remnant in the city. Even while Jeremiah was under close surveillance in prison, there came to him fresh revelations concerning Heaven’s willingness to forgive and to save.
(SS 243.4)
Jeremiah, by an acted parable, illustrated before the inhabitants of the fated city his faith in the ultimate fulfillment of God’s purpose for His people. In the presence of witnesses, he purchased an ancestral field in the neighboring village of Anathoth. From every human point of view this purchase of land already under the control of the Babylonians appeared to be folly. The prophet himself had been foretelling the destruction of Jerusalem and a long period of captivity in Babylon. Already advanced in years, he could never hope to receive benefit from the purchase he had made.
(SS 244.1)
However, he had a firm conviction that the Lord purposed to restore to the children of the captivity the Land of Promise. With the eye of faith Jeremiah saw the exiles returning and reoccupying the land of their fathers. Through the purchase of the Anathoth estate he would inspire others with the hope that brought comfort to his own heart.
(SS 244.2)
Having signed the deeds of transfer and secured the countersignatures of witnesses, Jeremiah charged Baruch his secretary: “Take these deeds, ... and put them in an earthenware vessel, that they may last for a long time. For thus says the Lord of hosts ... : Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.” Jeremiah 32:14, 15, RSV.
(SS 244.3)
After arranging for the preservation of the written records, the faith of Jeremiah was now sorely tried. Had he acted presumptuously? Had he given ground for false hope? Could the promises to the chosen nation ever meet with complete fulfillment?
(SS 244.4)
Perplexed in spirit, the prophet appealed to God for further enlightenment concerning the divine purpose. Nebuchadnezzar’s armies were about to take the walls of Zion by storm. Thousands were perishing in a last desperate defense of the city. More thousands were dying of hunger and disease. The besieging towers of the enemy’s forces were already overlooking the walls. “Behold, the siege mounds,” the prophet prayed to God, “have come up to the city to take it, and because of sword and famine and pestilence the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What Thou didst speak has come to pass, and behold, Thou seest it. Yet Thou, O Lord God, hast said to me, ‘Buy the field for money and get witnesses’—though the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans.” Verses 24, 25, RSV.
(SS 244.5)
The prayer was graciously answered. “The word of the Lord unto Jeremiah” in that hour of distress was: “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there anything too hard for Me?” Verses 26, 27. Soon the city’s gates and palaces were to be burned; destruction was imminent and the inhabitants were to be carried away captive; nevertheless the eternal purpose of the Lord was yet to be fulfilled. The Lord declared concerning those on whom His chastisements were falling:
(SS 245.1)
“I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God: I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear Me forever, for the good of them, and of their children after them.”
(SS 245.2)
“Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them. And fields shall be bought in this land, whereof ye say, It is desolate without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans. Men shall buy fields for money, and subscribe evidences, and seal them.” Verses 37-39, 42-44.
(SS 245.3)
“Concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the mounts; and by the sword ... . Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth. And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first. And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against Me; and I will pardon all their iniquities ... .”
(SS 245.4)
“Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ... the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the Lord of hosts: for the Lord is good; for His mercy endureth forever ... . For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the Lord.” Jeremiah 33:4, 6-8, 10, 11.
(SS 246.1)
Thus was the church of God comforted in one of the darkest hours of her long conflict with the forces of evil. Satan had seemingly triumphed, but the Lord was overruling events. His message to the church was: “I am with thee, ... to save thee.”“I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds.” Jeremiah 30:11, 17.
(SS 246.2)
In the glad day of restoration, the tribes of divided Israel were to be reunited as one people. The Lord declared: “I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and with them the blind and the lame ... . They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: ... for I am a Father to Israel.” Jeremiah 31:8, 9.
(SS 246.3)
Humbled in the sight of the nations, those who once had been favored of Heaven above all other peoples of the earth were to learn in exile the lesson of obedience. “I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished,” He declared. Jeremiah 30:11. Yet before all the nations of earth He would demonstrate His plan to bring victory out of apparent defeat, to save rather than to destroy. To the prophet was given the message:
(SS 246.4)
He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock ... . They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion, ... Their life shall be like a watered garden, and they shall languish no more ... . I will turn their mourning into joy, I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow. Jeremiah 31:10-13, RSV
(SS 247)
“Behold, the days come ... that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which My covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: but this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be My people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Verses 31-34.
(SS 247.1)