God's Purifying Care Over Rebellious Children

The last recorded message of Jeremiah is given to the exiles who fled to Egypt. Jeremiah had been taken with them under the control of the rebel leader, Johanan. By this time, he had been ministering for 46 years. Everything he wrote about concerning the nation of Judah and the rise of Babylon came true. Everything the popular opinion held to be true proved false. That's often how it is. The minority, in the name of the Lord, is scorned by the majority, which seeks the wisdom and help of men. 

In this particular message, Jeremiah tells those who fled to Egypt that God is still in charge and through Nebuchadnezzar, he will reach His mighty hand even in this land they consider a safe harbor. 

Jeremiah 43:10 (ESV) ... say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will set his throne above these stones that I have hidden, and he will spread his royal canopy over them.

You must remember from the Torah, God's specific command concerning Egypt for the Israelites. They were restricted from ever going back to that land. 

Regarding the stipulations for the king of Israel, God says:

Deuteronomy 17:16 (ESV) Only he must not acquire many horses for himself or cause the people to return to Egypt in order to acquire many horses, since the LORD has said to you, ‘You shall never return that way again.’

What will Nebuchadnezzar do as the servant of God in Egypt? He will carry on the Lord's work at the present moment.

Jeremiah 43:11 (ESV) He shall come and strike the land of Egypt, giving over to the pestilence those who are doomed to the pestilence, to captivity those who are doomed to captivity, and to the sword those who are doomed to the sword.

Then Jeremiah speaks more about God's purpose in using Nebuchadnezzar as an instrument of judgment. Notice the words.

Jeremiah 43:12 (ESV) I shall kindle a fire in the temples of the gods of Egypt, and he shall burn them and carry them away captive. And he shall clean the land of Egypt as a shepherd cleans his cloak of vermin, and he shall go away from there in peace.

The judgment of God is a cleansing agent. He wipes out the desire for idols in Israel through their exile. He will also chastise all those He loves with refining fire to purge the evil from their hearts. When this happens, God isn't hurting you. He's washing you. 

The larger story of Jeremiah 43 is a simple lesson for us to remember. We cannot hide from God's work to cleanse and purify us. We also must never think we can hide from God in our old life. For Israel, Egypt represented their old life of slavery. It serves as a picture for us of the sinful life to which we were once bound. We sometimes might be tempted to go back to our old life because the new life is filled with God's pruning and purging. To do so is a fool's errand. For God can also reach into that dark place and snatch us from the fire. 

When He does, it may hurt, but it's actually healing.