Jeremiah 46:1-49:39 | Prophecies Against Heathen Nations
Jeremiah 46-49, like Ezekiel 25-32, shifts the burden from the Jews to the Gentiles. According to the Old Testament, this is a turning from the Church to the Heathen. The Heathen Nations were judged in respect to their ill relationship to the Church; therefore, inasmuch as the heathen nations evilly affected the people of God and hastened their declension into sin, or inasmuch as the heathen rejoiced to see God’s judgment of the Church through Babylon and therein blasphemed, God took vengeance. Using Babylon for these prophetically stated purposes is an awesome display of the Majesty of the LORD.
When speaking to the Kings of the earth and prophesying to the kingdoms of the lower world, it is only meet that the LORD refers to Himself in the address, using the title: “the KING, whose name is the LORD of hosts” (Jer. 46:18, 48:15, 51:57; Rev. 17:14). When God says what He wants to say to whom He speaks, He wants the Kings of the earth to know that it’s the KING of Kings who’s speaking! When describing the fate of human armies and the outcome of earthly wars, speaking to earthly warriors, He wants the soldiers of war to know that it’s the LORD of Hosts who’s speaking! When the God of Israel has a message for the heathen, the messenger running the errand is “an ambassador” that is “sent unto the heathen” (Jer. 49:14) on behalf of a transcending and heavenly Kingdom! Therefore, when the Lord counsels and purposes against the nations, transcendent and majestic over all, so do the Kings and Armies whom He chooses to use as invaders (Jer. 49:14, 20, 30). In summation, the conquests and warfare of Babylon against other nations were and will be “the work of the LORD” (Jer. 48:10, Hab. 1:5, 11; Ezek. 29:20).
Howbeit, after all is said and done, it is important to remember that God’s focus was upon the Church to execute in them the judgment written (nonarbitrary judgments). This was, is, and will be the ultimate divine purpose in Babylon’s Rise. Bearing witness to this, Jeremiah and Ezekiel were inspired to dedicate only 18 out of a 100 Chapters of prophecy to the judgment of Heathen Nations (Ezek. 25:1-32:32, 35:1-15, 38:1-39:29; Jer. 46:1-51:64, 25:15-38, 27:1-11). This means that 82 out of 100 Chapters of prophecy were dedicated to God’s judgment of the Church through historical Babylon. This being the case, however, the study of these prophecies to pastime Heathen Nations aren’t irrelevant to the Church in the past, present, or future. I repeat, an in-depth study is necessary! This is true in all ages, but so much the more in the New Covenant seeing that the Gentiles have been brought into Covenant Relationship with God!
While the study of these Chapters is important in all perspectives, and for all Covenants, let us consider the most vital meaning above all others: namely, how these things are relevant to the Last Days Doctrine as revealed in the Book of Revelation. Remember, from a historical perspective (in Old Testament terms), Jeremiah 46-49 and Ezekiel 25-32 do foretell the rise of Babylon by war and conquest at the charges of Lord Sabaoth, the God of Israel, otherwise Babylon wouldn’t have been able to rise and conquer in this manner. Right? Thus, upon comprehending the divine purpose of God in the rise of historical Babylon by war and conquest, we are prepared to reckon with the rise of Spiritual Babylon in the future according to the Book of Revelation.
Specifically speaking, the same analogous terms used in Jeremiah 46-49 and Ezekiel 25-32 are employed in the Trumpets of Revelation 7-9 for the declaring of the very same event! Namely, the Rise of Babylon by War & Conquest! All of the analogous terms of the 6 Trumpets had their fulfillment in Tribulation Period #1 via the rise of historical Babylon to worldwide dominance through war and conquest. Hence, the Spirit of Prophecy drew upon and comprehensively compounded all the old-time prophetic and analogous terms in the judgment of the 6 Trumpets of Revelation Ch. 8-10; thus, we observe the complete and entire fulfillment of the old-time prophecies via the rise of Spiritual Babylon to worldwide dominance through war and conquest.
What analogous terms, you wonder? Well, according to Jeremiah and Ezekiel (not excluding Isaiah), what happened when hail, fire, and blood burnt up trees and grass? In summation of the historical event(s) that took place when hail, fire, and blood burnt up trees and grass in Tribulation Period #1, Babylon attacked, conquered, and dominated! Even so, what happened when the Day of the LORD and the year of visitation came upon the nations of earth? Or, what happened when God determined a cloudy and dark day for a people and sent blood and pestilence into her streets or upon the mountains or filling the rivers? Babylon attacked, conquered, and dominated!
Moreover, what happened when the Lord, and not man, had a sacrifice to make? What happened when the Lord, not man, unsheathed His sword to make it drunk in blood? What happened when the Lord brandished His sword and gave it to man to wield? What happened when the Lord made mighty men and warriors into women in travail, or what happened when whole nations were made into drunkards who were wallowing in their own vomit? Or, what happened when a dragon was plucked from the waters and cast into the wilderness? What happened when the Lord made waters of rivers or seas to overflow and flood lands, cities, and nations? What happened when the Lord made waters desolate and dried, kindled fires, made the sea sorrowful, cut down trees, caused plagues to abound, and brought the four winds from the four quarters of the heavens and the east wind to blow? Namely, Babylon attacked, conquered, and dominated!
These terms, observable in the following Chapters and the like, serve as a guide (a divine tutorial) to interpret what is being foretold in the alarms of Heaven via the 6 Trumpets. For an exhaustive address of the terms that directly correlate with the Trumpets of the Book of Revelation, see Revelation 7-9.