October 27th, 2019
Jeremiah 33:1-26
“Davidic Hope”
Aux. Texts: 2 Samuel 7:4-16
Call to Worship: Psa 132
Service Orientation: God has promised His people a glorious hope that will correspond with David’s Righteous Branch. The coming shalom of the Messiah is as sure as the sunrise.
Bible Memory Verse for the Week: “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. — Jeremiah 23:5
Background Information:
- (v. 3) God promised to reveal himself through prayer, for he loves to share the secret plan of redemption. Moses declared, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever” (Dt 29:29). The biggest secret of all was the victory of God over sin through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul called salvation in Christ the mystery “hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings” (Rom 16:25-26). (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 498-9)
- (v. 4) Jeremiah had already condemned Jerusalem for burning incense to Baal on its rooftops (32:29). How appropriate, then, for those very same houses to be torn down! (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 499)
- (v. 4) The defenders had used everything, every available piece of wood and stone, to resist the assault of the towering siege machines. How sorely they had underestimated the Lord! How little they knew him! (David M. Gosdeck, The Peoples Bible: Jeremiah, 220)
- (v. 9) Restoration of the land. The name of Jerusalem will be synonymous with God’s loving mercies to His penitent people. (R.K. Harrison, Tyndale OT Commentaries: Jeremiah, 144)
- (vss. 14ff) A few questions are in order here.
- If the promises here are to be understood symbolically, this at once prejudges the disposition of the sacrifices in Ezek 40-48, the interpretation of Isa 66:21-23, and the treatment of Zech 14:16-19. How are these passages to be handled?
- Why is there any need to inject the church and her religious privileges into Israel’s age?
- What is to be done with Mal 2:4, which promises a continuing covenant with Levi?
- Does not Ezek 21:26-27 join turban (= mitre), representative of priesthood, with crown, which unmistakably points to monarchy, both finally resting in the Messiah?
- Is it not the part of safe interpretation not to mix the millennial and temporal with that which is eternal and restricted to the church? (Frank E. Gæbelein, Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Jeremiah, 593)
- (v. 16) Jerusalem will be called by his name because she will partake of his nature, which has been graciously imparted to her. She has the same name as Messiah because of the mystical oneness between them (so JFB; cf. Rom 16:7; 1 Cor 12:12, where the church is identified with “Christ”). (Frank E. Gæbelein, Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Jeremiah, 592)
- (v. 22) There is one more dimension to God’s promises about kingship and priesthood. Through the prophet Jeremiah, God said, “I will make the descendants of David my servant and the Levites who minister before me as countless as the stars of the sky and as measureless as the sand on the seashore (33:22). This promise, which was an echo of the promise God made to Abraham long before (Gn 15:5; 22:17), has now been fulfilled in the church of Jesus Christ. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 520-1)
- (v. 24) The reference to the two kingdoms refers to the former northern kingdom that was deported by the Assyrians in 722 B.C. and the southern kingdom of Judah whose judgment has been the focus of the oracles of Jeremiah. (Tremper Longman III, Understanding the Bible: Jeremiah, 223)
- This chapter concludes the “Book of Consolation” (chs. 30-33). (J. Andrew Dearman, The NIV Application Commentary: Jeremiah, 303)
- Jeremiah’s book thus demands a sequel. That sequel is the book of Matthew, where we read the name of this Jehoiachin–also known as Jeconiah–in the genealogy of Jesus Christ (Mt 1:11-12). Generation after generation, God preserved the succession of the kings of Israel. His promise to David did not fail.
In the fullness of time, Jesus Christ was born as a king. When the Magi came from the east to Jerusalem they asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?” (2:2). The Magi came to the Christ in Bethlehem to offer worship and gifts suitable for a king–gold, frankincense, and myrrh (v. 11).
Jesus Christ suffered as a king. When the soldiers mocked him, they placed a crown of thorns on his head, draped a purple robe over his body, and shouted, “Hail, O king of the Jews!” (Jn 19:2-3). The soldiers spoke mockingly but truthfully: Jesus is the King of the Jews.
Then Jesus died as a king. Pontius Pilate had a notice made and nailed to the cross. It read: “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (v. 19). (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 517-8)
The question to be answered is . . . What future hope can God’s people look forward to?
Answer: A day is coming in which all will be shalom. This day will correspond with the coming of the Messiah, David’s righteous Branch.
The people of Israel were saying that God had failed. They allowed their troubles to cast doubt on God’s promises. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 517)
Above everything else, Yahweh is a God of comfort. He disciplines his people when he must, but he never forsakes them. (Max Anders, Holman OT Commentary: Jeremiah, 267)
The Word for the Day is . . . Messiah
What future hope can God’s people look forward to?:
I- A day is coming in which all will be shalom (peace, prosperity and love). (Jer 33:10-12, 16; see also: Isa 11:6-9; 65:17-25; 66:22 Jer 31:31-34; Ezek 34:11-16; 34:25; Hos 2:18; Zeph 3:11-13; Zech 9:9-10; 14:3-5, 16-21; Mt 19:28; 2 Pt 3:13; Rv 7:16-17; 21:1-5)
Literally, he promised to “reverse their reversals” {v. 11} (this is another one of Jeremiah’s puns). Sorrow would be turned into joy. Whatever had been undone in justice would be redone in mercy. God would put everything back in its place. Peace and safety would return to his people. The proof would come in three leading indicators of peace or shalom: Weddings, thanksgiving, and farming would return to the people of God. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 507)
God would restore the fortunes of Israel. Weddings, thanksgiving, farming–these were unmistakable signs of a land at peace. When young men and maidens plan a wedding, when believers meet in the Lord’s house to give thanks, and when shepherds watch their flocks by night, the whole land has been healed. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 509)
II- David’s Righteous Branch will usher in this future hope. (Jer 33:15, 17, 21-22; see also: Isa 55:3; Jer 23:5; 30:9; Ezek 34:23-24; 37:24-25; Hos 3:5; Mt 1:1, 6, 17, 20; 9:27; 12:23; 15:22; 20:20-31; 21:9-15; 22:42-45; Mk 10:47-48; 11:10; 12:35-37; Lk 1:27, 32, 69; 2:4, 11; 3:31; 18:38-39; 20:41-44; Jn 7:42; Acts 13:34; Rom 1:3;1 Cor 15:22-28; 2 Tm 2:8; Rv 5:5; 22:16)
The Christmas story in the Gospel of Luke fulfills these promises. A couple of newlyweds went up from Nazareth to a little town in Judea and gave birth to a son. Yes! Of course! They went to the hill country, to a village around Jerusalem, to one of the towns of Judah.” And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night” (Lk 2:8). Exactly! Just as Jeremiah had promised! The King came when there were shepherds in the hills giving rest to their sheep. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 510-1)
The priesthood of Jesus Christ is most clearly explained in the book of Hebrews, where Jesus is portrayed as the perfect High Priest for God’s people. His priesthood is superior in every way, but especially because he is “a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 5:6). Incidentally, contrary to what some have said, the fact that Jesus is a priest in the order of Melchizedek rather than Levi is not a problem for Jeremiah’s prophecy (see Heb 7:11). Jeremiah did not promise a priest from the Levites but a priest for the Levites (33:18). (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 520)
Only in a limited and preliminary way were these promises fulfilled in Zerubbabel and Sheshbazzar after the Captivity (cf. Ezra 1:8; 2:2; also 2:40-54; 8:15-20). Ultimately, they are combined in the highest sense in Christ (cf. Ps 110:4) and are yet to be fulfilled in the reign of Messiah on earth. (Frank E. Gæbelein, Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Jeremiah, 591)
There is something else Jesus will do forever. Jeremiah’s promise was a double promise, two for the price of one. He went on to say: “Nor will the priests, who are Levites, ever fail to have a man to stand before me continually to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings and to present sacrifices” (v. 18). In other words, the Messiah’s eternal kingship would be matched by his permanent priesthood. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 519)
Jesus Christ was no usurper; he was David’s rightful heir. He fulfilled the covenant God made with David, that one of his sons would rule forever on the throne of Israel. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 512)
Jesus Christ is a just king. He is “righteous in enacting laws, waging wars, and giving judgment, righteous in vindicating those that suffer wrong and punishing those that do wrong. (Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible, vol. 5, n.p.)
Jeremiah does not reveal as much about the coming Messiah as Isaiah does, but nevertheless provides glimpses of Christ as the Fountain of living waters (2:13), the good Shepherd (23:4; 31:10), the righteous Branch (23:5), the Redeemer (50:34), the Lord our righteousness (23:6) and David the king (30:9). Verses 15-16 repeat the theme of 23:5f. with some variations, promising that a king would emerge from Davidic lineage to restore the old dynasty. (R.K. Harrison, Tyndale OT Commentaries: Jeremiah, 144)
Worship Point: Worship the God Who holds the future and Whose promises are as certain as the planetary movements. (Jer 33:20, 25)
The very idea of God breaking his covenant with the day and the night is absurd, and so is the idea that he could break his covenant with David and Levi. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 521)
Some collateral! God placed the sun and the moon on the bargaining table. He offered the heavenly bodies as a security deposit for his covenant promise. If God ever fails to provide an eternal King or a permanent priest, then the sun and the moon will be yours to keep! (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 521)
The Lord has kept his every word. His promise will not fail because it is rooted in love. His love compels him. God reminded his people that in free love, that love which lies at the center of his being, he chose Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Because of that love he made an oath with them that in their descendant, Jesus Christ, all the nations of the earth would be blessed. For him to break that oath, he would have had to deny the love which expresses all that he is. If he ceased loving, he would cease to be God. Then everything would dissolve into nothingness. But this has not happened, for God is love. (David M. Gosdeck, The Peoples Bible: Jeremiah, 223-4)
Gospel Application: Jesus the Messiah has come and lived the life necessary and died the death required to provide the capital God demands to insure our future hope. He is the Righteous Branch of David. (Rom 3:21-22; 10:3-4; 1 Cor 1:30; 2 Cor 5:21; Phil 3:8-9)
Sinners do not have a righteousness of their own to protect them from the wrath and curse of God. But Jesus Christ is the King who gives his righteousness to his people. If you know Christ in a personal way, then “you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God–that is, our righteousness (1 Cor 1:30). The righteousness of Christ belongs to the Christian. His righteousness becomes our righteousness. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 512)
Jesus Christ has conquered all the enemies of God. He reigns supreme over sin, death, and the devil. His kingship is a saving kingship, for he has come to save his people from their sins. He brings peace and safety to the people of God, protecting them from eternal judgment and the wrath of God. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 512)
But here is something great and unsearchable to know: God will cleanse his people from all the sin they have committed and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against him. This is pardon for sin, full and free. God promises atonement for sin and for sins. All original sin will be cleansed, and all actual sins will be forgiven. The root of sin will be dug up, and the fruit of sin will be destroyed. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 501-2)
Spiritual Challenge: Live in light of this future hope. Seek to know and understand the promises of God to His people. Don’t lose in the dark what you knew to be true in the Light.
The phrase great and unsearchable things is a reference to future events. Humans cannot know for certain what will happen in their future, but God can, and here he will choose to reveal what will happen. (Tremper Longman III, Understanding the Bible: Jeremiah, 221)
If your origin is insignificant, and if your destiny is insignificant, then have the guts to admit that your life and your current existence is insignificant. —Tim Keller
Theologian Robert Jenson has argued that in the West, the world has thus “lost its story;” we have lost the sense that the world is a “narratable reality.” Without a meaningful origin, without a meaningful and purposive eschaton, history becomes a tale not tellable at all, not even by an idiot. And where there is no origin and no eschaton, there can be no hope. (Ken Myers, Mars Hill Audio Newsletter, July 2007)
The word translated “unsearchable” pictures an impregnable city protected by high walls–an apt image during the siege of Jerusalem. The idea is that God’s people don’t learn the hidden things of the Lord by “storming the gates” through their own strength but by seeking Him through believing prayer. Because Jeremiah asked the Lord to teach him, God showed him “hidden things” that related to the future of his people. (Warren Wiersbe, Be Decisive, 155)
THE CHRISTIAN’S PERSONAL IDENTITY:
I believe that in Christ Jesus my sins have been fully and freely forgiven, and I am a new creation. I have died with Christ to my old identity in Adam. I have been raised with Christ to a new life. I am seated in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. God has given to me the full righteousness of Jesus Christ. I am joined with angels, archangels, and all the saints in heaven. God is my Father, and if He is for me, who can be against me? Because of who I am in Christ, I am more than a conqueror. In fact, I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me. Christ Jesus is my life! Everything in my life here on this earth is working out for good according to the purposes of God. Christ Jesus Himself dwells within me. I have been called according to the purposes of God. These things I believe and confess, because God, my Father in heaven, says they are true. Amen! (Don Matzat; Christ Esteem, 96)
The fact that God never fails explains the significance of the ending of Jeremiah’s book. This is one time it is good to peek at the ending of the book before we get there. The last chapter of Jeremiah closes with this report on Jehoiachin, son of David, king of Judah:
In the year Evil-Merodach became king of Babylon, he released Jehoiachin king of Judah and freed him from prison. . . He spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat of honor higher than those of the other kings who were with him in Babylon. So Jehoiachin put aside his prison clothes and for the rest of his life ate regularly at the king’s table (52:31-33).
This little epilogue is not quite “happily ever after,” but it comes close. It shows that God never forgot his promise to David. Even though God’s people were in captivity, David’s rightful heir was alive and well. He was still known as the “king of Judah” (v. 31), and he was flourishing in the courts of Babylon. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 517)
Raking is easy, but all you get is leaves; digging is hard, but you might find diamonds. (John Piper, Future Grace, 16)
Spiritual Challenge Questions:
- What is there about David that God would be inclined to make such an “over-the-top” promise to him?
- The “now not yet” promises that God makes to David and through His prophets are so “over-the-top” that they have not even come close to being fulfilled. What is both encouraging and discouraging about this fact?
- How do these promises of the future new creation empower God’s people to “hang-in-there” when their faith is being tested?
So What?: Because of Jesus, believers can live as overcomers (Jn 16:33); even more than conquerors (Rom 8:37; 1 Cor 15:58) in spite of the FWS (Jn 16:33).
Jesus says that the root of anxiety is inadequate faith in our Father’s future grace. As unbelief gets the upper hand in our hearts, one of the effects is anxiety. The root cause of anxiety is a failure to trust all that God has promised to be for us in Jesus. (John Piper, Future Grace, 54)
The battle against despondency is a battle to believe the promises of God. And that belief in God’s future grace come by hearing the Word. And so preaching to ourselves is at the heart of the battle. But I stress again that the issue is this chapter is not mainly how to avoid meeting despondency, but how to fight it when it comes. (John Piper; Future Grace, 304)
Jews who do not accept Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah have no one to atone for their sins. The temple in Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A.D. and has not been rebuilt. No priests offer burnt offerings for the Jews. No Levites stand before God to make atonement for them. Unless Jesus is the Messiah, therefore, the promise of a permanent priesthood has failed.
The same may be said of the promise of an eternal King, since no descendant of David presently rules over the house of Israel. If Christ is not the King, there is no king of the Jews. If Christ is not the Priest, there is no priest for the Jews. So if Jesus is not the Messiah, the promises of God have failed. (Philip Graham Ryken, Preaching the Word: Jeremiah, 519)
“What we need very badly these days is a company of Christians who are prepared to trust God as completely now as they know they must do at the last day. For each of us the time is coming when we shall have nothing but God. Health and wealth and friends and hiding places will be swept away, and we shall have only God. To the man of pseudo faith that is a terrifying thought, but to real faith it is one of the most comforting thoughts the heart can entertain.” A. W. Tozer (1897-1963)
JESUS:
MESSIAH