The end of exile (1)

On the last Sunday of 2009, we finished our study in the book of Jeremiah by examining chapter 52, a recap of the fall of Judah and destruction of Jerusalem. But several issues remained. What happened to the people of Judah- those left in the land, those taken into exile in Babylon, and those who fled to Egypt, contrary to the LORD’s instructions? This issue becomes all the more pressing in light of the fact that what was prophesied in chapters 50 and 51 regarding Babylon did not come to pass (listen to the sermon from December 6th).
In Jeremiah 25 and 29, the promise was made that the exile would last for seventy years. From other passages in the Old Testament, we learn that some of the exiles returned to the land, after a period of seventy years. The temple was rebuilt, though not without difficulties. Yet, in the minds of the Jewish people, they were still in exile. Yes, they had returned to their land, but they were under the rule of a succession of foreign nations up through New Testament times and beyond. But the real sticking point was that the promises had not been fulfilled. Promises such as those found in Jeremiah 31.
31 “The time is coming,” declares the LORD,
“when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah.
32 It will not be like the covenant
I made with their forefathers
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband to them,”
declares the LORD.
33 “This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel
after that time,” declares the LORD.
“I will put my law in their minds
and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
When Jesus came into the world, He came to a people still in exile. And He signified the end of exile in a number of ways. Remember His words, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”
Some might object: “That’s fine for the Jews, but what about the Gentiles.” They/We were also people still in exile; exiled from Eden and the presence of GOD. Just as exile meant separation, death does as well. In Jesus, we find the possibility of return from exile.

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 9th, 2010 at 6:44 pm and is filed under Damon's Notes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.