Growing with God: A daily devotional with Tonia Slimm.
Jeremiah 32:24 (NIV)
“See how the siege ramps are built up to take the city. Because of the sword, famine and plague, the city will be given into the hands of the Babylonians who are attacking it. What you said has happened, as you now see.”
Jeremiah 32:24 (MSG)
“‘Oh, look at the siege ramps already set in place to take the city. Killing and starvation and disease are on our doorstep. The Babylonians are attacking! The Word you spoke is coming to pass—it’s daily news!”
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“See the siege ramps [of mounded earth that the enemy has built against the walls]; they have come up to the city to capture it. And the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans [of Babylon] who fight against it, because of the sword, the famine and the virulent disease [that have overcome the people]. What You have spoken has come to pass, and behold, You see it.” -AMPLIFIED
“Calamity had culminated in the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonian soldiers. They were about to capture the city, in fulfillment of what the Lord had warned His people about, but He was fully aware of present conditions.” ~Thomas Constable
Jeremiah, as he prayed to the Lord, hid nothing. We found him confessing the sins of the nation:
“They entered and possessed it, but they did not obey you or live according to your instructions. They failed to perform all you commanded them to do, and so you have brought all this disaster on them.” -Jeremiah 32:23 (CSB)
And as his prayer continues, we find him confessing to the Lord, that everything that the Lord had said would happen to Israel when they rebelled against Him would happen, happened. The Lord was as good as His Word:
“Look! The siege ramps are built against the walls of the city. Soon the Chaldeans will begin the assault. Because of war, famine, and disease, the enemy will soon have control of the city. It is all happening as You said it would.” -(VOICE)
Jeremiah was not reciting a pre-written, canned prayer, he was speaking to the Lord from the heart. He was having a conversation, voicing his concerns, one-on-one with the Lord, this was a relationship.
We find Jeremiah pointing out to the Lord something that the Lord was very much aware of:
“Look, Lord, do you see the siege works against the walls of the city? Things are certainly getting near the end of this siege. Soon the Babylonians will conquer the city. Soon war, hunger, and disease will be commonplace within the city. But Lord, you know all of this. You told us how things would go from the beginning, if we chose to rebel against you.” ~Tonia’s Translation
“Jeremiah’s loving familiarity with God is seen in the way he felt he had to show God the siege works of the Babylonians surrounding Jerusalem.” ~David Guzik
Jeremiah tells the Lord:
- “What You have spoken has come to pass, and behold, You see it.” -(AMPC)
- “What you foretold is being fulfilled; here, you see it, yourself.” -(CJB)
- “Everything has happened just as you said.” -(NLT)
Deuteronomy 28:15-68 gives us the forewarning from the Lord about what would happen to Israel if they chose to rebel against the Lord their God. This one verse sums up the warning in its entirety:
“The Lord will send upon you curses, confusion, and rebuke in everything that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed, perishing quickly because of the evil of your deeds, because you have turned away from Me.” -Deuteronomy 28:20 (AMP)
Jeremiah’s expression of deep-set remorse is felt as he communicates with the Lord. We find him confirming to the Lord that everything happened exactly as the Lord had foretold that it would.
“See how the siege mounds have been built against the city walls, and the Babylonians shall conquer the city by sword, famine, and disease. Everything has happened just as you said—as you determined it should!” -(TLB)
“What thou hast spoken is come to pass; thou art just and righteous in all this, and hast done but according to what thou threatenedst to do to a sinful people that would not obey thy voice.” ~Matthew Poole
What God says He will do, He will do. May we never doubt His Word. Scripture reminds us of these principles when it comes to taking God at His Word:
God’s Word is Truth:
“The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your right rulings will surely last forever.” -Psalm 119:160 (VOICE)
God’s Word can be trusted:
“Every word of God will be put to the test and proven true; He is a defense for those who trust in Him.” -Proverbs 30:5 (VOICE)
God’s Word is everlasting:
“My words are always true and always here with you. Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will never pass away.” -Matthew 24:35 (VOICE)
When God says something will happen, it will happen:
“So it is when I declare something. My word will go out and not return to Me empty, but it will do what I wanted; it will accomplish what I determined.” -Isaiah 55:11 (VOICE)
God keeps His promises:
“God is not a man—He doesn’t lie. God isn’t the son of a man to want to take back what He’s said, or say something and not follow through, or speak and not act on it.” -Numbers 23:19 (VOICE)
“Every promise of Scripture is a writing of God, which may be pleaded before Him with this reasonable request, ‘Do as Thou hast said.’ The Heavenly Father will not break His Word to His own child.” ~Charles H. Spurgeon
My friend, we can take God at His Word. What He has said He would do, He will do. He can be trusted. He keeps His promises, every one of them. What we need to learn to do is patiently wait for His work to be done in His time and in His way. Remember this: “My word, which comes from my mouth, is like the rain and snow. It will not come back to me without results. It will accomplish whatever I want and achieve whatever I send it to do.” -Isaiah 55:11 (GW)
“God never made a promise that was too good to be true.” ~Dwight L. Moody
My Prayer:
Adonai Elohim, my Great Lord, I confess, sometimes I grow impatient in waiting on you. I doubt your promises, because they have not come to fruition in my time and in my way. Forgive me, Lord. I know that you are The Promise-Keeper. You have never made a promise that you have not kept. Your Word has never returned to you void, without accomplishing what you intended it to accomplish. I know I can trust you. I know you can be counted on, and your Word is Truth. Lord, help me to rest in your promises. Help me to learn to be patient in the waiting. I believe that your Word is everlasting, truth, trustworthy, and can be counted on. Lord, I am taking you at your Word, do for me what you have promised.
Growing with God 