August 15, 2010
Jeremiah's context
The Northern kingdom of Israel had fallen to the Assyrians. The Assyrian kingdom had collapsed and was replaced by 2 other superpowers: the Persians and the Babylonians. Josiah was the king of Judah, the Southern kingdom of David that survived the Assyrians expansion. The fragile kingdom of Judah came under the power of Babylon and was forced to pay taxes to Babylon. At times Judah would align itself with Egypt and resist paying taxes to Babylon. Eventually Babylon grew tired of this and invaded Judah, deporting the leadership and others that might be a threat of rebellion to Babylon. Only the poorest people were left in Judah.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
In Jeremiah 18:5 God compares Judah with the potter's clay. God has power to reshape the nation to conform to his purposes. We should not become passive/mindless as clay but be willing to accept God's will and let him reshape us to live and serve a life like Christ.
ReplyDelete