The Jesse Tree: Day 17
THE EXILE AND WAITING
"O come, O Come, Emmanuel, and ransom captive Israel."
he melodious cry that arose from the anguished people of God in exile, estranged from the place they’d always called home. They lifted up their voices, longing for Emmanuel, for the Messiah who would deliver them home, once again.
For years Jeremiah had prophesied in Jerusalem, with pleading proclamations, trying to turn the people to repentance.
For they were religious, contributing offerings and worshipping the LORD in the temple. But afterwards, they carried on with life however they saw fit, praying to the LORD in the morning and pursuing other, more profligate, gods in the afternoon. Jeremiah called out their unfaithfulness, their constant string of religious affairs.
But unfortunately, they refused to listen. They refused to repent.
Because of this, the judgment Jeremiah warned of came to pass. The Babylonians gathered their vast army and swarmed the city, besieging and crushing it. As Jeremiah put it, the cup of the LORD’s wrath was poured out on Israel through the Babylonian military, and they were taken into exile.
Once there, false prophets arose among them, soothsayers speaking false medicine to comfort the people’s pains. Hananiah prophesied, proclaiming:
For years Jeremiah had prophesied in Jerusalem, with pleading proclamations, trying to turn the people to repentance.
For they were religious, contributing offerings and worshipping the LORD in the temple. But afterwards, they carried on with life however they saw fit, praying to the LORD in the morning and pursuing other, more profligate, gods in the afternoon. Jeremiah called out their unfaithfulness, their constant string of religious affairs.
But unfortunately, they refused to listen. They refused to repent.
Because of this, the judgment Jeremiah warned of came to pass. The Babylonians gathered their vast army and swarmed the city, besieging and crushing it. As Jeremiah put it, the cup of the LORD’s wrath was poured out on Israel through the Babylonian military, and they were taken into exile.
Once there, false prophets arose among them, soothsayers speaking false medicine to comfort the people’s pains. Hananiah prophesied, proclaiming:
“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I will bring back to this place all the vessels of the LORD’s house…”
Jeremiah 28:2-3
Jeremiah 28:2-3
Naturally, the exiled Israelites were drawn to these messages of hope, of a quick return to Israel. But there was a problem with these messages—they weren’t true. Their exile wasn’t ending in a day; it would last for 70 years. And these false words would only make enduring that reality more burdensome.
So through the prophet Jeremiah, God sent word to his people in exile, saying:
So through the prophet Jeremiah, God sent word to his people in exile, saying:
“Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”
Jeremiah 29:4-7
Jeremiah 29:4-7
Instead of holding out hope for a quick return, they were to settle and build lives for themselves in exile. And at the close of 70 years, God would return and bring his people back to Israel. Though distant, there was still hope. But in the meantime, they were to go about life as usual, even in exile.
And actually, the same is true of us. As citizens of the kingdom of heaven, we are exiles in this world, carrying on life, building and planting, attending weddings and funerals, going about our days in a land that isn’t our own, all the while, longing for something more, yearning for something final and complete. Home.
In this in-between state, we carry on just like the exiles in Babylon, faithfully seeking the welfare, the flourishing, of the places we’ve settled in. Our apartments and offices, our schools and hospitals, our streets and parks—our city. For in its flourishing, we find our own.
This we’re able to do because one silent night in Bethlehem, God answered the cry of his people, and came to be with them, in Immanuel—God with us, Jesus Christ. He strayed from home, stepping into exile with us, in order to seek our welfare and flourishing. And now we extend his work, laboring and toiling for the good of our city, all the while humming, and lightly singing throughout our days, with the words of hope upon our lips for the end of our exile. For the return of our king:
And actually, the same is true of us. As citizens of the kingdom of heaven, we are exiles in this world, carrying on life, building and planting, attending weddings and funerals, going about our days in a land that isn’t our own, all the while, longing for something more, yearning for something final and complete. Home.
In this in-between state, we carry on just like the exiles in Babylon, faithfully seeking the welfare, the flourishing, of the places we’ve settled in. Our apartments and offices, our schools and hospitals, our streets and parks—our city. For in its flourishing, we find our own.
This we’re able to do because one silent night in Bethlehem, God answered the cry of his people, and came to be with them, in Immanuel—God with us, Jesus Christ. He strayed from home, stepping into exile with us, in order to seek our welfare and flourishing. And now we extend his work, laboring and toiling for the good of our city, all the while humming, and lightly singing throughout our days, with the words of hope upon our lips for the end of our exile. For the return of our king:
“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel…”
Pause to reflect
What areas of influence have you been given where through which you can seek the welfare of your city?
What aspects of life lead you to feel the reality of our exile most? How could you engage with those particular issues for the benefit of yourself and others who feel similarly?
What aspects of life lead you to feel the reality of our exile most? How could you engage with those particular issues for the benefit of yourself and others who feel similarly?
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