Mercy and Judgement

I. Introduction

Jeremiah 24.

This prophecy is given in 597 BC.

In 609 BC, Pharoah Nico II killed Josiah in battle and installed his son, Jehoiakim, as a vassal king to Egypt.

Nebuchadnezzar defeated Egypt and Assyria in 605 BC and informed Jehoiakim that he now served Babylon, taking several princes with him as token pledges to Babylon (Daniel).

Jeremiah has been telling all of the people to submit to the Babylonians, but they have continued to rebel.

Jehoiakim rebelled, favoring Egyptian alliances, and Nebuchadnezzar came again in 597, arrested Jehoiakim, and took him to Babylon.

His son, Jehoiachin, is installed as a vassal king by Nebuchadnezzar, but he also rebelled, so only 3 months later, Nebuchadnezzar sends an army.

Jehoiachin surrenders to Nebuchadnezzar and is taken, along with Ezekiel and many others, to Babylon. Second deportation.

Zedekiah is installed as vassal king to Babylon, but he also prefers Egypt and will later rebel as well.

Those who remain believe that they have been spared and that they will enjoy the favor of the Lord in their land.

This prophecy in Ch. 24 is given to those in Judah. Contemporary to this, Jeremiah writes a letter to those exiles already in Babylon, recorded in Ch 29.

Sent along with official correspondence between Zedekiah and Nebuchadnezzar’s court by a royal courier.

The Both prophecies record the fate of the other population. Both use figs.

They focus more on the future of the population to whom they are addressed.

II. Body

Jer 24

Vs 1-3:

Two baskets is “seen.” Reminiscent of His initial call in Ch 1 of the Almond branch and the boiling pot.

Were they really sitting there, or was it in his mind’s eye? “In a vision.”

Two baskets before the temple of the Lord, probably in the context of an offering of first fruits, but likely not in the festival of first fruits. Wrong time of year.

Figs have three edible seasons.

Early spring, buds emerge with flowers inside. You can eat them, but they’re bitter. Famine food.

Leaves emerge.

Old wood buds mature first, harvested early summer (May). Most intense flavor, but fewer of them.

Nahum 3:12 “All your fortresses are like fig trees with first-ripe figs— if shaken they fall into the mouth of the eater.”

Isaiah 28:4 “and the fading flower of its glorious beauty, which is on the head of the rich valley, will be like a first-ripe fig before the summer: when someone sees it, he swallows it as soon as it is in his hand.”

Major crop off of new wood, much more abundant, in the late fall (Oct).

What do you see? Again, similar to Ch. 1. Jeremiah reports without interpretation.

If the vision is of a first-fruits offering, they have been separated by the priest into fruits he’ll eat and those that he will discard.

The farmer was indiscriminate and brought all kinds, but the Lord will only take a fit offering (Gen 4:1-5).

Vs 4-7. The good figs.

God references a basket that has been sorted in the vision, but the goodness of the exiles is not their own quality.

“I will regard as good the exiles from Judah.”

Certainly, Nebuchadnezzar had taken the “creme of the crop,” and those who obeyed Jeremiah and surrendered to the Babylonians had good hearts, but not all of those who went into captivity were innately better people than those left in the lad with Zedekiah.

God has judiciously set his will upon them to bless them.

They will not experience the seige of 586.

Physical blessings accompany a heart turned toward God (vs 7).

Interestingly, after 586, many more Jews from Judah will join them in captivity, and they will likewise become part of the blessed remnant, but only after having gone through much tribulation in the seige.

The wrath of God is directed against the people still in the land, and his wrath will abide there even after 586. There is no lasting remnant of Jews faithful to the Lord for Zerubbabel to find.

The bad figs (vs 8-10).

The bad figs are bad, and God will choose to see those who are in the land the same way.

Still a judicious choice, not a consequence of their nature or innate quality.

Those in the land will receive a familiar list of unfortunate realities.

Jeremiah 29:18 “I will pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them,”

Jeremiah 14:12 “Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.””

They shall be utterly destroyed… They were.

The land I gave them. The land will still be theirs in the future, but not to this generation.

Jer 29, the letter.

Vs 1-3 reiterate the setting.

Vs 4-9, the good figs.

Settle in. You’ll be there for 70 years (vs 10).

Don’t listen to prophets there who say you’ll be back really soon (vs 8-9).

While you are in exile, live life. (vs 4-7).

Those under the wrath of God are not encouraged to have children.

Jer specifically told not to participate in marriage or childrearing because of the impending wrath of God (Jer 16:2).

Those who have children in the context of God’s wrath only add to the pain and remorse (Lam 2:10-12).

In contrast, those in exile are told to marry, give in marriage, and have kids! Increase!

This is not the context of punishment.

God’s plans to prosper (vs 10-14).

Individually, most people in Babylon will die there (70 years).

God’s plans of prosperity are not for the sake of those in captivity, but for the sake of His promises.

To the patriarchs about the land.

To the nations though Messiah.

Their prosperity is national and salvific, not individual and economic.

The bad figs (vs 15-19).

Their punishment is due because the did not listen to the repeated messages of God (vs 19) but rather loved false prophets (vs 20-22).

Ironically, those in Babylon as exiles are not less likely to be idolators by nature.

Some of them may have obeyed Jeremiah’s preaching, but the rest of the book of Jeremiah doesn’t give us any indication that he was widely heeded.

Those in the land receive the same list of foreboding punishments here as in Ch 24. (vs 17-18).

Jesus picks up on this theme of Divine Judgement in Mark 11:12-22.

Markan Sandwich.

Vs 12-14 (Jesus curses the fig tree).

Vs 15-19 (Jesus clenses the temple).

Vs 20-22 (The fig tree revisited).

This structure is used 20 times in the gospel of mark. The “bread” and “meat” help interpret each other.

The fig tree situation, on its own, is odd for many reasons.

Mark overtly tells us that it isn’t the season for figs (vs 13).

Was Jesus looking for the bitter buds? Probably not.

This was in March. The first harvest was still months away (Ironically, Pentecost occurs around the time of the small sweet harvest). Jesus knew that.

Vs 13 is probably meant to cue us to the fact that Jesus was acting out a parable rather than looking for a meal.

“Tree huggers” get mad at this. Poor tree! It was used by the creator of the Universe for the sake of an illustration. He certainly had the right.

The tree had leaves, but no fruit.

Looks good on the outside, but worthless in fact.

A common theme for Jesus (whitewashed tombs).

Even the vehicle of an uninterpreted parable (Luke 13:6-9).

Jesus is not fooled by outward signs. He is after a clean heart and real fruit.

This is why the temple is judged. They have outward signs of faith, but their hearts are far from God.

The outer courts, meant to be a place of prayer for the nations, are a marketplace.

The wealth of Caiaphas’ family was legendary. In fact it was one of the causes of the Jerusalem riots that led to the destruction of the temple in AD 70.

When the disciples see the fig tree, they are amazed and surprised. It looked good, but was fruitless and was judged severely.

III. Conclusion/Application

Jeremiah’s figs and Jesus’ figs both demonstrate that God’s judgement is unhindered.

Exodus 33:19 “And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.”

Romans 9:14–18 “What shall we say then? Is there injustice on God’s part? By no means! For he says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy. For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” So then he has mercy on whomever he wills, and he hardens whomever he wills.”

He chose to see the exiles in Babylon as “good fruit” and to bless them in their captivity.

He chose to see those in Jerusalem as “bad fruit” and to destroy them.

In the NT Markan sandwich, it looks like it is based on works, and it is.

Jesus doesn’t find fruit and withers the tree.

Jesus sees the seeking of wealth over worship and judges the temple.

However, the treatment of “good figs” in captivity bridges the concept.

God will keep working on bad figs until they become good figs, according to His decree.

Luke 13 parable: put manure and dig around it until it bears fruit.

Jeremiah 29:12–14 “Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.”

It’s in exile that idolatrous “bad figs” become “good figs,” although God chose to see them that way immediately.

Jews coming back from Babylon never dealt with paganism or idolatry again.

God judges based on works, and on that basis, we’re all bad figs.

He chose to see the elect as good figs in Christ judiciously from eternity past, and He works on us through sanctification until that’s what we actually are (although never perfectly in this life).