Jeremiah 46 - Bible Study, Explanation, and Application

Jeremiah 46 Bible Study

INTRO AND TIMELINE:

• Jeremiah was a priest who lived in Anathoth (3 miles from Jerusalem). His ministry was directed towards the people of Judah, immediately before and during their exile in Babylon. His work as a prophet dates from 627 BC through the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BC.

• Jeremiah is the longest book in the English Bible by word count. The book has 52 chapters.

• Jeremiah prophesied under the following Kings of Judah:

• Manasseh (687-642 BC)

• Amos (642-640 BC)

• Josiah (640-609 BC)

• Jehoiakim (initially known as Eliakim, 609-598 BC)

• Jehoiachin (also known as Jeconiah or Coniah, 598-597 BC)

• Zedekiah (His reign ended when Babylon conquered Judah, (597-586 BC)

BATTLE OF CARCHEMISH:

• Baruch worked as Jeremiah’s scribe and was also his ally in the Lord.

• Baruch was the man who administered the deed when God told Jeremiah to buy land in Judah during the Babylonian siege (Jeremiah 32).

• Baruch was the one to whom Jeremiah dictated the scroll containing all the words of the Lord, the scroll King Jehoiakim burned (Jeremiah 36).

• Baruch sided with Jeremiah in his opposition to the remnant of Judah moving to Egypt (Jeremiah 43:3).

OUTLINE:

• SECTION INTRODUCTION (46:1):

  • Verse 1 introduces this section, which encompasses the next several chapters, as a record of God’s prophecies against the foreign nations.

• GOD PROPHESIES AGAINST EGYPT AT CARCHEMISH (46:2-12):

  • The first prophecy against was against Egypt.

  • Pharaoh Neco would meet the Babylonians on the field of battle at Carchemish in the 4th year of King Jehoiakim of Judah.

  • Pharaoh would come out of Egypt with a mighty army, but the Babylonian army would turn his men backwards in retreat.

  • Egypt’s failure on the battlefield would be brought about by God; it was His vengeance on them.

  • God was going to offer a sacrifice, and Egypt was the animal He planned to slaughter.

• GOD PROPHESIES THE INVASION OF EGYPT BY THE BABYLONIANS (46:13-26):

  • God foretold that Babylon would strike the land of Egypt with the sword.

  • He notified the inhabitants of the cities (Migdol, Memphis, and Tahpanhes) that their warriors would be stuck down.

  • The mercenaries who served the Egyptian army would flee and return to their countries.

  • God told the Egyptians to prepare their luggage because some of them would be taken away as prisoners to a foreign land.

• GOD’S PROMISE TO HIS PEOPLE (46:27-28):

  • The chapter concludes with a short promise to God’s people, here referred to as “Jacob My servant.”

  • God told them not to fear. He would destroy other nations, but He would not destroy them.

  • They were being disciplined by God, but He would regather them and bring them back from the lands of their captivity.

APPLICATION:

• When you read your history books or watch history documentaries, don’t forget that the events that are presented through a secular lens have God’s fingerprints all over them.

• The Battle of Carchemish was a significant world event, and it shaped the geopolitical structure of much of the ancient world, almost any historian can tell you that, but did you know the outcome was decided by God?

• God set up the battle to judge the nation of Egypt.

• This fact is very interesting because it informs us that many (if not all) events are under the direction of Heaven and are far less human directed than their surface suggests.