In this episode of Prophet Pearls, Bo (Jeremiah 46:13-28) Jeremiah, the prophet to the nations, foretells another “smiting” for Egypt—providing the connection to the Torah portion where the Lord, with a strong hand, brought his people out of Egypt. This time though, the smiting is at the hand of the Babylonians—a fact that provides another glimpse into the ways and means of Yehovah.

We learn more about the “iron furnace” that appears three times in the Tanakh—the crucible God used to turn a family of shepherds into a nation. We see an example of Yehovah swearing by his own name and Gordon provides an explanation for the “forest” in Egypt that was cut down. As we read of the “full end” planned for the nations of the exile, we’re reminded of the warnings in the Tanakh “not to be glad” because part of being faithful to Yehovah is caring about all human beings. Word studies include: “plague/makot,” “savior/moshiach,” and “tremble/maharid,”—with its root chet-reish-dalet and its connection to Haredi Judaism. Johnson closes with a prayer for hearts of peace—hearts that bring light and that hold God’s perspective for the nations of the world.

The original artwork at the top of this post was created for this episode of Prophet Pearls by Anna Jakubowski. It portrays Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon having dominion over Egypt and Jacob being protected.

"I will deliver [Egypt]... into the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar... But you, Have no fear, My servant Jacob..." (Jeremiah 46:25-7)

I look forward to reading your comments!

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