Okay, so we made it through the girdle illustration. Hopefully you kept yours on throughout.
Alright, we're coming now to another illustration of wine bottles, and there's certainly a very spiritual element to this one. So, try to think of things in a spiritual sense and not so much the physical.
Jeremiah 13:12 "Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word; `Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine:' and they shall say unto thee, `Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?"
We're going to find here that the bottles here, much as with the girdle, are representative of people. Take note too of the beginning of the verse. Is it "thus saith Jeremiah"? No, it's thus saith the Lord God of Israel. What's the reaction of the people? It's kind of scoffing, mocking, kind of a "well we already know that, quit bothering us" kind of attitude. Friends, if God has something to say, it's best to listen and pay attention. That's whether He speaks through someone or whether He speaks right here in His Word for you to read and hopefully absorb today. Again, what are the bottles?
Jeremiah 13:13 "Then shalt thou say unto them, `Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, even the kings that sit upon David's throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with drunkenness.
How many inhabitants of the land? Was it just a certain segment? No, it was ALL the inhabitants of the land, from the kings and priests right down to the lowliest resident in terms of wealth or status. Again, the bottles are people, and they're going to be stumbling around in a spiritual stupor. We've probably all seen someone drunk, I mean really drunk. It can be comical. But it's not all that funny when someone's soul is on the line.
You know I think too in reading this of both Romans 11:7-8 and Revelation 17. In Romans 11:7 it actually states that Israel hath not obtained that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it. Well who's the election? Well, it's some of Israel but not all. But it's composed of many different races and nations. It's made up of people who love the Lord, who study His Word and who won't be deceived by a fake, i.e. Satan. But then in verse 8 what does it say?
"(According as it is written, "God hath given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear"
unto this day."
And so it is. You have people walking around today who don't have a clue about what's going on in the world today. Why is it happening, what will come of it? They are completely blinded to the reality that it's all coming about as foretold in God's Word. This spirit of slumber can also be translated "stupor". It's not making fun of them. God Himself places it over them. Why? For their protection quite honestly. That way they maintain perhaps SOME DEGREE of innocence. Not saying they are, not saying they're heaven bound, hell bound, that's for God to decide. But they are the type who always seem to have something more important to do than get into God's Word. Hey, no one's perfect, and God understands people and circumstances more than we do. But there are some who will be in a stupor spiritually, and quite frankly already are.
Then Revelation 17 we have the harlot who as it says in verse 2 the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. What fornication? Spiritual fornication by being taken in by the false Christ instead of the true one. Again, spiritual stupor, spiritual slumber, none the wiser until it's too late and the true one returns, and they realize they made a big mistake.
Alright then, back to Jeremiah.
Jeremiah 13:14 "And I will dash them one against another, even the fathers and the sons together, saith the LORD: I will not pity, nor spare, nor have mercy, but destroy them."
Now again, keep in mind this is spiritual and not physical. The drunkenness is spiritual. Keep in mind too that if you can picture a bunch of drunk people crammed together in a room, as an example, they'll probably be running into each other and knocking each other over. So it's as much self destruction as anything else.
But why would God not pity or have mercy on them? Well, to obtain mercy you kind of have to repent and have a change of heart first. They're not going to. How many times does it say in Revelation that the people would not repent of their deeds? Kind of sad isn't it? Actually, it's really sad. Your Father loves you. He created your very soul because he wanted someone like YOU. Let Him know you love Him. Let Him know that you care enough to read and study His letter to you. Don't be in the spiritually drunk crowd. That's not a place you want to be. Be aware spiritually, be sober, diligent, and be blessed. That's a whole lot better than the alternative.
Jason