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Bible Question:
Why does God say in Jeremiah 7:22 that He did not command the
Israelites to offer sacrifices? He most certainty did.
Bible Answer:
Jeremiah 7 is a very serious passage of scripture because it
is a warning to the Israelites. The Israelites were indifferent
to God and it was obvious in their life and conduct. They
believed that they could not disappoint God because they
were His chosen people. They trusted in their religious trappings
and in their temple.
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The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, "Stand
in the gate of the LORD’S house and proclaim there
this word, and say, ‘Hear the word of the LORD,
all you of Judah, who enter by these gates to worship
the LORD!’” Thus says the LORD of hosts,
the God of Israel, “Amend your ways and your deeds,
and I will let you dwell in this place. Do not trust
in deceptive words, saying, This is the temple of the
LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD."
(NASB) Jeremiah 7:1-4
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Wrong Heart.
They were living for themselves and not for God. God was not
very important to them. It is unbelievable that they would
worship at the temple in Jerusalem and then worship the "queen
of heaven" and other gods.
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The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the
fire, and the women knead dough to make cakes for the
queen of heaven; and they pour out libations to other
gods in order to spite Me. (NASB) Jeremiah 7:18
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The Queen of Heaven or the Mistress of Heaven was her title
in Mesopotamia. She may have also been the Assyro-Babylonian
goddess called Ishtar (Jer 44:17-19).
The Rebuke.
When we come to Jeremiah 7:22, God is now attempting to help
them understand that He wants their commitment to Him. He
wants their love for Him more than He wants sacrifices and
temples.
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For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them
in the day that I brought them out of the land of
Egypt, concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices.
But this is what I commanded them, saying, "Obey
My voice, and I will be your God, and you will be
My people; and you will walk in all the way which
I command you, that it may be well with you." (NASB)
Jeremiah 7:22-23
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God reminds them that shortly after their departure from Egypt,
He had made a conditional promise to their fathers that if
they would obey Him and keep His covenant, then they would
be His special people. They agreed, but later they did not
obey (Jer. 11:7-8).
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"Now then, if you will indeed
obey My voice
and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession
among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; and
you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." .
. . So Moses came and called the elders of the people,
and set before them all these words which the LORD had
commanded him. And all the people answered together and
said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do!” (NASB)
Exodus 18:5-8
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God wanted their love and emotion. He wanted their heart. They
did not receive God's instructions about the sacrifices until
Moses returned from Mount Sinai in Exodus 24:1-12. God message
to them was simply that He did ask for sacrifices first.
He asked for their love and commitment first.
Conclusion:
The same is true today. God wants your love and commitment
more than anything else. It is easy for us to love our religious
activities and our comfortable life more than Him. The Israelites
worshipped God and other things too! The apostle Paul had
a serious love for God and his commitment for God was serious.
His commitment is obvious when he encouraged Timothy with
these words,
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Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord,
or of me His prisoner; but join with me in suffering
for the gospel according to the power of God, (NASB)
2 Timothy 1:8
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