Jeremiah 44

Once again, the people of Israel have (1) promised to follow everything God says to a T, then (2) done the exact opposite of what He says. In our last chapter, God not only warned them that things wouldn’t go well for them if they moved to Egypt, but also promised that they would have a good life if they stayed in occupied Israel. But, the people didn’t listen. They were determined to substitute true security for perceived security.

At this point, I don’t know why God didn’t just give up.

But He didn’t. Yet again, He approached the people of Israel and asked them to reconsider their decision: “Now this is what the Lord God Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘Why bring such great disaster on yourselves by cutting off from Judah the men and women, the children and infants, and so leave yourselves without a remnant? Why arouse my anger with what your hands have made, burning incense to other gods in Egypt, where you have come to live? You will destroy yourselves and make yourselves a curse and an object of reproach among all the nations on earth.’” (vs 7-8)

In other words, God said, Are you really sure you want to do this? Think twice!

God always reasons with us. And it appears from the Old Testament record that He is willing to reason with us again and again and again, ad nauseam. That’s why, at the end of the day, there can be no doubt in a person’s mind as to which road they have chosen. Nobody gets to the camp of the wicked and says, “Oh, gee, I’ve been so deceived. If only I’d known where this road was headed.” Anybody who ultimately chooses the way of the wicked does so knowingly, because they choose it again and again and again, ad nauseam.

If you’ve made a poor decision—something that will separate you from God—don’t worry, God is not going to ignore it. He won’t let you do anything that’s going to cause you spiritual harm without making sure you know full well what you are doing. The God who says, “Come, let us reason together” (Isa 1:18), is still issuing the invitation today. He always reasons with us.