Read: Jeremiah 6:15-8:7; Colossians 2:8-23; Psalm 78:1-31; Proverbs 24:26
Jeremiah saw that the people who sinned had no conscience of their evil. They were not ashamed that they had turned from the Lord and now worshipped gods who could not help them. They still went through the motions of worship to the Lord, but they mixed it with idolatry. Their hearts were far from the Lord.
God told Jeremiah to go and stand on the gate leading to the Temple. He was to tell those who entered to worship the Lord to repent and change their ways and he would let them stay in this land. He warned them not to trust in the Temple building to save them. They would need to start administering justice to one another. They would need to stop oppressing the foreigner, the widow and the orphan and stop shedding innocent blood. They would need to stop worshiping other gods which only hurt themselves and to turn to him with their whole heart.
He told them to stop believing lies, stop stealing, killing, committing adultery, swearing falsely, and making offerings to Baal and other gods. God told them to go and see what he did to Shiloh, where they used to worship him. Shiloh was a city of Ephraim, "on the north side of Bethel.” Here the tabernacle was set up after the Joshua took over Canaan. It remained here during all the period of the judges till the ark fell into the hands of the Philistines. It was a very secluded spot, which had become a mass of shapeless ruins. God called them to remember this because he would do this to the temple they put all their trust in to save them.
God told Jeremiah to stop praying for these people because he would not hear his prayers. They were bent on worshipping their false gods and had taught their children to do the same. They were doing exactly what he delivered them from in Egypt. Jeremiah could tell them to repent all he wanted to, but they would not turn; they were a nation that did not obey his voice and refused to be disciplined. So their land would become a waste. The bones of the kings of Israel, their leaders, the priests and their prophets would all be brought out of their tombs and laid in the sun to rot.
Paul made it clear in his letter that Christ was the fullness of God and the ultimate authority. It is in Christ that we are saved and raise to walk in his power and authority. He nailed our sins to the cross and disarmed the rulers and authorities on earth and in heavenly places and put them to open shame. He triumphed over them.
All the rituals of the feasts and the Sabbath were shadows of things to come. He warned them not to get caught up and deceived by the visions of man and their stories. He warned them not to get into legalism and man-made religion. It has no value to making anyone holy.
Lord, with all the information we have available to us, may we keep your Word as our ultimate authority. May we measure everything by your Spirit and your Word. May we not be deceived, but walk in your Spirit and your truth. May we learn like Judah had to learn that religion will not save anyone - only true worship will save us.
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