Jer 33:1-13  They Shall Fear and Tremble for all the Goodness and for all the Prosperity that I Procure Unto [Them]

[Study Aired March 13, 2022]

Jer 33:1  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,
Jer 33:2  Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name;
Jer 33:3  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.
Jer 33:4  For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the mounts, and by the sword;
Jer 33:5  They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city.
Jer 33:6  Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.
Jer 33:7  And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.
Jer 33:8  And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me.
Jer 33:9  And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it.
Jer 33:10  Thus saith the LORD; Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant, and without beast,
Jer 33:11  The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.
Jer 33:12  Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.
Jer 33:13  In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth them, saith the LORD.

This study begins by informing us that this is the second time the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison.

Jer 33:1  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the prison, saying,

We need to remember that when the Lord gives us the same message “the second time” it signifies that this message is established and will “shortly [be brought] to pass”:

Gen 41:32  And for that the dream was doubled unto Pharaoh twice; it is because the thing is established by God, and God will shortly bring it to pass.

Jer 33:2  Thus saith the LORD the maker thereof, the LORD that formed it, to establish it; the LORD is his name;

What is it that “the Lord is the maker thereof”? What is it he has “formed [and] established”? Here is His own answer to all those questions:

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

1Co 3:21  Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours;

1Co 3:22  Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;

We have learned that the Lord uses a formula in His dealings with His creatures. We see that formula being adhered to throughout the scriptures, and He tells us many times what that formula is.

Here are a few statements which reveal to us how the Lord works with every man:

Psa 50:15  And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

We simply cannot ‘glorify God’ until we are given to see that “all things are [ours]”. The fact is that until we are granted to acknowledge ourselves as ‘chief of sinners’, we will not be able to accept that ‘all things are ours’ includes being given to see that we are first an unfaithful wife before the Lord pours out His wrath upon us and drags us out of Babylon.

Zedekiah simply was not given to acknowledge his self-righteous iniquity and submit to the man the Lord had sent to chasten him and his self-righteous people. We have either each been in that position, or we are yet to be in that position. The leaders of every nation on this earth self-righteously justify their rebellious false doctrines which directly contradict the doctrines of Christ. We are one and all righteous in our own eyes:

Job 32:1  So these three men ceased to answer Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.

Psa 36:2  For he flattereth himself in his own eyes, until his iniquity be found to be hateful.

Pro 16:2  All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weigheth the spirits.

Remember what we just read in Proverbs 16:4 and in Isaiah 45:7. It is the Lord who has made all things for Himself, including “the wicked for the day of evil” of Proverbs 16:4, which is the same as “the day of trouble” of Psalm 50:15. He brings us into trouble for the purpose of bringing us out of our troubles after we have been chastened and scourged for our good:

Deu 30:1  And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath driven thee,
Deu 30:2  And shalt return unto the LORD thy God, and shalt obey his voice according to all that I command thee this day, thou and thy children, with all thine heart, and with all thy soul;
Deu 30:3  That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee.

Psalm 107 makes this point very clear where we are informed:

Psa 107:23  They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters;
Psa 107:24  These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep [In His creatures, Rev 13:1].
Psa 107:25  For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.
Psa 107:28  Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.
Psa 107:29  He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Psa 107:30  Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.
Psa 107:31  Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and  for his wonderful works to the children of men!

Jer 33:3  Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

The “great and mighty things, which thou knowest not” include the knowledge of “His wonders in the deep” meaning how He is dealing with His creatures (Rev 13:1). The ‘great and mighty works which thou knowest not’ includes being granted to know that it is the Lord Himself who commands and raises up the stormy winds of this life which is short and full of trouble:

Job 14:1  Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.

It is the Lord Himself who has ordained that these marred clay vessels would reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man until we are brought to our wits’ end. The ‘great and mighty things which we know not’ also include the fact that all the humiliation of this rebellious and yet self-righteous mind was intended all along to humble us and give the Lord the occasion He is seeking to destroy the powers and principalities which govern our old man whose flesh cannot inherit the kingdom of God (1Co 3:13-16, 1Co 15:50, 2Th 2:8)

Being humbled and humiliated by the self-righteous, rebellious actions of our old man are the first prerequisites for being entrusted with the true riches which we have been given, and it is all a part of the formula the Lord devised for the salvation of His creatures “before the beginning of the world”.

2Sa 14:14  For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it.

Being humbled and humiliated is a fiery experience which destroys the self-righteous kingdom of our old man within each of us.

1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14  If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15  If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.
1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Remember “all things are yours” and ‘all things are mine’, and there is no man who has ever lived who has not defiled the temple of God and who must therefore ‘die daily and be crucified with Christ’, and suffer the destruction of the man of sin within each of us at “the brightness of His coming”:

2Th 2:3  Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day [“of the Lord”] shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
2Th 2:4  Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
2Th 2:5  Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
2Th 2:6  And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

The destruction of the kingdom of the man of sin within us is the message of these verses:

Jer 33:4  For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are thrown down by the mounts, and by the sword;
Jer 33:5  They come to fight with the Chaldeans, but it is to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in mine anger and in my fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid my face from this city.

The Lord’s people must all “come out of [Babylon]”. Until we acknowledge that we must go into Babylon before we can “come out of her” we are nothing less than “dead bodies” fighting against the Chaldeans:

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

The lesson for us in this story is that Zedekiah was already serving the great whore before the Lord sent Nebuchadnezzar to punish and chasten him for his self-righteous iniquity:

Isa 1:1  The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

Isa 1:21  How is the faithful city [Jerusalem (vs 1)] become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.

The lesson for us is that we must confess our own self-righteous iniquity and transgressions against our Lord and acknowledge that we personally have spiritually held the Lord’s prophets in prison. Until the Lord brings us to see and acknowledge our own infidelity, the Lord continues to answer us “according to the multitude of our idols” and we continue in darkness thinking we are in the light.

Eze 14:4  Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;

However, the Lord has devised means that His banished be not expelled from Him (2Sa 14:4), and after He has chastened and scourged us with His seven last plagues He will then drag us out of the Babylonian system and make us to repent of the sins He made us to sin against Him. It is He, not us, who is “working all things after the counsel of His own will… for good to those who love God and are the called according to His purpose.”

Isa 63:17  O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Rom 8:29  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

All of which the prophet Jeremiah confirms:

Jer 33:6  Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.

If we are simply granted the faith to believe the Lord’s words, we have been given “the abundance of peace and truth”.

It is the Lord’s Word which ‘cures’ and heals us from all our destructions:

Psa 107:20  He sent his word, and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.

When the Lord sends us His word it means that He Himself is coming to us to heal us because:

Joh 1:1  In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Joh 1:2  The same was in the beginning with God.
Joh 1:3  All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
Joh 1:4  In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Christ is the Truth and through His Truth, He gives us His peace:

Joh 14:6  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Joh 14:27  Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

While Our flesh struggles to believe those words they are “The Truth” as are these words:

Jer 33:7  And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.

“As at the first” is a reference to our “first love” which we are all given when we are first convicted of our sins. Losing our first love and being brought to repent of doing so is an integral part of the Lord’s wonderous works in the deep, which we referenced earlier and repeat now:

Psa 107:24  These see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep.

Rev 2:4  Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
Rev 2:5  Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

Keeping the things written in this prophecy (Rev 1:3) means that it is we who must do so, including the act of losing our first love and repenting of doing so:

Rev 1:3  Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Jer 33:8  And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned, and whereby they have transgressed against me.
Jer 33:9  And it shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and an honour before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them: and they shall fear and tremble for all the goodness and for all the prosperity that I procure unto it.

What a wonderful promise to all who are made to “love God and are the called according to His purpose” (Rom 8:28)!

Our whoredoms and apostasy are ordained for our own “day of evil” and that, too, is made for the Lord:

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for Himself [to punish us in our own “day of evil”]: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

The day of evil which the Lord has made for each of us gives him the occasion He is seeking to pour out His seven last plagues on the self-righteous, apostate kingdom of our old man.

Jer 25:10  Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle.

Rev 18:22  And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
Rev 18:23  And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.

The Lord tells us that He caused us to be carried away with these false lying spirits:

Eze 39:28  Then shall they know that I am the LORD their God, which caused them to be led into captivity among the heathen: but I have gathered them unto their own land, and have left none of them any more there.

The Lord does not “cause [us] to be led into captivity among the heathen” without first furnishing Himself with “an occasion” to justify chastening and punishing us for our infidelity. The “occasion” He is seeking against us is also a work of the Lord, as the story of Samson so graphically demonstrates:

Jdg 14:1  And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines.
Jdg 14:2  And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.
Jdg 14:3  Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.
Jdg 14:4  But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.

The phrase, “It was of the Lord” tells us plainly that it was the Lord who, through an evil spirit, made Samson disobey His commandment to Israel telling them they must never marry the daughters or sons of the people of the land (Deu 7:3). The phrase “it was of the Lord” is just another way of telling us that the Lord made the vessel of clay to be marred in His own hand:

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
Jer 18:5  Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Jer 18:6  O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.

All Israel is “as clay is in the Potter’s hand”. That is a Truth which applies to both physical Israel and spiritual Israel, “the Israel of God” (Gal 6:15-16).

Gal 6:15  Certainly, it doesn’t matter whether a person is circumcised or not. Rather, what matters is being a new creation.
Gal 6:16  Peace and mercy will come to rest on all those who conform to this principle. They are the Israel of God. (GWV)

Our returning to Him in the day of joy and honor before all the nations of the earth is also His doing. We return to “fear the Lord and His goodness in the latter days”:

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Isa 60:15  Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated, so that no man went through thee, I will make thee an eternal excellency, a joy of many generations.

Hos 3:5  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

If we fail to see the word “afterward” then we will not realize what must happen first. What must first happen is that the Lord must first give Himself an occasion to destroy the kingdom of our corruptible, self-righteous, rebellious old man. Our next verse shows us how the Lord first pronounces us to be evil, providing Himself the “occasion” He seeks to “make [us] again another vessel as it seems good to [Him] to make [us]” (Jer 18:4).

Jer 33:10  Thus saith the LORD; Again there shall be heard in this place, which ye say shall be desolate without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man, and without inhabitant, and without beast,

In this verse, the Lord has put His words in Jeremiah’s mouth and then tells us “Ye say… this place… shall be desolate”. The fact is that the Lord had just informed us that it is He who is making this place to be desolate:

Jer 4:27  For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.

Jer 9:11  And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant.

Jer 19:8  And I will make this city desolate, and an hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished and hiss because of all the plagues thereof.

Rev 18:22  And the voice of harpers, and musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee;
Rev 18:23  And the light of a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived.

The Lord takes away the voice of the bridegroom, and then He also causes the voice of the bridegroom to return. He works all things after the counsel of His own will.

Jer 33:11  The voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that shall say, Praise the LORD of hosts: for the LORD is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: and of them that shall bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the LORD. For I will cause to return the captivity of the land, as at the first, saith the LORD.

Our spiritual adulteries and our unfaithful apostasy are just as much a part of “all things” as our whole hearted return to the Lord. Remember what we read earlier in Hosea:

Hos 3:5  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

The use of the word ‘afterward’ demonstrates that our apostasy and our part in the death of our Lord are as integral to the Lord’s work in our lives as is our return to Him at His appointed predestined time:

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Rom 8:29  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
Rom 8:30  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.

The Greek word translated ‘predestinated’ is ‘proorizo’ and here are all the entries for that word and its various English translations in the KJV:

G4309
προορίζω
proorizō
Total KJV Occurrences: 6
predestinate, 2
Rom_8:29-30 (3)

predestinated, 2
Eph_1:5, Eph_1:11

Before determined, 1
Act_4:28

ordained, 1
1Co_2:7

It will be well worth our time to read all these entries. We just read the first entry in Rom 8:29-30. Here are the next two times this Greek word appears where it is translated as ‘predestinated’:

Eph 1:4  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Eph 1:5  Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

Eph 1:9  Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10  That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

Clearly this Greek word ‘proorizo’ refers only to those that have been “made to know the mystery of His will” and those “who first trusted in Christ”. It does not refer to any in “this present time” who are not made to know the mystery of His will and who are not the first to trust in the true Christ. What this tells us is that those who are in the white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death are not to be considered as “predestinated”. That word has no application to any who are not made to know the mystery of His will and who are not the first to trust in Christ. If we fail to see the order in which the Lord is working, we can and we will miss the spiritual message He is imparting to us.

Our next entry is the first time this word ‘proorizo’ appears in scripture:

Act 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.
Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before [Greek: ‘proorizo’] to be done.

Christ’s crucifixion was not happenstance. Nothing is happenstance. God is working all things after the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11).

Here is the last entry in the New Testament of this Greek word, ‘proorizo’:

1Co 2:6  Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:
1Co 2:7  But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained [Greek: ‘proorizo’] before the world unto our glory:

Once again, this verse makes clear that this Greek word ‘proorizo’ has only to do with “our glory”, the glory of being in “the resurrection to life”, and not those who will be raised to “the resurrection of judgment”/the great white throne judgment/lake of fire/ second death after “the thousand years are expired” (Rev 20:7):

Joh 5:27  And hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man.
Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation [Greek: ‘krisis’, judgment]

Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

We cannot speak of the Lord’s judgments without mentioning their purpose and their fruit. This is the fruit of all the Lord’s judgments, both the judgment which is now “on the house of God” (1Pe 4:17), and the great white throne judgment.

Here is what the Lord’s judgments always produce:

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

That is not the malicious, slanderous, lying false doctrine of eternal hell fire. That is the good news of the Truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now let’s read the context of the 5^th verse of Hosea 3 to learn of how the Lord works with all men:

Hos 3:1  Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.
Hos 3:2  So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for an homer of barley, and an half homer of barley:
Hos 3:3  And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee.
Hos 3:4  For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim:
Hos 3:5  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

Here again we witness the formula by which the Lord operates with His creatures. This woman was first “beloved of her friend”, then she became a harlot (Hos 3:1). We all experience a “first love”, and then we ‘lose our first love’ and we are a harlot, but in the end the Lord redeems us and drags us back to Himself.

The ‘image’ and the ‘teraphim’ of verse 4 are just two different words for ‘an idol’. An ‘ephod’ is a priestly garment. What the Lord is telling us here is the same thing He tells us in Revelation 17 which we must endure spiritually before He will ‘return the captivity’ of His people to Himself:

Rev 17:16  And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
Rev 17:17  For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled.
Rev 17:18  And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

You and I have “burned her with fire” when we came to see all her lies which had deceived us for so long. We are witnessing this same dynamic working outwardly where religion is under attack worldwide. This is especially true of the self-righteous western world which has been historically ‘Christian’ in name only. Centuries of self-righteous hypocrisy are coming home to roost for an aging harlot who hates her Husband’s clothing and the food He offers her, yet she retains His name:

Isa 4:1  And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

We are experiencing the inward loss of our ‘images’ and our ‘teraphims’ while we are being dragged out of the great whore. Now we are also witnessing the outward fulfillment of these words as the beast turns on the harlot religions of this age and devours her and burns her with the ‘fire’ as they burn us and devour all her images and teraphims, all her false doctrines.

For those who are “predestinated… to be the firstborn among many brethren”, we will be the subject of our next two verses:

Jer 33:12  Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Again in this place, which is desolate without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, shall be an habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.
Jer 33:13  In the cities of the mountains, in the cities of the vale, and in the cities of the south, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks pass again under the hands of him that telleth them, saith the LORD.

The phrase “under the hand of him that telleth them” means ‘those who count them’. This is an allusion to those who will judge this world for a thousand years, followed by being the judges of the great white throne judgment where we will also judge the spirits of all men of all time as well as angels:

1Co 6:2  Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?
1Co 6:3  Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life?

The judging of “this world” refers to the saints judging “the kingdom of this world” for a thousand years. The judging of ‘angels’ refers to those who will be very comfortable and at home in the ‘devouring flames’ as judges in the ‘great white throne judgment/lake of fire/second death’:

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

Isa 33:14  The sinners in Zion [the great harlot and all of her daughter harlots (Rev 17:1-5)] are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
Isa 33:15  He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world [Greek: ‘kosmos’, world] are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Being comfortable in “the devouring fire [and] everlasting burnings”, while teaching the inhabitants of the world righteousness in the great white throne judgment, is the ultimate fulfillment of being “an habitation of shepherds… [with] flocks passing under [our] hands”.

What wonderful, good news it is to be given to see that all the Lord’s judgments ‘teach us righteousness’. What a great blessing it is to “have made known unto us the mystery of His will” (Eph 1:9), and to be given to be those who will judge this world and angels and ‘teach the world righteousness’ at the great final judgment of the dead who are raised up in “the resurrection of judgment” (Joh 5:27-29). That is why it is not called ‘a great black throne’, rather it is “a great white throne” where you and I, Lord willing, will judge all men of all time, and we will also “judge angels” and the entire spirit realm which is yet in need of being purified.

Eph 1:9  Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10  That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in [the] Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:

Here are our verses for our next study:

Jer 33:14  Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.

Jer 33:15  In those days, and at that time, will I cause the Branch of righteousness to grow up unto David; and he shall execute judgment and righteousness in the land.
Jer 33:16  In those days shall Judah be saved, and Jerusalem shall dwell safely: and this is the name wherewith she shall be called, The LORD our righteousness.
Jer 33:17  For thus saith the LORD; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;
Jer 33:18  Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.
Jer 33:19  And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying,
Jer 33:20  Thus saith the LORD; If ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, and that there should not be day and night in their season;
Jer 33:21  Then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant, that he should not have a son to reign upon his throne; and with the Levites the priests, my ministers.
Jer 33:22  As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, neither the sand of the sea measured: so will I multiply the seed of David my servant, and the Levites that minister unto me.
Jer 33:23  Moreover the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying,
Jer 33:24  Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying, The two families which the LORD hath chosen, he hath even cast them off? thus they have despised my people, that they should be no more a nation before them.
Jer 33:25  Thus saith the LORD; If my covenant be not with day and night, and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth;
Jer 33:26  Then will I cast away the seed of Jacob, and David my servant, so that I will not take any of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: for I will cause their captivity to return, and have mercy on them.