In Parts 1 and 2 in this series, I addressed Jeremiah’s life story and his walk with God to demonstrate and highlight major prophetic themes that apply to our current last days time period.
In terms of major prophetic events that he foretold that were applicable to his own day, these concluded with the invasion and destruction of his own land and people of Judah, and then with the invasion of Babylon following the 70-year captivity of his people in that kingdom. These prophetic events were a part of the reason that God originally told Jeremiah that he had called him, “…to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow…,” among other things.
Both of these major prophetic events were also presented through Jeremiah in scripture in terms of their last days meaning. In Part 2, I addressed those factors and signs that God gave to Jeremiah, leading to God’s decision to bring punishment on Judah in Jeremiah’s day. At the conclusion of Part 2, I explained that these same factors apply again in this current last days time period in which we will witness the destruction of what we know of as modern-day Israel.
Jeremiah’s story of God’s remnant in last days ‘Babylon’
In this passage, Part 3, I will focus on the story provided through Jeremiah pertaining to God’s remnant flock in Babylon and God’s signs and messages given through him prior to bringing last days punishment and destruction onto Babylon. While this story had a meaning for Babylon in Jeremiah’s day, it also has very significant meaning for our current last days time period, especially for ‘Babylon’-U.S., and thus, God’s remnant flock therein.
The prophetic significance of these events is initially signaled in Jeremiah, Chapter 1, when God first addressed him and blessed him with his anointing. Part of the greater significance and broader scope of Jeremiah’s ministry is shown in two successive visions that God gave to him, and then asked, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” Jeremiah responded to the visions, respectively:
- “the rod/branch of an almond tree” (Jer 1:11)
- “a boiling pot facing away from the north” (Jer 1:13)
God told Jeremiah that he was watching over this “branch,” implying his protection of a good branch/remnant of his people. Then God explained that the boiling pot from the north was a source of an “evil” (Babylon) that would come against Judah’s land and its people.
While both of these visions had near-term prophetic meaning in Jeremiah’s day, they also have significant meaning for our last days ‘Babylon’ and God’s remnant people who will ultimately have to flee and begin a journey to return to their homeland. It is the prophetic message in these two interrelated visions that forms the scope of content that I will address herein, in this passage, Part 3. I will address these themes over the course of the following sections:
- The picture (as given in Jeremiah’s day) of the last days small Judah remnant in ‘Babylon’
- Jeremiah’s prophetic actions to preserve Judah’s eternal land covenant promise
- Prophecy of God’s remnant’s persecution in last days ‘Babylon’
- The ‘Jacob’-Judah small flock remnant saved in ‘Babylon’-U.S.
- Jeremiah is “sent” to all of the nations (as a picture of last days ‘Jacob’)
- ‘Babylon’s destruction as given through Jeremiah’s prophecies
The story of what happens with God’s remnant and ‘Babylon’ in the last days is addressed in more detail in the following sections.
The picture (as given in Jeremiah’s day) of the last days small Judah remnant in ‘Babylon’
For our purposes, the story might be seen to begin with the vision that God gives to Jeremiah about good figs and bad figs in his Judah society. The bad figs represented God’s corrupt, evil and disobedient people, including a line of kings in Judah who God promised would never have a king sit on David’s throne again. But there is a brief story told by Jeremiah of a royal remnant being taken captive to Babylon, prior to Babylon’s final destructive invasion of the land.
This captive remnant can be seen as a picture of the last days, small flock remnant in ‘Babylon’-U.S. Jeremiah was even compelled to write a letter to those in this remnant in his day. The following was the word of God to them through Jeremiah:
- “Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; Take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased there, and not diminished.” (Jer 29:5-6)
Does this sound like it could also apply for God’s vineyard-remnant over time in ‘Babylon’-U.S. that I have written about extensively on this site? God, through Jeremiah, further instructed this remnant to seek peace and not to be deceived by the prophets. This remnant becomes one that “raises up prophets” (Jer 29:15) of its own, perhaps the likes of Ezekiel and Daniel, etc. close to Jeremiah’s day, but also referring to last days ‘Babylon’s biblical figures who I have discussed on this site. In fact, this is the royal remnant who truly should pray for the peace of Jerusalem, as a father of their lineage, King David, did, because they will be the ones who will ultimately lead the return to their land. They are some of the righteous ones (i.e. good figs) who obey God’s instructions to submit to captivity in ‘Babylon’ for a time.
God told this captive remnant through Jeremiah that he would eventually break the yoke of the king of ‘Babylon,’ and that they would be freed. When the yoke was to be broken, the vessels of God’s house that had been carried away would be returned. Even Jeremiah was excited to hear this news. He said:
- “Amen: the Lord do so: the Lord perform thy words which thou hast prophesied, to bring again the vessels of the Lord’s house, and all that is carried away captive, from Babylon into this place.” (Jer 28:6)
This prophecy was fulfilled after their remnant had served 70 years in Babylon and then returned to their land. But it may apply again in some fashion for today’s remnant in ‘Babylon’-U.S. It appears that they will leave ‘Babylon’ generally around the time that it is invaded.
(It should be noted, however, that there will be an interim period during which the third temple will be built, which will be a counterfeit, and it will be desecrated by the Anti-Christ. Not until after current day Israel’s destruction will the last days righteous remnant be able to return for the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom).
Jeremiah’s prophetic actions to preserve Judah’s eternal land covenant promise
In another sign of the future return of God’s remnant people to their land, knowing the end from the beginning, God instructed Jeremiah in the days of king Zedekiah, before the Babylonian invasion, to purchase a piece of land offered to him by a relative in his closeby hometown of Anathoth. This land was said in scripture to be Jeremiah’s inheritance or right of redemption. Here, there is a clear picture for God’s end times ‘Jacob’ who returns to the land and his inheritance allotted by God for the Millennial Kingdom. Meanwhile, God instructed Jeremiah as to what to do with the evidence of his land purchase as follows:
- “Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Take these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both which is sealed, and this evidence which is open; and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may continue many days.” (Jer 32:14)
It is interesting that the bad bottle (described in Part 2) was broken by Jeremiah at God’s instruction to symbolize Judah’s coming destruction in his day; but this one (in the scripture above), representing the future restoration of God’s people, was to be preserved. This of course is representative of the ancient, covenant promise of God to his people, made even long before the original Babylonian invasion came, and will still remain after the country of Israel is invaded and destroyed again in these last days. The end result, as we know, is that God’s people will return to the land one final time from the ends of the earth. The following scriptures refer to God’s righteous remnant who are to return for the final days regathering that is to come:
- “Behold, I will gather them out of all countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely…” (Jer 32:37)
- “And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first.” (Jer 33:7)
As noted above, there will be time, and possibly a fairly long journey, between the time when God’s remnant escapes the invasion in ‘Babylon’ and when they are finally able to return to their land.
Prophecy of God’s remnant’s persecution in last days ‘Babylon’
To continue the story, as last days ‘Jacob’s (a protégé of Jeremiah) royal remnant remain in captivity in today’s ‘Babylon’-U.S., they are to be on the lookout for today’s version of the king of Babylon to take hold. At this time, more severe persecution overall, even worldwide, will begin. This is why Jeremiah intercedes for the last days Judah remnant in his prayers; he prophetically foresees the likes of ‘Jacob’ and the ‘Daughter of Zion,’ each mentioned in a scripture below, referring to their persecution at the hands of the anti-Christ Chaldeans:
- “…for they have eaten up Jacob, and devoured him, and consumed him, and have made his habitation desolate.” (Jer 10:25)
- “All thine enemies have opened their mouth against thee: they hiss and gnash the teeth: they say, We have swallowed her up: certainly this is the day that we looked for; we have found, we have seen it.” (Lam 2:16)
The last days will be a time when God’s entire remnant worldwide will experience increased levels of persecution. We appear to have a clue about possible timing of when this more intense persecution will take place; again, this is as seen through Jeremiah’s life events.
In his day, Jeremiah was approached by another (false) prophet by the name of Hananiah, who broke Jeremiah’s wooden yoke, as an apparent symbol of his freedom, and then falsely declared peace to the people from the yoke of the king of Babylon that was to happen within two years. We are told here that, “Jeremiah went his way” (Jer 28:11).
Prophetically, this may represent the time that I have spoken about in scripture when a (false) peace covenant (Dan 9:27) is signed that will include the country of Israel, ‘Babylon’-U.S. and likely many neighboring countries of Israel who will proclaim “peace.” But instead we are told many times in scripture that there will be no peace, but rather sudden destruction will come upon these parties.
In fact, as a sign, Hananiah the prophet who attempted to deceive Jeremiah died the same year as a result of God’s judgment. God then instead told Jeremiah that he would replace his people’s former yoke of wood with one of iron. This was a time, and could signal a future time such as in these last days, when we are told that all nations would serve the king of Babylon. Here, we have an ominous sign given through Jeremiah about possible prophetic implications for the Jacob-Judah remnant:
- “Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon hath devoured me, he hath crushed me, he hath made me an empty vessel, he hath swallowed me up like a dragon, he hath filled his belly with my delicates, he hath cast me out.” (Jer 51:34)
This is spoken by Jeremiah, but representing the future persecution of last days ‘Jacob’ and his remnant, likely to include both large and small remnants.
The ‘Jacob’-Judah small flock remnant saved in ‘Babylon’-U.S.
It could be, however, that there is at least some peace for ‘Jacob’ and his small Judah remnant flock, because we are told in the book of Jeremiah that ‘Jacob’ is saved out of the midst of the time of ‘Jacob’s trouble (Jer 30:7-8). Here, we are told in scripture that God will break end times ‘Jacob’s yoke, just as God had told Jeremiah directly in his day, “And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible” (Jer 15:21).
When the Judah remnant are initially freed from persecution in today’s ‘Babylon,’-U.S. it appears at this time that they are instructed by God to continue to abide in the land, perhaps still under some form of captivity, just as the royal remnant remained and continued to live in Babylon in Jeremiah’s day. (Of course, God told the remainder of those living in Judah, through Jeremiah, pre- and post-invasion, that they should also submit to Babylonian captivity as well). God said the following about those serving in Babylonian captivity:
- “For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up.” (Jer 24:6)
- “If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you.” (Jer 42:10)
‘Jacob’ and his remnant appear to be protected by God during this perilous last days period. Recall that God during this time is “doing a new thing” and making ways, paths and waters in the wilderness for his people (Jer 30:10).
‘Jacob’s small Judah remnant will eventually return to their land, with their journey beginning upon God’s final instructions to “flee Babylon.” Meanwhile, while they continue to abide in ‘Babylon’ during a very tumultuous time. God still promises them, “I will save.” God also reassures them, “Be not afraid of the king of Babylon” (Jer 42:11), under whose yoke end times ‘Jacob’ may continue to serve. He also tells Jeremiah, again as a proxy for end times ‘Jacob’:
- “Verily it shall be well with thy remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction.” (Jer 15:11)
- “Therefore thus saith the Lord; Behold, I will plead thy cause, and take vengeance for thee; and I will dry up her sea, and make her springs dry.” (Jer 51:36)
So God intervenes for his ‘Jacob’-Judah remnant in these last days.
“Do not go to ‘Egypt’”
Very importantly, God furthermore instructs his people not to go to Egypt. This is an ancient instruction that will apply in the last days. Prophetic ‘Egypt’ here is not to mean the actual country of Egypt. It could loosely and very generally mean here that they are not to flee from captivity and to go abroad. But, more importantly, ‘Egypt’ here is likely symbolic of the “world system” or new world order developing in our last days time period. This is why were are told, “Egypt rises like a flood” (Jer 46:8). Egypt “rising like a flood” in these last days could have more than one meaning, but one meaning is very likely commensurate with a great falling away by people worldwide due to their pledges of loyalty to the emerging Anti-Christ kingdom.
In Jeremiah’s day (Ch. 44), when a scattered Judah remnant remaining post-invasion eventually did flee to Egypt, God’s people began to openly worship false gods, which Jeremiah, who was among them, called them out on. The application of end times ‘Egypt’ in our current day would represent the soul-destroying act of bowing down to, and the worship of, the anti-Christ new world order system, including taking the mark of the beast.
For God’s people’s disobedience in Jeremiah’s day in (1) going to Egypt post-invasion, and then for (2) worshiping false gods, God sent the king of Babylon to “smite” Egypt during this time when God had put him over all nations to serve. God’s disobedient people in Egypt were put to the “sword” and only a small remnant escaped. It is likely that this is a scenario to repeat in ‘Babylon’-U.S. (and worldwide) in these last days for God’s people who pledged oaths to the anti-Christ Chaldeans, thereby making the fatal mistake of actually joining the very enemy that comes back to persecute and kill them.
Eventually, there will be a time to “flee” ‘Babylon,’ but in the meantime God’s small flock remnant are to carry on, albeit in captivity. Recall that this is a small remnant who are faithful and righteous, so in their persecution in very difficult times in last days ‘Babylon’ they can rest assured based on scripture, especially that in the book of Proverbs, about how “righteousness” is eventually honored and delivered. Just a couple of these verses include:
- “The righteousness of the upright shall deliver them: but transgressors shall be taken in their own naughtiness.” (Prov. 11:6)
- “Though hand join in hand, the wicked shall not be unpunished: but the seed of the righteous shall be delivered.” (Prov. 11:21)
God’s people will soon be in the midst of much strife and conflict happening worldwide and in ‘Babylon,’ along with much chaos and finger-pointing, but the ‘Jacob’-Judah remnant of ‘Babylon’ will be known and recognized for lifting a “banner” for righteousness sake, as well as for being a light to the Gentiles. They will be protected.
Jeremiah is “sent” to all of the nations (a picture of last days ‘Jacob’)
As I mentioned earlier in this passage, and in Part 1, the scope of Jeremiah’s mission was broader than just for his own people and land. His ministry’s impact was to be worldwide, as well as to have particular prophetic meaning for this current last days time period. Thus, we find Jeremiah again to be a parallel figure to last days ‘Jacob.’ In fact, ‘Jacob’ appears to be the one in a figurative sense to take Jeremiah’s baton (see my prior passages on end times ‘Jacob’) in order to run and complete God’s original promise below in the last days:
- “See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.” (Jer 1:10)
Prior to kingdoms being built and destroyed, in their respective times, however, both Jeremiah and last days ‘Jacob’ were/are sent to all of the nations to communicate God’s message. Jeremiah self-proclaimed, “thy (God’s) words were found, and I did eat them…” (Jer 15:16). This is very similar to the prophet Ezekiel who lived in Babylon, whose vision portrays the end times Son of man, and whom God instructed to eat his words. In fact, end times ‘Jacob’ is given to the people of the world as a “covenant,” and scripture also tells us that, “the isles shall wait for his law” (Is 42:4).
Meanwhile, God instructed Jeremiah in his day to carry his message to the world as follows:
- “Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spake unto thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day.” (Jer 36:2)
With the help of his pupil Baruch, Jeremiah’s words were recorded. While Jeremiah was held captive, he instructed Baruch to go and read his words locally in Judah. In these current last days, we are told that ‘Jacob’ is also held captive, but we know that through him and his remnant, his message becomes a light to the Gentiles across the earth. In somewhat of a fitting prophecy, perhaps ‘Jacob’ finds and “eats” (God’s word) in these last days, including, of all things- the book of Jeremiah! (This would obviously be much easier in our current day with easy access to God’s word- in ‘Babylon’-U.S. at least- and its electronic communications. This would be in contrast to Jeremiah’s ancient day of scrolls and some kind of “pony express” form of delivery for any messages).
In fact, God’s words- i.e. our bible, and today’s message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, will be the final dividing line and the “sword.” In his day, Jeremiah lamented that he had become, “a man of contention to the whole earth” (Jer 15:10); this was only because he believed God’s word and spoke courageously and boldly about it. End times ‘Jacob,’ God’s messenger does the same, as described above, and becomes God’s messenger of salvation “unto the end of the earth” (Is 49:6) while working against a powerful anti-Christ force in the end times. Through ‘Jacob’ and his Judah remnant’s cause, it is possible that this is the avenue through which we are told for the last days:
- “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” (Matt 24:14)
Perhaps along with raising their “banner” of righteousness to the world, the ‘Jacob’-Judah remnant will be able to disciple and to forcefully communicate to others their faith in and salvation through Jesus Christ. In scripture it appears that this Gospel and its truth going to all of the world will happen prior to the last days time when many will be forced by the anti-Christ Chaldeans to pledge allegiance to their kingdom.
‘Babylon’s destruction as given through Jeremiah’s prophecies
Through Jeremiah’s word from God, we learned that at the end of his people’s 70 years in captivity at the hands of the king of Babylon that the Lord at this time would punish and make the land of Babylon and its Chaldeans desolate. This punishment was in return for their destruction and persecution of God’s people. This was fulfilled at the hands of the Medes. But, I have written in detail on this site about how this same kind of punishment (i.e. via invasion) will come on end times ‘Babylon’-U.S., the nation– also to be made desolate. Similarly, it will be an invasion by an army of nations out of the north.
To discuss more about the words of Jeremiah that went to all of the nations via his scroll, we are told Jeremiah wrote about “all the evil that should come upon Babylon” (Jer 51:60). In a prophecy likely for these end times, Jeremiah (51:59) spoke to the brother of Baruch, Seraiah (name meaning ‘(quiet) prince of the Lord’), who appears to represent an end times figure in this context. Jeremiah told him that when he shall come to Babylon (implying a future time), he shall see and hear all of his words. Just as he instructed Baruch to read his words to Judah, Jeremiah instructed Seraiah to read his words to Babylon. Perhaps Serariah prophetically represents a member of the last days holy, royal ‘Jacob’-Judah remnant, mentioned above. In a prophecy for what is to come onto last days ‘Babylon’-U.S., Jeremiah said:
- “Lord, you have said you will destroy this place, so that neither people nor animals will live in it; it will be desolate forever.” (Jer 51:62)
In fact, in my prior passages, I have shown through scripture that last days ‘Babylon’-U.S. will indeed be made desolate. Symbolically and prophetically, Jeremiah then instructed Seraiah that when he had made an end of reading his book (to the people), he should bind a stone to it and cast it into the Euphrates where it will sink and not rise (“from the evil that I (God) will bring on her”- i.e. ‘Babylon’). The significance of ‘Euphrates’ to this prophecy is its meaning “great river,” which is also associated with the term Assyria(n). You will recall from my prior passages about punishment coming onto ‘Babylon’-U.S., that at that time or shortly after its kings fall, it will be the ‘Assyrian’s armies that invade.
As it relates to the story of our ‘Jacob’-Judah remnant, this is likely the time they will be free to escape from their captivity in ‘Babylon.’ God will guide this remnant in their escape from the land and in their pathway to their ultimate return to the homeland.
Worldwide kingdom of Babylon also to be destroyed in the last days
At the time of God’s people’s exodus, the worldwide kingdom of ‘Babylon’ will be in process of being destroyed. This will be the anti-Christ kingdom and its people all over the world who have joined in in persecuting and holding God’s people captive. This is part of the ancient, ongoing spiritual war that the anti-Christ Chaldeans have been waging in their process of eradicating God’s vineyard. God says:
- “For many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of them also: and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands.” (Jer 25:14)
The destruction of the kingdom of ‘Babylon’ at least symbolically comes at the hands of Jeremiah who is instructed by God to take the wine cup of his wrath/fury and cause all the nations where he sends Jeremiah to drink of it. This fulfills God’s prophetic word to Jeremiah mentioned earlier about “uprooting” and “tearing down” kingdoms as it applies to our last days time period. Jeremiah responded:
- “Then took I the cup (of fury) at the Lord’s hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the Lord had sent me…” (Jer 25:17)
In carrying out his mission for God in his day, Jeremiah was a picture of what the Lord himself will actually do in the last days. God asked Jeremiah to prophesy about the last days, and Jeremiah declared, “The Lord has a controversy with the nations” (Jer 25:31), and that at this time Jeremiah said the Lord shall, “roar from on high, and utter his voice from his holy habitation” (Jer 25:20). This will be the day of the Lord and the Tribulation period. We are told that evil will sweep across the earth so that the slain will be from one end of the earth to the other. Recall in my series entitled, The Lord is with us how the Lord “treads the winepress” and “threshes the heathen in anger” in his last days judgment on the earth.
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To conclude our story of prophecy through Jeremiah’s life, there is uncertainty about where Jeremiah finished his days of ministry and life’s work. Perhaps this is fitting, since Jeremiah’s words of instruction from God were timeless in their application and communicated God’s prophecies to be fulfilled up until, and including, the day Jesus Christ is on earth again in the last days. Not to mention, ‘Jeremiah’ served as a ‘type’ for future servants, prophets and patriarchy to come onto the scene up until the end of our current age.
Grace & Peace,
Lion’s Lair (LL)
Lion's Lair 