70 Years

Jeremiah 29: 1, 5, 6, 7, 10-14

The Prophet Jeremiah sent a letter from Jerusalem to the rest of the leaders among the captives. He also sent it to the priests, the prophets, and all the people that Nebuchadnezzar took away as captives from Jerusalem to Babylon.

Build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat what they produce. 

Get married and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons, and let your daughters get married so they can have sons and daughters. Grow in number there, don't decrease.

Work for the good of the city where I have taken you as captives, and pray to the Lord for that city. When it prospers, you will also prosper.

This is what the Lord says: When Babylon's 70 years are over, I will come to you. I will keep my promise to you and bring you back to this place.

I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for peace and not disaster, plans to give you a future filled with hope.

Then you will call to Me. You will come and pray to Me, and I will hear you.

When you look for Me, you will find Me; when you wholeheartedly seek Me, I will let you find Me, declares the Lord.

I will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the Nations and places where I've scattered you, declares the Lord. I will bring you back from the place where you are being held captive.

There are several things here.

Jeremiah was still in Jerusalem, after most of the people had been carried away and deported to this far-away foreign place. 

God told Jeremiah to tell the people to settle down there, in that different culture that would surround them. They were to marry, have children and grandchildren, and grow their numbers. They were to plant and plan to eat what grew. They will be there a long time.

They were even to pray for the prosperity of this pagan city. Here's a principle that is repeated in the New Testament: to pray for the political officials who govern the city where you live. And the reason why is right here: When it prospers, you will also prosper. 

Even today we are to seek the welfare and well-being of the secular society we live in, because when they prosper, we will also prosper. And we are also to pray for the officials by name, that they would come to know the Lord. If they do know the Lord, then to grow in their faith, and implement their godly world view into their governing. 

In our American society, we have a particular responsibility--to cast our vote for the best candidate who will govern according to God's ways. That means we need to get to know the people who are running, what their beliefs are about governing, and their character. 

God had Jeremiah tell them that they would be in Babylon for 70 years. This is very specific. Several generations later, Daniel would read this letter Jeremiah had written, and realize that the 70 years were almost over, and he sought the Lord, which prompted him to write his scroll (see Daniel 9:2-3).

God always says what He means, and He means what He says, just as He says it. He said, "70 years" and it was a literal 70 years, just as God said. And he did bring a remnant of Israel back to the Land of Israel then.

I think the most important thing we need to implement here is to seek the Lord with all our heart. This is a promise. He always keeps His promises, we can bank on it. And when we really, sincerely, honestly want to know our God, He wants us to know Him, so He will reveal Himself to us as much as we can stand. 

And He will still bring all Israel back to that same Land He promised Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. From all over the World. That's a promise He will keep, too. 

So we would do well to be pro-Israel in our political climate today, even when the World will turn against them--God is still for them. And we want to be on God's side. With Him, we win in the end! I know, I've read the last chapter!

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!