Many are the Afflictions of His Children

 “I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile” Jeremiah 29: 14.

 “I will pursue them with sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, a terror, a hissing, and a reproach among all the nations where I have driven them” Jeremiah 29: 18. 

When God’s people disobeyed Him and turned from Him and worshiped idols, He decreed their punishment to be exile to Babylon for 70 years.

Some of the people repented of their sin and humbly went into exile as they were told. They were the righteous ones.

But others continued to be defiant and rebellious and refused to go the Babylon. They wouldn’t take their medicine. They were the wicked ones. To read the passage for context, click here.

Forgiven Doesn’t Mean No Consequences

I want to quickly point out that being forgiven doesn’t mean NO consequences.

Just look at King David after he sinned with Bathsheba. He didn’t die and got to remain king. But the sword never departed from his house (2 Samuel 12:10).

Or Moses. He struck the rock when he should’ve spoken to it. The consequence? He didn’t get to enter the promise land (Numbers 20:10-13). Sounds harsh, but who gets to speak with God face to face like he did?

These verses at the top of the page contrast the afflictions of the righteous and the sorrows of the wicked. The righteous sometimes suffer because of their own foolishness as is the case with these exiles.

Many are the Afflictions of the Righteous, but He Will Deliver Us

But their heart is right before the Lord. And because of that, He will “deliver them out of all their afflictions” (Psalm 34:19). And their final outcome will be blessed.

The wicked on the other hand don’t have a right heart. So, for them exile will end in “sword, famine, and pestilence” (v.18). “Many are the sorrows of the wicked” (Psalm 32:10) because they have no Deliverer. For this reason, their afflictions become sorrows.

When God’s People Act Wickedly

I want to quickly point out here that sometimes even Christians act wickedly and don’t repent. And when they do, they will experience the consequences of that wickedness.

Both the righteous and the wicked go into exile. Though the righteous willingly and the wicked unwillingly. But the righteous will once again inherit the promise God had given them. The wicked will never return to the land of promise.

The suffering of the righteous ends. They don’t suffer calamity or disaster that can’t be remedied or repaired like the wicked. But the truth is 70 years is a long time from the perspective of a human life. And most of the exiles did not return to their land. But their children did.

And not only were they spared the “sword, famine and pestilence” (V. 18) but God instructed them to enjoy life and to be at peace even while they’re in exile (v 5, 6).

The Wooden and Iron Yokes

The wooden and iron yokes are another analogy for what we’re talking about here. See Jeremiah 28.

The wicked refuse to take the punishment for their sins. They are stubborn and rebellious. They won’t accept the wooden yoke of exile, which is the consequence of their sin.

In so doing, they think they’re getting away with it. But as we can see from verse 18 at the top of the page, this is far from the case. All they succeed in doing is coming under an iron yoke instead.

The righteous humbly accepted the consequence of their sin- the wooden yoke. And consequently, they will eventually be set free of all yokes. The wicked by contrast shake their fist in defiance. They refuse to accept the repercussions of their sin.

Many are the Afflictions of His Children

The way we respond to God’s dealings with us is an important reflection of our heart toward Him. The wicked, by refusing to go into exile were saying in effect, “we can do whatever we want and get away with it. We don’t have to humble ourselves or submit to anyone”.

The righteous, on the other hand, by submitting to the yoke were saying in effect, “we’ve sinned”. “We’ve been foolish. And now we must accept the consequences”. This humble, submissive attitude of acceptance is ultimately what brought them back from exile into their own land.

To read another post related to Many Are the Afflictions of His Children, see Faith Comes by Hearing: The Power of the Tongue.