“But that day belongs to the Lord, the LORD Almighty—a day of vengeance, for vengeance on his foes. The sword will devour till it is satisfied, till it has quenched its thirst with blood. For the Lord, the LORD Almighty, will offer sacrifice in the land of the north by the River Euphrates.”
– Jeremiah 46:10
Hi James and Ellen,
How would you like to be caught between a couple of bullies who are vying against each other to claim you? God’s specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people group guys and gals, who in 605 B.C. were living in the land of Judah – which included the city of Jerusalem, were being pursued as a prize by a couple of superpowers. The country of Egypt had been for years ascribing itself as being on planet Earth the apex Syro-Palestinian powerhouse. The country of Babylonia in 605 B.C. – with an ambitious king by the name of Nebuchadnezzar leading the way, counterattacked the country of Egypt’s Pharaoh Neco and his troops at the city of Carchemish – at a place called the fortress of Chemosh, after Pharaoh Neco and his Egyptian army had made the long march from the country of Egypt to the Euphrates River in the country of Babylonia to squash a burgeoning power. Pharaoh Neco and his troops had left the country of Egypt well prepared to defeat King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian troops. Pharaoh Neco’s troops had small and large shields, helmets, spears, armor, bows, chariots and the best horses that could be found anywhere. Nebuchadnezzar was in his first year as the country of Babylonia’s positioned king. Jeremiah – who was God’s prophet spokesman at this time to His specially chosen guys and gals who were living in the land of Judah and in the city of Jersualem recounts in Jeremiah 46 what took place behind the victory that King Nebuchadnezzar was able to have over Pharaoh Neco in the city of Carchemish. Verse 10 says, “But that day belongs to the Lord, the LORD Almighty—a day of vengeance, for vengeance on his foes. The sword will devour till it is satisfied, till it has quenched its thirst with blood. For the Lord, the LORD Almighty, will offer sacrifice in the land of the north by the River Euphrates.” Per what Jeremiah recorded in his Jeremiah Book, King Nebuchadnezzar really did not defeat Pharaoh Neco and his troops; God – as God the Father, used this battle to bring humiliation to the country of Egypt for the cruel way that the county of Egypt had for centuries treated His specially chosen guys and gals.
King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian troops’ decisive defeat over Pharaoh Neco and his Egyptian troops in 605 B.C. has several interesting twists to it. Jehoiakim was in his fourth year of being king over the guys and gals who were living in the land of Judah. 21 years after King Nebuchadnezzar soundly did a number on Pharaoh Neco, King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian army overran the land of Judah and totally trashed the city of Jerusalem. Pharaoh Neco and his Egyptian troops – if it had not been for God – as God the Father, having ensured victory for King Nebuchadnezzar, should have won the battle. When King Nebuchadnezzar’s dad died during the fight between King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian troops and Pharaoh Neco and his Egyptian troops, King Nebuchadnezzar stopped fighting and . . . Pharaoh Neco’s troops by this time were so badly beat up – in spite of the county of Egypt having become the leader in the production of the best healing balms and remedies for that time, they could not go on fighting against King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian troops. Pharaoh Neco’s mercenaries or hired soldiers had had enough and headed back to their homes in the country of Egypt leaving Pharaoh Neco with no choice but to also return to the county of Egypt. Pharaoh Neco’s legacy is that he was the leader of a ‘Do-Nothing’ invasion that had the opportunity – but did not follow through on it, to overrun and completely devastate the country of Babylonia after King Nebuchadnezzar’s dad died leaving King Nebuchadnezzar no longer having the will power to continue fighting. Because Jeremiah was still alive when Pharaoh Neco and his Egyptian troops made their abortive attempt to occupy the country of Babylonia, Jeremiah may have used what he knew took place in the prophecy that he recorded regarding the fiasco that Pharaoh Neco had when he tried to end the emergence of the country of Babylonia as a superpower. In a following prophetic message that God – as God the Spirit, passed on to King Nebuchadnezzar through His prophet spokesman Jeremiah regarding a pending march that King Nebuchadnezzar would make with his troops to the country of Egypt – to do a number on the Egyptian guys and gals, God referred to the idol god that Egyptian guys and gals worshipped as being a beautiful heifer versus being just a bull. King Nebuchadnezzar was assured by God that Egypt’s bull-god – Apis, would not help Egyptian guys when . . . God – as God the Spirit, also passed on through Jeremiah on to King Nebuchadnezzar that his troops would be like a gadfly arriving out of the north to destroy the serpent Egypt. Babylonia’s troops would have by this time a reputation of being like insects by how they consumed whoever they overcame while the country of Egypt’s pharaohs used serpents to symbolize their sovereignty. King Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonia troops 37 years later invaded the country of Egypt.
The prophetic messages that God – as God the Father, through God – as God the Spirit, gave through Jeremiah to . . . had or would take place. A third prophetic message is a promise to the country Egypt that it will be returned in time to what it once was and to God’s specially chosen guys and gals that they do not have to fear – that they are never going to be completely wiped off planet Earth. How fascinating do you find what took place 2,615 or so years ago between three countries who are still very much in today’s world news? Your grandpaa finds it very intriguing.
Jeremiah 46 (1094)