Jeremiah 50: The Punisher Punished

If you ever have friends who believe in punishing Jews for their "complicity" in the death of Jesus, you might want to refer them to the fiftieth chapter of Jeremiah.  There the prophet reveals that one must be careful in taking on the role of the punisher, for they, too, will be punished.

"My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains; from mountain to hill they have gone, they have forgotten their fold.  All who found them have devoured them, and their enemies have said, “We are not guilty, because they have sinned against the Lord, the true pasture, the Lord, the hope of their ancestors" (vs. 6-7).

Can you see what's happening here?  Babylon has been called forth by the Lord to serve as a punishment for His people that have gone astray.  However, that does not absolve them of responsibility.  When they go too far in their mistreatment of the Lord's people, they themselves come in for judgment.  Even if they proclaim their innocence, God knows better.

The prophet calls out, "Summon archers against Babylon, all who bend the bow. Encamp all around her; let no one escape. Repay her according to her deeds; just as she has done, do to her—for she has arrogantly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel" (vs. 29).  Babylon will now suffer for the outrages she has inflicted on God's people.  Descriptions of how she will be turned into a wasteland make up the bulk of Jeremiah 50 and 51.