Browse Bible Study Resources

Daily Devotions

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 
Day 
Day 79

"I beheld..."

Text: Jeremiah 4:23

A SAD DESCRIPTION

Jeremiah had warned about the invasion planned by the Babylonians. He now described by prophetic vision what he saw.

“I beheld the earth, and indeed it was without form, and void;
And the heavens, they had no light.
I beheld the mountains, and indeed they trembled,
And all the hills moved back and forth.
I beheld, and indeed there was no man,
And all the birds of the heavens had fled.
I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness,
And all its cities were broken down
At the presence of the LORD,
By His fierce anger.”
Jeremiah 4:23-26

1. “I beheld”

a) This was the key phrase chosen.
b) Jeremiah went on to describe the devastation he saw at the aftermath of war.

2. The aftermath of war described

a) The earth “was without form, and void”.
b) There was “no light in the heavens”.
c) Jeremiah used the language of Genesis 1:2 to describe the horror of the devastation that took place in Judah!

3. The Mountains and Hills

a) They “trembled”.
b) They “moved back and forth”.
c) This was using a figure of speech to describe the instability of the land!

4. No inhabitants

a) All the people were gone. They were either killed or exiled!
b) All the birds had fled.

This was intended exaggeration to describe the bleakness of the land.

5. The cities and the fields

a) The fields had become a wilderness.
b) The cities were wrecked and destroyed.

6. The Presence of God

a) This could be sensed.
b) And God’s anger was palpable!