And in this place I will make void the plans of Judah and Jerusalem, and will cause their people to fall by the sword before their enemies, and by the hand of those who seek their life. I will give their dead bodies for food to the birds of the air and to the beasts of the earth. And I will make this city a horror, a thing to be hissed at. Everyone who passes by it will be horrified and will hiss because of all its wounds. (Jeremiah 19:7,8 ESV)
Warnings
The brightly lit sign declared, “Construction Ahead. Be Prepared to Stop.” But the car in the next lane either did not believe the sign, or did not notice it. And while I easily and safely avoided the danger, that other guy had to screech his brakes, twist his car, and probably scream at the top of his lungs.
I stopped in plenty of time. He barely made it.
Warnings are good things. We may find them annoying, or distracting, or over-stated… but heeded warnings lead to less accidents.
In these verses God warns the Judeans that trouble, due to their disobedience, is coming.
Spoiler: they did not listen.
But if you are a Christian, you did! Being a Christian is really little more than realizing that there is eternal danger ahead, heeding the warnings, and clinging to the only solution… Christ Himself.
When the warnings look scary today, realize joyfully that you have heeded the warnings. If you have not, then you have reason to be afraid.
But we are peculiar, we have heard the warnings.