Isaiah 43
Jeremiah 43 deals with an incident in which some of the people of Judah who remained after the fall of Jerusalem, despite Jeremiah’s warnings, fled to Egypt. This chapter shows how God’s people, amid hardship, choose according to human fear and thoughts rather than following the will of God.
1verseBut now the LORD who created you, Jacob, and he who formed you, Israel, says: “Don’t be afraid, for I have redeemed you. I have called you by your name. You are mine.
2verseWhen you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned, and flame will not scorch you.
3verseFor I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I have given Egypt as your ransom, Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
4verseSince you have been precious and honored in my sight, and I have loved you, therefore I will give people in your place, and nations instead of your life.
5verseDon’t be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your offspring from the east, and gather you from the west.
6verseI will tell the north, ‘Give them up!’ and tell the south, ‘Don’t hold them back! Bring my sons from far away, and my daughters from the ends of the earth—
7verseeveryone who is called by my name, and whom I have created for my glory, whom I have formed, yes, whom I have made.’”
8verseBring out the blind people who have eyes, and the deaf who have ears.
9verseLet all the nations be gathered together, and let the peoples be assembled. Who among them can declare this, and show us former things? Let them bring their witnesses, that they may be justified, or let them hear, and say, “That is true.”
10verse“You are my witnesses,” says the LORD, “With my servant whom I have chosen; that you may know and believe me, and understand that I am he. Before me there was no God formed, neither will there be after me.
11verseI myself am the LORD. Besides me, there is no savior.
12verseI have declared, I have saved, and I have shown, and there was no strange god among you. Therefore you are my witnesses”, says the LORD, “and I am God.
13verseYes, since the day was, I am he. There is no one who can deliver out of my hand. I will work, and who can hinder it?”
14verseThe LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says: “For your sake, I have sent to Babylon, and I will bring all of them down as fugitives, even the Chaldeans, in the ships of their rejoicing.
15verseI am the LORD, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.”
16verseThe LORD, who makes a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters,
17versewho brings out the chariot and horse, the army and the mighty man (they lie down together, they shall not rise; they are extinct, they are quenched like a wick) says:
18verse“Don’t remember the former things, and don’t consider the things of old.
19verseBehold, I will do a new thing. It springs out now. Don’t you know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert.
20verseThe animals of the field, the jackals and the ostriches, shall honor me, because I give water in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen,
21versethe people which I formed for myself, that they might declare my praise.
22verseYet you have not called on me, Jacob; but you have been weary of me, Israel.
23verseYou have not brought me any of your sheep for burnt offerings, neither have you honored me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with offerings, nor wearied you with frankincense.
24verseYou have bought me no sweet cane with money, nor have you filled me with the fat of your sacrifices, but you have burdened me with your sins. You have wearied me with your iniquities.
25verseI, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake; and I will not remember your sins.
26versePut me in remembrance. Let us plead together. Declare your case, that you may be justified.
27verseYour first father sinned, and your teachers have transgressed against me.
28verseTherefore I will profane the princes of the sanctuary; and I will make Jacob a curse, and Israel an insult.”
Structure and Flow
- Verses 1-7: Jeremiah delivers God’s message, but the leaders and people of Judah do not listen and instead flee to Egypt as if he were lying.
- Verses 8-13: After Jeremiah arrives in Egypt, he again conveys the message of God’s judgment and prophesies that Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon will rule over Egypt.
The Overall Meaning of the Passage
The scene in which the remaining people of Judah decide to flee, because they considered human anxiety and fear greater than God’s word, prompts us to reflect again on the essence of faith. Even though they have already experienced God’s judgment, they choose their own path again. In the end, as Jeremiah’s warning declares, even Egypt—which they regarded as a place of refuge—will not be able to escape Babylon’s judgment.
Points for Reflection
- What choice do we make in the face of an anxious reality?
- When trust and obedience to God’s word waver, what becomes the standard for my life?
- What is the true fear behind the desire to escape and seek safety?
Try Applying It to Me
Even today in my life, I experience the temptation to try to solve problems or difficulties in my own way, or to move toward immediate stability. Jeremiah 43 reminds me how important it is to listen to God’s word in hardship, to trust, and to live in obedience. I reflect on the need for a decision not to treat my life as a refuge of escape, but to draw closer to God instead.
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