What parallels exist between Jeremiah 44:9 and Israel's forgetfulness in Exodus? The Scene in Jeremiah 44:9 “Have you forgotten the wickedness of your fathers, the wickedness of the kings of Judah, the wickedness of their wives, your own wickedness, and the wickedness of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?” (Jeremiah 44:9) Israel’s Early Forgetfulness in Exodus • Exodus 14:11-12 – At the Red Sea the people cried, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness?” • Exodus 15:24 – Three days after crossing the sea, “the people grumbled against Moses, saying, ‘What are we to drink?’” • Exodus 16:3 – In the Wilderness of Sin they lamented, “If only we had died by the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt, when we sat by pots of meat…” • Exodus 32:8 – “They have quickly turned aside from the way I commanded them; they have made for themselves a molten calf and have worshiped it…” Shared Themes and Parallels • Repeated Amnesia toward God’s Mighty Acts – Both generations witnessed breathtaking deliverance (Exodus 14:30-31; Jeremiah 32:21) yet soon lived as though nothing had happened. • Rapid Return to Idolatry – The molten calf (Exodus 32) mirrors Judah’s obsession with “the queen of heaven” (Jeremiah 44:17-19). • Stubborn Refusal to Repent – In Exodus the people “hardened their hearts” (cf. Psalm 95:8 recounting the event). In Jeremiah they declared, “We will not listen to you” (Jeremiah 44:16). • Collective and Individual Guilt – Exodus describes “all the people” bringing gold (32:3). Jeremiah indicts fathers, kings, wives, and present hearers alike (44:9). • Forgetting Past Discipline – Plagues on Egypt (Exodus 10-12) and the Babylonian siege (Jeremiah 39) were both intended as lasting reminders, yet memory faded quickly. • Covenant Violation – Exodus 24:7 records Israel pledging, “We will do and obey.” Jeremiah 11:10 laments, “They have returned to the sins of their forefathers…they have broken My covenant.” Tracing the Pattern • Deuteronomy 8:14 – Moses warned, “then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD.” • Psalm 106:13 – “Yet they soon forgot His works.” • Judges 3:7 – “The Israelites did evil…they forgot the LORD their God.” A Call to Remember and Obey • Scriptural memory is not mere recollection; it is covenant loyalty (Deuteronomy 6:4-9). • The tragedies in both Exodus and Jeremiah underline a timeless truth: forgetting God inevitably breeds idolatry, rebellion, and judgment. • Proverbs 3:1-2 urges, “My son, do not forget My teaching, but let your heart keep My commandments; for they will prolong your life many years and bring you peace and prosperity.” |
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