Devotion February 6 2025 - Florida Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

Thursday, February 6 – Habakkuk 3, Jeremiah 41

Study Questions:

1. At the beginning of his prayer, Habakkuk says, “O Lord, I have heard Your speech, and was afraid.” Why do you think the prophet expressed himself this way? Was his fear directed at God or the consequences of disobedience to the Word of the Lord? (Habakkuk 3:2)

2. How does the prophet express his trust in God, even when things were not going well and there was no material prosperity? (Habakkuk 3:17-19)

3. What did Ishmael and his accomplices do in Mizpah when they arrived with Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon had appointed as governor of the land? (Jeremiah 41:1-3)

4. What strategy did Ishmael use with the 80 men who came from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, bringing offerings and incense to the house of the Lord? (Jeremiah 41:4-7)

Commentary and Reflection:

The historical context dominating our study in recent weeks concerns Judah’s sad spiritual decline due to its kings’ weak faith in the God of Israel. As a result, enemy armies invaded, culminating in the Babylonians, who ultimately took the city of Jerusalem and carried its people into captivity in Babylon.

Returning to around 630 BC, we see Habakkuk stepping onto the prophetic scene. God sent him during the reign of Manasseh, Amon, or the early part of Josiah’s reign. His mission was to warn the people and their leaders about the growing and increasingly dominant apostasy.

In Habakkuk chapter 3, the prophet concludes with a prayer, resembling a psalm of contrition, trembling before the majesty of God and expressing his complete trust in Him. This message must have reached the people at a critical time as they faced the imminent attack of their enemies.

Later, two or three months after the Babylonians took Jerusalem, an apparent patriotic act occurred by a man named Ishmael. While outwardly peaceful, Ishmael acted deceitfully, leaving behind a trail of crimes. His actions were both untimely and inappropriate. Instead of aligning himself with the prophet Jeremiah and humbling himself before God, Ishmael acted independently. While the Babylonian attack and the fall of Jerusalem were inevitable, the destruction of the city and temple could have been avoided.

“Gerut” means “a place of hospitality” or an inn for travelers. Many years earlier, when David fled from the betrayal of his son Absalom, Barzillai the Gileadite showed mercy to David (2 Samuel 19:31-39). David later instructed Solomon to treat Barzillai’s son, Chimham, with courtesy and consideration (see 1 Kings 2:7). Chimham likely received this property from Solomon, which would explain the inn’s name, “Gerut Chimham.”

When reading these unpleasant passages of Scripture, we may ask ourselves why they are included. Honestly, we may not even want to read them. They are stories of bloodshed, revolts, betrayals, and crimes. The reality, beloved, is that they are recorded to fulfill a great purpose in us. The apostle Paul explains it this way in Romans 15:4:

“For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”

These are sad passages, but they teach us the consequences of straying from the right path.

I pray that the careful study we are undertaking through this daily reading will help us better know the merciful God we have as our Father and lead us to decide to follow and serve Him with all our hearts.

Pastor Rolando de los Rios

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Thursday, February 6 – Habakkuk 3, Jeremiah 41

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Thursday, February 6 – Habakkuk 3, Jeremiah 41

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