Jeremiah 11:15
What right has My beloved in My house, having carried out so many evil schemes? Can consecrated meat avert your doom, so that you can rejoice?
What right has My beloved in My house
This phrase reflects God's deep disappointment and sense of betrayal by the people of Judah, whom He refers to as "My beloved." The term "My house" refers to the temple in Jerusalem, a sacred place where God's presence dwelt. The rhetorical question underscores the incongruity of the people's presence in the temple given their unfaithfulness. This echoes the covenant relationship between God and Israel, where Israel is often depicted as God's bride (Hosea 2:19-20). The use of "beloved" indicates a relationship that has been violated by idolatry and disobedience.

having carried out so many evil schemes?
The "evil schemes" refer to the idolatry and social injustices that the people of Judah were committing. Historically, this period was marked by widespread worship of Baal and other Canaanite deities, which was strictly forbidden (Exodus 20:3-5). The people were engaging in practices that were abominable to God, including child sacrifice and other pagan rituals (Jeremiah 7:31). This phrase highlights the hypocrisy of the people who, despite their wickedness, still sought to participate in temple worship.

Can consecrated meat avert your doom?
"Consecrated meat" refers to the sacrificial offerings made in the temple. In the Old Testament sacrificial system, offerings were a means of atonement and worship (Leviticus 1-7). However, God is emphasizing that ritual sacrifices are meaningless without genuine repentance and obedience (1 Samuel 15:22). This rhetorical question points to the futility of relying on religious rituals to escape judgment when the heart remains unrepentant. It foreshadows the New Testament teaching that true worship is in spirit and truth (John 4:24).

When you are wicked, then you rejoice.
This phrase captures the moral corruption of the people, who not only commit wicked acts but also take pleasure in them. It reflects a hardened heart and a seared conscience, where sin is celebrated rather than mourned. This rejoicing in wickedness is condemned throughout Scripture (Proverbs 2:14, Romans 1:32). It contrasts with the call to mourn over sin and seek God's mercy (James 4:9). The rejoicing in wickedness is a sign of impending judgment, as it indicates a complete turning away from God's righteous standards.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jeremiah
A prophet called by God to deliver messages of warning and judgment to the people of Judah. He is known for his lamentations over the spiritual state of the nation.

2. Judah
The southern kingdom of Israel, which had turned away from God and engaged in idolatry and other sins, prompting God's judgment.

3. God's House
Refers to the temple in Jerusalem, a place meant for worship and sacrifice, which had become defiled by the people's insincere worship and sinful practices.

4. Consecrated Meat
Part of the sacrificial system in the Old Testament, where meat from sacrifices was considered holy. Here, it symbolizes the people's attempt to use religious rituals to cover their sins.

5. Evil Schemes
The sinful actions and idolatrous practices of the people of Judah, which were contrary to God's covenant with them.
Teaching Points
True Worship vs. Ritualistic Religion
God desires genuine worship from the heart, not mere ritualistic practices. Our religious activities should reflect a sincere relationship with God.

The Danger of Hypocrisy
Engaging in religious rituals while living in sin is hypocritical and unacceptable to God. We must align our actions with our professed beliefs.

Repentance Over Rituals
God calls for repentance and a change of heart rather than relying on religious rituals to cover up sin. True repentance leads to transformation.

God's Love and Justice
Despite referring to Judah as "My beloved," God’s justice demands accountability for sin. His love does not negate His righteousness.

Joy in Wickedness
Rejoicing in wickedness is a sign of a hardened heart. We must examine our lives to ensure we find joy in righteousness, not in sin.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Jeremiah 11:15 challenge our understanding of what it means to truly worship God?

2. In what ways might we be tempted to rely on religious rituals instead of genuine repentance and obedience?

3. How can we ensure that our worship is sincere and not just a routine or obligation?

4. What are some modern-day "evil schemes" that might hinder our relationship with God, and how can we address them?

5. How do the themes in Jeremiah 11:15 connect with Jesus' teachings on worship and obedience in the New Testament?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Isaiah 1:11-17
This passage echoes the theme of God rejecting insincere worship and sacrifices when the people's hearts are far from Him.

1 Samuel 15:22
Highlights the principle that obedience to God is more important than ritual sacrifices.

Matthew 15:8-9
Jesus quotes Isaiah, emphasizing that worship is vain when it is merely lip service without true devotion.
The Staying of IntercessionA.F. Muir
People
Anathoth, Jeremiah
Places
Anathoth, Egypt, Jerusalem, Zion
Topics
Avert, Beloved, Consecrated, Deeds, Devices, Disaster, Doest, Doom, Engage, Evil, Exult, Exultest, Flesh, Hallowed, Holy, Judah, Lewdness, Meat, Oaths, Pass, Passed, Practise, Punishment, Rejoice, Rejoicest, Sacrificial, Safe, Schemes, Seeing, Temple, Trouble, Vile, Vows, Wickedness, Worked, Works, Wrought
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Jeremiah 11:15

     8218   consecration

Library
First, for Thy Thoughts.
1. Be careful to suppress every sin in the first motion; dash Babylon's children, whilst they are young, against the stones; tread, betimes, the cockatrice's egg, lest it break out into a serpent; let sin be to thy heart a stranger, not a home-dweller: take heed of falling oft into the same sin, lest the custom of sinning take away the conscience of sin, and then shalt thou wax so impudently wicked, that thou wilt neither fear God nor reverence man. 2. Suffer not thy mind to feed itself upon any
Lewis Bayly—The Practice of Piety

"And we all do Fade as a Leaf, and Our Iniquities, Like the Wind, have Taken us Away. "
Isaiah lxiv. 6.--"And we all do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." Here they join the punishment with the deserving cause, their uncleanness and their iniquities, and so take it upon them, and subscribe to the righteousness of God's dealing. We would say this much in general--First, Nobody needeth to quarrel God for his dealing. He will always be justified when he is judged. If the Lord deal more sharply with you than with others, you may judge there is a difference
Hugh Binning—The Works of the Rev. Hugh Binning

The Medes and the Second Chaldaean Empire
THE FALL OF NINEVEH AND THE RISE OF THE CHALDAEAN AND MEDIAN EMPIRES--THE XXVIth EGYPTIAN DYNASTY: CYAXARES, ALYATTES, AND NEBUCHADREZZAR. The legendary history of the kings of Media and the first contact of the Medes with the Assyrians: the alleged Iranian migrations of the Avesta--Media-proper, its fauna and flora; Phraortes and the beginning of the Median empire--Persia proper and the Persians; conquest of Persia by the Medes--The last monuments of Assur-bani-pal: the library of Kouyunjik--Phraortes
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 8

Backsliding.
"I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely: for Mine anger is turned away."--Hosea xiv. 4. There are two kinds of backsliders. Some have never been converted: they have gone through the form of joining a Christian community and claim to be backsliders; but they never have, if I may use the expression, "slid forward." They may talk of backsliding; but they have never really been born again. They need to be treated differently from real back-sliders--those who have been born of the incorruptible
Dwight L. Moody—The Way to God and How to Find It

The Tests of Love to God
LET us test ourselves impartially whether we are in the number of those that love God. For the deciding of this, as our love will be best seen by the fruits of it, I shall lay down fourteen signs, or fruits, of love to God, and it concerns us to search carefully whether any of these fruits grow in our garden. 1. The first fruit of love is the musing of the mind upon God. He who is in love, his thoughts are ever upon the object. He who loves God is ravished and transported with the contemplation of
Thomas Watson—A Divine Cordial

Covenanting Confers Obligation.
As it has been shown that all duty, and that alone, ought to be vowed to God in covenant, it is manifest that what is lawfully engaged to in swearing by the name of God is enjoined in the moral law, and, because of the authority of that law, ought to be performed as a duty. But it is now to be proved that what is promised to God by vow or oath, ought to be performed also because of the act of Covenanting. The performance of that exercise is commanded, and the same law which enjoins that the duties
John Cunningham—The Ordinance of Covenanting

Jeremiah
The interest of the book of Jeremiah is unique. On the one hand, it is our most reliable and elaborate source for the long period of history which it covers; on the other, it presents us with prophecy in its most intensely human phase, manifesting itself through a strangely attractive personality that was subject to like doubts and passions with ourselves. At his call, in 626 B.C., he was young and inexperienced, i. 6, so that he cannot have been born earlier than 650. The political and religious
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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