Jeremiah 30:9
Instead, they will serve the Lord their God
and David their king,
whom I will raise up for them. (NIV)
Today’s Reading: Jeremiah 30:1-11
I’m not a huge fan of trying to interpret prophecy. Many Biblical scholars have made it their life’s work to interpret passages like Jeremiah 30 and of course Revelation. They spend years trying to figure out what the signs and symbols mean and what they will look like when they happen.
To some degree I think the exercise is futile. We are nearing the end of looking at over 365 prophecies concerning Jesus Christ, most of which reference his first coming to earth, and yet the entire world including great Jewish scholars did not recognize him as the Messiah. So given that fact, how would anyone be able to accurately know how the second coming of Jesus will unfold and be able to interpret the signs and symbols of Scripture? I simply don’t think it’s possible.
However, there are themes and overall concepts that I do think that we can accurately discuss. For example, Jeremiah 30:7 says:
“How awful that day will be!
No other will be like it.
It will be a time of trouble for Jacob,
but he will be saved out of it.” (NIV)
“‘Alas! for that day is great,
There is none like it;
And it is the time of Jacob’s distress,
But he will be saved from it.” (NASB1995).
Jeremiah is told by God that there will be a day in the future when Jesus returns and that day will be great. It won’t be great good. It will be great in that it will be awful for everyone. It will be the worst day ever. No other day will be like this day. This day is referenced in other places in Scripture:
“The great day of the Lord is near—
near and coming quickly.
The cry on the day of the Lord is bitter;
the Mighty Warrior shouts his battle cry” (Zeph 1:14).
“For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?” (Rev 6:17)
“They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty” (Rev 16:14).
“For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again” (Rev 24:21).
If you read the entire chapters containing these verses, you will see that this day will clearly be the worst day in history for mankind. There is terrible suffering coming on this day. Jeremiah 30:7 also says that on this great day that Israel “will be saved out of it.” They will not suffer like the rest of the world. They will no longer be enslaved by foreigners because God will set them free.
“Instead, they will serve the Lord their God
and David their king,
whom I will raise up for them” (Jer 30:9).
Israel will serve God and “David” will be their king. This is the future branch of David who is Jesus the King. Israel will serve the Lord their God and King Jesus on that day:
“They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers” (Rev 17:14).
“‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’ He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (Rev 19:15-16).
So I think it’s accurate to say we know the overall concept of how the return of Jesus will go down. It will be an awful day for his enemies and a glorious day for Israel and his followers. But I am uncertain of exactly how this day will unfold and I am ok with that. I know that my Savior who will come back to earth to reign as the rightful King loves me. He died for me. Will his followers be caught up in this awful day? I pray not! All I can do is trust that God loves his people more than we can imagine and the end will play out exactly how He wills it. And what we know for sure is that Jesus is the King and we will be with him and serve him for all eternity:
“Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen” (Rev 1:4-6).
Christ in the Old Testament 
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