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"The whole land is made desolate"

Text: Jeremiah 12:11

THE DESTRUCTION OF THE LAND

Many thought that God did not care about His people, nor the land. This was not a correct perception. This wrong view had to be addressed.

“Many rulers have destroyed My vineyard,
They have trodden My portion underfoot;
They have made My pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.
They have made it desolate;
Desolate, it mourns to Me;
The whole land is made desolate,
Because no one takes it to heart.”
Jeremiah 12:10-11

1. “Many rulers have destroyed My vineyard, they have trodden My portion underfoot; they have made My pleasant portion a desolate wilderness”

a) “Many rulers”

i) There were the wicked domestic rulers.

ii) There were the foreign invaders (rulers).

b) What they have done.

i) They have destroyed.

ii) They have trodden down.

iii) They have made the land a desolate wilderness.

c) Why was it described as “have destroyed?”

i) This is called “proleptic” use of language.

ii) The deeds are not yet done.

iii) But they will certainly do all of the above.

d) The Lord’s affection for the land is expressed clearly.

i) “My vineyard”

God saw the land as His vineyard (Isaiah 5).

ii) “My portion” and “My pleasant portion”.

The land was “God’s heritage”.

2. “They have made it desolate; desolate, it mourns to Me; the whole land is made desolate, because no one takes it to heart”

a) The word “desolate” was used three times.

b) This was to describe the deep sadness of the Lord.

i) A bountiful land had become desolate.

ii) A blessed land had become accursed.

c) “No one takes it to heart”

i) God took the desolation of the land to heart.

ii) The inhabitants of the land were the ones who did not show care for the land.