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"Among My people are found wicked men"

Text: Jeremiah 5:26

THE PROBLEM OF WICKEDNESS

The LORD elaborated further on the problem of wickedness in Judah. The reference, though not stated plainly, describe the rich and the powerful in the land.

“‘For among My people are found wicked men;
They lie in wait as one who sets snares;
They set a trap;
They catch men.
As a cage is full of birds,
So their houses are full of deceit.
Therefore they have become great and grown rich.
They have grown fat, they are sleek;
Yes, they surpass the deeds of the wicked;
They do not plead the cause,
The cause of the fatherless;
Yet they prosper,
And the right of the needy they do not defend.
Shall I not punish them for these things?’ says the LORD.
‘Shall I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this?'”
Jeremiah 5:26-29

1. “For among My people are found wicked men”

a) My people

i) These were not foreigners.

ii) These were people who were supposedly “children of Israel”.

b) Wicked men

i) Wickedness is not just a bad deed committed.

ii) Wickedness stems from deep inside a person’s heart.

2. The wicked deeds noted

a) The wicked are compared to hunters who set traps and snares.

b) But their game is not animals or birds.

c) Their focus was on “innocent people”.

d) They had been successful hunters with a cage full of captured birds.

3. Consequently

a) They had become wealthy.

b) They had become powerful.

c) They had become even more wicked.

4. What they never do

a) They do not help the fatherless.

b) They offer no assistance to the needy.

5. They continue to focus on getting richer without a thought for anyone else.

6. Judgment and punishment warned

a) Judgment of the wicked rich. Should they not be punished?

b) Judgment of a nation that tolerated such wickedness. Should the nation go unpunished?