May 11 | Jeremiah 50:1-2, 39-46

Dave Mann
May 11
2 min read

DAILY READING

REFLECTION

Whose Foundation?

By Dave Mann

Babylon was used by the Lord to punish Judah for its unfaithfulness to the one true God. The people of Jerusalem were taken into captivity by King Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar’s son, Belshazzar, rose to the throne after the death of his father.

Babylon, under the rule of Belshazzar, was conquered by the Medes (Persia) in 539 B.C. See Daniel 5, especially verse 30. Marduk was the primary god of Babylon. "Bel" is an Akkadian title for their supreme god. Eventually, "Bel" became synonymous with “Marduk.”

As predicted in Jeremiah 50:39, the land of the ancient city of Babylon lies desolate and uninhabited today. The first defeat of the literal Babylon, as recorded in Daniel 5, was swift and sudden. The defeat of Babylon, as recorded in Revelation, is the defeat of all evil ultimately, totally, and finally.

The ancient city of Babylon had been a beautiful city with a powerful military. Ancient Babylon is primarily remembered for its massive defensive walls and its central ziggurat, the Etemenanki. Modern archaeological estimates indicate the walls were 40–80 feet high with a thickness of 50-65 feet. Its defensive towers rose another 10-15 feet higher than the wall. The Etemenanki – the main ziggurat, dedicated to the god Marduk, was the tallest structure in the city. It had a base of 300 feet on each side and likely stood at a total height of roughly 300 feet.

It is easy to imagine how the Babylonians would take great pride in their accomplishments in architecture and military might. After each military campaign, they would bring home more slaves and great wealth from the plunder, including the gold, silver, and bronze from the temple in Jerusalem. Nothing could surpass them. They sat at ease and lived in great luxury.

But their day of demise would come. All things based on human pride and false gods will fall.

We can shake our heads at the Babylonians, how they were overly proud of their military conquests and their towering structures. Certainly, they would fall because they worshiped imaginary gods. However, we should be wary of our own pride. Have we taken pride in what we have accomplished? Have we looked down upon other individuals or cultures, thinking that we have risen higher?

Let’s allow the fall of Babylon to be our incentive to bow in repentance to the Lord God Almighty. Accomplishments based on human pride will eventually fall. What is built on the one true God will last forever.

PRAYER

Almighty and great God, bring us to our knees in sincere repentance. May our hearts bow to your eternal purposes, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

DAVE MANN

I am a Pastor for Internationals (retired) in the UALC community. I am married to Pam, father of four, and grandfather of seven. Pam and I have lived twenty of our years in other countries including France, Cameroon, Haiti, and Morocco. In retirement, we continue to enjoy writing devotionals, learning languages, and teaching English to internationals.