The Practice of Child Sacrifice
November 24, 2021
Commentary
Today’s passage contains one of the darkest examples of Judah’s rebellion against God—the practice of child sacrifice. Jeremiah warned that judgment was coming upon Jerusalem because the people had turned far from the Lord and refused to abandon their sinful ways (vv. 28–29). Because of their continued disobedience, God declared that the city would be given into the hands of the Babylonians. The coming destruction was not without cause. It was the result of years of rejecting God’s commands and ignoring His words and warnings.
The Lord explained that the people had consistently turned away from Him (vv. 30–33). Instead of following His ways, they chose their own path and hardened their hearts against Him. Their rebellion was not merely a failure to obey; it was a deliberate rejection of the God who had loved and cared for them. They also filled the land with detestable practices (vv. 34–35). They set up idols and worshiped false gods. Most shocking of all, they sacrificed their sons and daughters to Molech in the Valley of Hinnom. These acts revealed how far the nation had drifted from the Lord and why His judgment was necessary.
Yet judgment was not the end of the story. The scene shifts as God speaks of future restoration (vv. 36–44). Though He would scatter His people because of their sin, He promised to gather them again from the nations where they had been driven. God declared, “They shall be My people, and I will be their God” (v. 38, NKJV). He promised to give them one heart and one way, make an everlasting covenant with them, and do them good. Fields would once again be bought and sold in the land. Though much had been lost because of sin, God would restore His people according to His mercy, love, and faithfulness.
Application
Is there any sin in my life that I need to confess and turn away from? Have I allowed anything to take God’s place in my heart? Am I listening to God’s Word and responding with obedience? Is there an area of my life where I have been resisting God’s correction? Am I trusting God’s ability to restore what has been lost?
Jeremiah 32:28–44 (NET)
28 Therefore I, the Lord, say: ‘I will indeed hand this city over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and the Babylonian army. They will capture it. 29 The Babylonian soldiers that are attacking this city will break into it and set it on fire. They will burn it down along with the houses where people have made me angry by offering sacrifices to the god Baal and by pouring out drink offerings to other gods on their rooftops. 30 This will happen because the people of Israel and Judah have repeatedly done what displeases me from their earliest history until now and because they have repeatedly made me angry by the things they have done. I, the Lord, affirm it! 31 This will happen because the people of this city have aroused my anger and my wrath since the time they built it until now. They have made me so angry that I am determined to remove it from my sight. 32 I am determined to do so because the people of Israel and Judah have made me angry with all their wickedness—they, their kings, their officials, their priests, their prophets, and especially the people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem have done this wickedness. 33 They have turned away from me instead of turning to me. I tried over and over again to instruct them, but they did not listen and respond to correction. 34 They set up their disgusting idols in the temple that I have claimed for my own and defiled it. 35 They built places of worship for the god Baal in the Valley of Ben Hinnom so that they could sacrifice their sons and daughters to the god Molech. Such a disgusting practice was not something I commanded them to do. It never even entered my mind to command them to do such a thing! So Judah is certainly liable for punishment.’
36 “You and your people are right in saying, ‘War, starvation, and disease are sure to make this city fall into the hands of the king of Babylon.’ But now I, the Lord God of Israel, have something further to say about this city: 37 ‘I will certainly regather my people from all the countries where I have exiled them in my anger, fury, and great wrath. I will bring them back to this place and allow them to live here in safety. 38 They will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 I will give them a single-minded purpose to live in a way that always shows respect for me. They will want to do that for their own good and the good of the children who descend from them. 40 I will make a lasting covenant with them that I will never stop doing good to them. I will fill their hearts and minds with respect for me so that they will never again turn away from me. 41 I will take delight in doing good to them. I will faithfully and wholeheartedly plant them firmly in the land.’
42 “For I, the Lord, say: ‘I will surely bring on these people all the good fortune that I am hereby promising them. I will be just as sure to do that as I have been in bringing all this great disaster on them. 43 You and your people are saying that this land will become desolate, uninhabited by either people or animals. You are saying that it will be handed over to the Babylonians. But fields will again be bought in this land. 44 Fields will again be bought with silver, and deeds of purchase signed, sealed, and witnessed. This will happen in the territory of Benjamin, the villages surrounding Jerusalem, the towns in Judah, the southern hill country, the foothills, and southern Judah. For I will restore them to their land. I, the Lord, affirm it!’”
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