The King of Babylon had left a small remnant of people in the land of Judah to work the land –mostly the poor and uneducated.
The governor the Babylonians had installed was murdered.
It was a turbulent, frightening time for the small group of Jews left in the land. They were scared and they wanted to go to Egypt where they thought they would be safe.

So they approached Jeremiah — asking him to seek the Lord for direction.
They promised: “Whether we like it or not, we will obey the Lord our God”.
But when the word of the Lord finally came, they rejected it, and were angry.

Sometimes we may find ourselves in a similar situation.
Life may be turbulent.
Our direction may be unclear.
And in our hearts — we may be leaning towards worldliness.

Egypt in the Old Testament, was often a symbol of the World.
And often times, God’s people were tempted (and succumbed) to running there when times got tough.

Because worldliness and sin is pleasurable for a season (Hebrews 11:25) it can also be a source of comfort.
Just as eating is pleasurable and we may at times turn to food for comfort — we can turn to the passing pleasures of sin for comfort.
It’s easy.
It’s readily available.
And for a time, may seem like a good idea.

When you’re depressed, eating a half-gallon of ice cream might bring some comfort. But after a couple of hours you will probably feel worse off than before.

So too with us — when we turn towards sin or worldliness for comfort in difficult days, it doesn’t resolve our issues. In fact it makes things much worse.

For the Jews — going to Egypt would thrust them back into full-fledged idolatry, and violent destruction.

Despite the warning, God’s people were hell-bent on going to Egypt. And they were angry with Jeremiah for suggesting otherwise.

How often do we do the  same thing?

In our hearts — we have already determined to do what is wrong. And then we seek counsel from a godly friend, or from God’s Word.

When they speak the Word of God to us , or we see it for ourselves in scripture, we reject it. And we find anger welling up inside of our hearts, because we know that we are in the wrong.

Are you looking for comfort in sin and worldly living?
Here is God’s word to you: Don’t.
It won’t satisfy and it will destroy.

Let us exhort one another to love and good deeds, and let us be wise enough, and humble enough to receive it from one another.