Flee from the midst of Babylon;

depart from the land of the Chaldeans;

be like the he-goats that lead the flock.

For behold, I stir up and bring against Babylon

an assembly of great nations from the land of the north.

They will line up against her;

from the north she will be captured.

Their arrows will be like skilled warriors

who do not return empty-handed.

Chaldea will be plundered;

all who plunder her will have their fill,”

declares the LORD. vs8-10

The plunderer will be plundered and the destroyer destroyed! God will break the yoke He used to humble us, and there will be peace. Flee from Babylon and rejoice in the Lord.

First, He’s made a new covenant with us, an everlasting covenant, and it cannot be broken.

“In those days and at that time,

declares the LORD,

the children of Israel and the children of Judah

will come together, weeping as they come,

and will seek the LORD their God.

They will ask the way to Zion

and turn their faces toward it.

They will come and join themselves to the LORD

in an everlasting covenant

that will never be forgotten.” vs4-5

God will save because He will take away our sins, give us a new heart, and cause us to keep His commands [Jer 31:31-34]. He’ll never forsake us, so we’ll never forsake Him. He’ll be our God, and we’ll be His people. Nothing can change this fact, and no outside force can stop it! This is God’s will - the gift of eternal life.

Flee to this covenant and rejoice. Abide in Jesus Christ. Believe His love, and it will be well with you. He chastens, but He does not forsake. He forgives sin and delivers with power.

For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” [Heb 8:12]

Secondly, Babylon was broken by a nation stronger than Israel, even as we’re saved by Christ and the Spirit!

For behold, I stir up and bring against Babylon

an assembly of great nations from the land of the north.

They will line up against her;

from the north she will be captured. Vs9

It is not power that we have or something that we muster, but it is God’s gift - undeserved by us - through faith in Christ. He comes to the weak and the captive...to the failure who has no might… to the one rightfully chastened... and He delivers us, even as Cyrus, the Medes, and Persians delivered Israel [Isa 44:28-45:4]! It happened in one night: Babylon was broken, her power was gone, and God gave directions to go build.

Ezra 1:1-2, In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, to fulfill the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD stirred the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia to send a proclamation throughout his kingdom and to put it in writing as follows:

“This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:

‘The LORD, the God of heaven, who has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, has appointed me to build a house for Him at Jerusalem in Judah.

He liberates us because He’s loving. He has a covenant prepared for us, a feast of fat things. We’ve fished all night and caught nothing, but now He shows us the right way[John 21:3-6]. He brings the fruit of the Spirit.

Believe, and you will be saved!

Thirdly, God’s salvation is full of joy and power! We were bound in chains, afflicted by unbelief, guilt, and shame, and then He delivered us.

“The Chaldeans will become plunder;

all Babylon’s plunderers will be fully satisfied.” vs10

Now, we walk with God. Now, we know the power of His might, and He is working in us, so that our labor is not the weariness of the flesh but the sweetness of the Spirit. Through rest, we are doing mightily, and He fulfills His promise. We realize the way up is down and humility is sure exaltation [Luke 14:11]! Now, we walk in forgiveness and the Spirit’s power, justification by faith and our completeness in Him! Now, we look to His love, and it fills us with ability and peace that we thought impossible!

Eph 3:19, “To know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

We are generous, as we walk in His continual kindness. We experience the abundant life, feasting on His broken body and payment for our blessings! We are in Christ, and we don’t want to go anywhere else.