Sword, Famine, and Plague

Then the Lord said to me, “Even though Moses and Samuel were to stand before Me, My heart would not be with this people; send them away from My presence and let them go! 2 And it shall be that when they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you are to tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Those destined for death, to death; And those destined for the sword, to the sword; And those destined for famine, to famine; And those destined for captivity, to captivity.”‘ 3 I will appoint over them four kinds of doom,” declares the Lord: “the sword to slay, the dogs to drag off, and the birds of the sky and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. 4 I will make them an object of horror among all the kingdoms of the earth because of Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, the king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.

Jeremiah 15:1-4

Jeremiah says the cities languish, the ground is cracked, farmers are dismayed, and wild donkeys pant like jackals. As the situation grows dire, He begs the Lord to “do something, for the sake of your name.” The Lord responds by saying He does not need their burnt offerings or grain offerings. He will not accept prophets who try to reassure themselves and others that God will give lasting peace. Even if great men of God like Moses or Samuel were to stand before him, His heart would still not go out to the people. He brings the sword, famine, and the plague because of what Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, has done.

When the sword, famine, or plague hit, we must think about Jeremiah. God is so angry, He says, “Those destined for death, to death; those for the sword, to the sword; those for starvation, to starvation; those for captivity, to captivity.” How can we appease God when He is this enraged? When a plague hits such as the one we are experiencing now, we must do the right thing at the right time to appease God. In other words, just because we think something is biblical doesn’t mean it will automatically coincide with what God wants us to do.

We could go on a fast. Go to the mountains and pray. Offer all kinds of sacrifices. We could send Samuel or Moses to plead our case, but it all goes for naught unless we know what God wants from us. God brings the sword, famine, and plague because Manasseh, the son of Hezekiah, worships idols. When God strikes us with famine or plague, He asks us to repent a specific sin. He is not asking us to pray more or read the Bible or go on a prayer fast: He is asking us to repent worshipping idols.

In today’s world, we don’t make statues and hang them before us. We create idols on a different level. We make ourselves idols. We turn our families, our jobs, our prized possessions, and money into idols. How do you know if you are worshipping idols? Ask yourself these questions:

Do you look to other things besides God?
Do you lean on other things for help?
Do you fear anything besides God?
Do you love something more than God?
Do you believe you need something outside of God to live a happy and peaceful life?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions or place anything above God (science, power, money, people, etc.), you worship idols and need to stop!

When the “sword, famine, and plague” hit, we must refrain from becoming false prophets who try to sugarcoat God’s wrath by saying, “You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, I will give you lasting peace in his place.” No, this isn’t God’s message. God wants us to repent idols. And He will go to bitter lengths until we finally do what He wants. The virus hitting the world is God bringing the sword, famine, and plague to our front door. He wants us to repent worshipping idols. Before we attempt to understand the plague or devise a plan to survive it, drop everything and destroy your idols. Let the rest fall into place according to God’s will.

Summary