The Price to Pay
But if you will not obey these words, I swear by Myself, “declares the Lord, ‘that this house will become a place of ruins.”’ Jeremiah 22:5 NASB
Place of ruins – We examined the contingent prophecy of verse 3. God asked those in authority to reverse their course, to embrace the social responsibilities of Torah, and to fulfill their ultimate duty as protectors of the disenfranchised. But what happens if they don’t repent? What happens if they continue to act with selfish disregard for those whom God loves? God tells them in no uncertain terms. Their house will become ḥorbâ. The verbal root is used for drying up, be in ruins, lay waste, and make desolate. We could add “destroyed.” Here’s the verdict: if the authorities in charge act unjustly toward the powerless, God will avenge them. But not just the rulers. There is corporate responsibility and corporate punishment. The Greeks have the right word for it: andralamousia, disaster that sweeps up everything in its path regardless of spiritual standing. In the biblical sense, the populace is responsible for the actions of its leadership. They have the ability, and the responsibility, to stop injustice, to correct unrighteousness, to demand Torah obedience. They are not innocent nor ignorant. And so, they will be swept away as well.
This is, of course, precisely what happened in the Babylonian captivity. Jeremiah may have preached a message to the kings, but the entire civilization reaped the consequences.
Let’s consider some contemporary examples. First, we don’t have to look any further than the modern employment of the crucial term ḥāmās. Liberal politicians decry the human suffering of the “innocent” in Gaza, but the truth is that the residents of Gaza allowed Hamas to gain control of their land. In fact, many supported the policy of genocide—and still do. Over the last twenty years, the residents of Gaza either turned a blind eye to the rhetoric of Hamas or silently supported what Hamas was doing. There are no “innocent” people in Gaza. Just like there are no innocent people in America. We are collectively accountable to what happens in our country. If the residents of Gaza do not resist, protest, rebel, or combat the maniacal evil of their leadership, andralamousia must follow.
Second, and perhaps equally politically incorrect, we can consider the unofficial policies of places like South Africa, Somalia, the Congo, or any number of countries on earth, including our own, where lawlessness, brutality, or sinful actions are tolerated, perhaps even approved. Wherever violence is considered a viable alternative to dialogue, the civilization is headed for ḥorbâ. Don’t imagine that a contingent of righteous citizens will prevent the flood. Righteousness will drown along with evil so that the land will be washed clean. When the garbage is completely entwined with the valuable, it is no longer possible to separate the two. The house must be destroyed in order to build anew. If Noah teaches us anything, it is this: God does not spare His creation when the thoughts of men are continuously evil.
I often lecture about the end of the Roman Empire. In the fourth and fifth centuries, rational dialogue was replaced with social persuasion. Policy gave way to personality. The crowd determined the position of the governing. And Rome fell. Not because of military unpreparedness, but because of a systematic undermining of what made Rome successful in the first place. Cultural values were forsaken for populous ideas and history was abandoned for the sake of expediency. And Rome fell. Not just the Ceasars. Not just the bureaucrats and the generals. The entire civilization collapsed. Historians remark that it was one thousand years before the quality of life enjoyed in Rome was restored. ḥorbâ and andralamousia. They go hand in hand.
Topical Index: andralamousia, ḥorbâ, destruction, ruin, Jeremiah 22:5
