The Coronavirus: “O Earth, Earth, Earth, hear the Word of the LORD.” Jeremiah 22:29

Posted on April 14, 2020 by Sunny South News

Dear Community,

These words were spoken by the prophet Jeremiah to the children of Judah in very serious and solemn times. The blessed and privileged people of Judah had forsaken the Lord, become proud and independent, rejected His word, and disobeyed His Holy law. The Lord had already sent many lesser judgments upon them, but they did not repent of their ungodly and evil ways. Soon greater judgments would come upon them, when Nebuchadnezzar would conquer and destroy the city and temple of Jerusalem.

“O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the LORD.” Dear readers, this is a fitting word for this time where the Lord is visiting the earth with the judgment of the coronovirus, accompanied with deep and far reaching consequences for our families. The Lord is speaking loudly: think of how much of the world has come to a stand still. Many businesses and stores are closed, the roads less traveled, and many airplanes grounded with all the devastating effects and fears. The Lord usually sends lesser judgments, before He sends greater judgments (Amos 4). This past summer on August 6th, the Lord has shown a little of his power with devastating wind and hail covering a vast area. On the last Lord’s Day of September, the Lord sent an early snow storm with more storms following, with the death of livestock, and making it impossible, or very difficult to harvest the remaining crops on the field. Now the Lord has come with the judgment of a very contagious sickness. Let us as a community replace the address, “earth” with “Canada”, “Alberta”; let us even replace it with my and your name.

“O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the LORD.” Surely, the Lord has something extraordinary to say unto us (Micah 6:9). The Lord is calling us to uprightly and sincerely repent, where we have departed so far from God’s Holy Word. Jer. 3:13 “Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God.” The Bible and prayer have been removed from our schools and government offices. We as a society have become so materialistic and covetous, busy mainly with the timely things, forgetting our never dying soul that needs to be saved. Philippians 2:21, “For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.” Family worship with parents and children gathering around God’s Holy Word with prayer and singing has been replaced by modern media. The church is no longer the salt of the earth, and the light of the world (Matt. 5:13-16). The Lord’s Day is no longer kept holy like in former days, when the multitudes went up twice to God’s house, to implore the Lord for His blessing, to hear God’s Word expounded and to sing His praises. Now the first day of the week has become a day of visiting, recreation, cutting of lawns, working, buying and selling. We have become what is written in 2 Tim. 3:4:”lovers of pleasures, more than lovers of God.” The institution of marriage between one woman and one man is no longer honoured by many, with so many broken hearts and shattered families. We have become like Sodom and Gomorrah, which were destroyed by brimstone and fire. The unborn continue to be murdered, perhaps in the same hospitals where doctors and nurses are doing their utmost to save those affected by the conoravirus.

“O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the LORD.” Alas, under the chastising hand of a just and almighty God, where do we hear there is made mention made of a sovereign and holy God who reigns, who has righteously sent this judgment? Psalm 99:1 says, “The LORD reigneth, let the people tremble.” Friends, where do we hear of the mention of sin, of guilt and the urgent call to an upright and sincere repentance from our evil and wicked ways? Have we repented of any of our sins since the coronavirus affected us? Have we come more often on our knees at His throne of grace? (Psalm 50:14). Has the family and our personal Bible been opened more diligently? (John 5:39). Have we kept the Lord’s Day more holy (Exodus. 20:8-11)? Have we with a Zacchaeus made restitution, when we have defrauded our neighbour of his goods? (Luke 19:8). Or must the Lord still say of us as He has exclaimed five times in Amos 4, “Yet have ye not returned unto me saith the Lord”.

May we be given to remember in prayer all those who have contacted this disease, with those in hospitals and the mourning ones (Galatians 6:2). The Lord also help, strengthen, encourage and protect in a special way all those who work in the medical field. May our leaders also receive special wisdom and understanding in these difficult times (1 Tim. 2:1-3).

For encouragement for us to repent and urgently seek the Lord, we will quote from 2 Chronicles 7:14: “If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” Once again, dear readers, “O earth, earth, earth, hear the Word of the LORD.”

REV .E. C. ADAMS
Picture Butte, Alberta