The coronavirus pandemic has changed the world. It has created an entirely new social, political and economic environment. We can no longer enjoy normal social relationships with our friends and neighbours; our political masters control everything we do outside our own homes, even our shopping and our leisure activities; we are no longer allowed to go to work unless we are doing tasks the Government considers to be essential. We are a nation living under what in normal times would be considered ‘oppression’.
The restrictions upon us are, in some ways, similar to those imposed upon the people of Judah who were forcibly transported to Babylon after the fall of Jerusalem in 597 BC. They could only go where their political masters allowed them to go: they could only work at what the Babylonians ordered them to do; and even in their leisure time they were under surveillance and had to do as they were ordered, as illustrated in Psalm 137: “Our tormentors demanded songs of joy, but how can we sing…”
At home today, people find it hard to sing alone. Those who usually go to church on Sundays find it hard to worship alone, even if they are able to use their computer for an online service. Singing into a computer is not the same as participating in a group with people all around you! Virtual community is not easy, but people are finding new ways of doing community – singing, dancing or playing an instrument at home and sharing through the internet.
The Jewish people in Babylon didn’t have the internet to enable them to communicate with others and they felt very isolated. They missed the great festivals in the Temple in Jerusalem, but most of all they missed the large-scale family gatherings where their kin came together for festivals.
In Babylon the people missed the priests who led the prayers, the acts of worship and ceremonials in the Temple. They felt isolated and separated from God, forcing them to ask fundamental questions about their faith. “Is Israel still God’s covenant people?” “Has God abandoned Israel forever?”
At a time of the greatest despair a word from God reached them, in the form of a letter written by the Prophet Jeremiah (Jer 29). It said some things that they found tremendously uplifting, comforting and spiritually strengthening. But it also said some things they did not want to hear – particularly that their time in exile was going to last a long time.
Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.
How could a band of slaves get land in Babylon for building houses? Recent archaeological discoveries have revealed details of a deal that Nebuchadnezzar did with the exiles. That is one of the surprising questions answered in the book Living in Babylon, on which this series over the next 12 weeks will be based. An excerpt from the back cover of the book says:
This book uncovers the hidden story of the years spent in Babylon and shows how the people of Israel discovered a new identity as the covenant people of God which prepared them for returning to Jerusalem as a people with a mission – to be a light for the Gentiles.
At the end of the exile when they were allowed to leave Babylon, the returning exiles found a completely different world – Jerusalem was never the same – even the people who had stayed behind were changed, the economy was shattered and there was great unemployment, poverty and hardship. But in Babylon they had discovered a faith that triumphed over all adversity. They found a faith in God that was not dependent upon the Temple or the Temple priesthood. They discovered God in their own homes, in their own family setting and in private prayer. So they set about rebuilding the Temple, re-establishing the economy, rebuilding their houses and even the walls of the city. Nothing was too difficult. Their newfound faith overcame all obstacles.
Will this be the experience of people in Britain when all restrictions end? Will it be a whole new world, with new values and a new way of life? Will the faith of nominal believers become real and will many new believers emerge from the lockdown who through fear, or from revelation, have had a life-changing experience of God? Will living in 21st-Century Babylon transform the lives of multitudes?
During the next 12 weeks we will bring the findings and issues raised in the 12 sections in both ‘Living in Babylon’ and its workbook, ‘Living Victoriously in Babylon’, to Prophecy Today UK via a supplementary series of articles. These will stand alone but hopefully will also update and apply the study portion of these books for those who are using this ‘lockdown’ time to go deeper into the purposes of God.
