‘But the one who redeems them is strong. His name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. He will defend them and give them rest again in Israel. But for the people of Babylon there will be no rest!’ Jeremiah 50:34

Reading through the book of Jeremiah recently we were struck that he has much to say about the sins of his own people as they come under the judgement of God and are conquered by the Babylonian empire. The end of the book takes a different turn however as he pronounces judgement also on the surrounding nations, and his last word is an extended prophecy of the destruction of Babylon itself. Babylon’s fall will be his people’s redemption, as they will rest again in his restored kingdom when the Lord will make good the new covenant by which they are bound to him forever. God’s people were facing his judgement and there was much fear, grief and pain in store for them, both material and spiritual. But the promise of God’s rest would hold fast and, for those who truly believed and listened to what God was saying, this was reason to carry on in faith, even for that generation who lived through the exile.