Jeremiah’s warning: USA as China’s 24th province?

IF GOD TREATS OUR NATION LIKE ANCIENT ISRAEL, might he erase us from the world map as the Bible says he did with Israel? Invaders deported them and took their land.

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DO BIBLE PROPHECIES WARN  US TODAY about what God might do to us because of our nation’s persistent sins? Or were the warnings for 2,600 years ago?

In other words, are the Bible books like Jeremiah living sermons or just ancient history?

If they are sermons, what are we to make of Jeremiah warning the Jewish nation of Judah to stop sinning or God will end their nation? Jeremiah said God would send invaders to destroy their cities, deport the survivors, and take their homeland.

What sins? Not these:

I’m not talking about what some Christians tag as national sins:

• Abortion. The Bible doesn’t mention abortion or call it murder.
• Illegal immigration. We’re a nation of undocumented immigrants whose ancestors came here without permission of the locals. The Bible persistently tells Jewish nations to protect immigrants.
• Liberal leanings. The Bible doesn’t promote “conservative” over “liberal.” In the time of Jesus, the conservatives were Pharisees, and the liberals were Jesus and his disciples. Pharisees loved their power and prestige but insisted the common folks follow all the rules they imposed (Matthew 23:4-6).

Sins that killed the ancient Jewish nations

Here are the real sins—the sins that ended the two Jewish nations of Israel (in the north) and Judah (in the south). Israel fell to Assyrians (north Iraq) in 722 BC. Judah with Jerusalem fell to Babylonians (south Iraq) in 586 BC. In both cases, invaders deported the survivors and took the land.

1. Worshiping Other Gods

• Sin: Israelite ancestors of today’s Jewish people repeatedly turned to pagan gods, violating their covenant contract with the LORD. They had agreed to obey him in return for peace and prosperity.
• Key verses:
  • Isaiah 44:9 – “People who worship idols are trusting in something that’s nothing but a lie.”
  • Jeremiah 2:13 – “My people have done something that makes no sense. They dumped me, the fountain of fresh running water. Then they started drinking from cracked cisterns they made themselves.”

2. Exploiting the helpless (social injustice)

• Sin: Corrupt leaders, judges, and wealthy elites mistreated the poor, widows, and orphans, and immigrants.
• Key verses:
  • Amos 5:11 – “You trample poor people into the ground and take the little bit of wheat they have left.”
  • Micah 6:8 – “The Lord has already told you what is good and what he expects from you. Do what’s fair and right. Be kind and loyal. Walk humbly with your God.”
  • Zechariah 7:9-10 –  “Give people justice—the real thing. Show them your kindness and compassion. Don't mistreat widows, orphans, immigrants, or the poor.”

3. Corrupt Leaders

• Sin: Many kings, priests, and prophets used their power to benefit themselves rather than to provide justice.
• Key verses:
  • Ezekiel 34:2 – “You shepherds of Israel are feeding yourselves instead of your sheep.”
  • Jeremiah 23:1 – “Terrible things will happen to shepherds who destroy and scatter my sheep.”

Guilty

Our country and many others commit all these sins.

Heck, here in the USA, we elected a convicted criminal and sex offender as our top leader. Google it.

Fraud. Thirty-four counts of hiding hush money to an adult film actress.

Sexual assault. Sentenced to pay $5 million to a woman he sexually assaulted, and another $83.3 million for defaming her afterward. He faces a long list of other charges as well.

He’s our shepherd.

Where do we go from here?

What happens next in my country, the United States of America, and in other countries committing similar sins is God’s business.

But if we are today’s version of ancient Judah, China might be the only contender for the ancient version of Babylon, invaders who erased Judah from the world map.

If China did to us what Babylon did to Judah and what Assyria did to Israel, they would invade us, overwhelm our military, kill the political leaders, deport survivors to China, and claim America as its 24^th province.

That would throw a cold blanket on American threats to buy Greenland and turn Canada into our 51^st state.

I’m not saying we're about to get invaded. But if the words of the prophets are living words for living nations, we’re in trouble. There’s always repentance. But even with repentance, there’s always  accountability. Sometimes it too late for repentance to prevent punishment:

“So here’s what I’m going to do: I’m bringing a disaster on them [Judah] that they can’t escape. They’ll beg me for help, but I won’t listen” (Jeremiah 11:11).

These are questions on my mind as I paraphrase the prophecies of Jeremiah for the Casual English Bible. I wish I could keep Jeremiah in his place, 2,600 years ago. But I can’t seem to do that. I’m haunted by our eroding values, not just as Christians, but as humans.

You can quote me

"We are better than the worst of us. But sometimes the worst of us gets the best of us."

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