For the second time in history, the Temple of God has been destroyed. In its place, sits the Dome of the Rock Mosque. Without the Temple, all sacrifices and offerings have stopped. In the scriptures, God clearly states that sacrifices and burnt offerings must be made daily in the Temple of God in order for Him to forgive iniquity (sins that are unknown).
God specifies that only blood sacrifices can atone for sin and this sacrifice can only be offered in the Temple. It is a permanent statute that must be observed throughout the generations. Since there hasn’t been a Temple for 1900 years to perform sacrifices and atone for sin, the Jewish people remain without forgiveness for their sins. The Jewish people have been faced with the dilemma of having no outlet to reach God for forgiveness of their iniquity. They have compromised and twisted the scriptures in order to suit their current situation.
Jesus, the new Temple has been established. His blood is the final and everlasting sacrifice, but the Jewish people have rejected him as the Messiah. Because of this, they have twisted and manipulated many scriptures to support their claims that they can in fact receive forgiveness of sins, without a blood sacrifice performed in the Temple or without Jesus.
One of the main scriptures that they refer to in defense of this position, is in Jeremiah 29. Through this bible study, I will be going through this chapter to show that this scripture does not apply to their current situation and is in fact prophesying the building of the second Temple.
During an exile, conquered people end up assimilating with their conquerors. After a few generations, they cease to exist. In this instance, however, Jeremiah the prophet sends a letter to the exiled Jewish people in Babylon. He assures them that this will not happen in their case. Assimilation to the point of the Jewish people disappearing was not going to happen during their exile. God is assuring the Jewish people through the prophet Jeremiah that they will be preserved as a people, delivered from Babylonian exile and brought back to Jerusalem.
This is the text of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders among the exiles and to the priests, the prophets and all the other people Nebuchadnezzar had carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon.
2 (This was after King Jehoiachin and the queen mother, the court officials and the leaders of Judah and Jerusalem, the skilled workers and the artisans had gone into exile from Jerusalem.) 3 He entrusted the letter to Elasah son of Shaphan and to Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to King Nebuchadnezzar in Babylon. It said:
Jeremiah 29: 4-6 This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 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.
God is telling the Jewish people not to have a mindset that they will disappear as a people. He instructs them to continue growing in population as a people. Then when the time of exile has come to an end (which the prophet Daniel worked out to be seventy years, through the prophecy of Jeremiah), the Jewish people will return to Jerusalem.
Jeremiah 29:7 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.” 8 Yes, this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. 9 They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them,” declares the Lord.
Jeremiah 29:10 This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my good promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the Lord, “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”
This is the main scripture that the Jewish people refer to during this current time of there being no temple for sacrificial offerings. However this scripture, written by Jeremiah, was for the particular time of Babylonian exile only. Jeremiah’s prophecy of rebuilding the temple was about the second Temple. If we take this scripture to be an end of time prophecy regarding the Temple, then we have a major contradiction between Jeremiah and Daniel and this is not the case.
If this were correct, then Jeremiah would be prophesying of the rebuilding of a third Temple (before the second one was built). Meanwhile Daniel speaks of ruins and abominations in place of a third Temple – along with a new Temple system which eradicates iniquity forever which is the teachings of Jesus.
Check out our bible study on Daniel 8 & 9
Additionally, these scriptures clearly indicate that when the seventy years of exile are complete, God will bring the Jewish people back.
Jeremiah 29:10-14 – For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
Other translations say:
Jeremiah 29:10-14 KJV – For thus saith the Lord, that after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. 12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. 14 And I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.
Jeremiah 29:10-14 NKJV – For thus says the Lord: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. 13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the Lord, and I will bring you to the place from which I cause you to be carried away captive.
Jeremiah 29:10-14 ESV – “For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the Lord, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
During this exile (a time of punishment), the Jewish people were unable to reach God or find Him. Once the seventy years of exile is complete, the second Temple can be rebuilt. Then when the Jewish people pray and call on God, He will hear them. God can listen to their prayers and allow Himself to be found because the Temple will be rebuilt. This is why He uses the words ‘banish’ and ‘punishment’.
During an exile, God does not hear the prayers of the Jewish people. He turns his face away from them. This is the punishment of an exile. As we have read, there is no physical punishment during this time of exile. God assures the people, that they will prosper just as the Babylonians do and they will be fruitful with children.
Jeremiah 29:4-7 – This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. 6 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. 7 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.”
It may seem like verse 7 is contradictory. God is saying to pray to Him and he will hear their prayers. However, this is not the case. God is stating not to wish harm upon the Babylonians, their captors. This is because the Jewish people’s prosperity goes hand in hand with the success of the country. God is no longer watching out for the Jewish people independently. Not like He did in Egypt when the Israelites were not harmed by the Egyptian plagues. It will not be the same during this exile; what happens to the Babylonians, happens to the Jews – there will be no special treatment.
During the Babylonian exile, God did not hear the Jewish people or allow himself to be found. Since the Jewish people are in exile again (meaning without their Temple), how can they call upon this scripture to excuse their iniquity at this time? God can only forgive sin and hear prayers if there is a Temple system in place to perform sacrifices of atonement.
Isaiah 59:2 – But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
Isaiah 1:15 – When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen; your hands are full of blood.
Lamentations 1:8 – Jerusalem has sinned greatly and so has become unclean. All who honored her despise her, for they have all seen her naked; she herself groans and turns away.
Ezekiel 39:23-24 – And the nations will know that the people of Israel went into exile for their sin, because they were unfaithful to me. So I hid my face from them and handed them over to their enemies, and they all fell by the sword. 24 I dealt with them according to their uncleanness and their offenses, and I hid my face from them.
Micah 3:4 – Then they will cry to the Lord, but he will not answer them; he will hide his face from them at that time, because they have made their deeds evil.
Deuteronomy 31:17-18 – And in that day I will become angry with them and forsake them; I will hide my face from them, and they will be destroyed. Many disasters and calamities will come on them, and in that day they will ask, ‘Have not these disasters come on us because our God is not with us?’ 18 And I will certainly hide my face in that day because of all their wickedness in turning to other gods.
Deuteronomy 32:20 – And he said, ‘I will hide my face from them; I will see what their end will be, for they are a perverse generation, children in whom is no faithfulness.
Isaiah 57:17 – I was enraged by their sinful greed; I punished them, and hid my face in anger, yet they kept on in their willful ways.
Isaiah 64:7 – No one calls on your name or strives to lay hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us and have given us over to our sins.
Psalm 10:11 – He says to himself, “God will never notice; he covers his face and never sees.”
Hosea 5:6 – When they go with their flocks and herds to seek the Lord, they will not find him; he has withdrawn himself from them.
Psalm 13:1 – How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?
Psalm 89:46 – How long, Lord? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire?
Job 13:24 – Why do you hide your face and consider me your enemy?
Psalm 88:14 – Why, LORD, do you reject me and hide your face from me?
Job 34:29 – But if he chooses to remain quiet, who can criticize him? When he hides his face, no one can find him, whether an individual or a nation.
These scriptures show us that God has in the past and can again today, hide his face from the Jewish people and not acknowledge their prayers due to their iniquity. Since there is no Temple for the sacrifices for sin and they do not accept Jesus, who was the final sacrifice for iniquity and the heavenly Temple system, their sin goes unforgiven.
Leviticus 17:11 – For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.
Hebrews 9:22 – In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
The Jewish people’s prayers for forgiveness go unanswered. God has made it this way, so that the Jewish people have only one option for salvation (forgiveness of their iniquity) and that is through the message of Jesus, the Messiah, the Christ.
READ NEXT:
Jonah: The Jewish Argument For Atonement In The Absence of Sacrifices Part 2
Jeremiah 29:The Jewish Argument For Atonement In The Absence of Sacrifices Part 3
Esther: The Jewish Argument For Atonement In The Absence of Sacrifices Part 4
Jeremiah 33: The Jewish Argument For Atonement In The Absence of Sacrifices Part 5
Why Do Jews Believe There Will Be A Third Physical Temple Of God? Part 6
