THE DAY OF THE HUNTER

The prophet Jeremiah preached to the Kingdom of Judah for 40 years attempting to avert the impending captivity that eventually left Judah's land desolate. So seeped in sin and idolatry, Judah, like Ephraim and the 10 tribes, lost sight of the God they once promised to worship and serve. It would seem they needed the experience of captivity to discover them that this is indeed the god they wanted and not the dumb idols of heathen nations that they came to bow down to. The 10 tribes came to their senses quickly and were led by the hand of Jehovah into obscurity until such time that He would bring them back. Judah on the other hand became a very zealous nation for its God whilst in captivity to Babylon. They realised as their homes were left desolate that the prophets were right all along and that they needed to abandon image worship and return to the one true and living God. So zealous were they in their devotion to Jehovah's law that they became slaves to the numerous rules of conduct that went beyond the law itself. Out of this zeal different religious factions were born such as Pharisses and Sadducees which ensured strict observance to the overwhelming number of laws and rules that were invented. Up until the Babylonian captivity, scriptures were only read on special occasions and on the sabbath. Once Judah was taken into captivity this changed and scriptures began to be taught to the general public on regular basis by another factious group called scribes. Over time the Jews in Babylon began to adopt the language and culture of the Chaldeans forgetting the Hebrew language. This necessitated the assistance of scribes who read and interpreted the scriptures to them. "Through the years, each religious group - scribes, Pharisses, Sadducees and others referred to the written word, quoted it, enlarged upon it, interpreted it, and in other ways continued to add to what their fathers had established. The commentaries, explanations, interpretations, and inferences became known as oral tradition. In time, these traditions, written and oral, took on so much importance that they often overshadowed the law and became a stumbling block for the Jews" (Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings - Malachi, p. 262). This is the condition in which the Saviour found them when He made His appearance as the awaited and promised Messiah.

"....A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rachel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not." (Jeremiah 31:15)

Rachel, the beloved wife of Jacob, the mother of Israel, is here depicted lamenting over the loss of her children which she longed for and which were given an inheritance in the household of God; once a chosen people, now lost in captivity (Old Testament Student Manual, p. 255). And they would be lost forever if not for one thing: the everlasting love of a God who never forsakes and abandons and never breaks the covenants which He has made; a god of mercy, a god of love, a god who fulfills his promises. As the Jews entered exile, the Saviour made a promise that He would bring them home to Jerusalem after 70 years of captivity (Jeremiah 29:10). True to His word, 70 years later to the day, King Cyrus of Persia, raised by the Lord for this purpose, ended the Babylonian rule and released Jews from their captivity giving them a charge to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple. And herein lies another testament of Jesus' endless love - after the time of Christ Judah endured another exile that would last for centuries but once again the Saviour of all mankind does everything in His power to reclaim that which is lost.

"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord that I will make a new covenant with the House of Israel, and with the house of Judah....this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel...I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God and they shall be my people.....for I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sin no more." (Jeremiah 31:31-34)

Preceding the Saviour's second coming, a latter-day gathering of the scattered Israel will take place in three phases: the gathering of Israel to the land of Zion, the American hemisphere; the return of the Ten Tribes from the countries of the north; and the reestablishment of the Jews in Palestine as God's chosen people (Old Testament Student Manual, p. 254). The Lord will accomplish this work through the restoration of His Church. Israel will be gathered and return to the land of their fathers 'with weeping' (Jeremiah 31:9) 'because they will realise that the sufferings they have endured throughout the centuries came about because they rejected the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall lead them in the last days' (Old Testament Student Manual, p. 255). The Saviour, with everlasting love and willingness to always forgive will lead them as they come out of obscurity to once again possess their blessings: "I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble; for I am a father to Israel and Ephraim is my firstborn" (Jeremiah 31:9)

 "Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that it shall no more be said, The Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt; But, the Lord liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them; and I will bring them again into their land that I gave unto their fathers. Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks." (Jeremiah 16:14-16)

In Jeremiah's day, most fishing was done with nets and so was in Peter's but Peter was no ordinary fisherman, he was called to be a fisher of men. Peter fished with his nets and brought in 3,000 converts on the day of Pentecost. In like manner the early converts of the Church used nets to fish and bring in multitudes of converts: Wilford Woodruff converted more than 2,000 people in eastern states of America and British Isles; The Twelve under the direction of Brigham Young converted over 6,000 people in Britain between 1839 and 1841 and Parley P. Pratt who repeatedly baptised in excess of 100 people wherever he stopped to preach. But after the fishers, the Lord promised that He would send many hunters. Hunting, unlike fishing with nets, is more precise work. It is not usual practice to hunt a heard but individual animals, 'from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks' (Jeremiah 16:14-16).... Is not the day of the hunter here as we seek for the honest in heart who want to become the pure in heart? Are not our missionaries searching with precision individuals who desire to know the Lord? Are we not labouring endlessly seeking out our ancestors and those who have gone before us to bless them with saving ordinances necessary for salvation? We are hunting in His name by day and by night so that not one is overlooked who seeks to know Him and come unto Him for He will go to any length and any depth and any measure to find that which is lost.