18 And now what hast thou to do in the way of
Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast
thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the
waters of the river?
In the second chapter of Jeremiah, the prophet recorded God's case against His people in great detail. God loved the Jews, and He had called them to be devoted to and dependent upon Him. But instead of clinging to God, they turned from Him and chose instead to enter into alliance with two nations - Egypt and Assyria - who were, in reality, their enemies. When God asked, "Why go to Assyria to drink from the Euphrates?" He was pointing out to them that though they had the best of everything when they remained true to Him, they would lose it all if they turned from Him to make alliances with ungodly nations. In the New Testament, the apostle James had a similar message when he wrote...
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that
the friendship of the world is enmity with God?
whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is
the enemy of God.
Among the many sins of Judah in the days of Jeremiah was entering into friendships with those who didn't know God or honor Him. We face those same temptations in our world today. This is why the apostle Paul wrote, "Do not conform to the patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2). When we do that, he wrote, we'll know God's perfect will, which is to be completely devoted to Him.
Reference: 365 Essential Questions from the Bible
The Grim Reaper Preacher says, "Try reading the Bible from cover to cover - you'll like it."
