“Go down the rows of the vineyards and destroy the grapevines, leaving a scattered few alive. Strip the branches from the vines, for these people do not belong to the Lord. The people of Israel and Judah are full of treachery against me,” says the Lord.” Jeremiah 5:10-11
God’s judgment is on Judah, but Judah is going to be returned to God in the last days. This scripture shows us the mercies of God. He tells them to destroy the grapevines, but He says not all, leave a few alive. There is hope in God’s mercy. The Story of Sodom and Gomorrah shows us what happens when God’s judgment destroys everything. Researchers have looked at where Sodom and Gomorrah once stood. The researchers concluded that warfare, a fire, a volcanic eruption or an earthquake were unlikely culprits, as these events couldn’t have produced heat intense enough to cause the melting recorded at the scene. That left a space rock as the most likely cause. Because experts failed to find a crater at the site, they attributed the damage to an airburst created when a meteor or comet traveled through the atmosphere at high speed. It would have exploded about 2.5 miles above the city in a blast 1,000 times more powerful than the atomic bomb used at Hiroshima. Air temperatures rapidly rose above 3,600 degrees Fahrenheit, Clothing and wood immediately burst into flames. Swords, spears, mudbricks and pottery began to melt. Almost immediately, the entire city was on fire. Seconds after the blast, a shockwave ripped through the city at a speed of roughly 740 miles per hour—faster than the worst tornado ever recorded. The cities’ buildings were reduced to foundations and rubble. Today all that stands is the Dead Sea.
This is what God’s judgment looks like. What can we gain from these scripture? God is still a God of holiness; take Him seriously. He’s holy. We are still at the mercy of God’s grace; take Him seriously. The reason we still have breath in our lungs is because of the mercy of a gracious God. We are still creatures of immorality; take Him seriously. The only hope we have is in the Cross of Jesus Christ.