33 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:
“The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor
At the time [al]it is stamped firm;
Yet in a little while the time of harvest will come for her.”34 “Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has devoured me and crushed me,
He has set me down like an empty vessel;
He has swallowed me like a monster,
He has filled his stomach with my delicacies;
He has washed me away.
35 “May the violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,”
The [am]inhabitant of Zion will say;
And, “May my blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea,”
Jerusalem will say.36 Therefore thus says the Lord,
“Behold, I am going to plead your case
And exact full vengeance for you;
And I will dry up her [an]sea
And make her fountain dry.
37 “Babylon will become a heap of ruins, a haunt of jackals,
An object of horror and hissing, without inhabitants.
38 “They will roar together like young lions,
They will growl like lions’ cubs.
39 “When they become heated up, I will serve them their banquet
And make them drunk, that they may become jubilant
And may sleep a perpetual sleep
And not wake up,” declares the Lord.
40 “I will bring them down like [ao]lambs to the slaughter,
Like rams together with male goats.
As this passage begins we see a picture that was well known to the people of ancient times, that of a threshing floor that would soon be used for the harvest (v. 33). Then we see the destruction and violence done to Israel, and that Babylon was guilty of their blood. Lastly, God promises to plead their case and “exact full vengeance”. It would become a heap of ruins and they would be lead to the slaughter, much like what they had done to Israel.
However, that very first verse says something very important, that it was not yet time for Babylon’s destruction. Indeed, many still remained in Judah and themselves were going to be judged by God, for which task God would use Babylon. The time was not yet ripe, the harvest was not ready, and for a little while the judgment of God was delayed.
Yet it was never really “delayed”, it was simply going to come at the time when God had already planned, decades in advance. It might have seemed to some in Israel and Judah that God was taking His sweet time, but He was still working even when they didn’t see it. Of course, as we’ve seen in earlier chapters, they weren’t waiting for God’s vengeance upon Babylon, they were too busy mocking Jeremiah for daring to believe that God would judge them for their wicked deeds.
Now, I certainly hope you’re not in that boat, but if you are, perhaps this is your wakeup call. As Peter said so well, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) So it was with ancient Israel, as God called to them time and time again, so that if there were any who would repent, they might have an opportunity.
God always keeps His word, and though we might think it slow, He is working all the time. There may be ground work that needs laid, like the threshing floor, that had to be cleared of any vegetation and stamped firm and flat. From our perspective, we don’t see or understand, yet God knows what is necessary to accomplish His will. God isn’t generally interested in just “fair” or “good enough”, but is working toward the best result. Or one might say even, “the most perfect” result.
So in the words of one of my favorite LOTR characters, “Don’t be hasty…” Whatever you’re waiting for, whatever God has promised, He will work it out. In the meantime, be faithful to walk in His steps, and let Him prepare you for the task ahead. It may very well be that you’re just not ready, but it could be someone else, or a bunch of someone’s. God sees it all, and works everything together “for the good of those who love Him.” Wait on the Lord, let Him renew you daily, and be diligent right where God has you right now.