HELL ON EARTH.
Last week we had the disturbing news from the Philippines of children being used by their parents for online sexual activities. Incredulous to think I just typed and you just read the word ‘parents’!
Clearly something is wrong when parents are willing to sacrifice their children for their own personal gain! Hell on earth.
Today I read an article regarding parents who mutilate their own daughters in the name of culture, Hell on earth.
JEREMIAH 7
Jeremiah is appalled to his core at what people are doing. Even more so with it being God’s people. He complains about their turning back to idolatrous worship but also brings warning of judgment for their child sacrifice in the valley of Ben Himmon.
That any parent is possible of such a thing is beyond all of us. But it is what happened. In the valley of Himmon the first born children were sacrificed by their parents as sacrifices to gods. This valley became hell on earth.
How God’s people followed suit and why is beyond us and that of even God who says “nor did it enter my mind” that they were capable of it, v31.
After the Babylonian exile the Jews turned this valley into a rubbish dump where fires were continually seen burning the waste of the city. Executed criminals were also burnt here. Hell on earth.
Even in Jesus day it was still referred to as hell. Jesus called this valley by the Greek name Gehenna in Matthew 5:22.
A few years ago I was blessed to be in Jerusalem with a team and I looked out onto this valley. There was no rubbish. It was beautiful. There was no evidence of evil. It looked normal.
There is still hell on earth today in many places where people commit evil even though they may think it normal.
I believe in hell. Those who commit hell if they do not find God’s grace at some point will be thrown away like rubbish into the Valley. Hell on earth becoming life in Hell.
Missions Paul 