Then Adonai asked me, “Yirmeyahu, what do you see?” I answered, “Figs – the good figs are very good; but the bad ones are very bad, so bad that they are inedible.” Jeremiah 24:3
Throughout the Word, figs and fig trees can be found among its pages. In fact, the fig tree is the first outside of the Tree of Knowledge mentioned by name as it says in Genesis 3:7 that Adam and Eve sewed fig leaves together to make loincloths for themselves after their eyes were opened to their nakedness. This fruit grew in abundance and was one of the three fruits mentioned by name, along with grapes and pomegranates, that the spies brought back. Fig trees were greatly valued, and the expression “sitting under a fig tree” speaks of security and peace, which is perhaps what Nathaniel was looking for when in John 1:48 Yeshua said to him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” As there are multiple species of figs, there are some whose leaves grew to be four for five feet long and three feet wide, which is why their shade held much worth.
All of the different fig trees cumulatively bear fruit about ten months of the year and are classified three ways.
1. The early fig: These figs are ripe towards the end of June. It is said to be the most beautiful and delicious of all the harvests. These are the figs spoken of in Jeremiah’s vision of the figs that he said, “the good figs are very good”. The early fig is also used descriptively in Hosea 9:10, “When I found Isra’el, it was like finding grapes in the desert; when I saw your ancestors, it was like seeing a fig tree’s first figs in its first season.”
2. The summer fig: These figs begin to appear as the early figs are ripe, in June and come into their maturity in August. They last for long periods of time and are good to preserve. One of the favorite ways to preserve them was to press them into large cakes and dry them, so that they could be eaten when needed. Fig cakes are mentioned multiple times throughout the Word such as in 1 Chronicles 12:41(40), “Moreover, those who were near them – and those even as far as Yissakhar, Z’vulun, and Naftali – brought food on donkeys, camels, mules and oxen: baked goods, fig cakes, clusters of raisins, wine, oil, and oxen and sheep in abundance; for there was joy in Isra’el.”
3. The winter fig: This crop begins to appear in August at the time the summer fig is ripe and ripens around the latter part of October or early November. In cases where the winter is not severe, this harvest can extend, and the fruit plucked toward spring.
Figs were also said to have medicinal properties as found in 2 Kings 20:7, “Then Yesha’yahu (Isaiah) said, ‘Prepare a fig-plaster.’ They brought it and laid it on the inflammation, so that he would recover.” (Information on figs from the Dake’s Annotated Reference Bible)
As figs and fig trees were such a major part of the land and culture of the Israelites, this vision of the two baskets of figs is one that would have struck a major visual to the people: you’re a good fig, or you’re a bad fig. Those who surrendered were the good figs that Adonai promised to bring back to the land. “Here is what Adonai the God of Isra’el says: ‘I will regard the exiles from Y’hudah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Kasdim, as good, just as I do these good figs.” Jeremiah 24:5 The bad figs however, represented King Tzidkiyahu and those who hardened their hearts and refused to surrender. They would be scattered and destroyed. “But concerning the bad figs that are so bad as to be inedible, Adonai says: ‘I will make Tzidkiyahu the king of Y’hudah and his leaders resemble them, likewise the rest of Yerushalayim remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt. Everywhere I will drive them I will make them an object of horror, repulsive to all the kingdoms of the earth, a disgrace, a byword, a laughingstock and a curse; and I will send sword, famine, and plague among them until they have disappeared from the land I gave them and their ancestors.’” Jeremiah 24:8-10
The middle portion of chapter 24, verses 6 and 7 describes how Adonai would look after the exiles and His promise to bring them back to the land. [6] I will look after them for their good, I will bring them back to this land; I will build them up and not tear them down, plant them and not pull them up. [7] I will give them a heart to know me that I am Adonai. They will be my people, and I will be their God; for they will return to me with all their heart.
As I began to study these verses more in depth, I began focusing on different key words within each line.
· I will look after them for their own good: The word good in Hebrew is towb (tobe), and one of its meanings is benefit. We could look at this line to say, “I will look after them for their own benefit”. Benefit, or yatab is describe as to make a thing good, right, and beautiful. What instantly came to mind was the phrase, “I’m doing this for your own good”, which means that it is for one’s benefit, even though it may not be enjoyable or desired. (www.idioms.thefreedictionary.com) Romans 8:28 tells us, “Furthermore, we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called in accordance with his purpose.” We see this verse in action all the way back in Genesis, when Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery. Upon reuniting with them, he said, “Don’t be afraid! Am I in the place of God? You meant to do me harm, but God meant it for good – so that it would come about as it is today, with many people’s lives being saved. Genesis 50:19-20 When we look at each letter in the word yatab, we see that in its shadow form, Yud means no foundation, Teth in its standard from means repentance, and Bet in its standard from means place of beginning. When sent into exile, the Children of Israel had lost their foundation, but while there, they would turn back to Adonai in repentance and come back to the place of their beginning.
· I will bring them back to this land: Bring them back, or return is shuwb (shoob) and is spelled with the letters Shin, Vav, and Bet. It means to recover, rescue, to allow to return, restore and put back. Adonai Himself would put them back in the land. The letters again, paint a picture of the return. Shin means completion, Vav is symbolized by a nail, or connection, and Bet is house or home. At the completion of their exile, the people would have been reconnected to their God and brought back home.
· I will build them up and not tear them down; plant them and not pull them up: This again speaks of the nation’s restoration as build means just that, restore and plant means to establish, or re-establish. Tear down is the word harac (haw-ras) and means to bruise, pound, or crush, and pull up means to tear off or away. I am in the process of making some homemade peppermint essential oil. To do this, I had to pull up and tear or cut away sprigs from the plant. After the leaves dry, I will have to crush and bruise the leaves to extract the oil from them. While in exile they would go through this process to bring them back to their Abba, and in return, He would return and re-establish them in the land He promised to their ancestors.
· I will give them a heart to know me that I am Adonai: This is such a powerful statement. The word give in Hebrew is Nathan (naw-than) which has the definition to put, set, or bestow upon. It is spelled with the letters Nun, Tav, and Final Nun (נתן). Nun meaning breaking down walls of separation, Tav meaning truth, and the Final Nun meaning faith. This is also the same spelling for the prophet Nathan who told David that he would not be the one to build the temple and came to him after his affair with Bathsheba. As a prophet of the Lord, he would give, or bestow upon the people the Word of the Lord. Heart in this statement means the inner man and is the word leb (labe). What really caught my attention was “I am Adonai”. There is something huge concerning only three words. I Am is the giver of existence, the life giver, He who brings to pass, and the performer of His promises. I Am in Hebrew is Yud, Hey, Vav, Hey (יהוה) and is so reverenced by the Jewish people, that they will not even speak it. Instead, they will say, Hashem, which literally means, “the Name”. It is why when Yeshua would reference Himself with I Am, it created quite a stir among the religious leaders. In the book of John, He used “I Am” in twelve different instances. 1. I am the bread of life (Jn 6:35, 48) 2. I am the living bread (Jn 6:51) 3. I am the light of the world (Jn 8:12) 4. I Am He (Jn 8:24, 28, 13:19) 5. I Am (Jn 8:58) 6. I am the door of the sheep (Jn 10:7) 7. I am the door (Jn 10:9) 8. I am the Good Shepherd (Jn 10:11,14) 9. I am the Son of God (Jn 10:36) 10. I Am the resurrection and the life (Jn 11:25) 11. I am the way, the truth, and the life (Jn 14:6) 12. I am the true vine (Jn 15:1) We find In Acts 9:5 He responded to Paul that He was Yeshua, whom Paul was persecuting. Paul recounts this in Acts 22:8 and 26:15. In the book of Revelation He says I am the Aleph and the Tav (Alpha and Omega) (Rev 1:8, 21:6, 22:13), I am the first and the last (Rev 1:11, 17:22, 22:13), I am He that lives (Rev 1:18), I am the root and off spring of David (Rev 22:16), and I am the Bright and Morning Star (Rev 22:16). But the most incredible thing that I have learned about those two little words, “I am”, I learned from Johnathan Cahn. We can not say our name, or how we are without saying His name first. I am Melisa, and in saying that, even implied, I am giving testimony to the Living God. I am happy and my happiness gives testimony to Him as it comes from Him. I am sad and my sadness gives testimony that He has overcome my sadness when I am in Him. No matter who we are, we give witness to our Creator.
· They will be my people, and I will be their God; for they will return to me with all their heart. It is in this closing statement that we once again see return, yet this time rather than returning to the land, it shows their return to God, and not just returning, but with all their heart. This implies surrender, submission, and obedience to Him. Sh’ma, Yisra’el! Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai echad (Hear, Isra’el! Adonai our God, Adonai is one); and you are to love Adonai your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your resources. Deuteronomy 6:4-5 The Complete Jewish Study bible notes, “Because the covenant is based on a relationship with Adonai, Isra’el is instructed to perform the Lord’s commandments in love. According to Isra’el’s sages, the one who acts out of love cannot be compared to the one who acts out in fear. “With all your heart” means that one’s love for God should be wholehearted and single-minded.”
I love the flavor of figs. The other day as my husband I were geocaching, I took a bag of dried figs along to snack on. As in this picture, the good figs are wonderful. They were so sweet, bursting with flavor and delightful to eat. Then, I bit into one that was bitter, and it was as bad as the others were good. A bad fig leaves a lasting impression. It made me have a better understanding of what this analogy would have spoken to the Israeli people when laid out by Jeremiah. The symbolism would not have been lost on them with the importance of figs in their society. I don’t ever want to be viewed as a bad fig. I don’t want to be bitter and repugnant. I want to be sweet and flavorful, a delight to my Savior. I want to love Him with all my heart. I want to be known as one of His people, and for people to know that He is my God.
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