HEBREW WORD STUDY – TO BE RECOGNIZED – NAKAR  נכר Nun Kap Resh 

Jeremiah 24:5-7: “Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for [their] good. (6) For I will set my eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull [them] down, and I will plant them, and not pluck [them] up. (7) And I will give them a heart to know me, that I [am] the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.”

Judah was been taken into captivity by the Babylonians.  Election results just didn’t go the way they thought it would nor predicted by their prophets. The Babylonians did not take everyone, just the ones who might cause trouble or revolt. This would include the royal family to which Daniel and his friends belonged. It would also include those who worked with metal or skilled in warfare which meant the young healthy and those who could make weapons and shields. They were not taken so much as to serve the Babylonians but to prevent any uprising. Without rapid deployment and communications, a conquered nation could overthrow the occupation army and the puppet government they set up before word would even reach the main office. 

There were still many who were not taken captive, the elderly, the sick, and those who were just simple farmers. However, a large contingent of captives revolted on the way to Babylon and escaped back to Judah.  They promptly assassinated the Babylonian governor and chased the occupation army out of Jerusalem. Knowing that the Babylonians would return and see to it that these rebels were properly tortured before they were executed these leaders tried to convince everyone to follow them to Egypt for refuge, not knowing that Egypt was in cahoots with Babylon and they would promptly be dispatched upon their arrival.  Jeremiah warned them as much but like when he warned about the coming invasion they didn’t believe him. They not only went to Egypt but forced Jeremiah to go with them, probably to prove Jeremiah was indeed a false prophet.  We don’t know what happened after that but they were never heard from again.  Jeremiah’s prophecy, however, told them they were running from the furnace right into the fire. 

In Jeremiah’s prophecy, he spoke of the good figs and the bad figs. The figs were the first of the first fruits that were offered to God in the temple.  There were some good figs or the ones who were in harmony with God and the bad figs, like those who ignored Jeremiah’s warning and fled to Egypt, who were not in harmony with God.  

Note carefully verse 5: “Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for [their] good.” There were a lot of good, God-fearing people who were caught up in the chaos of the Babylonian invasion.  Men like Daniel and his three friends.  They were faithful to God, served God with a pure heart. God is saying he would acknowledge them.  This word acknowledge is a very interesting word.  For one thing, it is in a Hiphal imperfect form. This is an uncompleted action. Throughout the whole ordeal, God will continue to acknowledge those who are faithful and love Him. As a Hiphal this is in a causative form.  In other words, He will cause them to be acknowledged.  They will be a bright light shining in their captivity to the rest of the pagan world.  The word acknowledge in Hebrew is nakar which means to recognize take notice by separating them from the rest.  The other day as I was parked in a shopping mall parking lot waiting for my next pickup in my disability bus. There was a flock of pigeons on the ground with whom I was sharing my Egg McMuffin. Among the group of pigeons there flew in a pigeon that was totally brown. He was nakar, he stood out among the rest of the grey colored pigeons. He was bolder than the rest and approached my bus to which I toss him a hearty piece of my Egg McMuffin. He just stood out from the rest, he was nakar.  God acknowledges – nakar the captives, he caused them to stand out from the rest.  Like Daniel and his friends.  God caused them to be recognized by King Nebuchadnezzar and honored.  There were many others who stood out to Babylonians, craftsmen, skilled workers, those with a business mind, those who had engineering skills and were builders.  They were nakar in a Hiphal form that is God caused them to be recognized and rewarded for the skills that He created in them. 

You see, from the very beginning of Israel’s return to their land from Egypt under Moses God gave them a promise.  He would give them a blessing or a curse. No matter what happens, no matter how bad or good something may seem, there is a silver lining. God explains that this captivity was for their good. He would teach them to have a heart for Him.  Many were willing to have a heart for God but they just were too caught up in their prosperity, their lives, and the cares of daily living to develop that heart for Him. So, God gave them a gift, captivity, that would cause their hearts to be turned to Him, at least those willing to have a heart for God.  For them, their captivity would prove to be a blessing. For those who didn’t desire a heart for God, the invasion of Babylon was a curse that proved to be their undoing.   

God used captivity to separate the wheat from the chaff.  It’s a way many Christians feel they have fallen into captivity after the Presidential election. They are weeping, mourning, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  They feel a sense of doom, many feel God has let them down.  They felt they had heard God’s voice and were certain that God told them their candidate would win. Now the question whether or not they can actually hear from God. 

Perhaps Jeremiah 24 is for them, particularly verse 6: “For I will set mine eyes upon them for good,”  It is God who appoints the kings and rulers, it was God who appointed King Nebuchadnezzar, a Godless, pagan, brutal king,  to rule over His people. For those who have a heart for God or desire to have a heart for God the results of this election will be a blessing. For those who will not accept it and flee to their equivalent of Egypt, it will be a curse.  The message to us is the same as it was to Judah.  “Stay put, continue your life,  get married, work, raise your children, and trust in the name of God.”  Jeremiah 26.  Choose a blessing, not a curse for there is indeed a blessing for those who are His good figs, His first fruits. 

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