Jeremiah 44:1-10
The LORD. had already asked at the beginning of this book, "What hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor?" (Jeremiah 2:18). He knew very well why he did not want this journey into Egypt (cf. Deuteronomy 17:16). Judah’s terrible idolatry, particularly since the time of her king Manasseh, had been the reason for the judgments which had just befallen her. Now Egypt herself was also devoted to idols (even if they did have different names) and the people were running the risk of being even more corrupted there. This certainly proved to be the case! We can be sure that in closing a door to us, God wants to protect us from the dangers which He knows about, even if, at the time, we do not understand His reasons. By relying and acting on our own wisdom we can only greatly harm ourselves.
"Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your souls?" the LORD asks the people here. May we not forget that it is our souls which we damage when we do not carry out the Lord’s will (Proverbs 8:36; Habakkuk 2:10).
In spite of all the painful lessons they received, this stiff-necked people, the Jews, still had not humbled themselves; their pride was not broken (v. 10; Jeremiah 43:2).