The Declaration of Independence, 1776 

By issuing the Declaration of Independence, adopted by the Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, the 13 American colonies severed their political connections to Great Britain. The Declaration summarized the colonists’ motivations for seeking independence. By declaring themselves an independent nation, the American colonists were able to confirm an official alliance with the Government of France and obtain French assistance in the war against Great Britain. 

The Declaration of Independence 

Throughout the 1760s and early 1770s, the North American colonists found themselves increasingly at odds with British imperial policies regarding taxation and frontier policy. When repeated protests failed to influence British policies, and instead resulted in the closing of the port of Boston and the declaration of martial law in Massachusetts, the colonial governments sent delegates to a Continental Congress to coordinate a colonial boycott of British goods. When fighting broke out between American colonists and British forces in Massachusetts, the Continental Congress worked with local groups, originally intended to enforce the boycott, to coordinate resistance against the British. British officials throughout the colonies increasingly found their authority challenged by informal local governments, although loyalist sentiment remained strong in some areas. 

Despite these changes, colonial leaders hoped to reconcile with the British Government, and all but the most radical members of Congress were unwilling to declare independence. However, in late 1775, Benjamin Franklin, then a member of the Secret Committee of Correspondence, hinted to French agents and other European sympathizers that the colonies were increasingly leaning towards seeking independence. While perhaps true, Franklin also hoped to convince the French to supply the colonists with aid. Independence would be necessary, however, before French officials would consider the possibility of an alliance. 

Throughout the winter of 1775–1776, the members of the Continental Congress came to view reconciliation with Britain as unlikely, and independence the only course of action available to them. When on December 22, 1775, the British Parliament prohibited trade with the colonies, Congress responded in April of 1776 by opening colonial ports—this was a major step towards severing ties with Britain. The colonists were aided by the January publication of Thomas Paine’s pamphlet Common Sense, which advocated the colonies’ independence and was widely distributed throughout the colonies. By February of 1776, colonial leaders were discussing the possibility of forming foreign alliances and began to draft the Model Treaty that would serve as a basis for the 1778 alliance with France. Leaders for the cause of independence wanted to make certain that they had sufficient congressional support before they would bring the issue to the vote. On June 7, 1776, Richard Henry Lee introduced a motion in Congress to declare independence. Other members of Congress were amenable but thought some colonies not quite ready. However, Congress did form a committee to draft a declaration of independence and assigned this duty to Thomas Jefferson. 

Thomas Paine 

Benjamin Franklin and John Adams reviewed Jefferson’s draft. They preserved its original form, but struck passages likely to meet with controversy or skepticism, most notably passages blaming King George III for the transatlantic slave trade and those blaming the British people rather than their government. The committee presented the final draft before Congress on June 28, 1776, and Congress adopted the final text of the Declaration of Independence on July 4. 

The British Government did its best to dismiss the Declaration as a trivial document issued by disgruntled colonists. British officials commissioned propagandists to highlight the declaration’s flaws and to rebut the colonists’ complaints. The Declaration divided British domestic opposition, as some American sympathizers thought the Declaration had gone too far, but in British-ruled Ireland it had many supporters. 

The Declaration’s most important diplomatic effect was to allow for recognition of the United States by friendly foreign governments. The Sultan of Morocco mentioned American ships in a consular document in 1777, but Congress had to wait until the 1778 Treaty of Alliance with France for a formal recognition of U.S. independence. The Netherlands acknowledged U.S. independence in 1782. Although Spain joined the war against Great Britain in 1779, it did not recognize U.S. independence until the 1783 Treaty of Paris. Under the terms of the treaty, which ended the War of the American Revolution, Great Britain officially acknowledged the United States as a sovereign and independent nation. (Office of the Historian, Foreign Service Institute United States Department of State)

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

JEREMIAH 15 

The Lord’s unyielding anger with Judah (1-9) 

Then said the Lord unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people: cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.² And it shall come to pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell them, Thus saith the Lord; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.³ And I will appoint over them four kinds, saith the Lord: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy.⁴ And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.⁵ For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem? or who shall bemoan thee? or who shall go aside to ask how thou doest?⁶ Thou hast forsaken me, saith the Lord, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.⁷ And I will fan them with a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I will destroy my people since they return not from their ways.⁸ Their widows are increased to me above the sand of the seas: I have brought upon them against the mother of the young men a spoiler at noonday: I have caused him to fall upon it suddenly, and terrors upon the city.⁹ She that hath borne seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the Lord. 

Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise) 

Commentary on Jeremiah 15:1-9 

The Lord declares that even Moses and Samuel must have pleaded in vain. The putting of this as a case, though they should stand before him, shows that they do not, and that saints in heaven do not pray for saints on earth. The Jews were condemned to different kinds of misery by the righteous judgment of God, and the remnant would be driven away, like the chaff, into captivity. Then was the populous city made desolate. Bad examples and misused authority often produce fatal effects, even after men are dead, or have repented of their crimes: this should make all greatly dread being the occasion of sin in others. 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com

The seed, the source, the essence of unhappiness

(James Smith, “The Way of Salvation Set Forth”)  LISTEN to audio!  Download audio

Sin is the seed, the source, the essence of unhappiness. “There is no peace to the wicked”–nor is there any happiness for the sinner in his sins. The carnal mind may find something like pleasure in carnal things–but real, solid, lasting joy, cannot be found, never has been found by the sinner, until converted to God. Carnal pleasure is empty, fleeting, and unsatisfactory in its very nature!

The true Christian has enough to make him genuinely happy:
All of his sins are forgiven and forgotten.
He is adopted into God’s family.
His person is justified before God.
He is clothed in the perfect righteousness of Jesus.
He is a child of God.
He is regenerated by the Holy Spirit.
He has the Spirit of adoption in his heart.
He is at peace with God, and God is at peace with him.

All the promises of God are his, which represent Jehovah as pledged to support, sustain, comfort, supply, and bless him in time and eternity!

His God is with him.
His God is for him.
His God will never fail him in any trial, nor leave him under any circumstances for one moment.

Such is the Christian’s blessed state, and such are his blessed privileges–though he may appear poor, afflicted, and despised among men.

In proportion . . .
  as sin is subdued,
  as sanctification is deepened,
  as the Savior is prized,
  as our talents are laid out for the Lord’s glory
–are we happy. But if sin is allowed to conquer, if personal sanctification is neglected, if the intimations of the Holy Spirit are slighted–then the believer is not, and cannot be happy.

Let the Christian therefore . . .
  cleave unto the Lord with full purpose of heart,
  cultivate close fellowship with God,
  walk softly, uprightly, and daily with God.
So will his peace be like a river, and his path be like the shining light which shines more and more unto the perfect day.

“You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You; because he trusts in You!” Isaiah 26:3
   ~  ~  ~  ~

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

JEREMIAH 14 

JEREMIAH PLEADS WITH GOD (19-22) 

¹⁹ Hast thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy soul loathed Zion? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing, and behold trouble!²⁰ We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against thee.²¹ Do not abhor us, for thy name’s sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory: remember, break not thy covenant with us.²² Are there any among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause rain? or can the heavens give showers? art not thou he, O Lord our God? therefore we will wait upon thee: for thou hast made all these things. 

“Jeremiah acknowledged his own sins, and those of the people, but pleaded with the Lord to remember his covenant. In their distress none of the idols of the Gentiles could help them, nor could the heavens give rain of themselves. The Lord will always have a people to plead with him at his mercy-seat. He will heal every truly repenting sinner. Should he not see fit to hear our prayers on behalf of our guilty land, he will certainly bless with salvation all who confess their sins and seek his mercy.” (Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise)) 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

JEREMIAH 14 

THE DROUGHT (1-6) 

The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth.² Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.³ And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads.⁴ Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads. ⁵ Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forsook it, because there was no grass.⁶ And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail, because there was no grass. 

JEREMIAH’S INTERCESSION (7-10) 

⁷ O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name’s sake: for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against thee.⁸ O the hope of Israel, the saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night?⁹ Why shouldest thou be as a man astonied, as a mighty man that cannot save? yet thou, O Lord, art in the midst of us, and we are called by thy name; leave us not.¹⁰ Thus saith the Lord unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the Lord doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins. 

“The people were in tears. But it was rather the cry of their trouble, and of their sin, than of their prayer. Let us be thankful for the mercy of water, that we may not be taught to value it by feeling the want of it. See what dependence husbandmen have upon the Divine providence. They cannot plough nor sow in hope, unless God water their furrows. The case even of the wild beasts was very pitiable. The people are not forward to pray, but the prophet prays for them. Sin is humbly confessed. Our sins not only accuse us, but answer against us. Our best pleas in prayer are those fetched from the glory of God’s own name. We should dread God’s departure, more than the removal of our creature-comforts. He has given Israel his word to hope in. It becomes us in prayer to show ourselves more concerned for God’s glory than for our own comfort. And if we now return to the Lord, he will save us to the glory of his grace.” (Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise)) 

GOD’S REPLY (11-12) 

¹¹ Then said the Lord unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.¹² When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence. 

FALSE PROPHETS (13-18) 

¹³ Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place.¹⁴ Then the Lord said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. ¹⁵ Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not, yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed.¹⁶ And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters: for I will pour their wickedness upon them.¹⁷ Therefore thou shalt say this word unto them; Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease: for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach, with a very grievous blow.¹⁸ If I go forth into the field, then behold the slain with the sword! and if I enter into the city, then behold them that are sick with famine! yea, both the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know not. 

“The Lord calls the Jews “this people,” not “his people.” They had forsaken his service, therefore he would punish them according to their sins. He forbade Jeremiah to plead for them. The false prophets were the most criminal. The Lord pronounces condemnation on them; but as the people loved to have it so, they were not to escape judgments. False teachers encourage men to expect peace and salvation, without repentance, faith, conversion, and holiness of life. But those who believe a lie must not plead if for an excuse. They shall feel what they say they will not fear.” (Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise)) 

JEREMIAH PLEADS WITH GOD (19-22) 

¹⁹ Hast thou utterly rejected Judah? hath thy soul loathed Zion? why hast thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us? we looked for peace, and there is no good; and for the time of healing, and behold trouble!²⁰ We acknowledge, O Lord, our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against thee.²¹ Do not abhor us, for thy name’s sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory: remember, break not thy covenant with us.²² Are there any among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause rain? or can the heavens give showers? art not thou he, O Lord our God? therefore we will wait upon thee: for thou hast made all these things. 

“Jeremiah acknowledged his own sins, and those of the people, but pleaded with the Lord to remember his covenant. In their distress none of the idols of the Gentiles could help them, nor could the heavens give rain of themselves. The Lord will always have a people to plead with him at his mercy-seat. He will heal every truly repenting sinner. Should he not see fit to hear our prayers on behalf of our guilty land, he will certainly bless with salvation all who confess their sins and seek his mercy.” (Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise)) 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

GOD’S REPLY (11-12) 

¹¹ Then said the Lord unto me, Pray not for this people for their good.¹² When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence. 

FALSE PROPHETS (13-18) 

¹³ Then said I, Ah, Lord God! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place.¹⁴ Then the Lord said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart. ¹⁵ Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not, yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed.¹⁶ And the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters: for I will pour their wickedness upon them.¹⁷ Therefore thou shalt say this word unto them; Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and let them not cease: for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach, with a very grievous blow.¹⁸ If I go forth into the field, then behold the slain with the sword! and if I enter into the city, then behold them that are sick with famine! yea, both the prophet and the priest go about into a land that they know not. 

“The Lord calls the Jews “this people,” not “his people.” They had forsaken his service, therefore he would punish them according to their sins. He forbade Jeremiah to plead for them. The false prophets were the most criminal. The Lord pronounces condemnation on them; but as the people loved to have it so, they were not to escape judgments. False teachers encourage men to expect peace and salvation, without repentance, faith, conversion, and holiness of life. But those who believe a lie must not plead if for an excuse. They shall feel what they say they will not fear.” (Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise)) 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

JEREMIAH 14

THE DROUGHT (1-6) 

The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth.² Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish; they are black unto the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.³ And their nobles have sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and confounded, and covered their heads.⁴ Because the ground is chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they covered their heads. ⁵ Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forsook it, because there was no grass.⁶ And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail, because there was no grass. 

JEREMIAH’S INTERCESSION (7-10) 

⁷ O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name’s sake: for our backslidings are many; we have sinned against thee.⁸ O the hope of Israel, the saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night?⁹ Why shouldest thou be as a man astonied, as a mighty man that cannot save? yet thou, O Lord, art in the midst of us, and we are called by thy name; leave us not.¹⁰ Thus saith the Lord unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their feet, therefore the Lord doth not accept them; he will now remember their iniquity, and visit their sins. 

“The people were in tears. But it was rather the cry of their trouble, and of their sin, than of their prayer. Let us be thankful for the mercy of water, that we may not be taught to value it by feeling the want of it. See what dependence husbandmen have upon the Divine providence. They cannot plough nor sow in hope, unless God water their furrows. The case even of the wild beasts was very pitiable. The people are not forward to pray, but the prophet prays for them. Sin is humbly confessed. Our sins not only accuse us, but answer against us. Our best pleas in prayer are those fetched from the glory of God’s own name. We should dread God’s departure, more than the removal of our creature-comforts. He has given Israel his word to hope in. It becomes us in prayer to show ourselves more concerned for God’s glory than for our own comfort. And if we now return to the Lord, he will save us to the glory of his grace.” (Matthew Henry’s Bible Commentary (concise)) 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

JEREMIAH 13 

Three Lessons about the Wickedness of Israel 

Result of Israel’s forgetting the Lord (22-27) 

And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare.²³ Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. ²⁴ Therefore will I scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness.²⁵ This is thy lot, the portion of thy measures from me, saith the Lord; because thou hast forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood. ²⁶ Therefore will I discover thy skirts upon thy face, that thy shame may appear.²⁷ I have seen thine adulteries, and thy neighings, the lewdness of thy whoredom, and thine abominations on the hills in the fields. Woe unto thee, O Jerusalem! wilt thou not be made clean? when shall it once be? 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

JEREMIAH 13 

Captivity of the North

Captivity from the north (18-21) 

Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, even the crown of your glory.¹⁹ The cities of the south shall be shut up, and none shall open them: Judah shall be carried away captive all of it, it shall be wholly carried away captive. ²⁰ Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?²¹ What wilt thou say when he shall punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be captains, and as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail? 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com 

JEREMIAH 13 

Three Lessons about the Wickedness of Israel 

The lesson from the marred girdle (1-11) 

The marred girdle (1-7) 

Thus saith the Lord unto me, Go and get thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not in water.² So I got a girdle according to the word of the Lord, and put it on my loins.³ And the word of the Lord came unto me the second time, saying,⁴ Take the girdle that thou hast got, which is upon thy loins, and arise, go to Euphrates, and hide it there in a hole of the rock.⁵ So I went, and hid it by Euphrates, as the Lord commanded me.⁶ And it came to pass after many days, that the Lord said unto me, Arise, go to Euphrates, and take the girdle from thence, which I commanded thee to hide there.⁷ Then I went to Euphrates, and digged, and took the girdle from the place where I had hid it: and, behold, the girdle was marred, it was profitable for nothing. 

God’s lesson (8-11) 

Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,⁹ Thus saith the Lord, After this manner will I mar the pride of Judah, and the great pride of Jerusalem.¹⁰ This evil people, which refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this girdle, which is good for nothing.¹¹ For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the Lord; that they might be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but they would not hear. 

The lesson of the filled bottles (12-15) 

The filled bottles (12-13) 

Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word; Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say unto thee, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?¹³ Then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, even the kings that sit upon David’s throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with drunkenness. 

God’s lesson (14-15) 

And I will dash them one against another, even the fathers and the sons together, saith the Lord: I will not pity, nor spare, nor have mercy, but destroy them.¹⁵ Hear ye, and give ear; be not proud: for the Lord hath spoken. 

The lesson of the weary traveler overcome by darkness (16-17) 

Weary traveler (16) 

Give glory to the Lord your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it gross darkness. 

God’s lesson (17) 

But if ye will not hear it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the Lord’s flock is carried away captive. 

Captivity from the north (18-21) 

Say unto the king and to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come down, even the crown of your glory.¹⁹ The cities of the south shall be shut up, and none shall open them: Judah shall be carried away captive all of it, it shall be wholly carried away captive. ²⁰ Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?²¹ What wilt thou say when he shall punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be captains, and as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail? 

Result of Israel’s forgetting the Lord (22-27) 

And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare.²³ Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. ²⁴ Therefore will I scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness.²⁵ This is thy lot, the portion of thy measures from me, saith the Lord; because thou hast forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood.²⁶ Therefore will I discover thy skirts upon thy face, that thy shame may appear.²⁷ I have seen thine adulteries, and thy neighings, the lewdness of thy whoredom, and thine abominations on the hills in the fields. Woe unto thee, O Jerusalem! wilt thou not be made clean? when shall it once be? 

Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com