Today's reading is an image of the people who receive God's on-going favor during the Babylonian exile. God compares the Jewish people to good and bad figs, but in an unexpected way. Most people thought that God had lost favor with those who were captured by the Babylonians and exiled from the Promised Land. However, God promised that those who remained faithful in exile were the good figs -- the chosen. Those left behind had lost God's favor and were the bad figs. (This is yet another prophecy that shows how God intended to use the exile as a tool for restoration, rather than a punishment.)
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