by DALE RALPH DAVIS
I decided to go back and read a commentary from my own shelf on Jeremiah in preparation for a deep dive into this book. He is known as the weeping prophet. Oh that we had the emotion Jeremiah had! He could see other people sinning against God and no matter what he said or did there was no way he could change them. Sound familiar? It is a message we all need to hear and apply to our lives. Jeremiah had 40 years of ministry and when he was first called he didn't do anything right away. He knew what it would mean when others heard his words from God and it would be difficult to accept.
This book is actually a series of sermons Dale gave in 2010 at the Evangelical Movement of Wales Conference. He chose 5 that focus on the down aspect of Jeremiah's message - why - to supply a healthy corrective to some of the flippant and flimsy optimism we meet in certain Christian propaganda about the Christian life and ministry.
In chapter 1 we see a relentless word that came in
Religious times
Hostile times
Nervous times
Disastrous times
It was also a fragile word, a dominating word and a fanatical word.
"The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin: 2to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month."
How many of us can testify to a similar knowledge from our own childhood? We know God's word, probably could recite verses but has it really affected us? Have we let its truth go deep into our hearts? I am so very thankful that both my parents knew and loved the Lord. As a child I was taught the bible, reading fascinating stories of heroes and heroines but also heard the not so pleasant stories too. I attended an evangelical church and knew that to believe in God was not enough, I needed to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. At a Holiday Bible Club one summer I decided to make that decision, to follow Christ. Since that day I have known many times when God has really helped me to make important decisions, to follow him more closely and to learn more from his word. Every day I seek to put what I learn from passages like Jeremiah into practice in my life.
Jeremiah lived through many kings lifetimes - 3 are mentioned here as noteworthy. The first was Josiah, around 627 BC. We are told it was not until the thirteenth year of his reign that Jeremiah began his work with the Lord. So he was probably about 17 at this time. We know that these are Jeremiah's words but later in the chapter we witness a day when the word of the Lord came directly to him.
King Josiah when he came to the throne brought in reform - of worship and sacraments. There was a renewed commitment to God. What a time to live in.
So often today we hear people talking about the days when God was respected. When people flocked to church and the word of God was alive, people responded and there was a great revival in the hearts of many.
Then Jehoiakim came to the throne and everything changed. He wanted to get rid of all the prophets - chapter 26 tells the sad story of what he did to Uriah. In chapter 36 Jeremiah's own words were cut up and burned. God's word was not respected.
Then came Zedekiah. He was the last king in Judah before everyone was taken into captivity. In chapter 38 we read he loved to read the papers about his rating among the people. He was an up and down king.
So we can see how God's word came
Through all the changes in our world God's word is still relevant. God does not leave us without direction, even when things seem bleak and depressing. The preached and written word of God is as relevant today as it was in the past.
"Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 5Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. 6Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child. 7But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. 8Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD. 9Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth. 10See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
11Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. 12Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.
13And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north. 14Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. 15For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah. 16And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands. 17Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them. 18For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land. 19And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee."
Earlier today I looked at Jeremiah chapter 1 and the first 3 verses which explain so much of his background. In verses 4 to 9 we see that God's word was a fragile word. God's word came to Jeremiah individually. God told him to be a prophet and Jeremiah explains that he doesn't have the experience to do that. This is a barrier to him. There is also a social barrier. As a youth (he was probably in his late teens at this stage) he worries about who would listen to him. In those days people would have listened to elders in the community, their age and experience made them more credible.
We often question how or why God calls certain people - those who we personally think are not what we would expect to do the job they do. Think for a moment of people in the bible for examples:
Abraham who was a pagan idolater with no children
Jacob who was a devious schemer
Moses an 80 year old failure
Jephthah in Judges 11, illegitimate freeloader despised and rejected by men
David the youngest of 7 sons not even invited to the king's selection ceremony
In Jeremiah's case he was chosen before he was even conceived. What mattered most was that this was God's decision. And God also knew about us too! Romans 8 verses 28 and 29 tell us that.
The word of God is also dominating. Jeremiah is told he will be a prophet to the nations. In fact he was told he would "root out, pull down and to destroy and to throw down, to build and to plant." 4 negatives and 2 positives and notice the emphasis - judgment before restoration. This is Jeremiah's mission.
In verses 11 to 19 we see the word of God is fanatical. First there is the certainty of what God says will happen. The content of God's word comes through a vision. One day the Babylonians will destroy Jerusalem and take the people captive. We are then told why God will do this - because the people have forsaken God. They are now serving false gods. They had broken God's covenant. Deuteronomy 6 verses 4 and 5.
