The Prophet Jeremiah
Monday, July 15 Jeremiah 29:1-32
“I know the plans Ihave for you”
In597BC, the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar carried into exile King Jehoiachin ofJudah, together with other Judean nobility, craftsmen and artisans. This was the second of three deportations(the first had occurred in 604BC and included among others Daniel and his threefriends; the third and final would take place in 586BC after the destruction ofJerusalem). The chapter contains aletter Jeremiah sent to the Judeans living in Babylon who had been taken in thefirst two deportations.
While it is Nebuchadnezzar who has ordered the deportations, God isbehind them. Therefore, the peopleshould settle down in exile and carry out the functions of daily living. The exile will not be the end of their existenceas God’s people, but the beginning of a new phase of relating to God. For God has a plan for the people, plans fora good future which will include the restoration of the people to theirhomeland. The restoration, however, ispredicated on their seeking God with their whole heart.
I am confident, Lord, of your good purposesfor my life. Amen.
Tuesday, July 16 Jeremiah 30:1-24
“You will be mypeople, and I will be your God”
Thechapter contains prophecies that range into the near future and into the farfuture from the perspective of Jeremiah’s time. Regarding the near future, God worked through the historical process toovercome the power of Babylon and to provide a way for his exiled people toreturn to their ancestral land. With therise of Cyrus the Persian, several groups of Jews made their way back to theland of promise. They began the process ofrebuilding Jerusalem’s walls and Temple, as related in the books of Ezra andNehemiah.
The chapter also reminds God’s people that they should not forget thenecessity of God’s righteous judgment for sin and that they should recognizetheir own inadequacies in healing their own failures. The prophet’s declaration that sin’s “injuryis incurable – a terrible wound” (verse 12) is echoed in the New Testamentwhich claims that apart from God’s grace, we will all die in our sin. In Christ God has bound himself to his peopleand provided everyone the means necessary to overcome the wages of sin.
You are faithful to forgive our sin, Lord,freeing us from sin’s consequence. Amen.
Wednesday, July 17 Jeremiah 31:1-22
“I have loved youwith an everlasting love”
Godreminds his people that they can find his favor even in the desert. This can be understood in two senses: (1)reminding them that their ancestors found favor with God in the wilderness ontheir journey out of Egypt to the Promised Land; and (2) as a reference to theexperience of exile and the hope that God will bring his people home throughthe desert that stretches between Babylon and Israel. The everlasting love of God for his people springsfrom his affection for them and his loyalty to them.
The nations are to take note that God intends to redeem his people. God, who scattered the people in judgment, isa shepherd who will gather them. Themourning of the Promised Land for the loss of her children is described throughthe metaphor of Rachel weeping. Rachel’schildren are coming home. This meansthat there is hope for Rachel’s future. Thus we are made aware that the first element in the renewal of Israelcomes in the restoration of exiles to their ancestral home.
No matter our sin,Lord, you never stop loving us. Amen.
Thursday, July 18 Jeremiah 31:23-40
“I will make a new covenant with my people”
Jeremiah’sinspired expression “new covenant” has been used for centuries as the headingor title to the twenty-seven documents that form the second half of theChristian Bible, that is, the New Testament. The Latin word testamentum,which underlies the English term testament,translates the Hebrew word for “covenant.” One sees this understanding as well within the pages of the NewTestament. At the Last Supper Jesusdescribes the cup as a representation of the “new covenant in my blood.” And, the apostle Paul understands the gospelof new life in Christ to be a fulfillment of the hope expressed in Jeremiah’sprediction of the new covenant (2 Corinthians 3).
The futureredemption promised by God through Jeremiah has dawned in the ministry of JesusChrist and will be brought to an ultimate fulfillment in his second coming atthe end of the age. Jeremiah’s promiseto the house of Israel and the house of Judah is applied to Jewish and GentileChristians alike, who comprise the church. Because of Christ’s coming and through the continuing ministry of theSpirit, the church has tasted the future Jeremiah foresaw.
Through Christ, Iam included in God’s new covenant with his people. Amen.
Friday, July 19 Jeremiah 32:1-25
“So I bought thefield at Anathoth”
Babylon hasbesieged Jerusalem for a second time, and Jeremiah is confined in the city by aroyal guard for his continual prophecies about the sovereignty of Babylon overJudah and Jerusalem. While in prison,his cousin Hanamel visits him and encourages him to buy a piece of propertylocated in Anathoth, Jeremiah’s home town. Jeremiah, having received the word of the Lord that the visit would takeplace, buys the field. On the surfacethis seems a senseless act – the armies of Babylon are surely occupyingAnathoth, just a few miles north of Jerusalem, and there is no realistic hopethat Jeremiah will ever be able to enjoy his property.
Jeremiah’spurchase becomes a vehicle, a symbolic act to illustrate his message. At one of the darkest moments in Judah’shistory, when the Babylonian reduction of the country is in an advanced stateand the successful siege of Jerusalem seems merely a matter of time, Jeremiahpurchases the property as a sign that there is a future for the people of theland. After the pain of defeat and thetrauma of exile, there will be restoration.
Nothing that belongs to you, Lord, willremain under enemy control. Amen.
Saturday, July 20 Jeremiah 32:26-44
“I will do all thegood I have promised”
Afterthe prophet purchases the field, God speaks to him again. His communication is a summary of whatJeremiah has been proclaiming for years, that a righteous judgment will befallJudah and Jerusalem and that it will proceed not from God’s weakness overagainst the powerful Babylonian deities, but from his intention to disciplineand purge his people. Considerable spaceis devoted to the articulation of God’s response to the failures of the people,described as furious anger and great wrath.
Inaddition to the communication of wrath, God reiterates the significance ofJeremiah’s land purchase as a sign of the Lord’s resolve to restore and blesshis people. Both current calamity andfuture blessing are the work of God. Inhis prayer, Jeremiah confessed in awe that “nothing is too hard” for God(32:17). Here, God’s rhetorical questionasks: “Is anything too hard for me?” Through this God reassures the people that what he has promised he candeliver.
Youare true to all your promises, Lord, and I place my trust in them. Amen.