Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You. (Jeremiah 32:17)
This is another verse that stands out in Jeremiah. It is hard not to read this verse and start singing, “Ah, Lord God, thou hast made the heavens and the earth by thy great power, Ah, Lord God, thou hast made the heavens and the earth by thine outstretched arm. Nothing is too difficult for thee, nothing is too difficult for thee…”
It is a good little chorus and a good reminder of the power of God. But again, it is interesting to see the context of this verse in Jeremiah.
Chapter 32 begins by telling us that the events in this chapter take place in the 18th year of Nebuchadnezzar which would be around 587 BC. What is going on at this time? Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian army have besieged Jerusalem. After basically destroying the land and carting off the brightest and best to Babylon (e.g., Daniel), the only thing left was to level and destroy the capital of Jerusalem. The easiest way to destroy a walled city in that time was to besiege it. Surround it, cut off any supply going in or people coming out, and simply let the people inside the city run out of food, water, and patience. Eventually a besieged city will either surrender, die, or eat each other.
Jeremiah is inside the city of Jerusalem stuck in the palace jail. Obviously supplies are short and the future is ominous at best. In the midst of this situation, Jeremiah’s cousin comes to visit him and, after exchanging pleasantries (”Hey, Jeremiah, how is it going?” “Not too bad, these shackles are not too uncomfortable. How are you?”), asks him to buy his land in Anathoth, Jeremiah’s hometown (1:1). Of course, by this time, Anathoth which was three miles north of Jerusalem has already been destroyed and occupied by the Babylonians. It is like buying land in Afghanistan or Iraq or the West Bank today. Not the best investment!
However, Jeremiah is instructed by the Lord to buy the piece of property as a sign of the future restoration of the land. So stuck in a jail cell with little money and little earthly hope, Jeremiah buys a piece of property presently occupied by the Babylonian army. After weighing out the money, Jeremiah begins his prayer (probably without the catchy tune), “Ah, Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.”
Jeremiah buys the land on faith, looking to a future hope promised by God. There is nothing around him to give him hope. His freedom is gone. His possessions are gone. His money is now gone. And soon his nation will be gone. Yet he owns a piece of property in Israel, the Promised Land, that God has said will one day be restored. Once more fields will be bought in this land of which you say, “It is a desolate waste, without men or animals, for it has been handed over to the Babylonians” (32:43).
It is a reminder to me that I am called to walk by faith, not by sight, (2 Corinthians 5:7) to keep my eyes on God and His promise rather than on the circumstances around me. God can take land occupied by the enemy and redeem it. He can take portions of my heart damaged by sin and heal it. He can take broken hearts and broken lives and restore them. In His time. For His glory. Nothing is too difficult for Him.