Sayre Woods Bible Church

Jeremiah 16 is another hard-hitting chapter. There are not many “devotional thoughts” that naturally spring out from the page. But again I am finding myself understanding the person of Jeremiah more. I have heard him called “the weeping prophet” before but I never really understood it. I basically thought he just cried a lot because he ministered during a bad time in Israel’s history. His emotional struggle goes much deeper than that.

In chapter 16, Jeremiah is told not to marry or have children. The nature of his ministry and the severity of the coming judgment called for him to remain single. In our culture today that is not necessarily seen as a big deal but in the Jewish culture this was unheard of.

I read recently that the Jews did not even have a word for “bachelor.” Marriage and family were assumed. Heritage was a priority. Children were a blessing that carried on your name. Moreover Messiah was going to be born someday and so every generation, every child born, gave hope. So to remain unmarried would mark Jeremiah out as extremely different, and it would also mean that much of his ministry would be done alone.

So here is Jeremiah–preaching a message of judgment that he did not necessarily like or understand, living a life of loneliness and ostracism that he did not prefer, ministering to a people who did not listen to him or like him. No wonder he wept! His heart was broken for his people and broken over the difficulties he had to face because of the hard-hearted sinfulness of others. Jeremiah did not ask for this but it was the life that God called him to.

Despite all this, Jeremiah proclaimed, O LORD, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in time of distress, to You the nations will come from the ends of the earth and say, “Our fathers possessed nothing but false gods, worthless idols that did them no good” (16:19). In other words, in the midst of his difficulty and brokenness, Jeremiah chose to focus on two things: 1) his relationship to God, and 2) the hope that God would even use judgment to bring more and more people to a knowledge of Himself. Of course, Jeremiah stumbled a few times in his thought process. Sometimes his emotions and struggles got the best of him..see chapter 15. But for the most part Jeremiah kept his focus on God.

God recognizes that Jeremiah “gets it” this time and responds: Therefore I will teach them–this time I will teach them My power and might. Then they will know that My name is the LORD (16:21). It is almost as if God is saying, “Ah, you finally got it, Jeremiah. My judgment is severe because these people will not listen to Me. I have no other choice. But, rest assured, I will use this judgment to cause them to know, and to cause other nations to know, just Who I am.”

I am reminded of the four simple words that began Warren’s book, The Purpose-Driven Life, “It’s not about you.” God may take me through difficulties. I may feel the effects of His discipline and judgment upon others. I may face His discipline myself. But, in the end, His name will be known, by me and by others, and that is what life is all about–to know Him. Thus despite the brokenness, confusion, and sorrow, hopefully I can learn to say with Jeremiah, “O LORD, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in the day of distress.”

It sure didn’t take God long to test Jeremiah’s faith. Yesterday we saw how God told Jeremiah to stop feeling sorry for himself. In today’s reading, God gives Jeremiah a series of extremely difficult and trying commands:

Do not get married and do not have children here in this land. (16:2)

Moreover I, the LORD, tell you: “Do not go into a house where they are having a funeral meal. Do not go there to mourn and express your sorrow for them. For I have stopped showing them my good favor, my love, and my compassion. I, the LORD, so affirm it!” (16:5)

Do not go to a house where people are feasting and sit down to eat and drink with them either. (16:8)

We are relational beings so these commands go against all of our instincts. In a few sentences, God has forbidden Jeremiah to marry, have children, comfort those who are mourning, and celebrate with those who are rejoicing. I am so extremely introverted that I can happily go days without talking to anyone outside of my immediate family, and even I would have trouble living that kind of life. I imagine it would be hard for Jeremiah to see his friends and relatives getting married and starting families and knowing he could never experience it himself. I would also probably be painful for him not to be able to comfort them when they lost a loved one and celebrate with them at the momentous events in one’s life. This would also probably make Jeremiah even less popular among the people than he already was. They already disliked him for his doom and gloom prophesies. Now they would probably think he imagined himself too good and/or too godly to mourn and rejoice with his countrymen. To obey these commands basically meant severing all social relationships that Jeremiah may have had (or at least any that he had left).

When I read these verses, I remembered Jesus’ words in Luke 14:26: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” In chapter 15, Jeremiah was depressed because the people hated him, and in chapter 16, God is showing him that he should be more concerned with his relationship with God. Our relationship with God is to take precedence over all of our earthly relationships.

A second point that struck me from today’s reading is found in verse 13:

So I will throw you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your ancestors have ever known. There you must worship other gods day and night, for I will show you no mercy. (16:13)

God’s punishment was to allow Israel to do that which they desired to do. After centuries of warning Israel against the dangers of worshipping foreign gods, and being ignored, God gives them what they want. They will not only be able to worship other gods, they will be forced too worship them in lands that worship those gods. And this is not a unique punishment:

Therefore God gave them over in the desires of their hearts to impurity, to dishonor their bodies among themselves. (Romans 1:24)

It is incredibly frightening to think about, but apparently there comes a point where God just allows people to follow the sinful desires of their heart, and this is the worst punishment there is. We may not like when God disciplines us as Christians, but the reason he does so is to keep us from reaching this point. It is like a shepherd guiding his sheep on a narrow path surrounded by deathly obstacles. We are the sheep and we constantly try to run off the path towards the obstacles, but God as the shepherd chastises us and keeps us on the path. As Christians we hopefully stray less and less as we mature and therefore need to be discipline less and less. This passage seems to show, however, that there are some sheep that are so persistent in straying that the shepherd eventually allows them to run towards the obstacles that will lead to their destruction. In light of this, may we be thankful for the discipline of a loving father that keeps us on the straight and narrow path, and may we feel genuine concern for those sheep who are dangerously close to being allowed to stray.

Why is my pain unending and my wound grievous and incurable? Will you be to me like a deceptive brook, like a spring that fails? (Jeremiah 15:18)

I have read through Jeremiah before but I don’t ever remember seeing the level of emotion that is in the book. I guess I must have read it too fast or just skimmed over the parts that didn’t make a lot of sense. Jeremiah 15 is one of those chapters that you have to read a few times. Whoa. It is an interesting dialogue.

Jeremiah ends chapter 14 by pleading with God on behalf of his nation, Judah. We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness ad the iniquity of our fathers, for we have sinned against You. Do not abhor us, for Your name’s sake…Remember, do not break Your covenant with us. Jeremiah is pulling out all the stops, confessing the sins of his people, pleading for God’s mercy, asking God to remember His covenant with the nation.

God responds by basically saying, “Jeremiah, even if you were Moses and Samuel combined into one, you couldn’t stop My judgment from coming.” Then God goes on to detail the horrendous judgment that is coming on the nation. The widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the sea… (15:8).

It is not a pretty picture and one hard to fathom. Husbands will die, fathers will die, sons will die, and women will die in grief and sorrow. There is no mercy.

This is the picture of God that we do not like. I struggle with it. Where is the God of mercy and grace? Where is the God of forgiveness? Where is the God that Jonah said was a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm (Jonah 4:2)? That is the God who is easier to embrace. This is what Jeremiah is feeling. And he blurts out what is on his mind. First, he laments his birth (15:10). Then he pleads for God’s mercy in his own life, detailing all his good works in the process (15:15-17). Then he asks a stinging question of God, “Will you be like a unreliable stream to me, like a mirage, like One who looks good and refreshing but in the end offers nothing?”

It is one of those times that you say something that you shouldn’t to someone that you shouldn’t. Oops. And God immediately responds: “If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them” (15:19).

Get the picture? This is an intense chapter–one in which Jeremiah is wrestling with Who God is and trying to understand His judgment. In the end God basically says, “Jeremiah, I understand your struggle but now you are talking nonsense. Get your mind back on track. Trust me. Serve me. I will deliver you. You can count on that.”

I guess what hit me in this chapter is the brutal honesty of Jeremiah and the hard-hitting forthrightness of God. The gloves are off. Jeremiah is speaking his heart and God is responding in kind. It gives me a picture of the kind of communication that God desires. Forget the fluffy, pious stuff. God chooses men and women who wrestle with Him and pour out their hearts to Him in prayer. Of course, He also chooses men and women who listen to Him and are willing to align their wills with His, even when they do not totally understand.

I do not fully understand God’s judgment, but I know He is just. Judah has reached the point of no return. At this point any “repentance” is probably the repentance of a disobedient child who after defying his parents over and over suddenly, and briefly, changes his tune when it looks like he is finally going to get it. God’s judgment is coming. It can’t be stopped. But I think it is important to realize that this is judgment on the nation. The nation will suffer. The nation will be destroyed and taken into captivity. But God still sees the hearts of individuals and will preserve His remnant. He has to…not only because of His mercy but also because of His plan. It is through the nation of Judah that Messiah is coming.

Lord, when I don’t understand, help me to trust.

Jeremiah completely misses the point in this chapter. God is giving Jeremiah more words to convey to the people of Israel, and all Jeremiah can think of is himself. He has ceased feeling sorry for the people on whom God is pronouncing judgment (as he did in the previous chapter) and has started feeling bad for himself:

I said,
“Oh, mother, how I regret that you ever gave birth to me!
I am always starting arguments and quarrels with the people of this land.
I have not lent money to anyone and I have not borrowed from anyone.
Yet all of these people are treating me with contempt….
LORD, you know how I suffer.
Take thought of me and care for me.
Pay back for me those who have been persecuting me.
Do not be so patient with them that you allow them to kill me.
Be mindful of how I have put up with their insults for your sake. As your words came to me I drank them in,
and they filled my heart with joy and happiness
because I belong to you, O LORD, the God who rules over all. I did not spend my time in the company of other people,
laughing and having a good time.
I stayed to myself because I felt obligated to you
and because I was filled with anger at what they had done. Why must I continually suffer such painful anguish?
Why must I endure the sting of their insults like an incurable wound?
Will you let me down when I need you
like a brook one goes to for water, but that cannot be relied on?”
(Jeremiah 15:10, 15-18)

God keeps bringing the conversation back to judgment, and Jeremiah keeps crying, “Woe is me!” Finally, God has enough of his whining:

Because of this, the LORD said,
“You must repent of such words and thoughts!
If you do, I will restore you to the privilege of serving me.
If you say what is worthwhile instead of what is worthless,
I will again allow you to be my spokesman.
They must become as you have been.
You must not become like them.
(Jeremiah 15:19)

The lesson here is an important one: Self-pity hinders our ability to serve God. To serve God fully, our focus must be on him. When we feel sorry for ourselves, we take the focus off of God and put it us. When Jeremiah’s focus was on God, his concern was for God and his people. Once his focus shifted, he became like the people God was judging. Instead of the people becoming like Jeremiah, Jeremiah was becoming like them. The world tells us it is natural for us to be concerned for our own well-being and to look out for ourselves, but that fact that it is the world telling us this should make us wary of heeding such advice. When we keep our eyes on God, instead of on ourselves, we realize that there is no need for us to worry about our own well-being for God will do that for us:

I will make you as strong as a wall to these people,
a fortified wall of bronze.
They will attack you,
but they will not be able to overcome you.
For I will be with you to rescue you and deliver you,”
says the LORD. “I will deliver you from the power of the wicked.
I will free you from the clutches of violent people.”
(Jeremiah 15:20-21)

Because we are human, it is extremely easy to begin feeling sorry for ourselves when things do not go our way, but this ultimately will hinder us and not help us. True satisfaction, confidence, and comfort can only come when we are focused on God and trusting him to protect us and supply our needs.

Lord, help me to be concerned with the your ways and not my own. Keep me from feeling sorry for myself that my service to you and your people will not be hindered. Amen.

Repeat after me:

I cannot change God’s mind.

Now let that sink in for a minute.

Too often I forget that prayer is not meant to change God; it is meant to change me. Jeremiah 14 is a great example of this. The prophet spends the chapter trying to get God to turn aside from his judgment, even using the tried and true method of appealing to the sake of his Name and reputation (14:7ff, 21ff). But God’s plans have already been set in motion and they will not be altered. In fact, looking ahead to chapter 15, God tells Jeremiah that not even Samuel or Moses could intercede for the people.

The belief that God holds off on executing his plans until we pray and then reacts to those prayers has led to a very arrogant approach to prayer. We do not approach prayer asking God to conform our will to his. Instead we expect God to grant all that we pray for, and then we become bitter or disillusioned when our requests are not granted. We should be extremely thankful that we do not have such a reactionary God who responds to the whims and emotions of his people, but rather a decisive God who acts in the best interest of his people no matter what they feel.

There is exceptional power in prayer, but it is the power to take my will and conform it to God’s, to give me a glimpse of how he works, and to give me confidence and peace that all things work for the good of those who love him.

This does not mean that we do not need to intercede on behalf of the sick, the lost, or the hurting. It simply means that our approach to prayer should not be with the intent of changing God’s will but with the intent of having our will changed by him. When our approach is the latter, we will never be satisfied unless God answers our prayer exactly as we have asked. When our approach is the former, we will be satisfied even if our request is denied in light of his greater plan.

I cannot change God’s mind, but he can change mine, and I need to be open to allowing him to do so.

If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?

Jeremiah was struggling. He saw the wickedness of his nation and felt the pressure of following God in such a society. He wondered why it looked like the ungodly had an easy life and prospered while he struggled to make it from day to day. God basically says, “Stop whining, Jeremiah. If you can’t handle this, then what are you going to do when things get really tough?”

I guess I was both comforted and challenged by Jeremiah 12. I was comforted in the fact that Jeremiah, one of God’s chosen prophets, whined to God. It reminded me that Jeremiah was human, that he struggled, that he hated to go through difficulty, that he wanted things to be easier, to be right. I feel the same way many times. “God, things are so crazy in this country. Can’t You do something? I feel overwhelmed, tired, frustrated.” All of God’s people go through times like this.

But God looks at our whining much like I look at the whining of my own kids. When they whine about how “tough” things are, how hard it is to clean up their toys, how much responsibility we pile on their shoulders, like making their bed, picking up their clothes, setting the table, doing dishes, etc. (We are so cruel and demanding.) I tend to respond by saying, “Boys, you have no idea what tough is.”

Funny, how I am just like my boys in many ways. I can whine about how tough things are in life and in ministry when people in other countries are facing daily persecution, imprisonment, and even death for their faith. God has given me the easy task in His kingdom–to live for Him and proclaim His name in a country where I have freedom and peace. May I carry out that task with joy and faithfulness and not spend my time whining about things that don’t really matter.

I find the interaction between God and Jeremiah in this chapter to be fascinating. Jeremiah begins by saying to God:

LORD, you have always been fair
    whenever I have complained to you.
    However, I would like to speak with you about the disposition of justice.
    Why are wicked people successful?
    Why do all dishonest people have such easy lives? You plant them like trees and they put down their roots.
    They grow prosperous and are very fruitful.
    They always talk about you,
    but they really care nothing about you. But you, LORD, know all about me.
    You watch me and test my devotion to you.
    Drag these wicked men away like sheep to be slaughtered!
    Appoint a time when they will be killed! How long must the land be parched
    and the grass in every field be withered?
    How long must the animals and the birds die
    because of the wickedness of the people who live in this land?
    For these people boast,
    “God will not see what happens to us.”
(Jeremiah 12:1-4)

The basic point of Jeremiah’s complaint is the the wicked seem to prosper. Its a common theme with God’s servants in the Bible. It was difficult for them to go through various trials and persecutions while the people they were prophesying against were living the good life. The added wrinkle here, however, is that apparently they “claim the Name”. This reminded me a lot of today’s politicians. They talk about God a lot, many of them even claim to be Christians and talk about their church attendance and other religious themes. But really they are just using God as a way to get votes. It is easy for us to see this and react like Jeremiah did: “But you, LORD, know all about me. You watch me and test my devotion to you.” It can be difficult to see people prosper while living however they want and claiming to be Christians, especially if you are spending hours in service every week, starting each morning with devotions, and struggling to build a prayer life. It becomes even more difficult if the truly righteous in the land are suffering because of the sins of these people (and of course, none of us ever suffer because of the sins and mistakes of those in public office). Like Jeremiah, we may know that God is just, but we may struggle to see how his justice is being levied.

God’s response, however, is even more interesting than Jeremiah’s original complaint:

The LORD answered,
    “If you have raced on foot against men and they have worn you out,
    how will you be able to compete with horses?
    And if you feel secure only in safe and open country,
    how will you manage in the thick undergrowth along the Jordan River? As a matter of fact, even your own brothers
    and the members of your own family have betrayed you too.
    Even they have plotted to do away with you.
    So do not trust them even when they say kind things to you.
(Jeremiah 12:5-6)

Basically, God is telling him, “If you think its tough now, how are you going to survive when it really gets tough.” Jeremiah was already complaining about the righteous suffering for the sins of the wicked, and the judgment hadn’t even started yet. I think this response serves two purposes. Firstly, it reminds Jeremiah that things can always be worse. When we are feeling like life just isn’t fair, its always good to put our circumstances in perspective. Things can always be worse and there are always people worse off than you. Secondly, it reminds Jeremiah that God’s ways are not his ways. God doesn’t try to justify himself to Jeremiah, which I think ultimately was what Jeremiah was looking for with his complaint. We often look at trying circumstances and we want God to justify his actions to us, as if God owes us an explanation. God had a plan, and it was not up to Jeremiah to tell God to change it. This is important for us to remember. Just because we cry out to God, doesn’t mean he is obligated to give us an explanation. Job is a great example of this. He never received a reason for losing his family, wealth, and property. God will be with us through trials as he has promised, but we cannot always expect to be told why we went through those trials.

Do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them, because I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their distress. What is my beloved doing in My temple as she works out her evil schemes with many? Can consecrated meat avert your punishment when you engage in your wickedness then you rejoice? (Jeremiah 11:14-15)

Wow, “don’t pray for this people.” That’s a pretty strong, and strange, command from God to Jeremiah. But the people of Israel had so corrupted their ways and God’s judgment was so sure that Jeremiah was instructed not to pray for them. He would be wasting his breath. Judgment was coming no matter what.

That’s a scarey place to be. To be so stubborn, hard-hearted and rebellious that the only way God can deal with you is to send judgment your way. I am reminded of Jeremiah 9:7 when God says, “See, I will refine and test them [with the fires of affliction], for what else can I do because of the sin of My people?” Israel essentially left God no choice but judgment. They would not listen to Him. They would not obey Him. They would not change their ways. So God had to send punishment. It was the only thing left that might get Israel’s attention. Even in judgment God still calls them “my beloved” (11:15) which tells me that the ultimate purpose of God’s impending judgment on the nation was redemptive. He wanted to win them back. Sometimes “tough love” has no choice but to punish/discipline.

I can’t help but wonder what was so enticing about Baal worship (11:13) that drew Israelites to it like flies on honey. I looked up Baal in a Bible encyclopedia and here is what it said:

Baal. The name of the most prominent Canaanite deity. As god of fertility in the Canaanite pantheon (roster of gods), Baal’s sphere of influence included agriculture, animal husbandry, and human sexuality. …In order to bring Baal up from the realm of Mot and thus insure initiation of the fertile rainy season, the Canaanites engaged in orgiastic worship that included human sacrifice as well as sexual rites (Jer. 7:31; 19:4-6). Sacred prostitutes evidently participated in the autumnal religious ritual.

It sounds like Israel loved Baal worship because it allowed them to pursue whatever sexual lusts they had while still considering themselves “spiritual.” Israel wanted a god that offered spirituality and success without requiring holiness and purity. That is why God cried out, “What are you doing in my temple making ritual sacrifices when you spend the rest of the week engaging in sin and enjoying it?”

It reminded me that, because of sin, we all tend to want a god that makes us feel good, allows us to do what we want, and requires nothing of us. This, however, is not the God of Israel. He demands all our heart, mind, soul, and strength and He is satisfied with nothing less. Why? Because He passionately loves us and will not share the throne of our heart with anyone/anything else.