Page 1 of 15 August 9 Lesson 10 A CHOICE TO BE JUST DEVOTIONAL READING: Jeremiah 26:8-15 BACKGROUND SCRIPTURE: Ezra 7:1, 6, 21-28; Jeremiah 7:1-15 JEREMIAH 7:1-15 1 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 Stand at the gate of the LORD s house and there proclaim this message: Hear the word of the LORD, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the LORD. 3 This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. 4 Do not trust in deceptive words and say, This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD! 5 If you really change your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly, 6 if you do not oppress the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, 7 then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever. 8 But look, you are trusting in deceptive words that are worthless. 9 Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name, and say, We are safe safe to do all these detestable things? 11 Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the LORD. 12 Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for my Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of 1 1
Page 2 of 15 my people Israel. 13 While you were doing all these things, declares the LORD, I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer. 14 Therefore, what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears my Name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. 15 I will thrust you from my presence, just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim. Photo: istockphoto / Thinkstock KEY VERSE This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. Jeremiah 7:3 LESSON AIMS After participating in this lesson, each learner will be able to: 1. Identify the deceptive words that the people of Judah had accepted, and tell how their confidence in those deceptive words had corrupted their behavior. 2. Compare and contrast the deceptive words of Jeremiah s day with the deceptive words that falsely comfort and corrupt today s society. 3. Select one specific false massage prevalent today and explain how best to refute it with God s truth. Introduction LESSON OUTLINE 2 2
Page 3 of 15 A. A Godly Good-Luck Charm? B. Lesson Background I. Prophetic Message (JEREMIAH 7:1, 2) A. From Whom (v. 1) B. For Whom (v. 2) II. False Trust (JEREMIAH 7:3-8) A. Message of Life (vv. 3-7) B. Message of Death (v. 8) Dirty Socks III. Exposed Injustice (JEREMIAH 7:9-15) A. Commandments Broken (v. 9) B. Temple Trusted (vv. 10, 11) Tainted Praise C. Lesson Unlearned (vv. 12-15) Conclusion A. God s Promises Stand B. Prayer C. Thought to Remember Introduction A. A Godly Good-Luck Charm? We all know about so-called good-luck charms. The rabbit s foot, the horseshoe, and the fourleaf clover are staples of that ilk, at least in North America. In some cultures, certain insects or animals are seen as bringing good luck. But skepticism regarding the power of good-luck charms is well advised. If we have a friend who sees no need to fasten a seat belt because a dream catcher hangs from the rearview mirror for good luck, we will probably try to persuade that person to put more confidence in the seat belt. Thoughtfulness in this regard can have a connection with how we view our relationship with God. While probably few Christians see the Christian-themed knickknacks in their houses to be godly good-luck charms, it s easy to treat particular religious routines as such. Danger looms when we perceive our standing with God in light of reliance on such practices. Faithfulness to routine is one thing; having faith in the routine is quite another! We easily note and critique such misplaced faith when displayed in others, don t we? But it may not be so easy to recognize the problem when it is our own. Today s text will help us in that regard. 3 3
Page 4 of 15 B. Lesson Background The prophet Jeremiah ministered in the late seventh and early sixth centuries BC, during the final years of the monarchy of Judah (Jeremiah 1:1-3). That was the southern part of Israel s divided kingdom. In that day, Judah was confronted by the aggressive Babylonian Empire. The Babylonians oppressed Judah over a period of several years, treating it as a vassal kingdom (2 Kings 24). The Babylonians ultimately laid siege to Jerusalem, put it to the sword and torch, destroyed its temple, and took its people into exile (2 Kings 25). From one perspective, these events could appear to be a simple issue of power politics: Babylon was strong; Judah was not. But from the perspective of Jeremiah, these events fulfilled warnings that God had given his people long ago. As God gave Israel the land of promise, he had warned that they must receive it as a gift, with gratitude reflected in obedience. Submitting to God s law would mean blessing; disobedience would mean return to captivity (Deuteronomy 29:14-29). That penalty was partially realized as Jeremiah delivered the prophecy of today s lesson, since the territory of Israel s 10 northern tribes had been overrun by the Assyrians about a century before Jeremiah began prophesying (2 Kings 17:5-23). But God had granted Judah a miraculous deliverance in that same era (18:13-19:37). That deliverance had become a source of misplaced confidence by Jeremiah s day. Many believed that God would never allow his temple to fall. It was against such a perspective that Jeremiah directed the warning in our text. I. Prophetic Message (JEREMIAH 7:1, 2) A. From Whom (v. 1) 1. This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: This section begins with what is sometimes called a prophetic formula. This affirms that the forthcoming message is not that of the messenger but of God, on whose behalf the messenger speaks. B. For Whom (v. 2) 2. Stand at the gate of the LORD s house and there proclaim this message: Hear the word of the LORD, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the LORD. God sends Jeremiah to the temple s entrance to announce the message. The temple itself is to provide the visual context of the prophet s words. Those who enter the temple, the Lord s house, imagine that structure to be the guarantee of their standing with God, as will be seen. They are about to hear a message that differs sharply from that viewpoint! 4 4
Page 5 of 15 What Do You Think? What are some occasions when delivering God s Word might better be done in a location other than that of a church building? Why? Talking Points for Your Discussion Regarding anniversaries of historical events Regarding a natural disaster Other Assyrians Uh-sear-e-unz. Baal Bay-ul. Babylon Bab-uh-lun. Babylonians Bab-ih-low-nee-unz. Eli Ee-lye. Ephraim Ee-fray-im. Judah Joo-duh. Judeans Joo-dee-unz. Shiloh Shy-low. HOW TO SAY IT II. False Trust (JEREMIAH 7:3-8) A. Message of Life (vv. 3-7) 3. This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. The prophet s message begins on a loud, clear note. The people of Judah live where they do by God s permission and God s gift. Their standing is conditional: only by submitting to him can they remain in the land he has given them (see the Lesson Background). Presently they do not submit, as evidenced by the fact that Jeremiah confrontationally says reform your ways and your actions. The people must improve their walk with God. 4. Do not trust in deceptive words and say, This is the temple 5 5
Page 6 of 15 of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD! Deceptive words are especially powerful and tragic when we are deceiving ourselves! So it is for Jeremiah s audience. They have convinced themselves that the existence of God s temple in their midst provides absolute assurance against disaster. With misunderstanding of their sinful past and misplaced trust in a physical structure, the people of Judah have become like pagans who believe that repeating certain words or creating certain objects provides magical power. The Judeans trust is empty; their words, trite. What Do You Think? What deceptions do we hear today? How do we guard ourselves against these? Talking Points for Your Discussion Regarding the nature of sin Regarding the nature of God s love Regarding the nature of the church Other 5a. If you really change your ways and your actions In contrast with the people s merely parroting the temple of the Lord over and over, Jeremiah proclaims that the people must change their lifestyles completely. Behind the twoword phrase really change in the original language is a single word meaning make good that is repeated to emphasize the idea. 5b.... and deal with each other justly, The kind of duplication for emphasis in verse 5a is also behind the phrase deal with each other justly that we see here. God himself is the model for just actions. He demonstrated his just judgment in rescuing the Israelites from their unjust bondage in Egypt. Such action on his part calls for obedience, thankfulness, fairness, generosity, and humility on the part of those so rescued. Such are to be the hallmarks of God s people, not empty reliance on a physical structure. 6a.... if you do not oppress the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow Jeremiah proceeds to describe what the people s amended ways, especially in terms of executed justice, should entail. The Israelites ancestors had been enslaved in Egypt for 400 years (Genesis 15:13; Exodus 12:40, 41; Acts 7:6). God s liberation taught them (or should have taught them) that justice means fair, merciful, and respectful treatment of all (Exodus 22:21; 23:9). Society s most vulnerable are therefore in need of the greatest protection in God s program. These vulnerable include the foreigner, referring to non-israelites who settle in the promised 6 6
Page 7 of 15 land. Israel s forefathers knew what it was like to be a stranger in the land (Genesis 23:4), and King David set an example of the attitude to have when he wrote, Hear my prayer, Lord, listen to my cry for help; do not be deaf to my weeping. I dwell with you as a foreigner, a stranger, as all my ancestors were (Psalm 39:12). The fatherless and the widow typically have no one to support and protect them in the culture of Jeremiah s day; they depend on the generosity of others. As God provides and protects, so must the Israelites act toward society s most vulnerable. The prophets have to remind the Israelites periodically of their responsibilities in this regard. Particularly strong is the indictment of Ezekiel 22:29. 6b.... and do not shed innocent blood in this place, Securing justice for the vulnerable parallels renunciation of violence. Shedding of innocent blood (murder) represents the complete denial of God s creation of humans in his image (Genesis 1:26, 27; 9:6). Such violence is driven by radically selfish desires. It represents the ultimate injustice. Jeremiah 22:17 is quite pointed in revealing the people s tendencies in this area. 6c.... and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, The list of transgressions ends with the problem of following other gods, prohibited in the First Commandment (Exodus 20:3). Idolatry is an affront to the being and nature of God. Made to suit the desires of the worshipper, idols represent humans attempts to gather spiritual power for their own uses. Devotion to other gods becomes, in many cases, the justification for all kinds of crimes (example: Psalm 106:38). Ultimately, the one harmed most by idolatry is the idol worshipper because of the eternal consequences. 7.... then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever. God s promise is always clear: obedience is the condition for remaining in the land that God gave to the forefathers. Jeremiah repeats that promise to his temple-gate audience as a warning: the people must change their ways if they want the promise to remain in effect. What God had done when he rescued Jerusalem by striking down the Assyrians (2 Kings 19:35) he can certainly do again. But the people must repent. B. Message of Death (v. 8) 8. But look, you are trusting in deceptive words that are worthless. The people s confident chant the temple of the Lord (v. 4) is an exercise in misplaced trust. This self-delusion will prove to be their undoing. Jeremiah stands before them to announce that this misdirected faith is a fatally dangerous sham. It is time to abandon deceptive words and admit the truth. 7 7
Page 8 of 15 DIRTY SOCKS Athletes don t want to break routine when they are playing well. A baseball player on a hitting streak won t risk changing anything not even his socks lest his hot streak be jinxed! Going the other way, athletes may be all too willing to change routine when things aren t going well. Minnie Minoso took an interesting approach in this regard after going hitless in a game in which he played for the Chicago White Sox. Reportedly blaming his uniform for his troubles, he wore it into the shower. The next day he had three hits, so his teammates joined him in the shower afterward with their uniforms on! Eccentricities of routine and superstition can be found in virtually any sport. Even fans have special shirts or caps they wear so their team will win. Jeremiah told his people that the superstitious trust they placed in the temple amounted to no more than deceptive words. Their self-deception told them that things were just fine, so they were unwilling to change their dirty socks. What self-deceptions do we indulge in yet today? C. R. B. III. Exposed Injustice (JEREMIAH 7:9-15) A. Commandments Broken (v. 9) 9. Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal and follow other gods you have not known, Drawing on offenses just mentioned, Jeremiah now poses a rhetorical question that demonstrates the people s hypocrisy. First he lists sins that remind us of several of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1-17; Deuteronomy 5:7-21). Theft, murder, adultery, falsehood, and idolatry are obvious violations. In one way or another, such transgressions all involve defrauding the vulnerable. Another element is the indictment that the people are burning incense to Baal. The designation Baal means master and refers to various gods worshipped by Israel s neighbors; note the plural Baals in Jeremiah 2:23; 9:14. Their worshippers believe that these gods control the fertility of people, livestock, and agriculture. Offering incense to Baal is a shorthand way of suggesting all acts of worship offered to these gods, which sometimes include sexual immorality and even infant sacrifice. Idolatry produces atrocities in its adherents. The Baals are just some of the many gods worshipped in the ancient Near East. Hopeful to receive power from any possible source, idol worshippers are more than happy to add more deities to their sacred shrines. Jeremiah s question implies that his hearers are guilty in this regard. What Do You Think? How can we best confront the modern idolatries that 8 8
Page 9 of 15 challenge our faithfulness to God? Talking Points for Your Discussion Regarding the idolatry of me first Regarding the idolizing of one s country and its ideals Regarding the idolizing of public figures Other B. Temple Trusted (vv. 10, 11) 10.... and then come and stand before me in this house, which bears my Name, and say, We are safe safe to do all these detestable things? The utter emptiness of the people s misplaced faith becomes clearer still. Habitual evildoers and idolaters, they nevertheless return time and again to God s temple, God s house, to go through the motions of worship. There they offer sacrifices, pray, and sing the psalms. In so doing, the people believe that they are safe from enemies such as Babylon. In effect, the Judeans believe that God cares more about the form of worship in his temple, or even the temple structure itself, than he does about his people s submission to him. What a miserable, blasphemous view of the holy God! TAINTED PRAISE A letter to Henry Ford of April 1934 had this to say: Dear Sir: -- While I still have got breath in my lungs I will tell you what a dandy car you make. I have drove Fords exclusively when I could get away with one.... [E]ven if my business hasen t been strickly legal it don t hurt anything to tell you what a fine car you got in the V8 -- The (unauthenticated) letter was from Clyde Barrow, of Bonnie and Clyde infamy. He apparently found stolen Ford V8s quite to his liking for evading the police, thus prompting the letter of praise. The outlaws died in a police ambush several weeks after the letter was sent. Such praise was hardly the kind of testimony that Henry Ford could use in advertising or otherwise appreciate! Likewise, the tainted praise offered in the temple by the Judeans was not the praise God could honor. Our sins might not be as gross as theirs, but we need to ask, Does my life validate the praise I offer to God? C. R. B. What Do You Think? In what ways can the nature of our worship gatherings influence and be influenced by our individual lifestyles? 9 9
Page 10 of 15 Talking Points for Your Discussion Positive influences (Acts 2:44-47; Romans 12:1; etc.) Negative influences (1 Corinthians 11:17; James 2:1-4; etc.) 11. Has this house, which bears my Name, become a den of robbers to you? But I have been watching! declares the LORD. Trusting in the temple is pointless since Judah s actions have made it into something other than God s house. If it were his house in more than name only, then those who worship there would follow his law and pursue his justice. Instead, it is filled with people who commit all the abominations already noted. The people have turned the temple into a bandits hideout, a den of robbers. But the evildoers can conceal nothing. They cannot hide. God sees everything they do. Centuries later, Jesus draws on the imagery of this verse when he takes action in the temple (Matthew 21:13; Mark 11:17; Luke 19:46). At least one issue then is the same as in Jeremiah s day: the corrupt temple leadership takes advantage of the weak for their own gain. Even worse, the temple leaders of Jesus day plot his death so that they can hold on to their own power (John 11:48). C. Lesson Unlearned (vv. 12-15) 12. Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for my Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel. The question Jeremiah s audience may be thinking at this point is, Well, then, what will God do with his temple? To answer this, Jeremiah offers a real-life illustration from Israel s history. The tabernacle (the temple s precursor) had been located at Shiloh, about 19 miles north of Jerusalem, for years after Israel s conquest of the land (Joshua 18:1; Judges 18:31; 1 Samuel 1:3). In Samuel s time, over 400 years before the days of Jeremiah, the sons of the high priest Eli turned their ministry at the tabernacle into a personal racket, extracting bribes and sexual favors from worshippers there (1 Samuel 2:12-17, 22-25). To make matters worse, some Israelites decided to treat the tabernacle s ark of the covenant like a magical object by taking it into battle (4:3-5). But Israel lost the battle, the ark was captured, and Eli s wicked sons were killed (4:6-11). Therefore God abandoned the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent he had set up among humans (Psalm 78:60). Jeremiah s audience need only take a trip to God s place in Shiloh to understand what he can do to Jerusalem as well. The ark of the covenant did not serve as an object of magical protection, and neither will the temple. What Do You Think? 10 10
Page 11 of 15 What are some things in your personal past that help you refocus your faith and trust in God? Talking Points for Your Discussion Places, events, relationships of a positive nature Places, events, relationships of a negative nature 13. While you were doing all these things, declares the LORD, I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer. The people of Judah have been warned many times. They have received the law, which specifies the consequences of disobedience. They have received the message of earlier prophets that reminded them of the same. They have seen judgment fall on their kin in northern Israel for habitual idolatry and injustice. They barely escaped a similar destruction themselves (2 Kings 19). Their disobedience (all these things) has continued literally for centuries. It s not that God hasn t done his part he has, again and again! Yet just as habitually the people ignore him and his messengers. Judah s historical track record in this regard portends little hope of escaping God s judgment. 14. Therefore, what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears my Name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. Again Jeremiah piles up phrases to stress the enormity of Judah s false trust in the temple. The house is God s house, the symbol of his authority. It has been his gift to Israel for generations. It is intended as the place where Israel can stand before God and find forgiveness and instruction. This they have turned into a den of robbers. So God must destroy the temple and those who corrupt it. As he did to Shiloh, he will now do to the house bearing his name. Allowing the temple to fall will not bring his name into disrepute, but allowing it to continue to stand as a den of robbers certainly will! The calamity to come will affirm that God is the holy, sovereign king who tolerates no hypocrisy. 15. I will thrust you from my presence, just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim. The second history lesson is more recent: the story of the northern kingdom of Israel here referred to as Ephraim, the name of a leading tribe. The people of Judah know that their fellow Israelites to the north had fallen to Assyria by God s decision (2 Kings 17:1-23). God s promise of a similar fate for Judah indicates that he sees the sins of both groups as identical. While the Judeans like to think of themselves as more favored than their erstwhile kin to the north, God thinks otherwise. And it is his viewpoint that will prevail. Conclusion 11 11
Page 12 of 15 A. God s Promises Stand God s message was stern and uncompromising. Yet despite Judah s failure, God s promise was still in force to establish David s throne forever (2 Samuel 7:16). Today we know that we have received the fulfillment of that promise in Jesus. We also should realize that we have a clear responsibility regarding how we are to live before God. As followers of Christ, we are to promote God s justice. We are not to be hypocrites who worship God outwardly while plotting rebellion inwardly. As the God of the temple would not be mocked, neither will the God of the cross the same God. B. Prayer O God, we come to you from our hiding places to confess the sin that you already see. Show us your mercy, not the punishment that we deserve, as we show mercy to others. In Jesus name, amen. C. Thought to Remember Know God s desires, and do them. 12 12
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Page 14 of 15 Visual for Lesson 4 & 10. Point to this as you ask, How do people today convince themselves that this statement is wrong? INVOLVEMENT LEARNING Some of the activities below are also found in the helpful student book, NIV Bible Student. Don t forget to download the free reproducible page from www.standardlesson.com to enhance your lesson! Into the Lesson Ask each learner to write two true statements about himself or herself along with one false statement. Let them take turns reading the statements to the class. (Encourage learners to mix the order of their statements so everyone doesn t have the false one in the same place.) Class members can then take turns trying to identify the false statement. Keep track of who identifies the most false statements. Then say, [Winner s name] has done a good job of ferreting out the deceptive words of fellow class members. Today s text will give us some help in identifying deceptive words within society. Into the Word Form learners into four groups. Give each group a piece of poster board that features these headings, one each: Setting, Characters, Problem, Message. (The groups receiving the Setting and Characters poster boards can have fewer members; smaller classes can form three groups and assign both Setting and Characters to one group.) Ask groups to record the relevant elements from the lesson text onto their poster board according to its heading. Have groups share their findings with the rest of the class. Findings should include the following: Setting temple gate in Jerusalem (v. 2); Characters God, Jeremiah, people of Judah (vv. 1, 2); Problem trusting in deceptive words that the temple was a guarantee of safety (vv. 4, 8), holy lives were not required if worship procedures were followed (vv. 9, 10), the people s idolatry had desecrated the temple (v. 11) and they had stopped listening to God (v. 13); Message God would allow the people to stay in the land if they changed their ways (vv. 3-7), otherwise God would bring judgment as he had on Shiloh and Ephraim/Israel (vv. 12, 14, 15). (Note: the Setting Group might include Shiloh in its findings since that is a setting of an illustration; similarly, the Characters Group might include Ephraim/Israel.) After the Problem group shares its findings, discuss possible reasons for the people to have believed lies. (Use the lesson commentary to guide this discussion.) Moving to the Message presentation, discuss whether this was a new message or one the people had heard before. Refer to the following as previous warnings if learners do not do so: 1 Samuel 7:3; 2 Kings 17:13; 2 14 14
Page 15 of 15 Chronicles 7:14; Isaiah 55:6, 7; and Jeremiah 3:14-18. Discuss what God expected (vv. 4-6) and what would happen if the people did not comply. Discuss also what happened at and to Shiloh (1 Samuel 2:12-17, 22-25; Psalm 78:60), what happened to Ephraim/Israel (2 Kings 17), and how these served as illustrative warnings. Connect the results to the message God had given throughout the existence of the Israelites as a people. Alternative. Distribute copies of the The Power of Words activity from the reproducible page, which you can download. Have learners work in small groups to complete. Compare group results in whole-class discussion. Into Life Say, The people of Judah chose to listen to deceptive words rather than to God s Word. Let s compare and contrast their decision with what people choose today. Draw two columns on the board, the left one headed Jeremiah s Day and the right one headed Today. Review the lies the Judeans listened to, either expressed or implied in the text, and jot them in the left column. Then brainstorm lies that people heed today; jot those in the other column. (Possible responses: There are many paths to God. Surely a loving God would not... etc.) Discuss similarities and differences between entries in the two columns. Ask how to refute the lies. Alternative. Distribute copies of the Start with Truth activity from the reproducible page, to be completed in small groups as indicated. 15 15