Introduction The book of Jeremiah relates the prophecies given by God to Jeremiah; a priest who would become a prophet. The prophecies were dictated by Jeremiah to his secretary Baruch from the beginning of Jeremiah s ministry to the fourth year of Jehoiakim; and later sections were composed and chapter 52 is added as a supplement; which appears in almost identical fashion in 2 Kings 24:18-25:30; and apparently was not written by Jeremiah. Jeremiah has been called the weeping prophet; or the prophet with the broken heart. And for good reason. Jeremiah will labor in the ministry for more than 40 years; proclaiming a message of judgment; a message of imminent attack and captivity on a nation that had turned their backs on the Lord. Jeremiah will be despised and rejected; and his message will provoke anger and persecution. From the wells of a broken heart; Jeremiah writes a broken message; the book is difficult to arrange chronologically or topically. But there is a central theme in the sermons and signs; we must abandon sin and surrender to the Lordship of the living God; this is the only way to avoid catastrophe. Judgment was coming to Judah. The judgment was rooted and grounded in the nation s rebellion and disobedience to God. A German writer Friedrich von Logau wrote; Though the mills of God grind slowly, yet they grind exceedingly small; Though with patience He stands waiting, exactness grinds He all. Judgment is a difficult subject. People aren t always open to or welcome of a God who cares about what we as a nation or we as a people or we as a church do! The fact God judges a nation or a people or a church or an individual and pays a wage for conduct seems outdated or outmoded. Can a nation despise God s law and defy God s rule and not suffer? The book of Jeremiah provides several important reminders. God is ruler and Creator over nature and nations. God is personally, intimately involved with our world and in the hearts and lives of those who love Him and trust Him. In a world being shaken by earthquakes and swollen by floods and devastated by corrupt governments and sinful human beings; God is still in ultimate control. God is both loving and merciful to His people. He calls us into a covenant relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and into a permanent and unbreakable bond in Christ s blood sacrifice. God is also a God of justice and righteousness and therefore promises to judge sin! Think carefully. No sin, no wickedness, no personal failure, no idolatry, immorality, injustice, will go unpunished. The justice and righteousness of a holy God demands it. God created a universe that requires atonement for sin, and that law-breakers be held accountable; a price paid, justice served. 1
We live in a world where most people believe corrupt, immoral, criminal behavior cannot go unpunished. In every corner of the globe men have established courts and tribunals, to protect citizens; to exonerate the innocent and punish the guilty. Why does it seem strange that a holy and righteous God would hold human beings accountable? The American poet James Russell Lowell may have given a summation of Jeremiah s life and ministry when he wrote; Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide, In the strife of Truth and Falsehood, for the good or evil side. Jeremiah did not always welcome his call because of the harsh message and the unwelcome response on the part of the people. The Lord God called Jeremiah to preach an unpopular message to a people who became more and more hardened in their rebellion and more insanely confident that they were right and Jeremiah was wrong as God s judgment loomed larger in the horizon. The religious leaders and citizens of Jerusalem did not believe that God would allow Jerusalem to fall because they possessed the temple and the one true religion. Jeremiah was required by God to remind the people that the terms of God s covenant mandated punishment for disobedience. But what does this book mean to me? What value do its lessons provide for the New Testament believer in the Lord Jesus Christ? Paul wrote Now all these things happened to them as examples: and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come (I Cor. 10:11). We can learn from Jeremiah s example and we can pay attention to his warnings; but we also remember these instructions are given to help us live godly lives in our Lord Jesus Christ. For whatsoever things were written before were written for our learning, that we though the patience and comfort of the Scriptures, might have hope (Rom. 15:4). The historical purpose of Jeremiah s writings were to motivate the people of Judah to repent of their sins and to warn them of a coming judgment. To turn the hearts of God s children away from lifeless idols, empty idols, worthless idols, and return to the living Lord and loving Creator. The Historical Context Jeremiah 1:1 (NKJV) The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, Jeremiah was the son of a priest and was expected to follow in his father s footsteps and perform the functions of a priest in the Temple of God. 2
The priests duties were outlined and described in the Book of the Law. The priests had instructions and they were to follow those instructions. Wiersbe writes; Day after day, there were sacrifices to offer, lepers to examine, unclean people to exclude from the camp, cleansed people to reinstate, official ceremonies to observe, a sanctuary to care for, and the Law to teach. No wonder some of the priests said, Oh, what a weariness! (Mal. 1:13; NKJV)(The Bible Exposition Commentary; Old Testament, The Prophets; pp.74-75). Jeremiah 1:2 (NKJV) to 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. God called Jeremiah by the word of the Lord. In the course of his ministry Jeremiah would encounter false prophets and it was very important that Jeremiah have the assurance that Jeremiah s call was in fact from God. The verse two verses gives us the who, where and when of Jeremiah s call. Jeremiah is the son of Hilkiah (v.1). The call takes place in Anathoth of Benjamin. The when is answered in the days of Josiah the son of Amon. king of Judah. Later we read about the why ordained a prophet to the nations (v.5); origin decided before his birth (v.5); Jeremiah s response; I am a youth (v.6); God corrects Jeremiah I am with you (vv.7-8); God empowers Jeremiah (vv. 9-10). Bible scholars suggest that Jeremiah was perhaps 20 years of age when God called him to the office of prophet. The 13th year of Josiah s reign would place the calendar at about 626 B.C. Jeremiah 1:3 (NKJV) It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, until the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month. The reigns of Hezekiah, Mannasseh, Amon, Josiah, Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim,, Jehoiachin and Zedekiah are described in 2 Chronicles 29:1-36:21. The ministry of Jeremiah takes place from 626 B.C.-584 B.C. Jeremiah was born when Manasseh ruled in Judah. He was arguably the worst king ever in the history of Judah (2 Kings 21:1-18). Manasseh s father was the good king Hezekiah. Manasseh assumed the throne at the age of 12 and the court officials easily manipulated the boy king away from the Lord and towards idolatry. Manasseh seduced them (the people of Judah) to do more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed before the Children of Israel (v.9 NKJV). Judah began to act worse than the inhabitants who had previously occupied the land. Does it upset you when Christians act like unbelievers? When Manasseh died his evil son Amon continued the wicked practices of his father. 3
Why is this important? Jeremiah was born and grew up in the land of Benjamin as a priest s son when the nation was at its height of wickedness, apostasy, rebellion and disobedience towards God. This was a hard time to be in the ministry. In Jerusalem idolatry was rampant; including the wicked practice of human sacrifice to the god Molech. God s Law given by Moses was ignored and disobeyed and it looked as if there were no hope at all. God s law and godly priests were not appreciated. The timeline is important in order to understand Jeremiah s narrative. In 639 B.C. a group of Amon s servants conspired together to murder the king. Amon s son Josiah became king; reigning until his death in 609 B.C. Josiah was young when he began to reign; but unlike his father and grandfather; Josiah was exposed to the godly counsel of Hilkiah; and began to seek the Lord. In the 12th year of Josiah s reign; Josiah began a campaign to return to the Lord; to purge the land of its wicked practices and purge the land of idolatry. Six years later he ordered the priests and workers to clean and repair the temple. It was during that time that Hilkiah the priest discovered the Book of the Law. Can you imagine? We are not told whether the Book of the Law was the entire 5 Books of Moses or whether or not it was the scroll of Deuteronomy. But when the King heard the Book of the Law read; he was overcome by emotion; the King tore his robes and sent for Huldah the prophetess for special instructions from the Lord (2 Kings 22). What was God s message and instructions? God s people had forsaken the Lord. Rebellion and disobedience were an open invitation for judgment; but because of Josiah s sincere repentance and willingness to covenant with the Lord; that judgment would not come during Josiah s reign. Josiah did not wait for the Temple s repair to call the nation to repentance. Once again Josiah renewed the Covenant with the Lord; led the people in renouncing the idolatry and wicked practices; and called for the nation to return to the Law of the Lord. Leaders lead. Pastors may lead a church. Father s and mothers may lead a family. We may love the Lord and call on our children to the love and obey the Lord. Some will. Some won t. Josiah whole heartedly led a crusade for reform and revival; and some obeyed but for most it was superficial. Unlike the king their hearts remained hard, unmoved, unchanged. They displayed no fruit of repentance. Jeremiah s message; Judah has not turned to Me with her whole heart, but in pretense (Jeremiah 3:10). Josiah s sincere repentance and concentrated effort to lead the people away from idolatry to the Lord was met with a kind of national passive resistance. Reformation was well on the way but revival was far from the people s hearts. The idols were removed, the temple repaired, the worship of Jehovah restored; but the people s hearts were still far removed; most had a divided heart; most had a lingering loyalty to sin. 4
King Josiah would die on the battlefield. Josiah s son Jehoahaz became king and the nation returned to idolatry. The King to the South Pharaoh Necho removed Jehoahaz from the throne; exiled him to Egypt where he died; and placed his brother on the throne; Eliakim; and gave Eliakim the name Jehoiakim. Jehoiakim was an evil king and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done (2 Kings 23:37). Jehoiakim taxed the people and placed them under an unbearable burden; in order to pay the tribute money to Pharaoh Necho. The Babylonian Empire expanded its reach to Judea; and King Nebuchadnezzar also demanded tribute. Jehoiakim agreed to pay the tribute and then went back on his promise. Nebuchadnezzar took him prisoner to Babylon and took the holy temple vessels with him (597 B.C.). Jehoiakim s had a son named Jehoiachin. That son reigned only three months; then his uncle Mattaniah, Josiah s third son (1 Chron. 3:15); was named king and then renamed Zedekiah. Zedekiah was to be the last King of Judea; weak indecisive; he feared man more than God (Jeremiah 38:19). What is the Bible s record of this king? And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God, and humbled not himself before Jeremiah the prophet speaking from the mouth of the Lord (2 Chron. 36:12). Zedekiah would basically ask Jeremiah for help and then also seek advice and council from ambassadors from neighboring nations on what to do. Think about it for a moment. Zedekiah wanted to give the Prophet of God his religious due; making sure the nation understood that religion is important and religious sensibilities are important as manifested by talking to an important Preacher or religious leader. Talking to a popular preacher is not the same as humbling yourself before the true and living God. Jeremiah would preach to the nation for 40 years; giving them God s Word; God s instructions; God s plan; God s promises; God s warnings; and Jeremiah lived to see Solomon s Temple destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar s army; and his people taken captive away to Babylon (including our friend Daniel). Jeremiah ministered in difficult times and still remained true to both God and God s message. Jeremiah exposed the foolishness of trusting human foreign policy; and pleaded with the leaders to trust the Lord; turn away from wickedness; turn to the Lord with all their hearts instead of trusting man-made alliances and foreign political parties to save the nation. Jeremiah would be called to a difficult and demanding ministry. To a nation that loved rebellion more than obedience to God; who would settle for social change and reformation instead of a personal change of heart; repentance and transformation. 5
The Lord God will call Jeremiah to a difficult and demanding task; because the times were hard. People loved rebellion rather than obedience; they were willing to settle for reformation instead of repentance; they were more interested in politics than in principle. Does that sound familiar to you? Jeremiah s message is given to a people who resist God s rule; reject God s Law; and require a constant call to return to a Covenant relationship. Does that sound familiar to you? Conclusion God s Word promises that the God of the Word will keep His Word. The book of Jeremiah reminds us that God fulfills his Word; the book of Jeremiah declares that the throne of the Lord will be established in Jerusalem (3:14-17). This is a reference to the Messiah s throne; and a promise of his presence in the future. The Messiah will one day unite Israel and Judah and all of God s people in peace and safety. Jeremiah pronounces the coming of Christ, the Righteous Branch of David a king who will reign and prosper and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth (23:5-8). There are several other references to the Messiah; He is called the fountain of living waters (2:13; see also John 4:14); the balm of Gilead (8:22); the good shepherd (23:4); and the Lord Our Righteousness (23:6; 33:16). What else will we discover in the book of Jeremiah? We will discover what it means to have and experience the call of God on the believer s life (1:4-19). The Lord calls and appoints His servants for His purposes. The Lord calls a person to do His will and declare His Word; the call is clear and demands our total attention and commitment; our mind, our body, our soul; just as Jeremiah did (1:4-19). God s call demands courage and faithfulness--even at great personal risk and expense, persecution, opposition, physical or emotional trauma; or even the loss of life. It is God who equips, strengthens and empowers a person to do His will and declare His word (1:5-10; 1:17-19). Jeremiah is a book that will declare God s indictment (legal charges) against His people; the charges will be leveled to the leaders and people of Judah; charges of backsliding, the charge of total depravity, the sins of perjury, refusal to discipline, hardheartedness, ignorance of God s law, corruption of leaders, apostasy, forsaking God, adultery, unfaithfulness, denial of God s Word, persecution of God s prophets, and spiritual blindness and deafness (5:1-31). Further charges include insincere and hypocritical worship, false prophecy and false teaching, the charge of idolatry, social injustice, the people were neglecting, oppressing and exploiting the poor, widows and orphans and the defenseless in general. 6
Charges against the human heart; breaking God s covenant, greed, trusting in man s strength, forsaking God, persecuting the prophets, breaking the Sabbath. But Jeremiah is a book about repentance. Total, sincere, repentance. Jeremiah is a book about God s hatred of insincere and hypocritical worship. Jeremiah is a book about true and false worship. Jeremiah is a book about the inner struggles, and personal trials of a great man of faith. Jeremiah is a book about one man s total faithfulness to God, in the midst of trial, pain, rejection, opposition, persecution and the threat of death. 7