For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope. This is a very popular verse, and for good reason. It is an encouragement sent to a people in exile. Once your exile has been completed, …
When we were dating, my husband and I discussed kids, as anyone contemplating a life together really should do. We were agreed: we wanted four. Four would be great. We were pragmatic enough to leave it open ended. We might not make it to four. I might not tolerate pregnancy well. We might find conceiving …
I think it’s maybe safe to assume, or at least reasonable to expect, that not everyone in the nation of Judah was horrible. I mean, Jeremiah was a faithful man. He can’t have been the only one, right? But the king was corrupt. And the culture was corrupt. And the nation had, as a community, …
So, I could write about Jeremiah’s complex feelings after the night in the stocks. I really could. There’s something about having context to this outcry against God that hits a bit deeper than similar Psalms that have been preserved without the context. And it’s different than Job, somehow, too. Maybe because Jeremiah isn’t defending himself …
Here we have mention of false prophets again, those that say what the people want to hear. “Destruction isn’t coming. You’re perfectly safe!” It’s so much easier to give a message you know will be received well. There’s no fear of recrimination. There’s no fear of reprisal. You know you get to keep your job. …
So I looked it up because it was weird: the loincloth here could have basically been a belt, a sash tied about the waist to hold other garments in place. Which would also make sense with the linen connection to priestly garments. And with the metaphor of value while worn and ruination when cast aside. …
Go ahead and start mourning, Judah. Everyone is going to die. That’s the message here. The worship in the temple, the sacrifices, it’s all completely meaningless, because it isn’t from the heart. It isn’t real. It’s just form. The people are worshipping all the other gods, too. There’s no devotion. Worse: they’re sacrificing their children. …
This isn’t the first time I’ve discussed the command to circumcise the heart. It came up in Deuteronomy. My understanding has had time to develop. My understanding hasn’t changed, exactly. I still believe it requires a removal of reservations, a cutting away of the defenses that come between us and surrender to God. However, I …
Jeremiah does not feel fit to fill the role to which he is called. He is too young. He does not have the experience. It isn’t that he’s worried no one will listen to him, though that would be the outcome I suppose. He’s worried that he does not have the skill to do what …
It’s a strange book. There’s no way around that. It’s meaning or purpose within the canon is not entirely clear. It’s application is even less so, if that’s possible. Other than being beautiful, what does this have to do with us? What should we take away from it? How should this book impact our daily …