Jeremiah the man of Faith

I've always been a bit tenuous in my approach to encouraging Old Testament verses.  While I appreciate the quoting and preaching on such passages to illuminate a Biblical Truth found elsewhere in Scripture, I often find that the passages themselves are taken out of context and mean something very different from what was originally intended.¹

While that is true for some verses it is not true for Jeremiah 29.  Jeremiah 29 was written in one of the lowest points of Judah's history.  It is actually a letter written by Jeremiah to the first set of exiles² in Babylon instructing them to accept their condition because God is the One who brought it about.³

But in the midst of these negative and depressing circumstances comes a Word of Promise to the nation of Judah.

"For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good Word toward you, and cause you to return to this place.  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.  I will be found by you, says the LORD, and I will bring you back from your captivity; I will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you, says the LORD, and I will bring you to the place from which I caused you to be carried away captive."

Jeremiah 29:10-14

The best and brightest in Judah had been taken captive⁴, the city invaded and the House of God ransacked of its precious goods.⁵  People who had been raised to rule a nation were now exiled in a foreign land.  There was no hope.  All the dreams and expectations for the future had been dashed - left to die in Jerusalem.  Babylon had come.  And that was that.

Or so it seemed.

Because in the midst of this God gave a man a Promise.  And it wasn't to a guy who made his living dealing out positive words.  This Promise came to the guy who was formerly the naysayer of naysayers - the man who didn't want to compromise the message just to feel received and relevant.⁶  The faithful witness of his generation.  Jeremiah of Anathoth - prophet to the nations.

And so it was.

Not only did this word get received by the exiles in Babylon but it was treasured.  So much so that Daniel reads this word and contends for the fulfillment of the Promise in prayer and fasting (Daniel 9:2-3) - launching a visitation from the angel Gabriel, who brings one of the most incredible Messianic prophecies in the Bible.⁷

And it came to pass - 70 years later Israel was restored.  They were placed back in their land.  Something that seemed impossible at the time.  Something that was impossible at the time.  Except to Jeremiah that is - the man of faith - and to His God, the One who had a plan.

¹An example of this is Isaiah 1:18-20 which says "though your sins are as scarlet, they will be as white as snow".  Its a beautiful illustration of what happens when we are washed by the Blood of Jesus - which is the applied Grace of God received by faith.  But the actual context of this verse is about Israel repenting from her sins so that she will avoid the judgement of war and invasion.  Again I don't mind this verse being used to describe Grace because it is a beautiful poetic description of it but the actual context it was written was really more legalistic in nature because the way in which sins are washed away in Isaiah 1 is through works (obedience and repentance) - which makes sense considering that it is an Old Testament passage.

²As far as I know there were 2 instances where the people of Judah were exiled from the land.  The first instance of this is recorded in 2 Kings 24:10-15.  It is likely that Ezekiel was a part of this exile.  This also appears to be Daniel's exile (see Daniel 1:1-7). The second exile takes place in 2 Kings 25:8-11.

³God's goal in the Old Testament was to have a people who possessed a culture that was adequately shaped by the Law so that they would be best positioned to receive Jesus.  When they disobeyed the Law and the nation fell away from God He disciplined them by driving them out of the land (An example of this is Jeremiah 13:12-27 and Jeremiah 25:1-11).

⁴See 2 Kings 24:10-15 - Nebuchadnezzar carried away the military leaders and craftsmen as captives to Babylon and only left the poorest people in the land

⁵Also referred to in 2 Kings 24:10-15

⁶If I had one wish it would be to remove all parts in both my heart and in the Church that thinks that reaching the world will happen as we become "Relevant" to the world.  Christianity is never strengthened by compromising the message.  When we compromise the Truth we become salt that has lost its saltiness - at which point the Church will be of no use to anyone at all.  May the Lord help us to stay true to the simple yet often offensive message of the Gospel.

⁷Gabriel gave Daniel an answer to a question he didn't even know he had.  I've considered this at some length and currently believe that God spoke to Daniel while Israel was under His Judgment (out of their land) about the Messiah because in doing so He was explaining why they needed the to be holy in His land when they returned.  It was the purpose for their pain.  This seems at least in some degree to be the condition of which many of the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament were given.  This is a fascinating concept in the Word that I hope to write about more deeply at some point in the future.