Pastor’s Blog – Week 44 of Year of the Bible I’ve heard several of you comment on how long and tiresome Jeremiah is, with all its prophecies of violence and destruction, as though God is some bloodthirsty tyrant. It does seem that way much of the time. But there is also ample cause for hope in the midst of the punishment (well-deserved, if you read Kings and Chronicles). In chapter 18, God uses the image of a potter to describe God’s willingness to turn away from his destructive intention, to change God’s mind. In 9:24, we have a picture of God as one who “acts with steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth, for in these things I delight, says the Lord.” In Chapter 29, Jeremiah consoles the exiles and encourages them to make a life where they are planted in a foreign land. “For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” In Chapter 31, God promises a new covenant with Israel which will be written on their hearts, and “they shall all know the Lord, from the least to the greatest.” And then comes the most hopeful sign of all. In Chapter 32, when he’s under house arrest in the palace guardhouse, Jeremiah buys/redeems the property of his cousin Hanamel. Just outside the city that is under siege by the Babylonian army, most people would think this property worthless. Investing in real estate on the verge of being overrun by the enemy seems suicidal. But God encourages Jeremiah to go ahead with the transaction, because it’s one more sign that the people will be restored to the land and families will again build and plant and produce offspring. In the midst of disaster comes signs of promise. Isn’t the way God operates most of the time. We are never completely without hope, when we trust in God.
Posted on: Mon, 28 Oct 2013 18:00:18 +0000
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