In today’s Daily Devotional of Jeremiah 16, we encounter the echoes of a divine calling, resonating through the corridors of time and piercing the depths of our souls. Here, amidst the verses, God’s prophet, Jeremiah, stands as a testament to the demands and sacrifices inherent in answering the Almighty’s summons. To learn if prophets lie, check out Jeremiah 14 and 15.
Step into this ancient narrative, where the words are more than ink on parchment; they are a summons to heed the call of God. Like Jeremiah, have you felt the weight of divine purpose pressing upon your heart? Have you wrestled with the conditions of your calling, questioning their necessity and enduring significance?
What are the Conditions of Your Divine Calling?
Jeremiah 16 lays out some of the conditions God required of Jeremiah, His prophet. They were not easy. Has God called you? Do you question some of the conditions of your calling? Please read or listen to the twenty-one verses of Jeremiah 16.
Jeremiah 16 Commentary by Allen J. Huth
According to my personal Bible reading journal in 1991, I read Jeremiah14-16 (NASB) on the same day, and related to chapter 16, quoted verse 17, “For my eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity concealed from My eyes.”
Yes, God is watching. He sees everything we do. We may be able to hide our actions from others, but we cannot hide anything from the Lord. Again, the verse says. “For my eyes are on all their ways, they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity concealed from My eyes.”
Onto my journal from 2004. Again, I read Jeremiah 14-16 (NASB) on the same day. I am going to read my notes on all three chapters. “Why harsh judgement? Because their forefathers sinned, followed other gods, worshipped them, and did not keep His Law. And they themselves did evil, walking in ‘the stubbornness of his own . . . heart, without listening to Me’ (16:12). ‘You keep going backward. So I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you’ (15:6). We blame God for His judgment, but it’s our fault.”
Let’s step aside from the journal a moment and look at 16:10-12. I asked the question in my journal why such harsh judgement and God gives us the answer:
And when you tell this people all these words, and they say to you, “Why has the Lord pronounced all this great evil against us? What is our iniquity? What is the sin that we have committed against the Lord our God?” then you shall say to them: “Because your fathers have forsaken me, declares the Lord, and have gone after other gods and have served and worshiped them, and have forsaken me and have not kept my law, and because you have done worse than your fathers, for behold, every one of you follows his stubborn, evil will, refusing to listen to me.”
What is the Wrath of God According to Jeremiah 16:13?
He finishes by saying, “I will show you no favor” (v. 13). Why did God judge them and why does God judge us? Measure your behavior against what we just read.
Let’s go on to my journal from 2016, “What kind of life did God ask from Jeremiah? No wife, no kids, no attending funerals, marriages, or celebrations. He must have been a pretty lonely guy. But he professes, ‘O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge in the day of trouble’ (v. 19). What has God called me to do? What is the price he asked me to pay?” I continued, “And the people ask, ‘Why has the Lord pronounced all this great evil against us?’ (v. 10). Because we worship idols, forsake God, don’t keep His Law, and we follow our stubborn, evil will.”
I continued, “Finally, ‘I will show you no favor’ (v. 13). I love God’s favor and never want to be without it. After God drives Israel out of the Promised Land for a season, He will bring them back because though we stray, He keeps His covenant promise, referring to verse 15.”
Digging Deeper
In Jeremiah 1, God called Jeremiah to be a prophet. He said in chapter 1:4-5, “Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’” And the Lord reminds Jeremiah, “Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me, ‘Behold, I have put my words in your mouth’” (1:9). In 1:17-19, God prepares Jeremiah for this mission of being a prophet:
But you, dress yourself for work; arise, and say to them everything that I command you. Do not be dismayed by them, lest I dismay you before them. And I, behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the Lord, to deliver you.
Jeremiah’s Calling as a Prophet
In Jeremiah’s calling as a prophet, the Lord said it was not going to be easy for him. Here, in chapter 16, are some other conditions of Jeremiah the prophet, “You shall not take a wife, nor shall you have sons or daughters in this place” (16:2).To be a prophet for God, Jeremiah was not allowed to marry or have children.
In 16:5, He says to Jeremiah, “Do not enter the house of mourning, or go to lament or grieve for them”. Jeremiah could not go to funerals. In 16:8, He says, “You shall not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and drink.” Jeremiah could not go celebrate with the people. That is why I mentioned in one of my journals, Jeremiah might have been a very lonely man.
What is Your Calling From God?
God required those things of Jeremiah to make him an example to the people he was speaking to. What has God asked from you? Like Jeremiah, before God formed you in your mother’s womb, He knew you and He purposed you. Do you realize that? Do you think about what God has you sojourning on this earth for? Have you taken time in your life to even discover what God may have placed you here for? What does God want out of your life? Like Jeremiah, has He placed some conditions of service around your life?
Maybe you do not have everything you want. Maybe your experiences have not been exactly what you hope they would be. Maybe you do not have those things because your life is like Jeremiah. God has asked you to give up some things to serve Him. Maybe you need to see your life from God’s perspective and not your own. Let’s pray.
Prayer for God’s Will in My life
Father, as we read chapter 16 of the Book of Jeremiah, it may seem a little tough to us. You required much from Jeremiah. What are You requiring of us today?
Lord, You formed me in my mother’s womb. You purposed me, just like You did Jeremiah. Holy Spirit, reveal that purpose for my life. Strengthen me to walk in that purpose for You regardless of what You require of me. Reveal Your will and give me the courage to pursue it. In Your name, we ask it. Amen.