In today’s Daily Devotional from Jeremiah 25 and 26, we encounter a prophet standing at the crossroads of obedience and danger, delivering a message from God to a people on the brink of calamity. Jeremiah’s life is a testament to the weighty responsibility of proclaiming truth in the face of opposition, even risking his own safety for the sake of fidelity to God’s Word. To find God’s warnings to preachers, check out Jeremiah 23 and 24.
As we delve into these passages, we witness the unfolding drama of divine warning and human response. Through journal reflections spanning decades, we gain insight into the timeless relevance of Jeremiah’s plight and the enduring questions it raises about God’s sovereignty and human agency.
Join us as we journey deeper into the heart of Jeremiah’s message, exploring the nuances of God’s interaction with His people and the profound implications for our own lives. In a world filled with distractions and discord, may we find clarity and conviction in the call to listen, respond, and choose the path of righteousness.
Can We Change the Plans of God?
God instructs Jeremiah not to hold back His Word. His life is threatened for his obedience to God. Will the people listen? If so, God may change His mind. Can we change the plans of God? Please read or listen to the thirty-eight verses in Jeremiah 25 and the twenty-four verses in Jeremiah 26.
Jeremiah 25 and 26 Commentary by Allen J. Huth
Today, we will look at my journal entries from 1991 and 2016. From 1991, “Jeremiah faces death as a prophet of God, but God reserves the right to change His mind if the people will amend their ways and deeds. God is ever patient, but He also carries through on His promises of punishment for sin and disobedience. If He didn’t, why would anyone ever obey?”
From 2016, “For twenty-three years now, Jeremiah has shared the Word of the Lord, ‘but you have not listened’ (25:3). Maybe nothing has happened yet. Jeremiah has proclaimed warnings and pending destruction, but nothing has come to pass, so why listen? God is patient. He warns us over and over until finally He does act. God calls Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, a pagan, His servant. God will use him to destroy Israel or Judah. After seventy years, God will judge Babylon for destroying Judah. All nations are subject to God’s sovereignty. Jeremiah stands in the court of the temple and speaks to those coming to worship. They want to kill him. People want the Word of God silenced, especially religious leaders. Jeremiah does not back down. He stands in the face of death for God and His Word. And God preserve
Jeremiah 26:23 | Listen to God
In Jeremiah 26:2, God instructs Jeremiah to, “Stand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah that come to worship in the house of the Lord all the words that I command you to speak to them; do not hold back a word.” Verse 3 is our focus, “It may be they will listen, and every one turn from his evil way, that I may relent of the disaster that I intend to do to them because of their evil deeds.”
“It may be they will listen” draws my attention. Does God not know if they will listen or not? Do we have a choice to listen to God or not? He can respond to listening or not listening, “I may relent of the disaster that I intend to do”. He has a plan of disaster, but might He change His plan based on their response to Jeremiah’s message?
Choose to Listen to God
God’s desire is they listen, but He does not force them to. We have choice. He gives us options, “listen, and every one turn from his evil way”. If we do, God acts one way. He “relents”. Amazing! However, “If you will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, and to listen to the words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently, though you have not listened, then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth” (26:4-6).If we do not, God acts another way. He judges, curses, and destroys.
It sure looks to me like our sovereign God, who knows everything, all the time, keeps His options open based on whether we listen or not. Are you listening? Do you listen to God through His Word? Do you heed His warnings? Do you respond to His consistent appeals to turn from our wicked ways and come back to Him? He gives us the choice. Amazing!
Prayer to Hear God’s Voice
Father, may we turn our ears to You. Speak to us through Your Word, speak to us through Your Prophet Jeremiah, speak to us with Your small, still voice in our inner being. As You do, open our ears to listen to You.
Father, may we also be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing in the Lord, our labor is not in vain. Thank You for preserving Jeremiah. Preserve us too as we stand for You. Amen.