Jeremiah 1

CHAPTER 1THEME: Call of prophet during reign of JosiahIt will help our understanding of the prophets to weave them into 1 Samuel through 2 Chronicles, the historical books which cover the same period of time. The prophets prophesied during the time period covered by those historical bookswith the exception of Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, who prophesied after the Exile (and fit into the time period of the historical Books of Ezra and Nehemiah).

Jeremiah 1:1

Here is a reference to “Hilkiah” who is the father of Jeremiah. He was the high priest who found the Book of the Law during the time of Josiah. It was the finding of the Law of the Lord as given to Moses that sparked the revival during the reign of Josiah. Revivals are not caused by men; they are caused by the Word of God. Never a man, but the Book. The Word of God is responsible for every revival that has taken place in the church. It is true that God has used men, but it is the Word of God that brings revival. The record of this revival and its effect is found in the historical books in 2 Kings 22 and in 2 Chronicles 34. “Anathoth” was the hometown of Jeremiah. It is a few miles directly north of Jerusalem.

Jeremiah 1:2

Josiah was eight years old when he came to the throne, and he reigned for thirty-one years. Jeremiah began his ministry when Josiah was twenty-two years old. Apparently Jeremiah was about twenty years old himself; so both of them were young men and were probably friends. Jeremiah prophesied during eighteen years of Josiah’s reign, and he was a mourner at his funeral (see 2Ch_35:25). Josiah had done a very foolish thingeven men of God sometimes do foolish things. He went over to fight against the pharaoh of Egypt at Carchemish although the pharaoh had not come up against Judah at all. For some reason Josiah went out to fight against him in the valley of Esdraelon or Armageddon at Megiddo, and there Josiah was slain. Jeremiah mourned over his death because Josiah had been a good king. The last revival that came to these people came under the reign of Josiah, and it was a great revival. After the death of Josiah, Jeremiah could see that the nation would lapse into a night out of which it would not emerge until after the Babylonian captivity.

Jeremiah 1:3

This and the preceding verse give to us the exact time of the ministry of Jeremiahfrom the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah and continuing through the carrying away of Jerusalem into captivity. We know that when Judah went into captivity, Nebuchadnezzar allowed Jeremiah to stay in the land: “Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard, saying, Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee” (Jer_39:11-12). Of course Jeremiah didn’t want to go to Babylon with the othersthey had rejected his message and were being led away captives as he had predicted. Since Nebuchadnezzar gave him his choice, he chose to stay in the land with the few who remained. However, those fugitives took off and went down to Egypt, doing it against the advice of Jeremiah and taking him with them. In Egypt Jeremiah continued faithfully giving them God’s Word. Second Chronicles 36 fills in the history which is omitted. Jehoahaz, a son of Josiah, is not mentioned in Jeremiah’s record. He reigned for three monthshe didn’t even get the throne warm before they eliminated him. Then the king of Egypt placed his brother Eliakim on the throne and changed his name to Jehoiakim. He reigned for eleven years. Jeremiah warned him not to rebel against Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon.

However, Jehoiakim did not listen to the advice from Jeremiah and was taken captive to Babylon. After the removal of Eliakim, the king of Babylon put Jehoiachin on the throne in Jerusalem. He reigned three months and ten days. He is not mentioned here either because he, too, barely got the throne warm and then was eliminated. Nebuchadnezzar took him captive to Babylon. After that it was Zedekiah, the brother of the father of Jehoiachin, who was placed on the throne at Jerusalem.

He reigned eleven years. When Zedekiah rebelled, Nebuchadnezzar came and destroyed Jerusalem, slew the sons of Zedekiah, put out Zedekiah’s eyes, and took him captive to Babylon. All of this sounds very brutal, and it was brutal. But we must remember that Nebuchadnezzar had been very patient with the city of Jerusalem. Also the people there refused to listen to God’s warning through Jeremiah. Jeremiah continued his ministry to the remnant that was left at Jerusalem. After they forced him to go to Egypt with them, he still continued his ministry in Egypt until the time of his death. We can say that two things characterized the life of Jeremiah: weeping and loneliness. They are the marks of his ministry.

Jeremiah 1:4

The “word of the LORD” came to Jeremiah. I can’t emphasize that too much. If you are not prepared to go along with that, you might just as well put the book down. It will have no message for you. This is the Word of God. I don’t propose to tell you how God got it through to Jeremiah, but He did get it to him, and it is recorded for us as the Word of God.

Jeremiah 1:5

I am glad that Jeremiah’s mother did not practice abortionhe would never have been born. Many people today are asking, “When is a child a child?” May I say to you, a child is a child at the very moment he is conceived. Read Psalms 139. David says, “My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth” (Psa_139:15). That is, he was formed in he womb of his mother; and, at that moment, life began. I am told by a gynecologist that there is tremendous development in the fetus at the very beginning. Abortion is murder, unless it is done to save a life. That is the way the Word of God looks at it. God said to Jeremiah, “Before you were born, I knew you and I called you.” Now why did God say these things to Jeremiah? My friend, God is going to ask Jeremiah to give a message to the people of Judah that will be rejected. Jeremiah is going to be imprisoned because of his stand for God. His message will break his own heart because he loved his people, and he hated to tell them what was going to come to them. But God wanted a man like this, a tender man, to bring His message. To the court of old Ahab and Jezebel, God had sent a hard-boiled prophet by the name of Elijah. But before the kingdom of Judah goes into captivity, God wants His people to know that He loves them and that He wants to save them and deliver them. For this reason He chose this man Jeremiah. Therefore God is saying these things to Jeremiah to encourage him. He said, “I want you to know, Jeremiah, that the important thing is that I am the One who has called you, I have ordained you, and I have sanctified you.” Sanctification simply means “to set aside for the use of God.” Those old vessels that were used in the tabernacle and templeold beaten-up pots and pans which were used in God’s servicewere called holy vessels, sanctified vessels. When they looked as if they should be traded in for a new set, why were they called holy? Because they were for the use of God. Anything that is set aside for the use of God is sanctified. God says, “Before you were born, Jeremiah, I set you aside for My use. So don’t worry about the effect of your message. You just give the message.” Frankly, God expects the same of me. I feel very comfortable as I prepare these messages. I’m not pulling any punches; I’m giving the Word of God just as it is. That is my responsibility. I say this kindly, I am not responsible to you; I am responsible to God, and I turn my report in to Him. It is just too bad if what I say does not please you. I’m sorry; I wish it did. When I was still in the active pastorate, people would often say, “My, how people love you!” But you know, in every church there was a little group of dissidentscantankerous troublemakers who were not always honest. However, if you are giving out the Word of God, you are responsible to God and set aside for that ministry. God goes on to say, “I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.” This gave authority to Jeremiah. It offered him encouragement that would help him through many a dark day. Now here is Jeremiah’s response:

Jeremiah 1:6

Jeremiah was probably about twenty years old at the time, but this verse would not lead you to think so. Actually, he was not a child as we think of a child. “Child” here is the same word that is translated “young man” in Zec_2:4: “And said unto him, Run, speak to this young man….” Jeremiah was actually a young man. What he is saying in effect is, “I’m a young, inexperienced fellow. I am not capable of doing such a job. I am not prepared for this.” Have you ever noticed that the man whom God uses is the man who doesn’t think he can do it? If you think you can do it today, then I say to you that I don’t think God can use you. A young preacher came in to see me who was absolutely green with jealousy of another man in the same town. He said to me, “I’m a better preacher than he is. I’m a better pastor than he is. I’m a better speaker than he is. I want to know why God is using that man and He is not using me! My ministry is falling flat.” So I told him, “You think you can do it. I happen to know the other man, and he really doesn’t believe that he can do it. God always uses that kind of a man. God chooses the weak things of this world.” Jeremiah felt inadequate, unfit, unequipped. Listen to God’s answer to him:

Jeremiah 1:7

“Whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.” While there are more liberal pulpits in our country, it is the fundamental churches which are really growing in the size of their congregations. It is in the Bible-believing churches where things are really moving today. The problem in the liberal churches is that the man in the pulpit doesn’t believe what he is saying. He is giving out theories and ideas. He holds panel discussions where he tells what he thinks. God says, “You give what I command you to give, and give it with that authority.” May I say to you, when you are giving out God’s Word, it’s very comfortable, it’s very wonderful. I love Jeremiah, and I would love to have comforted him. He surely has comforted me.

Jeremiah 1:8

“Be not afraid of their faces.” One of the comfortable things about my ministry of teaching the Bible on the radio is that my listeners cannot get to me when I say something that displeases them. I heard from a man in Oakland, California, who is now a wonderful Christian. He wrote that he had belonged to a certain cult which believed in certain rituals and gyrations that he had to go through in order to be saved. He would hear our broadcast when he was driving to his work as a contractor. He said, “You made me so mad. You kept telling me I was a sinner.

If I could have gotten to you, I would have punched you in the nose.” He is a big fellow; so I think he could have done it. That is one reason it is comfortable to be on radio, because when I stay true to the Word of God, I will say things that people don’t like to hear. The interesting thing is that this man kept listening morning after morning, and one day he turned to the Lord Jesus and said, “I am a sinner, save me.” He accepted Christ as his personal Savior. That is the joy of giving out the Word of God. That is why God says to go ahead and give out His Word with courage and with convictionit will never return void; it will accomplish God’s purpose. Our pulpits today desperately need men to speak with authority what God has written down in His Word. That is all He asks us to do. It is a simple task in one way, and in another it is a most difficult task. God says to Jeremiah, “Be not afraid …for I am with thee to deliver thee.” He is saying, “Look, I am on your side.” Martin Luther said, “One with God is a majority.” That is always true. As Christians we may feel that we are in the minority, but we really are in the majority.

Jeremiah 1:9

“I have put my words in thy mouth.” This is very important. God has inspired the words of Scripturenot just the thoughts and ideas of Scripture. For example, the Devil was not inspired by God to tell a lie, but the record in Scripture that the Devil told a lie is inspired. This idea is too often misunderstood in our day, which is the reason I cannot commend certain so-called translations of the Bible. They may be good interpretations, but they are very poor translationsbecause the very words of Scripture are inspired. Let me illustrate the importance of accurate translation. There was a girl who aspired to be a singer, and the time for her recital had come. After her recital performance she went back to the dressing room where she was met by friends. She eagerly asked, “What did my teacher say?” A very diplomatic friend replied, “He said that you sang heavenly.” She said, “Did he really say that? Did he say that in so many words?” “Well, that was not exactly the word he used, but that’s what he meant,” the friend responded. “But I want to know exactly the words he used. Did he say that I sang heavenly?” she persisted. “Well,” the friend answered, “he meant that, but what he really said was that it was an unearthly noise.” You see it is very important to realize that the words of Scripture are inspired by God. God said to Jeremiah, “I’m going to put My words in your mouth.”

Jeremiah 1:10

Jeremiah prophesied during the reigns of Josiah, Jehoiakim, Jehoahaz, Jehoiachin, and Zedekiah. All these kings had various bureaus and government projects. They were all going to improve Jerusalem. They were going to deal with the ecology and get rid of the slums. They each had a poverty program. But none of them paid much attention to Jeremiahthey ignored him. Now almost three thousand years have passed by. Could you mention any of those government projects today? Can you tell me anything worthwhile that was done by Zedekiah? Can you mention anything that Jehoiachin or Jehoiakim did? Not a good thing is mentioned. Yet in their day everybody thought they were doing the right thing, the popular thing. Jeremiah was ignored. But whom do we read today? We read Jeremiah. The Book of Jeremiah is the Word of God, my friend. It has survived and is going to survive through our day. America is a nation that no longer hears God. They don’t listen to Him in Washington, D.C. They are not hearing Him in the classrooms of our universities today. And they are not hearing God in the military. The scientists do not listen to Him. But God is speaking and His Word will survive. God is telling Jeremiah that He is going to put him in charge of giving His Word to the nation of Judah. And poor little Jeremiah wants to retire before he even gets the job! God now gives Jeremiah two tremendous pictures concerning his call to the prophetic office.

Jeremiah 1:11

The almond tree was known as the “waker” or the “watcher.” It was actually the first tree to come out of the long night of winter and bloom in the spring. Like the almond tree, Jeremiah was to be an alarm clockan awaker. He was going to try to wake people up, but they didn’t want to be awakened. No one who is asleep likes to be wakened. An alarm clock is one of the most unpopular things in the world. In my college dormitory every alarm clock was battered up; I threw mine against the wall many a morning. Jeremiah is going to be a “waker” to the nation of Judah.

Jeremiah 1:12

God said, “That’s right. I will give you a word that will wake them up. It will shake them out of sleep.”

Jeremiah 1:13

What was the “seething pot”? In Jeremiah’s time Egypt and Assyria were no longer a danger to the southern kingdom of Judah, but around the Fertile Crescent in the north was a boiling pot: the rising power of Babylon, which was to eventually destroy Judah. It was to be Jeremiah’s job to constantly warn his people what was going to happen to their nation.

Jeremiah 1:14

A century earlier God had delivered Jerusalem, and now all the false prophets were running around saying that He was going to do it again. All of God’s prophets of the pastHosea, Joel, Amos, Micah and Nahum, all those who had been contemporaries of Isaiahhad now passed off the scene. I think Zephaniah and Habakkuk were still living. Ezekiel and Obadiah were also contemporary with Jeremiah, but they were not going to prophesy until the captives are actually in Babylon. Daniel, too, will be prophesying later on. But at this time, Jeremiah stands alone, and he is to utter these judgments that are to come upon the nation. What will be the reaction to his message?

Jeremiah 1:19

The Lord says, “Go ahead, Jeremiah, they’re going to resist you, they won’t listen to the message, but you give the message.” Jeremiah feels incapable and unworthy of the office of prophet, and he has offered that as an excuse. But God says, “I’m going to put My words in your mouth, and you will be giving My words.” I do not believe that any man ought to stand in the pulpit and give a message until he is sure that he is giving the Word of God. If he has any doubts or if he feels that he should give his own ideas and preach a liberal, social gospelhe ought to stay out of the pulpit. Regardless of how much homiletics, or hermeneutics, or theology, or sophisticated training he has had, unless he is confident that he is giving the Word of God, he ought to stay out of the pulpit. That is very important. Jeremiah could be confident that he was giving out the very words of God.