Preaching Doom

May 16, 2021 Background Scripture: Jeremiah 37 – 38 Lesson Passage: Jeremiah 38:14 – 23 True prophets of God will only speak to God’s people what God gives for them to speak. False prophets will gladly speak what the people want to hear—perhaps in the hope that God will endorse their statements! The test of a true prophet is quite simple: if what they say comes to pass, then the Lord has spoken it. Prophesying should never be about winning a popularity contest. Prophecy should always be speaking what God gives one to speak. To that end, all prophecy does not sound good to the hearers. Some things are hard to listen to; especially when it is a rebuke or a warning of impending punishment. Prophets don’t get to freestyle or wing it. Prophecy is serious. The prophetic word is often sent to provoke people to action or repentance. There are consequences to how people respond to the prophetic word. Jeremiah had the unenviable responsibility of speaking to the people of God and their leaders during the downfall of the kingdom of Judah. God used Jeremiah to send messages to the king and the people of Judah. They were all told what they would have to do to avoid death at the hand of the Chaldeans. God was going to punish His people for years of disobedience. They could not avoid the punishment. However, they could survive the punishment if they followed God’s directions. The Chaldeans had besieged Jerusalem. Everyone, including the king, who went out and surrendered would be taken alive. If all the inhabitants of Jerusalem complied, then the city would be left intact, and the people taken hostage. If some did not surrender, they would be killed, and the city would be burned afterwards. The instructions were simple and to the point. They would lose their freedom, but they would retain their lives. Not recognizing simplicity was not their downfall as it is not ours. They believed they could find help elsewhere if God would not help them. They refused to accept that their punishment was inevitable although the word of God assured them that it was. God was not naïve concerning their plan. God sent word to them that their help would return to Egypt and the Chaldeans would still carry out their plans against Jerusalem. They had priests to appeal to God on their behalf, but only the prophet of God could give them God’s response to them. In this case, the prophet’s word was a word of doom. God’s people were going to be punished! I don’t believe anyone wants the assignment of telling people what you know they don’t want to hear. People like to hear good news. Furthermore, people tend to look favorably upon those who bring good news to them. Receiving good news has been described as refreshing and uplifting. That’s the role people prefer to play in the lives of others. Prophets don’t get to develop their own job description. Prophets are the mouthpiece of God. The words of the prophet are God’s words. Prophets know that what God has said will come to pass. Therefore, the prophets plead with the people of God to obey the word of the Lord. This was Jeremiah’s challenge in the passage of scripture found in the Background Scripture. It didn’t matter whether it was spoken publicly or privately, all Jeremiah could speak was what the Lord had given him. So, Jeremiah preached doom to the people of God. Robert C. Hudson April 17, 2021