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NOTE:
So the way that we’re going to approach the Book of Jeremiah is going to be a little different from how the Come Follow Me Manual divides it up. The manual gives us two weeks to study this book, so we’ll cover it in two parts or ideas rather than just chapters from the first half and then chapters from the second half. So this first week that we’re in Jeremiah we’re going to focus on the life of Jeremiah, the man, and some of the things that I feel we can learn from his experiences. Jeremiah is a little unique amongst the writings of the prophets in that we get quite a bit of biographical information about his life, and not just his preaching. There are some stories in there. And then next week, we’ll take a look at his message, the prophecies he made, and how we can apply them to ourselves. So first the man, and then, his message.
THE LIFE OF JEREMIAH
ICEBREAKER
And as an icebreaker to the book of Jeremiah, I like to show a couple of pictures of what I consider to be some of the worst jobs ever. So if you ever feel like your job is bad, just consider these poor people. So here we go. Dog and cat food taster? Crocodile feeder? Can you imagine being the electrician tasked with cleaning up this mess? And I always feel bad when I see those people in silly costumes standing on the side of the road to advertise for businesses, but this one seems particularly humiliating. Or what about this delivery guy? Can you imagine driving around town all day in that? And then this guy? Why? Just why?
TRANSITION
Well when I think of tough or undesirable jobs, for some reason, the prophet Jeremiah comes to mind. Of all the prophets that we read about in the scriptures, Jeremiah had to have had one of the hardest assignments of any prophet that I can think of. And since Jeremiah is the book, we often turn to for support of our unique Church doctrine of premortal life (see Jeremiah 1:5) I sometimes like to imagine how that foreordination scene might have gone.
Because Jeremiah is a contemporary of some other very well-known prophets. At the same time that Jeremiah is working with the people of Jerusalem, you have other prophets teaching and living in the area because the Babylonian exile is kind of complicated and happens in waves. So he lives at the same time as Daniel, Ezekiel, and Lehi. And yes, you heard that right, Lehi would have known Jeremiah. In fact, Jeremiah is even mentioned in 1 Nephi 7:14 where Nephi tells his brothers, “for behold, they have rejected the prophets, and Jeremiah have they cast into prison.” Also, Jeremiah wouldn’t have lived too long after Isaiah. So I like to imagine the pre-mortal Christ lining up his prophets and handing out assignments or foreordinations. And he looks at all these men and he says, “Ok, all of you are going to be prophets around the time of the Babylonian conquest and the subsequent diaspora of Judah. My people are going to be spread all across that empire and I’m going to need some prophets in different places. And, I want you to understand that all of you are going to have some real challenges to face. It’s not easy being a prophet, you know.”
So he first comes to Isaiah and says, “Isaiah, you’re going to be my prophet before the Babylonians come in and conquer Jerusalem. The people are going to struggle, and you’ll have to work with a wicked king or two. But, you’ll also work under some very righteous kings too. You’ll teach the people and will have great success in helping them to repent and turn to me. You’ll also write some of the most important prophecies about me of all scripture and you’ll be remembered and quoted by my prophets all the way until the latter-days. Your words will have a great impact on the world.
Then he turns to Ezekiel, and he says, “Ezekiel, you’ll be the prophet for a portion of my people that will be carried away into Babylon following the fall of Jerusalem.” You too will have some challenges in teaching the people and some will ignore and mock you. However, you’ll be treated relatively well by the Babylonians, and they’ll allow you religious freedom to teach and help your people live their faith. You’ll also make some key prophecies about the temple, resurrection, and the latter-days that are going to be important to members of the restored Church prior to the Second Coming.
Daniel is up next, and the Lord says, “Daniel, you’re going to be carried away captive into Babylon as a young man and you’re going to be brought up in the king of Babylon’s palace. You’ll be treated well there but still; you’re going to face some opposition in your life from those who don’t share your faith. However, you’ll be an advisor to kings and an interpreter of dreams. Your story is going to be remembered and rehearsed for generations. You’ll be one of the most famous prophets of the Bible and everyone will know your name in the latter-days as well.
The he turns to Lehi and says, “Lehi, you’ll be a prophet in Jerusalem before its fall as well. But I have a very special task for you. You will leave Jerusalem before it falls, before things get really bad, and I’ll lead you to a promised land. You’ll begin a new civilization in a new world and begin a record that will change everything in the future. In fact, the teachings of you and your descendants will usher in the restoration of my Church in the latter-days. Now, you’re going to have some struggles with some of your children and your journey to that promised land won’t be easy, but you’ll be more than rewarded for your troubles and the majority of your children are going to be amazing and become prophets themselves.
And then he turns to Jeremiah, and he kind of gets a serious look on his face and he says, “Jeremiah, I want you to understand something. I always send my people prophets, even when they’re wicked. I need to continually give them the opportunity to repent. And even if I know they won’t repent, I need my judgments to be just, so they’ve got to have a prophet to call them to repentance and give them that chance. Jeremiah, you’ll spend your life teaching the people of Jerusalem and you’ll face all kinds of opposition. Everybody is going to be against you. You’re going to experience great physical pain, emotional pain, and spiritual pain all throughout your life. You’ll be continuously ignored, mocked, dismissed, and persecuted. Sadly, despite all your efforts, your words will basically have no effect on your people. They won’t listen to you. And in the end, you will die a martyr. Oh, and by the way, in the latter-days, your words will not be quoted or studied very often either. So Jeremiah, good luck! And can you just see his face as the Lord is telling him all this. Eyes wide and swallowing hard as each grim detail is rehearsed to him. In my opinion I feel that Jeremiah got one of most difficult foreordinations of the prophets of his day, and of any prophet, for that matter.
SEARCH
What I want to help you understand first are the details of that difficult assignment. I want to give you a really good idea of the life of Jeremiah, because I feel his message will mean more to you if you know the context in which it was given. And we’re going to do this as an activity, a handout with a secret phrase challenge. I entitle it “Jeremiah’s Journey”. Your job is to fill in the numbered boxes with the words that go in the blanks. Then, you’ll use those letters to discover the secret phrase by matching the numbered boxes with their corresponding letters. This activity is going to answer two important questions about the opposition Jeremiah faced in his life—“who” and “how”.
So first:
WHO is opposing Jeremiah in each of the following scripture references?
1. 32:2-5 The ______ of Judah. King
2. 38:4 The _________ wanted Jeremiah to be put to death. Princes
3. 26:11 The ___________ and (false)prophets of the people say he is worthy to die. Priests
4. 43:4 The captains of the forces and all the ____________ refuse to listen to Jeremiah’s counsel. People
5. 12:6 Even his ______________ dealt treacherously with him. Brethren
6. 20:7 ___________ mocked him. Everyone
HOW did they oppose Jeremiah? What kinds of things did they do to him?
7. 20:1-2 He was put into the __________ Stocks
8. 37:15 Princes put him in _________ Prison
9. 38:6 They threw him into a dungeon where there was no water but ______ Mire
10. 36:20-23 The king takes all the words and prophecies that Jeremiah had written and ________ them. Burns
11. 16:2 The Lord asked Jeremiah to make quite a large sacrifice. He instructs Jeremiah not to start a __________. Family
12. 15:18 His ___________ was perpetual. Pain
13. 15:17 He sat ___________ because of [God’s] hand. Alone
14. 15:10 He called himself a man of _________. Strife
15. (Bible Dictionary-Jeremiah) He had to face ____________ opposition. Continuous
16. 18:18 The people said, “let us not give ______ to any of his words”. Heed
17. (Bible Dictionary-Jeremiah) According to tradition, Jeremiah was ___________ to death by his own people in Egypt. Stoned
1. This is King Zedekiah we’re talking about here although Jeremiah is going to serve under a number of other wicked kings as well. Verse 2 tells us that the king shuts Jeremiah up in prison. And these verses help us to gain a better understanding as to why Jeremiah was so despised by many of the people.
2 For then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house.
3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Wherefore dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it;
4 And Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes;
5 And he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I visit him, saith the Lord: though ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not prosper.
So he prophecies that the Israelites are going to lose the war with Babylon. They are not going to be able to resist the siege of Jerusalem and the city is going to fall and be destroyed. And Zedekiah, you are going to be taken away captive into Babylon. And, you can imagine that that message is not going to go over very well. They accuse him of treason. How dare you not support the war effort. Whose side are you on Jeremiah! So, they put him into prison.
2. The princes of the people want Jeremiah to be put to death. The princes were the officers or rulers of the people, as the footnote for that verse shows us. This would be the nobility or elite section of society we’re talking about here. So not only do they accuse Jeremiah of treason but that his words are weakening the will of the soldiers they’re sending out to defend the city. But really, who has those soldiers best interest in mind? Jeremiah. He knows that they are going to pointlessly die if they go to fight the Babylonians. It’s a fool’s errand. But if they listen to Jeremiah, they will live.
3. Here it’s the priests, and the false prophets that are opposing Jeremiah. So not only is he facing social and political opposition but religious antagonism as well. The religious leaders want him dead. You’d think that of all the people that would maybe offer him a bit of support, it would be from the religious side. But not for Jeremiah. Even the priests oppose him.
4. So now in this question we actually have TWO more groups of people that oppose him. Now we have military opposition and then opposition from ALL the PEOPLE. Nobody is on his side.
5. This next one is really sad. It says in that verse, “6 For even thy BRETHREN, and the house of thy father, even they have dealt treacherously with thee; yea, they have called a multitude after thee: believe them not, though they speak fair words unto thee.” So even his own family is against him. Isn’t that sad? The Lord is warning Jeremiah in this verse about trusting them. They’re speaking fair words to him, but really, they’ve called a multitude after him. They’re part of a plot by his hometown of Anathoth to try and kill him. They’re in on it. It’s quite the betrayal. Maybe they were offered money? So Jeremiah doesn’t even the get the support and love of his own family or his own community.
6. Here we kind of get the catch all word. Who mocks him? Everyone mocks him. And I think that’s been clearly illustrated by all of the previous questions. Everyone opposes Jeremiah. He basically stands alone.
Now what are some of the things they do to Jeremiah? HOW did they oppose Jeremiah.
7. He was put into the stocks. If you’re not familiar with what stocks are, they’re an instrument of punishment made of wood with holes for securing a person’s feet, hands, or head where then they could be subjected to public ridicule and assault. So Jeremiah is put into the stocks and scorned.
8. They put him in prison. And this is going to be a common experience for Jeremiah. It seems like he spends most of his life in and out of prison. Verse 16 tells us that he’s placed in chains and remains there for many days.
9. They throw him into a mire. Mire is mud. So they throw him into a muddy pit. And it’s deep enough to where it says he SANK into the mire. Now that just sounds miserable to me. It must have been a living hell for Jeremiah. I mean, have you ever tried to work or hike in wet clothing or socks and shoes. Or, you know what happens to your fingers and toes if you sit in the bathtub for too long. They get that puckery raisin look. Well think of what it would be like to be continually saturated in that wet and filthy environment for days. It must have been torturous. If you continue to read the story in chapter 38, we find out that one of the king’s servants finally speaks up for Jeremiah and pleads for him to be brought up out of the dungeon before he dies. So, Jeremiah is dying in that dungeon. He was certain not to last very long. So they take thirty men and let down cords into the pit of the dungeon and tell Jeremiah to put old clothes and rotten rags under his arms so he could be pulled up out of the mire. That tells us that it really must have been deep and sticky. That also tells us that he must have been very weak and unwell at the time because they don’t just throw a rope down for him to allow him climb out. He would have been too weak to hold on. So they had to “draw” him out by his armpits.
10. Well if that wasn’t enough, this next one is really heartbreaking. You know that in Jeremiah’s day, they didn’t have word processers and backup hard drives, and printing presses. If you were to write something, that copy was usually it. So Jeremiah has written all these things on a roll, or a scroll is what that means. And his words are brought to be read before the king. But after they start to read it to him, the King is infuriated by the negative prophecies concerning him and the city that he grabs it from his servants hand, cuts it a knife and then throws it into the fire. And all of Jeremiah’s writings are burned. They destroy all his work. Have you ever had something like that happen to you? Have you ever lost something that represented a lot of your time and effort? Have you ever accidentally deleted a large school project or paper? I have! I remember that happening in college once. A huge essay that I had taken hours to write, I forgot to hit the SAVE button, and the computer got turned off. And oh, it was so frustrating. All that hard work, gone! That’s kind of what Jeremiah is experiencing but on a much larger and deeper scale.
11. Now this next question isn’t necessarily an example of people persecuting Jeremiah, but it does describe something that would have been yet another difficult or challenging situation for this prophet. He’s told by the Lord not to have a family. To not get married or have children. That’s a sacrifice, especially for someone from the OId Testament. To not have the support and love of an immediate family or the fulfillment of raising children would have been a hardship in its own right. However, you can perhaps see the wisdom in the Lord’s instruction. If the people hated Jeremiah enough to do what they did to him, no doubt his family would have been sorely persecuted as well. At least this way, they couldn’t use threats and attacks on the people he loved to manipulate or punish him. His own family, or his parents and brethren, we already learned had already turned on him.
12. His pain was perpetual. That means it never ceased.
13. He sat alone. That’s a bit of a heartbreaking description, isn’t it. Jeremiah was, as far as mankind was concerned, completely and utterly alone. That verse also tells us that everyone “cursed” him too. His trials may have been a bit more bearable if he just had a contingent of people that would stand by him and support him. But alas, instead he had to face everything virtually by himself. Jeremiah is the Moroni of the Old Testament. A lone bastion of righteousness in a wilderness of wickedness.
14. He called himself a man of strife, meaning, HE faced a lot of strife in his life. His whole existence was one challenge after another.
15. The Bible Dictionary tells us that Jeremiah had to face continuous opposition from many directions. I mean, we often point to Job as the man who suffered the most, and he did most assuredly suffer more intensely at one time than Jeremiah did, but Jeremiah faced opposition his entire life, whereas Job’s afflictions were limited to a specific time period.
16. I think that this is probably the worst thing a people can do to their prophet, at least in the eyes of the prophets themselves. Yes, they threw him into prison, and mocked him, and put him in the stocks, and all those terrible things. But what’s the worst thing you can do to a prophet? Being ignored. Jeremiah is the prophet nobody listened to. This verse tells us that they ignored his words and gave no heed to them. “Let us not give HEED to any of his words.” Our prophets nowadays are fortunate in that they don’t face the physical dangers that a lot of scriptural prophets did. Besides Joseph Smith, our latter-day prophets have enjoyed relative physical safety. Nobody is out there trying to throw President Nelson into a dungeon, thank heavens. However, they are still subjected to the worst thing we can do to prophets. We can ignore them and dismiss their counsels. And that’s still a common reaction that the world and even some members of the Church continue to have.
17. Finally, here we learn from the Bible Dictionary, that sadly, according to tradition, Jeremiah will be stoned to death by the Jews that had fled to Egypt after the destruction of Jerusalem. Jeremiah will eventually die as a martyr. We’ll take a closer look at that story a little later in the lesson, but, no, things never get any better for Jeremiah. He’s going to suffer right up to the end of his life. His mortal story does not have a happy ending.
Now, has this activity painted a vivid enough picture for you of what Jeremiah’s life consisted of? It’s pretty grim, right? So what is our secret phrase then?
“WE KNOW THAT JERUSALEM WAS DESTROYED ACCORDING TO THE WORDS OF JEREMIAH”.
This phrase actually comes from the Book of Mormon. It’s a line from Helaman 8:20. Nephi says this at a time when the Nephites are very wicked and points to the fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy as an example of a prophet’s ability to warn us of future calamity. Jeremiah’s words do come true just like the prophecies of all prophets do. We know that Jeremiah was right all along because Jerusalem does indeed fall.
TRUTH
So what are some of the lessons Jeremiah’s life can teach us? What do you think? Here are a few principles that I can see.
Maybe a more obvious one would be, the prophecies of prophets always come true, so listen to them!
Another principle:
Don’t dismiss the words of the prophets just because their message is difficult to accept. Prophets don’t always tell you what you want to hear. Now Jeremiah was a bit of a political prophet. The counsel that he was most unpopular for was not necessarily religious in nature. He was telling the people that they needed to submit to the Babylonians and that it was pointless to try and resist them, that Jerusalem was going to be destroyed. But the people didn’t want to hear that, and they hated him and persecuted him for it.
Now do we do the same today? Have the prophets of today ever given us political counsel? Can you think of any examples of that? A few come to mind. There will be times when the prophets may give us instructions that may not line up with our social or political views. And I don’t care which side of the political spectrum you line up on. The prophets have taught things that challenge both conservative and liberal principles. Democrats and Republicans will both find difficult teachings. And remember, prophets don’t need to have any kind of earthly credentials or background, or professional expertise to comment on certain issues. They speak for God who has the ultimate credential-omniscience. The question is: What will we do when the prophets teach us challenging things? Will we humbly recognize their inspiration? Or will we “shut them up” in the prison of our pride? Sink them in the mire of our stubbornness? Or place them in the stocks of our disregard?
A favorite quote comes to mind here. Something that President Harold B. Lee once said:
“You may not like what comes from the authority of the Church. It may contradict your political views. It may contradict your social views. It may interfere with some of your social life. . . . Your safety and ours depends upon whether or not we follow. . . . Let's keep our eye on the President of the Church. “
Harold B. Lee (Conference Report, October 1970, p. 152–153.)
And keep in mind, he said that before he was the president of the church.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
To liken the scriptures here. Perhaps one question to ask yourself: How am I doing at heeding the words of the living prophets?
CONCLUSION
To conclude our discussion here of the importance of following the prophets, I could bear my personal testimony. But perhaps it would be more powerful to hear the testimony of one of our living prophets themselves. One of the most powerful expressions of faith in prophets I’ve ever heard comes from Elder Jeffrey R. Holland in a general conference talk he gave back in 2006. I invite you to watch the following clip from General Conference from time stamp 5:58-7:35. I can’t think of a more effective way of concluding this portion of the lesson than with that declaration of faith. As it was with the people of Jeremiah’s time, so it is with us, following the prophet brings life and safety. Rejecting them will bring spiritual death and destruction.
JEREMIAH
ICEBREAKER
Now we’re not done with examining the lessons from the life of Jeremiah the prophet yet.
SEARCH
I am a great lover of art and the humanities. In fact, I even minored in Humanities in college. One of the great things about studying the history of Western art, is that much of what you analyze is religious in nature. There are lots of paintings and sculptures of Biblical subjects. So we’re going to play art critic for a moment now. As a teacher, I would display the following painting for your class to observe. If you’re teaching with a projector, try to make it as big and with as a high a resolution as you can. This picture is actually included in the Come Follow Me manual for this week and I applaud their choice. However, to be honest, they printed it kind of dark, so it’s probably better to find a clearer representation in my opinion. And now, I want you as my viewer to take a close look at this famous painting of Jeremiah by the Dutch master Rembrandt yourself. And I really love this painting. It’s a beautiful portrait that speaks volumes about this great prophet. A picture paints a thousand words, as they say. Rembrandt had a gift for depicting human emotion. But what do YOU see? What do you feel Rembrandt was saying about Jeremiah? What moment in Jeremiah’s life is he depicting? What does it teach us about him? How does the painting make you feel? Just allow your students to share some of their first impressions for a minute.
And allow me to share some thoughts about it.
Do you see what is sitting next to Jeremiah in the painting? It looks like some valuable golden objects. Now that’s a clue as to the moment Rembrandt is depicting. They appear to be some golden, precious objects. What might that be about? Also, if you look very carefully at the at the far left, somethings going on there that’s a little difficult to make out. It’s almost as if Jeremiah is sitting in a cave or an enclosure of some sort and he’s looking out on a particular scene. So if you look closely at that part, you’ll see some buildings, and they appear to be on fire. In fact, the whole color palette of the painting suggests that it’s lit by the glow of a burning fire. And then, amongst those buildings can you see a little figure that appears to be crouched over moving away from the buildings? And you can kind of tell that he’s holding his eyes. What’s that all about?
Well turn to Jeremiah 39 with me and let’s read. This is an important part of the book because it describes the moment where everyone discovers that Jeremiah was right all along.
In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, came Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem, and they besieged it.
2 And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, the city was broken up.
3 And all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, even Nergalsharezer, Samgarnebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergalsharezer, Rabmag, with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon.
4 And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah saw them, and all the men of war, then they fled, and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king's garden, by the gate betwixt the two walls: and he went out the way of the plain.
5 But the Chaldeans' army pursued after them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho: and when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he gave judgment upon him.
6 Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes: also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah.
7 Moreover he put out Zedekiah's eyes, and bound him with chains, to carry him to Babylon.
8 And the Chaldeans burned the king's house, and the houses of the people, with fire, and brake down the walls of Jerusalem.
9 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive into Babylon the remnant of the people that remained in the city, and those that fell away, that fell to him, with the rest of the people that remained.
So did Jeremiah turn out to be right in the end? Yes. Everything he prophesied came true. Jerusalem is besieged and destroyed. Historically speaking, the Babylonians really do level Jerusalem. They destroy the temple; they tear down the walls of the city. All the nobles and the rich of the city are slaughtered. Only the poorest of the people are left behind in the city. And the King, Zedekiah, this sounds terrible, but they kill all of his sons in front of him, and then they put out his eyes. Quite a brutally cruel gesture. The idea there is to say, “Zedekiah, this is going to be the last thing you ever see”, so that image of his sons being killed would forever be engrained on his memory. And then they carry him away captive into Babylon.
Ok, so that figure in the painting is King Zedekiah, and he’s being led away from the burning city of Jerusalem, and he’s holding his eyes because they’ve put them out and now, he’s going to be taken away captive into Babylon.
Now look at Jeremiah’s face in that painting. I think it teaches us something about the soul of a prophet. Does it look like he’s happy that he was right? Do you think Jeremiah ran around shouting “I told you so” triumphantly in the faces of the people that had so callously and cruelly treated him? We know he didn’t. Rembrandt got that detail right. You don’t read of Jeremiah gloating over the people anywhere. In fact, the very next book of the Old Testament tells us how Jeremiah felt about his being right. It’s called Lamentations-which means “mournings,” “weepings”, or “the passionate expression of grief or sorrow.” That’s how the dictionary defines it. Even when prophets are rejected and persecuted and ignored, they still love their people. They lament the consequences the disobedient have to suffer.
There is actually a verse from Ezekiel here that comes to my mind.
23 Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? (Ezekiel 18:23)
Jeremiah felt the same way. He has no pleasure in this happening, even when he was treated so terribly by them. A verse that expresses this love that Jeremiah had for his people is Jeremiah 9:1 where he says:
“Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!” Jeremiah 9:1
But what do the Babylonians do with Jeremiah? Is he carried away captive by them as well? This is really interesting. 39:11-12
11 Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, saying,
12 Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee.
So the King of Babylon tells the captain of his army not to hurt him, but to free him from prison. Even this wicked Babylonian leader is able to recognize Jeremiah’s prophetic mantle, but not his own people. Now, it’s probably partly because he knows that Jeremiah was counseling the Jews to submit to the Babylonians. Jeremiah’s prophecies were in his favor. But we also know that the Lord is behind this sparing of Jeremiah’s life because the Lord had made Jeremiah a promise: Look at verses 17-18:
17 But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the Lord: and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid.
18 For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee: because thou hast put thy trust in me, saith the Lord.
So Jeremiah is delivered and now he’s free.
But Jeremiah has a choice now. In the following chapter, chapter 40, the captain of the Babylonian guard in charge of taking care of Jeremiah, a man named Nebuzaradan comes to him and says:
4 And now, behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which were upon thine hand. If it seem good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come; and I will look well unto thee: but if it seem ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, forbear: behold, all the land is before thee: whither it seemeth good and convenient for thee to go, thither go.
And then at the end of verse 5:
“go wheresoever it seemeth convenient unto thee to go. So the captain of the guard gave him victuals and a reward, and let him go.”
So back to Rembrandt’s picture. The gold and precious things sitting next to him? Those are the victuals and reward given to him by the Babylonians. And Jeremiah is being presented with a choice here. This is also a part of this moment Rembrandt is portraying. Jeremiah has got to decide what he’s going to do next. Is he going to stay with the remnant of the people that are left? Or will he go into Babylon? And you can almost hear the Babylonian captain’s argument here. “Hey Jeremiah, forget these lousy people who have treated you so badly who wouldn’t listen to you and tried to kill you. Come to Babylon! We’ll take care of you. We’ll treat you well and support you. Come and live out the rest of your life in ease and comfort. You deserve it after all you’ve been through. You don’t owe these people anything. Even your God would understand this.”
But what does Jeremiah decide to do?
6 Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and dwelt with him among the people that were left in the land.
So he decides to remain behind. He stays with his people. The ones that are left anyway. And I say, “Wow, Jeremiah, you’re a better man than I am.” I would have gone to Babylon with a ‘good riddance’ on my lips. But what happens next in this Jeremiah saga adds a completely new level to his loyalty and love. The remnant of the people that are left behind begin to worry about how they’re going to be treated under Babylonian rule. Some of the people wonder if they should try to escape and find refuge in Egypt. So in chapter 42, we see something happen that we haven’t encountered in the entire book yet. The people actually go to Jeremiah for counsel and advice. And you can just see Jeremiah saying, “Finally, someone is going to listen to me! All my prophecies have turned out to be true! They finally realize it. I can do some good for these people now!”
Picking this up in verse 1.
Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near,
2 And said unto Jeremiah the prophet, Let, we beseech thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the Lord thy God, even for all this remnant; (for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us:)
3 That the Lord thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing that we may do.
And in verse 4 Jeremiah agrees to help them.
4 Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the Lord your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass, that whatsoever thing the Lord shall answer you, I will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you.
Then, verse 5-6
5 Then they said to Jeremiah, The Lord be a true and faithful witness between us, if we do not even according to all things for the which the Lord thy God shall send thee to us.
6 Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.
So, “No matter what you say Jeremiah, we’ve learned our lesson, we promise to listen to you. Good or bad, we will obey your counsels. So what does God say we should do? Flee to Egypt or submit to Babylonian rule.”
What’s Jeremiah’s answer? Verses 9-16
9 And said unto them, Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, unto whom ye sent me to present your supplication before him;
10 If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up: for I repent me of the evil that I have done unto you.
11 Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid; be not afraid of him, saith the Lord: for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand.
12 And I will shew mercies unto you, that he may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land.
13 But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, neither obey the voice of the Lord your God,
14 Saying, No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the trumpet, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we dwell:
15 And now therefore hear the word of the Lord, ye remnant of Judah; Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there;
16 Then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die.
So, in short, it’s God’s will that you stay here in Jerusalem. If you do, you’ll be treated well by the Babylonians. The Lord will see to it that you are taken care of. But if you go to Egypt, I promise you that the very things you hope to escape from will find you there. You will eventually be overtaken by the sword and famine if you go.
And now, the people are going to listen to him, right? They’ve learned their lesson. They’re going to actually heed Jeremiah’s words for once in their lives? Aren’t they?
Chapter 43:1-4
And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the Lord their God, for which the Lord their God had sent him to them, even all these words,
2 Then spake Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou speakest falsely: the Lord our God hath not sent thee to say, Go not into Egypt to sojourn there:
3 But Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, for to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they might put us to death, and carry us away captives into Babylon.
4 So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, obeyed not the voice of the Lord, to dwell in the land of Judah.
AHHHHH! So they still won’t listen! Even after all of that. You just kind of want to hit your head against a wall for Jeremiah, don’t you. Maybe they were expecting him to tell them what they want to hear. But when he doesn’t, they decide that they’re just going to go ahead and do their own thing anyway. They haven’t learned their lesson. And so they go to Egypt. And the scriptures aren’t clear as to whether Jeremiah goes willingly with them or whether they take him with them, but either way, Jeremiah also travels down into Egypt with his people. From what we saw earlier, my guess is that he does go willingly. And no sooner do they go down into Egypt then they start to fall apart. The chapter heading of 44 tells us that they’re already beginning to worship the false gods of Egypt. In the remaining chapters of Jeremiah, we hear him prophesy of their eventual destruction as well as other cultures in the area. And then, he prophesies the eventual destruction of Babylon itself. For this prophecy of their destruction in Egypt, tradition states that the people will ultimately stone Jeremiah to death for not telling them what they wanted to hear. A sad ending to a tragic prophetic career. Historically speaking, just as Jeremiah had prophesied, the Babylonians will eventually come into Egypt and conquer it as well. And now these people who had escaped from them, who had the gall to run away from their gracious offer to stay in Jerusalem—you can imagine that they’re not going to be treated very well. Famine and the sword and destruction do follow them, just as Jeremiah had prophesied.
TRUTH
What does this whole episode teach us about the soul of a prophet? Prophets love their people. Prophets are loyal to their people, even when they’re rejected. Their love and loyalty are what motivates them and causes them to preach in the first place. They want what’s best for us. If any prophet had an excuse to dismiss their people or feel justified in condemning or abandoning them, it would be Jeremiah. But he doesn’t. He stays with them right to the bitter end. And they never do listen to him, do they? Jeremiah was the prophet that nobody listened to.
CONCLUSION
Well I believe that our modern-day prophets and apostles feel the same way for us as Jeremiah felt for his people. When they speak, do you sense that love and loyalty in their voices? Do you feel their concern for our well-being? I do. It’s obvious. They’re not trying to control us or exploit us as some would have us think. Therefore, let’s not make the same mistake as the people of Jerusalem. Let’s listen to them and heed their words.
BECOMING AN IRON PILLAR
ICEBREAKER
A final lesson here. And to introduce this portion of the lesson I like to ask my students a question. And yes, you may recognize that I’ve used this illustration before back in our study of the Book of Ether in the Book of Mormon, but I feel it works well here too. I like to ask my students: What is considered to be the oldest continuously living thing on earth? Now some may start to guess whales or giant tortoises, but usually it doesn’t take them long to realize that plants are living things too, and they begin to start guessing different species of trees. And the answer to the question may surprise you. The oldest living thing on earth is a Great Basin Bristlecone pine tree. They're found in parts of Utah, Nevada, and California and some of these trees are believed to be close to 5000 years old. How are they able to live so long? You’d think that it’s because they have the luxury of being planted in the most ideal of growing conditions. Lots of water, sunlight, and great soil. But you’d be wrong. In fact, it’s exactly the opposite. Bristlecone pines live longer than anything else because they grow under the harshest of conditions. They don’t get much water, the soil is poor, and they experience extremes in temperature and weather. But it is those very conditions that have made them so hardy. The rings of a bristlecone pine are very, very close together. Their growing season is incredibly short each year. This results in the wood becoming extremely hard and dense, almost like stone. Therefore, they are almost impervious to high winds, disease, insects, and even fire. It just goes to show that it is adversity and opposition that produces longevity and strength, not ease and comfort.
TRANSITION
The life of Jeremiah is a good example of this same phenomenon. He had an incredibly difficult life and mission as we just discovered. But God made Jeremiah a promise about his future before he ever even began his ministry. The Lord tells him that he would be like three specific objects. What are those three objects in Jeremiah 1:18? The Lord says:
18 For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
What were the three things: “A defenced city,” so a city with a large wall . . . “an iron pillar” . . . and “brasen walls,” or walls made out of brass. Aren’t those great images for Jeremiah, now that we know what we know about his life? Which one is your favorite? I love the description of Jeremiah as an iron pillar. You can just sense the strength in that image. And he was an iron pillar. He was going to need to be an iron pillar in the face of all that opposition he’s going to encounter. 1
SEARCH
So one of the great things I feel we can learn from Jeremiah is how to become iron pillars ourselves. Perhaps some of you may feel like you can relate to Jeremiah. I’m sure there are many of you out there who feel like you got the short end of the stick when they were handing out life assignments in the premortal world. You may look around and feel like you have had to face more than your fair share of adversity in life. If you can relate, Jeremiah will teach you how to become an iron pillar in the face of that opposition, how to become a bristlecone pine.
There are 3 things that I feel helped to make Jeremiah stronger. Study them and see what you can find.
1. Jeremiah 1:5
2. Jeremiah 1:8, 19
3. Jeremiah 1:9, 15:16, 20:9
Jeremiah 1:5
First, Jeremiah 1:5,
5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
One thing I feel will help us to be iron pillars in the face of opposition is to know and understand our divine potential and destiny. I’m sure it must have been comforting for Jeremiah to realize that he had been ordained to this very calling before he was ever born—that God had something important and great for him to accomplish in his life—a direct message from God that this was his divine destiny. Do we have the benefit anything like that? Or is that the kind of thing only reserved for prophets? Actually, we do. We have patriarchal blessings. What else is a patriarchal blessing if not a manifestation of the great things God desires for us to accomplish in life and the blessings that he promises us if we fulfill them. Just knowing this, I believe, can give us great strength in facing our adversities and hardships. We can rest easier knowing that God was aware of the nature of the challenges we would face in life and prepared us for them beforehand. We were selected and foreordained to face those things. So he trusts us, and he knows we can’t do it. Therefore, because he believes and knows we can do it, then we know we can too! Before we were formed in the belly, he sanctified and ordained us to do these great things. If we ever start to feel weak, or incompetent, or unable to do what the Lord has placed before us—to fulfill a challenging calling, to face a difficult trial or tragedy, or face an overwhelming temptation, if we remember this destiny that we have, it can give us power to do it. It will help us to be an iron pillar.
Jeremiah 1:8, 19
What’s the message here?
8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.
And 19
19 And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the Lord, to deliver thee.
What will help us to be iron pillars here? Remembering that the Lord is with us. We cannot fail if he is at our side. It’s a principle we’ve seen over and over again in the Old Testament this year. It’s almost as if the Lord really wanted us to understand this truth. That even the small, the outnumbered, and the seemingly weak can conquer anything and anybody, as long as God is on your side. We saw it with Moses and the Children of Israel triumphing over Egypt, we saw it with Gideon, overcoming the Midianite army with only 300 men, we saw it with David triumphing over Goliath, we saw it with Elijah prevailing over the priests of Baal on the top of Mt. Carmel, and in many, many other stories from the Old Testament. I believe the same principle is true of us. We know we can conquer anything placed in our way, not because our own strength, but the strength of our God that stands beside us.
Jeremiah 1:9, 15:16, 20:9
Now our final set of verses,
9 Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the Lord said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
Our third and final thing that will help make us into iron pillars is by having God’s word inside us. This is my favorite one. God’s truth, his gospel, his wisdom as taught by the scriptures, the prophets, and the Spirit can give us the strength we need to face ALL of our challenges. I like that image of God reaching out and touching Jeremiah’s mouth with his hand. Sometimes, before I teach, I like to pray for that same blessing so that I can teach with power. I pray that God will touch my mouth with his hand and put his words into my mouth. And I know that I have felt that at times, that God is giving me the words to say. We might call it, teaching with the Spirit. We don’t want to teach our own words, but his. Along those same lines, Jeremiah 15:16
16 Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts.
I love that imagery! Jeremiah eats God’s words. He feasts upon the words of Christ. When we eat something, it goes down inside of us and nourishes us and gives us strength to move and live and act. That’s what God’s word does for us. But we’ve got to feast on them. Not just snack, or nibble, or sample it. Dig deep, is another way of saying that. And what happens to Jeremiah when he does this? What effect does eating God’s words have on him? It makes him happy. He rejoices. Have you ever had that happen to you? Have the scriptures, or the words of the prophets ever made you happy? Have you ever walked away from scripture study, or a general conference feeling “fed”? That’s the power of God’s words. We too have got to get the word of God down inside of us.
And I’ve decided to end with this last one here in chapter 20. It’s my favorite verse in all of Jeremiah. And it’s all the more powerful now that we’ve studied and understand his life. And I’ll add the preceding verses to this one just to help you understand Jeremiah’s mindset when he says this. He’s discouraged. And I love that about Jeremiah. He was human. There are a few places in Jeremiah where you seem him get discouraged. This is one of those moments. And so he says:
7 O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived; thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me.
8 For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily.
So, “Lord, these people are unrelenting. I’ve been made a reproach, a laughingstock, a joke. I am in derision daily. Why have you called me? I’m tired of this! What’s the point?! And so he makes a resolve.
9 Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name.
Have you ever gotten to that point? With teaching people? Your children perhaps? Or as a missionary, and nobody is listening to you. And you just want to throw your hands up and say, “All right, that’s it. I’m done. You do your thing and I’ll do mine. It’s not worth the effort anymore.” That’s the point Jeremiah has gotten to here. And so he tries it. He says he’s going to give up on the people. And how long does that last? He continues:
But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay.
So it doesn’t last very long. The power and fire of God’s word is so strong within him. He just feels it beginning to build and build in pressure inside. And, he just can’t hold it in anymore. He gives up trying to stop it because he is weary with forbearing. And he says, “Ok, I have to go out and teach again. I can’t keep this fire within me.” That fire in the bones is what we want to get inside ourselves. Do you feel that fire? I know I do. That’s one of the reasons I make these videos. I feel the power of the scriptures and the gospel, and I just have to let it out! It’s like a fire deep down inside my bones and I’ve just got to share it.
TRUTH
When I face challenges and opposition in my life, I can find strength by:
Remembering my divine destiny and potential.
Remembering that God is with me, and with Him, I cannot fail.
Getting God’s word down inside me like a fire in my bones.
LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES
Have you ever found strength from one of these three things? Please share.
CONCLUSION
Well, Jeremiah’s life has a lot to teach us, doesn’t it? He’s a fascinating prophet. Just studying his life helps to light that fire within my bones as well. That we will listen to the words of our modern-day Jeremiah’s, that we’ll sense their love and loyalty for us, and that we will become iron pillars or bristlecone pines in the face of all opposition is my prayer.
