The Strand Study Bible

JEREMIAH 1:6

JEREMIAH 2:1

1143

Jeremiah’s two excuses for not wanting to preach 6 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, 1 I cannot speak: for I am a 2 child. 7 But the LORD said unto me, 3 Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak. Jeremiah is warned not to fear their faces 8 4 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD. God’s hand ( Holy Spirit power) and God’s Word are connected 9 Then the LORD put forth his 5 hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, 6 I have put my words in thy mouth. 10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, 7 to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant. Jeremiah’s two visions confirming His call – The divine haste (vs 11-12) of God’s wrath (vs 13-15) 11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree. 12 Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: 8 for I will hasten my word to perform it. 13 And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a 9 seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north. The promise of Judah and Jerusalem’s fall to Babylon (Fulfilled - II Ki 25 - 586 BC) 14 Then the LORD said unto me, 10 Out

of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. P 15 For, lo, 10 I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah. P 16 10 And I will utter my judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own hands. P Jeremiah is warned (again) not to fear their faces 17 Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I com- mand thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them. 18 For, behold, 11 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. The promise to Jeremiah not to die by the hands of those who hate him (Fulfilled) 19 And they shall fight against thee; 12 but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee. P Jeremiah 2 God reminds Judah of His faithfulness (Note - This portion of Jeremiah’s prophecy took place in the 14th year of King Josiah’s reign) Date Written - 627 BC/AM 3373 1 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

1. Exo 4:10 2. or, “young man” – Zech 2:4 Note - Jeremiah was c. 21 years old here. 3. or, “ Say not , I am too shy or too young” 4. Ezk 2:6 & 3:9 5. or, “power of the Holy Spirit” - Ezk 1:3 & 3:14, 22 & 37:1 & 40:1 & II Ki 3:15 & Acts 8:14-25 & 9:17 & 13:1-5 & 19:6 6. II Pet 1:21 & Isa 51:16 & Ezk 3:3-4 & II Tim 3:16

7. II Tim 4:1-2 8. Deut 32:35 9. or, “boiling” 10. Fulfilled - II Ki 25 (Fall of Judah)

11. Ezk 3:8-9 12. Fulfilled - Jeremiah did not die by the hands of those who hated him (Jere 20 & 38); rather he died in Egypt (Jere 43, 44).

1:6 Jeremiah gave God two excuses for not wanting to preach: * insecurity (I cannot speak) * immaturity (I am a child ) - However, God never calls the qualified; He qualifies the called (vs 7-9). 1:9 God’s power ( Then the LORD put forth his hand ) is always connected with His Word (Eph 5:18-22/Colo 3:16-22). 1:13 Despite his fears and reluctance to accept his call to be a prophet (vs 6), Jeremiah was given two visions to confirm His calling: 1. The vision of the almond tree (vs 11-12) Jeremiah envisioned an almond tree that was “hastening to awake” out of its wintry sleep, picturing God’s “long delayed” judgment upon Judah and Jerusalem (II Ki 25). 2. The vision of the boiling pot (vs 13-16) Jeremiah also envisioned a seething pot , picturing God’s “fury” upon Jerusalem by way of invaders from the north (Ezk 11:3 & 24:3-6). NOTE – These two visions would begin to be fulfilled 22 years later in 605 BC with the first invasion of Judah and Jerusalem by Babylon (II Ki 24:1) and conclude with Babylon’s third invasion in 586 BC (II Ki 25:1-21). 1:17 God warns those whom He calls to lead not to “listen” to people’s faces ( be not dismayed at their faces ). Thus a preacher’s job is to listen to God and lead sheep, not coral goats (Ezk 2:1-6 & 3:9).