GEMS FROM JEREMIAH (22) Jeremiah the traitor: The mindset of a prophet, part VI

 


“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him; for that means life to you and length of days, so that you may live in the land that the Lord swore to give to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” (Dt. 30.19-20)

“And to this people you shall say: Thus says the Lord: See, I am setting before you the way of life and the way of death. Those who stay in this city shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; but those who go out and surrender to the Chaldeans who are besieging you shall live and shall have their lives as a prize of war. For I have set my face against this city for evil and not for good, says the Lord: it shall be given into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.” (Jer. 21.8-10)

 

     When Jeremiah tells the inhabitants of Jerusalem that the way to life is to surrender to the Babylonians and to accept exile, it must have seemed like the world had been turned upside down and inside out.  In Deuteronomy, Moses had told the people of God that the way to ensure long life in the land Promised to Abraham was to obey the stipulations of the covenant.  Jeremiah’s message is the opposite – the way to life is to leave the Promised Land – as slaves.  It was unthinkable.  Either Jeremiah was a traitor, an enemy agent or worse yet… perhaps Yahweh himself had become the enemy of the people that had believed he was their god.

     Actually, as Jeremiah has been saying since the beginning of his book, it is the people of God who have betrayed Yahweh, it is Israel/Judah who have “committed adultery” by worshipping false gods, it is Jerusalem who has practiced injustice and who has exploited the poor and the defenceless.  In his generous and loyal love, Yahweh established the covenant with his people, and had always been faithful to her.  It is Judah who has broken this sacred agreement and who must now face the consequences, which were clearly spelled out in the “contract” (cf. Dt. 27-28).

     However, it’s never easy to be honest with oneself.  Over the centuries since the time of Moses, the people of God had become presumptuous (since Yahweh chose us, we are above criticism) and nationalistic (our nation deserves to survive no matter what; cf. Dt. 7).  The God of creation and covenant, the sovereign of heaven and earth who had deigned to chose/rescue Israel because of his love of and faithfulness to Abraham, had become in the minds of his people something not much more than a talisman, a localized tribal deity who was obliged to come to the help of Israel, regardless of her behaviour. 

     Jeremiah is tasked with delivering the truth to this arrogant, blind and selfish people.  Since Judah has not taken Yahweh seriously, she is unprepared for what is coming.  As the sovereign of creation and history, God can use anyone he chooses to fulfill his purposes – even the hated Babylonian empire as his instrument of judgment.  However, Yahweh remains faithful to his people even as he administers justice; the fires of destruction will not be the end for Jerusalem.  Once the smoke clears, the sun will shine once again…

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