Threats to the prophet (Jeremiah 26)

 Truth and Consequences: 

A study in the prophecy of Jeremiah

Chapter 26

By Bob Mendelsohn

Given 23 June 2022

 

Lesson Twenty-six:  Threats to the prophet

 

INTRODUCTION

We ended last week with a review of the early words of Jeremiah in chapter 1

 

“See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms, 

            To pluck up and to break down, 

            To destroy and to overthrow, 

            To build and to plant.” (verse 10)

 

God had used the words of the prophet the first 25 chapters to pluck up and break down, to destroy and overthrow. Now beginning in the reading for today, the 2^nd half of the book leads us to see the “to build and to plant” and that is for many of us what would be titled ‘hope.’ 

Listen, today is 24 June, and three days ago we experienced the winter solstice. That’s the day when the day is the shortest, when our light is the least of any one 24-hour period in the entire year. And if you will, we are now moving towards summer. Every day we increase in light, and every day is getting longer. Not significantly, but it is increasing. That may be a way to view Jeremiah’s prophecy at this point. To build and to plant… that’s where we are going. 

 

So chapter 26 is really the half-time interval. But we are past the solstice. 

 

1.     The reprise of the curse if you don’t listen (.1-6)

OK, verse 1 sounds the rewind of the tape. We are back in 609 BCE, the beginning of the reign of King Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah. Remember Josiah had initiated great changes int eh Jewish people, and begun a revival of sorts. It didn’t last, as we have discussed, which had to disappoint Josiah himself, and certainly those of the righteous who followed his reforms. 

When we read ‘bereishit mamlachut” it reminds me of the Platinum anniversary celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II we have watched the last couple of weeks. 

בְּרֵאשִׁ֗ית מַמְלְכ֛וּת         

 

Think back to the beginning of her reign, 1952, and you will remember who you are, where you were, etc. That’s what Baruch, the scribe, is doing with chapter 26. Flashback to 609 BCE. Reminder of Jeremiah’s words of warning in verses 1-6. Matthew Henry said of this section, “Those who will not be subject to the commands of God, make themselves subject to the curse of God.”

 

This section of rewrite should be read in conjunction with the Temple sermon of chapter 7. Again we mention that if we had the editorial capacity we would have moved chapter 26 to be next to chapter 7, but we don’t have that capacity. There, the people trusted in their religion and Jeremiah said, the temple won’t save you. The religion of your fathers won’t save you. Listen to my words, turn from your sins, that will be part of your salvation. But the people didn’t heed his prophecy and turned on him, then, and now in the reiteration of that time in chapter 26.

 

Using Jehoiakim according to Stulman (Abingdon Press, 2005) is a code word. “He is a prototype of infidelity and disobedience.” Stulman says it is a ‘code word for cosmic crumbling and the collapse of moral courage.” Think about some folks in your own history or your national story. Someone like Daniel Boone or Sam Houston in the US are code words for courage and valour. Someone in the US like Benedict Arnold or Julian Assange are code words for traitor. Here in Australia, Ned Kelly is code word for much more than larrikin; he’s a bush ranger and outsider to law and order. Stulman is saying Jehoiakim is code word for failure and infidelity.

 

Now I mention this is the interval and if you remember how musicals operate in the theatre, after the interval (Americans: intermission) the orchestra will reprise some of the music from the first half of the show. That’s what Jeremiah is doing here. God told him back in chapter 1 to preach anytime and anywhere, and that some will listen, but most will reject him out of hand. He will face opposition from the leadership/ shepherds like priests and kings, even other prophets. Even so, the reprise continues, he is not to fear them for God will guard him. All that is found in chapter 26.  Barnes says this chapter is “a narrative of the danger to which Jeremiah was exposed by reason of the prophecy contained in Jeremiah 7.”

 

Jehoiakim’s reign began under the authority of Pharaoh Neco II after a military victory gave Egypt the oversight of this region. Neco installed Jehoiakim as vassal in 609 BCE and taxed him and Judah heavily. It’s into that situation that God sent his servant the prophet to get Jehoiakim to rule like his dad, Josiah and to rule well. That unfortunately did not happen. 

 

The words of verses 1-6 are clear: “If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you, ⁵ to listen to the words of My servants the prophets, whom I have been sending to you ¹again and again, but you have not listened; ⁶ then I will make this house like Shiloh, and this city I will make a curse to all the nations of the earth.”

 

If you don’t clean up your act, you will be a curse.

 

He mentions Shiloh… what’s that? That’s where the Tabernacle stood in the days of Samuel the prophet. The ark, the holy place, the place where God dwelled. Imagine the chutzpah of Jeremiah to predict this. Yeshua had this same chutzpah when he stood on the Temple Mount and cried out, 

But He responded and said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.” (Matthew 24.2)

 

That’s either unmitigated gall, bravery, or sheer stupidity to say ON THE TEMPLE GROUNDS! That’s what a prophet sounds like, though. 

 

Verse 4 and 5 combines the testimony of the Law and the Prophets. Each prophet uses his office as a continuity with Torah, and calls on the authority of Moses and the prophets to validate his own message. Jeremiah is no different. 

 

Verse 3 has a word I missed the first couple of times in reading this chapter. It’s the word ‘perhaps.  (Heb: אוּלַ֣י  ). It’s a word not found in chapter 7. It’s a word of hope, certainly of longing. Maybe they will listen. 

Maybe they will repent.

Maybe they will follow me with all their heart. 

Wow, it’s a whisper of God’s intention and God’s longing. The Gentle and Lowly King of the Universe is aching to hear a word, a soft word, a cry from the kishkes of his people. Perhaps. Oolai. 

 

 

2.     A plot to kill Jeremiah (.7-11)

 

The second section of the chapter today is verses 7 to 11. Jeremiah preaches and the people are roused by the leadership to murder him. They use the phrase found in Genesis 2

מ֥וֹת תָּמֽוּת

 

This is the cry of “Death penalty” if you will. God said that to Adam that in the day he eats of the wrong tree he will surely die. The Hebrew is dyingly die. It’s multiplied death. It’s inescapable death. It’s the death penalty in a court of law. God uses this phrase three times in Torah related to capital crimes (Ex 21, Lev 20,  Numbers 35). Let’s just say this is serious and Jeremiah is not going to escape the cry for his death. 

 

3.     Jeremiah’s self-defense and rescue (.12-24)

 

But then they listen one more time to Jeremiah in his defence.  Odd to pronounce the death sentence before they gave him such an opportunity to self-defend. But maybe I’m reading the prosecution’s accusation as a sentence. I could be wrong.

What is his defence? God spoke and I must discharge those words to you. End of story. Oh, except it was to be done here and now. And if you miss it, you will kill me, but you will bring innocent blood onto your own heads. You will own the wrong you are committing. Are you really willing to do so? That’s Jeremiah’s question. 

He uses the occasion of his defence in court to remind the people, the priests, and the other prophets that what he has said, he is saying again. Listen oh Israel, Sh’ma Yisrael, to what God has said. He is a jealous God. 

 

Verse 16, the officials change their mind. They undo the verdict of the death penalty and any commensurate sentence. The verse 17, “elders of the land” sounds like people from regional areas who are in Jerusalem perhaps for an occasion, a holiday or such, who are not at all intimidated by the Jerusalem authorities, the priests who ran the Temple etc. Judaism then, as today, is ever divided and Jeremiah found mates in the country leadership, not the leadership of the country. And I love how they got the people on side with them.  They quote Scripture, especially another prophet Micah. Chapter 3.

 

You see, Deuteronomy says that if a prophet prophesies and the thing does not come to pass, then he is a false prophet and should be stoned. The people in Micah’s day were patient and listened. He prophesied destruction unless the people repented. What happened? King Hezekiah took the prophecy on board, and he repented. Then the people repented and God stayed the evil he had planned. On the basis of that precedent, the elders in Jeremiah’s day are saying, we should also not kill Jeremiah! Those country elders knew both the Scripture and the One who gave them to us. 

 

Perhaps!

 

I really love these Tamworth or Kansan farmers who are elders in their village. They bring up Hezekiah and that may well be a code word (see Stulman) for fidelity and honour in direct contrast to Jehoiakim. If he wanted to rid the world, certainly his world, of Jeremiah, and thus depict his own infidelity, the elders of the land mention Hezekiah and Micah and thus depict their own fidelity. God loves to listen to humble souls, and humble leaders. Christopher Wrights says, “Hezekiah spared the prophet and sought the Lord. (verse 19). Jehoiakim killed a prophet and hardened his heart.” (verses 20-23) That prophet was Uriah, a previously unnamed Jewish prophet. The author is showcasing the evil that lurked in Jehoiakim and the possibility of the end of Jeremiah. 

 

But look at the final verse of the chapter. The Lord spared Jeremiah to keep proclaiming the message. 

 

Craigie says this in summary of the section, 

“the explicit teaching in the Gospels that Jesus went to this death as one in the long line of prophets persistently sent by God but rejected by the people and killed (Jer 26:5, 20–23; Luke 13:33–34; Matt 23:29–32). These prophets bear a common message, that unrepentant sinners are never safe, even in the temple of the LORD (Jer 26:4–6, 18, 20; Matt 24; Mark 13; Luke 21). God’s people cannot create security for themselves by technology or strategies, theology or liturgies. They will find life and hope only at the intersection of human repentance and divine mercy (Jer 26:3). Jesus’ lament over Jerusalem in Matt 23:37–39//Luke 13:34–35 reflects the content of Jer 26. The people of Jerusalem kill God’s prophets (26:20–24), yet God persistently sends more, desiring the people’s restoration (26:4–5, 13). The alternative is the desolation of the temple and the city (26:5–6, 9, 18). But the people must recognize and listen to the one who comes and speaks in the name of the LORD (26:15–16).

 

            “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone to death the ones sent to you: How often have I longed to gather your children together like a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See, your house is left to you, desolate. For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” (Matt 23:37–39)

 

Perhaps you are hearing that message today? Perhaps you want to give your life to the One who gave his life on the cross for you. Would you like to do that? In a moment my friend Jimmy will lead you in such a prayer. Please turn and listen. And pray and join the family of God with us. 

 

CONCLUSION

God is calling each of us to know him and to walk with him, today and throughout our days. Have you received Yeshua as your messiah and Lord? He is risen from the dead! Have you renounced your sin, your idolatry, your forsaking God and given him First Place in your life? If not, please, do so now, just now, as we pray together. Use your own words, if you want, but yield, surrender, to the Lord of life. 

 

PRAYER

Then please write us (admin@jewsforjesus.org.au) to tell us what you have just done, and we will send you literature and encourage you. You are part of our family; we love and appreciate you. And we want you to enjoy the presence of the Lord who calls, who knows, who blesses and builds us up. 

We hope to see you again next week as we study chapter 27. Until then, Shabbat shalom!

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Barnes, Albert, Albert Barnes’ Commentary on the Old Testament.

Craigie, Peter; Kelley, Page; Drinkard, Joel. Word Biblical Commentary. Book of Jeremiah.  1991. 

Henry, Matthew, Commentary.

McConnville, Gordon, Jeremiah, New Bible Commentary. 

Wright, Christopher, The Message of Jeremiah, The Bible Speaks Today, Intervarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois, 2014.

 

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ACTUAL TEXT

 

Jer. 26:1   In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the LORD, saying, ² “Thus says the LORD, ‘Stand in the court of the LORD’S house, and speak to all the cities of Judah who have come to worship in the LORD’S house all the words that I have commanded you to speak to them. Do not omit a word! ³ ‘Perhaps they will listen and everyone will turn from his evil way, that I may repent of the calamity which I am planning to do to them because of the evil of their deeds.’ ⁴ “And you will say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD, “If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you, ⁵ to listen to the words of My servants the prophets, whom I have been sending to you again and again, but you have not listened; ⁶ then I will make this house like Shiloh, and this city I will make a curse to all the nations of the earth.”’”

 

A Plot to Murder Jeremiah

 

Jer. 26:7   The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the LORD. ⁸ When Jeremiah finished speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “You must die! ⁹ “Why have you prophesied in the name of the LORD saying, ‘This house will be like Shiloh and this city will be desolate, without inhabitant’?” And all the people gathered about Jeremiah in the house of the LORD.

 

Jer. 26:10   When the officials of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the LORD and sat in the entrance of the New Gate of the LORD’S house. ¹¹ Then the priests and the prophets spoke to the officials and to all the people, saying, “A death sentence for this man! For he has prophesied against this city as you have heard in your hearing.”

 

Jer. 26:12   Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and to all the people, saying, “The LORD sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that you have heard. ¹³ “Now therefore amend your ways and your deeds and obey the voice of the LORD your God; and the LORD will change His mind about the misfortune which He has pronounced against you. ¹⁴ “But as for me, behold, I am in your hands; do with me as is good and right in your sight. ¹⁵ “Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, and on this city and on its inhabitants; for truly the LORD has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”

 

Jeremiah Is Spared

 

Jer. 26:16   Then the officials and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets, “No death sentence for this man! For he has spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.” ¹⁷ Then some of the elders of the land rose up and spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying,

¹⁸         “Micah of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spoke to all the people of Judah, saying, ‘Thus the LORD of hosts has said, 

            “Zion will be plowed as a field, 

            And Jerusalem will become ruins, 

            And the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.”’

¹⁹ “Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? Did he not fear the LORD and entreat the favor of the LORD, and the LORD changed His mind about the misfortune which He had pronounced against them? But we are committing a great evil against ourselves.”

 

Jer. 26:20   Indeed, there was also a man who prophesied in the name of the LORD, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from Kiriath-jearim; and he prophesied against this city and against this land words similar to all those of Jeremiah. ²¹ When King Jehoiakim and all his mighty men and all the officials heard his words, then the king sought to put him to death; but Uriah heard it, and he was afraid and fled and went to Egypt. ²² Then King Jehoiakim sent men to Egypt: Elnathan the son of Achbor and certain men with him went into Egypt. ²³ And they brought Uriah from Egypt and led him to King Jehoiakim, who slew him with a sword and cast his dead body into the burial place of the common people.

 

Jer. 26:24   But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, so that he was not given into the hands of the people to put him to death.