Jeremiah 1

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Dave Burnette's Commentary

Jeremiah Chapter 1

Written By: God through Inspiration

Penned By: Jeremiah

Date Penned: (627-586 BC)

Overview: To Urge God's People to Turn from Sin to God (c 1-52)

Theme: God's Judgement on Judah (c 1-45)

Message: God Calls Jeremiah (v 1-19)

Jeremiah 1 Commentary

(1:1-2) A Chaotic Time - After King Solomon's death, the united kingdom of Israel had split into rival northern and southern kingdoms. The northern kingdom was called Israel; the southern, Judah. Jeremiah was from Anathoth, four miles north of Jerusalem in the southern kingdom. He lived and prophesied during the reigns of the last five kings of Judah. This was a chaotic time politically, morally, and spiritually. As Babylonia, Egypt, and Assyria battled for world supremacy, Judah found itself caught in the middle of the triangle. Although Jeremiah prophesied for 40 years, he never saw his people heed his words and turn from their sins. He did, however, see them taken into Babylonian captivity as he had prophesied.

(1:5) God Knows You - God knew you, as he knew Jeremiah, long before you were born or even conceived. He thought about you and planned for you. When you feel discouraged or inadequate, remember that God has always thought of you as valuable. He loves you and created you for a purpose.

(1:5) God Has A Purpose for You - Jeremiah was ordained by God as a prophet unto the nations. God has a purpose for each Christian, but some people are appointed by God for specific kinds of work. Deborah (Judges 4:4-5), Samson (Judges 13:3-5), David (1 Samuel 16:12-13), John the Baptist (Luke 1:13-17), and Paul (Galatians 1:15-16) are all examples of those God called to do particular tasks. (Some followed God's calling better than others.) Whatever work you do should be done for the glory of God (1 Corinthians 15:58; Philippians 1:11). If he gives you a specific task, accept it cheerfully and do it with diligence. If you have not received a specific call or assignment from God, then seek to fulfill the mission common to all believers--to love, obey, and serve God--until his guidance becomes more clear.

(1:6-8) God is With Us - Often people struggle with new challenges because they lack self-confidence, feeling that they have inadequate ability, training, or experience. Jeremiah thought he was too young and inexperienced to be God's spokesman to the world. But God promised to be with him, and God keeps his promises. We should not allow feelings of inadequacy to keep us from obeying God's call. He will always be with us. When you find yourself avoiding something you know you should do, be careful not to use lack of self-confidence as an excuse. If God gives you a job to do, he will provide everything you need to do it.

(1:8) God's Promises - God promised to be with Jeremiah and to take care of him, but not to keep trouble from coming. God did not insulate him from imprisonment, deportation, or insults. God does not keep us from life's storms either, but he will see us through them. More than that, he will walk with us through our difficulties, pain, and challenges and help us see purpose, meaning, and victory in the struggle. And no matter what, in the end we will be with him for all eternity.

(1:10) God's Appointment - God appointed Jeremiah to bring his word to "nations and ... kingdoms." Jeremiah's work was to warn not only the people of Judah but all the nations of the world about God's judgment for sin. Don't forget in reading the Old Testament that while God was consistently working through the people of Judah and Israel, his plan was to communicate with every nation and person. We are included in Jeremiah's message of judgment and hope, and as believers we are to share God's desire to reach the whole world with his truth.

(1:11-14) The Almond Rod - The vision of the almond rod revealed that the beginning of God's judgment would come soon. This is because the almond tree is among the first to blossom in the spring. God saw the sins of Judah and the nations, and he would carry out swift and certain judgment. The boiling, seething pot tipping over from the north and spilling over Judah pictured Babylon delivering God's scalding judgment against Jeremiah's people.

(1:14-19) God's Mandate - The problems we face may not seem as ominous as Jeremiah's, but they are critical to us and may still overwhelm us. God's promise to Jeremiah and to us is that nothing will defeat us completely; he will help us through even the most agonizing problems. Face each day with the assurance that God will be with you and see you through whatever comes your way.

(1:16) Idols - The people of Judah sinned greatly by worshiping other gods and continuing to burn incense to them. God had commanded them specifically not to do this (Exodus 20:3-6) because idolatry places trust in created things rather than the Creator. Although these people belonged to God, they deserted him and chose to follow false gods. Many "gods" entice us to turn away from the true God. Possessions, dreams for the future, the approval of others, and vocational goals compete for our total commitment. Striving after these at the expense of our commitment to God puts our hearts where Judah's was--and leaves us in a position to be judged by God for our sin.

Dave Burnette's Life Application

Your Calling

Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today, we start in the Book of Jeremiah 1. In our text today, we see God calling Jeremiah to deliver a message to leaders and people in the land of their sin. When applying, we know that we have a job to do. As people of God, we, too, have a calling to share the Gospel with a lost and dying world. We are to be as Jeremiah tells them. The only hope of having their sins forgiven is Jesus Christ. He is the way, the truth, and the life. How about you? Do you see the call of Jeremiah in your life? Let us learn from our text today and the life of Jeremiah to know that we, too, have a calling to share the good news of Jesus Christ with a lost and dying world

Jeremiah 1

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Jeremiah 1

¹The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin:

²To whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign.

³It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

⁴Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

⁵Before 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.

⁶Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.

⁷But the LORD said unto me, 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.

⁸Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.

⁹Then 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.

¹⁰See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.

¹¹Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a rod of an almond tree.

¹²Then said the LORD unto me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.

¹³And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.

¹⁴Then the LORD said unto me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land.

¹⁵For, lo, 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.

¹⁶And 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.

¹⁷Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.

¹⁸For, 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.

¹⁹And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.

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