Read Reflect I suspect every pastor wishes he had more people like the man in verses 1-3! Look at him: a good speaker (v 1), very wise, a person of dynamic faith (v 2), generous to the point of sacrifice and ready if need be to die for Christ (v 3). Just about as close […]

Read Reflect It is never easy to face the consequences of a bad choice, particularly when we have been warned ahead of time. Such is the case with the people of Judah to whom Jeremiah gives God’s message here. Jeremiah reminds them of God’s warning in the Sinai covenant/agreement made shortly after the exodus of […]

Read Reflect It doesn’t get much more raw than this. Jeremiah is sick and tired of seeing the disobedient people around him prosper. It is particularly galling when he has been faithful and is suffering. “So drag my enemies away and butcher them like sheep” he says to God. The pain and anger is palpable. […]

Read Reflect Among the many prophetic warnings Jeremiah is told to speak to the people, are a few visible demonstrations which are meant to convey prophetic truths. Chapter 13 has two of these. Firstly, Jeremiah is instructed to buy and wear a pair of linen shorts, then told to go and hide them in a […]

Read Reflect We can well imagine that when Jeremiah hears disparaging reports about the nation and sees similar evidence around him, that he might slide into despair. The many messages of judgment that God gives him and which he must communicate to the people he loves and cares for do not ease his discouragement. These […]

Read Reflect These few verses almost sound like a mix between a plea and a bargain being made between the psalmist and God – and the desperation expressed is by no means foreign to us. Most of us can identify at least one time, if not a few dozen, when we’ve felt the same need […]

Read Reflect This passage challenges me. For most of my life, I felt it was important to be friends with everyone. Yet here we read that we shouldn’t be friends with anyone who rebels against God (v 21). Let’s face it, many popular world views fly in the face of what the Lord says is […]