Hopelessness or Faith?

1 Jeremiah received the Lord’s word in the tenth year of Judah’s King Zedekiah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar’s rule. 2 At that time, the army of the Babylonian king had surrounded Jerusalem, and the prophet Jeremiah was confined to the prison quarters in the palace of Judah’s king. 3 Judah’s King Zedekiah had Jeremiah sent there after questioning him: “Why do you prophesy, ‘This is what the Lord says: I’m handing this city over to the king of Babylon, and he will occupy it; 4 and Judah’s King Zedekiah will be captured and handed over to the king of Babylon; he will speak to the king of Babylon personally and see him with his very own eyes. 5 And Zedekiah will be carried off to Babylon to live out his days until I punish him, declares the Lord. If you make war against the Babylonians, you will fail.’ ” 6 Jeremiah said, The Lord’s word came to me: 7 Your cousin Hanamel, Shallum’s son, is on his way to see you; and when he arrives, he will tell you: “Buy my field in Anathoth, for by law you are next in line to purchase it.” 8 And just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel showed up at the prison quarters and told me, “Buy my field in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for you are next in line and have a family obligation to purchase it.” Then I was sure this was the Lord’s doing. 9 So I bought the field in Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel, and weighed out for him seventeen shekels of silver. 10 I signed the deed, sealed it, had it witnessed, and weighed out the silver on the scales. 11 Then I took the deed of purchase—the sealed copy, with its terms and conditions, and the unsealed copy— 12 and gave it to Baruch, Neriah’s son and Mahseiah’s grandson, before my cousin Hanamel and the witnesses named in the deed, as well as before all the Judeans who were present in the prison quarters. 13 I charged Baruch before all of them: 14 “The Lord of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, proclaims: Take these documents—this sealed deed of purchase along with the unsealed one—and put them into a clay container so they will last a long time. 15 The Lord of heavenly forces, the God of Israel, proclaims: Houses, fields, and vineyards will again be bought in this land.”

Hopelessness or Faith?

This passage might be one of those “so what” passages of Scripture. Jeremiah is in prison and a cousin comes with a the deal of a lifetime. I don’t know what Jeremiah needs a piece of property for, after all, Babylon is knocking on the door and Judah is about to be destroyed.

How did Jeremiah end up in this place? He began to prophesy during the reign of King Josiah in about 627 BC. Josiah was one of the good kings. There was a revival during his reign. He worked hard to get rid of the idolatry and to focus the people on the worship of Jehovah. Josiah died and there was a series of kings who were essentially tied to Assyria.

During this time Babylon was growing in power. Jehoiakim ruled Judah for several years. When he died his son Jehoichin became king. Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon invaded Jerusalem and looted the temple and the temple treasury. Jehoiachin and his mother were taken to Babylon. Zedekiah his uncle became the king and he was nothing more than a puppet king.

Jeremiah prophesied more and more about the fall of Judah, warning the people that they would live in exile. His prophecies were not well received by the king. Despite that fact that so many of them were coming to pass, the king did not want to hear them. Zedekiah had heard enough and had Jeremiah thrown into prison.

Zedekiah questioned Jeremiah, look at verse 3-5

Jeremiah 32:3–5 CEB

3 Judah’s King Zedekiah had Jeremiah sent there after questioning him: “Why do you prophesy, ‘This is what the Lord says: I’m handing this city over to the king of Babylon, and he will occupy it; 4 and Judah’s King Zedekiah will be captured and handed over to the king of Babylon; he will speak to the king of Babylon personally and see him with his very own eyes. 5 And Zedekiah will be carried off to Babylon to live out his days until I punish him, declares the Lord. If you make war against the Babylonians, you will fail.’ ”

As I read through those verses it dawned on me that Zedekiah was quoting what Jeremiah had said many different times.

Have you ever had a kid ask you a bunch of times for something? They come to you again and you begin to quote what they have said so many times in the past.

Jeremiah if nothing, he was persistent with the message that God had told him to give. Jeremiah had been faithful to God. Zedekiah did not want to hear the message.

Zedekiah must have felt that the message from God through Jeremiah was putting him in a hopeless situation. Based on what we’ve learned from Jeremiah, Judah and their current king was rushing headlong into exile.

Jeremiah found no joy in bringing these prophecies. He was heart broken as we discussed last week.

Jeremiah 8:22–9:1 CEB

22 Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then have my people not been restored to health? 1 If only my head were a spring of water and my eyes a fountain of tears, I would weep day and night for the wounds of my people.

That is not someone who was gleeful about what was going to happen. Yet, he was faithful to bring the warning to Judah.

Zedekiah had enough. I want to believe that he knew the writing was on the wall. He was going to try one last ditch effort to save his kingdom. If he didn’t succeed then all hope was gone.

Zedekiah questioned Jeremiah about the aweful things that he had said. Zedekiah did not want to hear them. They presented a horrible future. John Guest wrote:

The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Volume 19: Jeremiah / Lamentations Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth is

People like that simply do not understand the Jeremiahs of the world who are committed to obedience, truth, and moral absolutes regardless of how uncomfortable they might make us.

Have you ever felt you were in a hopeless situation? Zedekiah and Judah was in a hopeless situation. Jeremiah was in a seemingly hopeless situation.

I was in a training on Thursday about relapse prevention. The presenter when he got the the nuts and bolts of the training said that we as counselors or therapists are to be purveyors of hope. We have to sell hope to people who have no hope.

As that ran through my mind I thought about from a Christian viewpoint. Aren’t we to be purveyors of hope? Aren’t we to give hope to people who have no hope?

Edward Mote wrote one of the hymns in our hymn book with these words:

My hope is built on nothing less Than Jesus' blood and righteousness I dare not trust the sweetest frame But wholly lean on Jesus' name

On Christ the solid rock I stand All other ground is sinking sand All other ground is sinking sand

Is that where your hope is this morning? Jeremiah had placed his faith and hope in God. The later part of our scripture text demonstrates that Jeremiah’s hope and faith were in Jehovah. One author wrote:

The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Volume 19: Jeremiah / Lamentations Putting Your Money Where Your Mouth is

He was called to “put his money where his mouth was,” to make a financial investment in the vision of the reconstruction of Jerusalem. When spiritual reality reaches our wallet, we then know for sure that it has reached our heart and has become more than lip service.

Zedekiah was seeking a way out of a hopeless situation and he must have thought that by locking up Jeremiah that he would shut him up. The thing is that God’s word is not going to be shut up and shut away. Jeremiah is in the prison and he wrote:

Jeremiah 32:6–7 CEB

6 Jeremiah said, The Lord’s word came to me: 7 Your cousin Hanamel, Shallum’s son, is on his way to see you; and when he arrives, he will tell you: “Buy my field in Anathoth, for by law you are next in line to purchase it.”

God spoke to Jeremiah who was locked away in prison. What a strange thing to happen to Jeremiah. He has been prophesying that the enemy is going to conquer Judah and the people will be taken into exile. Why would you buy a piece of property at this time?

Jeremiah is being invited to “put your money where your mouth is” or to “practice what you preach.”

God was testing Jeremiah. Did Jeremiah believe that they would return from exile one day? This was an opportunity for Jeremiah to prove that he believed that God’s promise was true.

God was asking him to take a step out in faith. “Whenever you share the Word with people, expect to be tested. This is the only way they can tell the reality of your faith.” [1]

What would you have said had you been in Jeremiah’s shoes? Would you happily hand over the money for the property or would you tell him, no thanks, no is not a a good time?

Jeremiah 32:8 CEB

8 And just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel showed up at the prison quarters and told me, “Buy my field in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for you are next in line and have a family obligation to purchase it.” Then I was sure this was the Lord’s doing.

Just as the Lord said. Interesting statement. It doesn’t seem that he was shocked or surprised that it would happen. Thomas Rogers told the following story in a sermon he wrote about this event.

Cynthia stood before a church group in a neighboring town. She had been invited to share the story of her faith in her successful struggle against death. She stood before the group with a candle in one hand and a pocket lighter in the other.

She began, "Three years ago I went to the hospital for a series of tests and I was told that I had malignant cancer. I was also told that, although it was possible for me to take chemotherapy treatments, the chance of them offering any help at all was very slim. My doctors said treatments would most likely only bring misery to my final days. This was, of course, very bad news for me. I fell into a deep despair. I was ready to give up. All I could see was darkness.

"As I lay in this dark despair in my hospital bed, I started reading a Bible that was in my room. I happened to turn to the book of Jeremiah. What I read there changed my life. It also literally gave me life.

"In the darkest moment of my life, I read about the dark times that Jeremiah and the nation of Judah experienced. Following directions that he had received from God, Jeremiah prophesied for 12 years that Jerusalem would be destroyed. Finally, having angered the king by saying such things, Jeremiah was sitting in prison watching his prediction of doom come true. The Judean nation was on the brink of destruction. Her enemies were making their final assault upon the city. The Judeans who had already been killed lay unburied and those who were still alive suffered from famine and pestilence. The end was very near. Soon the enemy would break through and drag the survivors from their homeland into a captivity in a foreign land. It was a very dark time for them. As I read, it was easy for me to relate to the despair of their situation.

"In the midst of this hopeless and despairing situation, God led Jeremiah to do an incredibly hopeful thing. At the moment when things looked the worst, God led Jeremiah to purchase a field. He bought land in a country that was about to be taken over by the enemy. In this action Jeremiah was making an investment in the future. In the midst of a very bad time, he looked with hope to a better future of better times. Jeremiah knew that the hard times of exile were about to come upon the people of Judah, but God also led the prophet to symbolically proclaim that things would eventually get better and that God would return the people to their home. In faith Jeremiah saw that future. As a symbol of hope, he invested himself in that future by buying a piece of land."

Cynthia said, "When I read about Jeremiah's purchase of the field, it was as if God had suddenly brought a light into my darkness." At this point in her story Cynthia lit the candle she was holding. She continued, "I had a candle brought into my hospital room and I lit it that day as a sign of my hope -- a sign that I was going to trust God like Jeremiah and invest in the future.

Cynthia continued, "Against the recommendation of my doctors I took chemotherapy treatments. In the process I got very sick and I came quite close to death. But, as I stand before you today, my cancer is in total remission." She raised the lit candle in front of her. "God gave me hope during my darkest times, during my bad times. Like Jeremiah, I put my faith in God and invested in the future. Now I praise God and celebrate the good times of health that the future has brought me."

At this point in her talk everyone in the group broke into spontaneous applause. Everyone, that is, except for a quiet man in the back row. After a moment he raised his hand and asked to speak. He said, "Your story sounds similar in many ways to a story that was a part of my life. It is very similar, but only up to a point. My wife also had cancer. She too had hope that God would move her through the dark times into better times. She invested in that future. She trusted God as the light to see her through her darkness. She took all kinds of treatments and she too got very sick. Together we hoped, together we prayed, and then she died." He said, "Please don't get me wrong. I am very glad that the future in which you invested turned out to have good times in it for you. But as you stand there holding that candle, I have to ask you -- what do you think Jeremiah's hopeful action of purchasing a field has to say for my wife?"

All eyes were upon Cynthia. It was very quiet as they waited for her response. She also waited for her response, and then, discovering that she did not have one, told the man that she was sorry for his loss, blew out her candle, and sat down.

How are we to make sense of the man's question? Cynthia did understand this story correctly, didn't she? The purchase is a symbol of hope, is it not? The small plot of land that Jeremiah bought is a symbol of the whole land and the prophet is a symbol of all who will own property in the new age when Yahweh will restore the fortunes of Israel. Cynthia heard the story saying that we can make it through even the very worst times by focusing on the future -- the time when God will finally set things right. Jeremiah's symbolic action seems to proclaim that there will be better times ahead. So, how do we respond to the man in the back row whose wife lit a candle in her darkness only to have it snuffed out by unsuccessful cancer treatments and finally by death? What can be said to the people who join Jeremiah in hoping for those better times, but then never experience any better times? [2]

I think for me that the question that I have to ask myself is do I believe that God is a keeper of His promises. Time after time we read in the Old Testament about the promises of God. Time after time the people failed to live up to their end of the covenant and now we are with Jeremiah. The end is near, the enemy is knocking at their door. It seems that all hope is gone.

Jeremiah buys a piece of property because he is investing in the future. Jeremiah believes there is hope, that God is going to keep his promise. He believes that the people will be brought back from exile.

We’ve read the end of the Story of God and we know that He keeps His promises.

The people did come back to Judah, Jerusalem was restored.

We know that the promised Messiah came in the person of Jesus, that he lived and brought the good news. We know that he was crucified, dead, buried and that on the third day he rose again.

We know that he ascended to heaven. We know that the promised Holy Spirit descended on those first disciples. We know all of that.

We know all of that, but do we really believe it? Read the rest of this chapter from Jeremiah and see the hope filled message from God. Jeremiah questions God about why he was making this investment.

Jeremiah was making an investment into the future. He was not going to live to see all of God’s promises fulfilled, but he was investing in them.

What about us? Are we making investments in the kingdom?

If we are serious about the need for a revival then we need to understand God’s word. In the reading from 1 Timothy we heard these words:

1 Timothy 6:11–12 CEB

11 But as for you, man of God, run away from all these things. Instead, pursue righteousness, holy living, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness. 12 Compete in the good fight of faith. Grab hold of eternal life—you were called to it, and you made a good confession of it in the presence of many witnesses.

That is being Kingdom focused. The earlier part of that reading spoke about stuff, the things that can become our idols. Paul in this letter to Timothy is telling him what he should pursue.

Righteousness, holy living, faithfulness, love, endurance, and gentleness - those all should be exemplified in our lives. I really love what Paul wrote in verse 12:

1 Timothy 6:12 (CEB)

12 Compete in the good fight of faith. Grab hold of eternal life—you were called to it

[1] Wiersbe, W. W. (1991). With the Word Bible Commentary (Je 32:1). Thomas Nelson.

[2] Jeremiah 32:1-44 | Invest In The Future | Sermon and Worship Resources (sermons.com)