September 17, 2024 | Be God's Light
Jeremiah is Beaten and Put in the Stocks
Scripture: Jeremiah 20(NIV)
1 When the priest Pashhur son of Immer, the official in charge of the temple of the Lord, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things, 2 he had Jeremiah the prophet beaten and put in the stocks at the Upper Gate of Benjamin at the Lord’s temple. 3 The next day, when Pashhur released him from the stocks, Jeremiah said to him, “The Lord’s name for you is not Pashhur, but Terror on Every Side. 4 For this is what the Lord says: ‘I will make you a terror to yourself and to all your friends; with your own eyes you will see them fall by the sword of their enemies. I will give all Judah into the hands of the king of Babylon, who will carry them away to Babylon or put them to the sword. 5 I will deliver all the wealth of this city into the hands of their enemies—all its products, all its valuables and all the treasures of the kings of Judah. They will take it away as plunder and carry it off to Babylon. 6 And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will go into exile to Babylon. There you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied lies.’”
7 You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived;
you overpowered me and prevailed.
I am ridiculed all day long;
everyone mocks me.
8 Whenever I speak, I cry out
proclaiming violence and destruction.
So the word of the Lord has brought me
insult and reproach all day long.
9 But if I say, “I will not mention his word
or speak anymore in his name,”
his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot.
10 I hear many whispering,
“Terror on every side!
Denounce him! Let’s denounce him!”
All my friends
are waiting for me to slip, saying,
“Perhaps he will be deceived;
then we will prevail over him
and take our revenge on him.”
11 But the Lord is with me like a mighty warrior;
so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced;
their dishonor will never be forgotten.
12 Lord Almighty, you who examine the righteous
and probe the heart and mind,
let me see your vengeance on them,
for to you I have committed my cause.
13 Sing to the Lord!
Give praise to the Lord!
He rescues the life of the needy
from the hands of the wicked.
14 Cursed be the day I was born!
May the day my mother bore me not be blessed!
15 Cursed be the man who brought my father the news,
who made him very glad, saying,
“A child is born to you—a son!”
16 May that man be like the towns
the Lord overthrew without pity.
May he hear wailing in the morning,
a battle cry at noon.
17 For he did not kill me in the womb,
with my mother as my grave,
her womb enlarged forever.
18 Why did I ever come out of the womb
to see trouble and sorrow
and to end my days in shame?
Devotional
At God’s command, Jeremiah spoke harsh words to the kings and people of Judah. They had abandoned the Lord and embraced the false gods and idols of their day. He called them to repent of their evil and return to God. Rather than listening to his prophetic warnings, they beat the messenger and put him in the stocks. Even after his release, Jeremiah warned his accusers that they would be conquered and exiled to Babylon. That took courage.
Yet as soon as he finished with them, Jeremiah changed his tune as he complained to God. Jeremiah told the Lord that His call had brought him insult, reproach, terror, and danger. He rued the day he was born and wanted to quit.
But he couldn’t quit. The word of the Lord was like fire in his bones. It had to come out of him as sure as lava has to burst out of an active volcano. So he pressed on.
In the New Testament, Paul was another man who was called by God to convey a message that would anger many. In 2 Corinthians 11 he reflected on his life up to that point saying, “I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.”
What did it take for people like Jeremiah and Paul to keep on keeping on despite difficult times? Have you faced some challenges in your life because of your faith? Are you facing any now? How can you turn your problems into praises? What is the fire in your belly that just has to come out, regardless of the circumstances and consequences?
Poem
Prophet's Life
Called from birth
Set aside
Holy
Limited
Submitted fully
To truth
Called to purity
Set aside
Holy
Limited
Submitted fully
To cause
Called to preach
Lonely life
Holy
Pierced eyes
Submitted fully
To God
Called to persecution
Painful life
Holy
Mocked
Submitted fully
To taunting
Called to God
Only friend
Holy
Deserted
Submitted fully
To abandonment
