Call of Jeremiah – Jeremiah 1:1-19
The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, 2 to whom the word of the Lord came in the days of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3 It came also in the days of King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of King Zedekiah son of Josiah of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month.
Jeremiah’s Call and Commission
4 Now the word of the Lord came to me saying,
5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”
6 Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.” 7 But the Lord said to me,
“Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’;
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
says the Lord.”
9 Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,
“Now I have put my words in your mouth.
10 See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to pull down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.”
11 The word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see a branch of an almond tree.” 12 Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it.” 13 The word of the Lordcame to me a second time, saying, “What do you see?” And I said, “I see a boiling pot, tilted away from the north.”
14 Then the Lord said to me: Out of the north disaster shall break out on all the inhabitants of the land. 15 For now I am calling all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north, says the Lord; and they shall come and all of them shall set their thrones at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, against all its surrounding walls and against all the cities of Judah. 16 And I will utter my judgments against them, for all their wickedness in forsaking me; they have made offerings to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands. 17 But you, gird up your loins; stand up and tell them everything that I command you. Do not break down before them, or I will break you before them. 18 And I for my part have made you today a fortified city, an iron pillar, and a bronze wall, against the whole land—against the kings of Judah, its princes, its priests, and the people of the land. 19 They will fight against you; but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, says the Lord, to deliver you.
What does the passage say?
V. 1-3 the timeline of Jeremiah’s calls is described.
V. 4-10 Jeremiah’s call
1. I knew you from your mother’s womb, and I have chosen you.
2. Don’ be afraid I am with you
3. I will put my words in your mouth.
V. 11-16 Jeremiah sees a vision of a boiling pot being poured out from the north. This shows God’s plan for how the destruction of Israel will happen. According to this vision, the northern Israel was invaded by Assyrians in BC732, and the Babylonian invaded Judah in BC 597.
V. 17- 19 God tells Jeremiah that he will be attacked by the people who don’t want to hear God’s message. The Message says, “You’re a one-man defense system against the culture. Against Judah’s kings and princes, against the priests and local leaders” (V. 18 The Message). However, God assures protection over Jeremiah to carry out God’s plan.
What does this mean to me/us
In the call story of Jeremiah, we see many similarities to other call stories.
Jeremiah says, “I don’t know how to speak; I am too young” (V. 6). We remember that Moses said the same word. “I don’t know how to speak.” However, the Creator, who knows us more than we do enables us to do what God need us to do. Only if we submit ourselves to God’s will.
God also assures Jeremiah by saying, ‘not to be afraid,’ because God is with him. We also remember how Joshua was convinced by God’s promise of walking with him.
Isaiah experienced a sheprim touching his mouth with coal. In a similar way, Jeremiah received God’s words by his mouth.
We have one thing in common with Jeremiah. The fact that God called us and knew our ever fiber. God called us to be a light into this world. We need to be in complete yielding to God’s will for us to see what God planned for our life. Sometimes that life will involve hardship because the way that we live is counter-cultural. However, don’t forget that God is with you in this journey. As people walking this journey with God, let us live this day worthy of God’s call.
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