Rev. Paul J Cain, Jr.
Jeremiah 26:8-15
Thus Says the Lord
Second Sunday in Lent, 24 February 2013
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit. Amen.
About the Cover: “You shall die!” they thundered at Jeremiah.
They thought the prophet had spoken blasphemy, but he had spoken only the truth
God put in his mouth. Jesus, too, is threatened with death (by Herod, “that
fox” [Luke 13:31–32]), but our Lord is undismayed. He still has work to do, and
He knows He will not die until the appointed time and at the appointed place:
Jerusalem, when the lambs are slain.
We should set the
stage for the death threat against Jeremiah. This text has something to say to
us here and now.
In the beginning of
the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from
the Lord: 2 “Thus
says the Lord: Stand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the
cities of Judah that come to worship in the house of the Lord all the words
that I command you to speak to them; do not hold back a word. 3 It may be they will
listen, and every one turn from his evil way, that I may relent of the disaster
that I intend to do to them because of their evil deeds. 4 You shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord: If you
will not listen to me, to walk in my law that I have set before you, 5 and to listen to the
words of my servants the prophets whom I send to you urgently, though you have
not listened, 6 then
I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make this city a curse for all
the nations of the earth.’ ”
7 The priests and the prophets and all the
people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord.
It sounds pretty
straight forward doesn’t it? The Lord told His prophet to proclaim His word.
The Lord wanted His people to repent, listen to His prophets, and repent. It
sounds straight forward enough, right? If they choose not to listen or choose
not to obey, then, the Lord says, “I will make this house like Shiloh, and I
will make this city a curse for all the nations of the earth.” “A curse” we at
least understand. What does the Lord mean about Shiloh? Shiloh was destroyed.
It had once hosted the Ark of the Covenant. When the people there began to
think of it superstitiously, as only a “good luck charm,” the Ark was
temporarily lost to the Philistines and the city itself was destroyed.
And here is where
today’s Old Testament text picks up the account:
8 And when Jeremiah had finished speaking all
that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, then the priests
and the prophets and all the people laid hold of him, saying, “You shall die! 9 Why have you
prophesied in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘This house shall be like Shiloh,
and this city shall be desolate, without inhabitant’?” And all the people
gathered around Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.
Let’s pause and
understand what is going on. Jeremiah did what the Lord told him to do. The
priests and other prophets and all the people did not believe what Jeremiah
said from the Lord. They didn’t want to hear it. They didn’t want to do it.
Their solution was to get rid of the person, Jeremiah, who had offended them.
Now the government gets involved.
10 When the officials of Judah heard these
things, they came up from the king’s house to the house of the Lord and took
their seat in the entry of the New Gate of the house of the Lord. 11 Then the priests and
the prophets said to the officials and to all the people, “This man deserves
the sentence of death, because he has prophesied against this city, as you have
heard with your own ears.”
Where is the king in
all of this? He sent his officials. The priests and prophets appealed to the
officials to put Jeremiah to death, not because he spoke unfaithfully, but
because Jeremiah proclaimed the Lord’s own judgment against them and their
city. There’s a big difference between the two, of course. What would Jeremiah
say?
12 Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and
all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and
this city all the words you have heard. 13 Now
therefore mend your ways and your deeds, and obey the voice of the Lord your
God, and the Lord will relent of the disaster that he has pronounced against
you. 14 But as for
me, behold, I am in your hands. Do with me as seems good and right to you. 15 Only know for
certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood upon
yourselves and upon this city and its inhabitants, for in truth the Lord sent
me to you to speak all these words in your ears.”
Jeremiah proclaimed
the Lord’s Word. The Lord wanted His people to repent, listen to His prophets,
and repent. Instead, the people call for Jeremiah’s death. That is where the
reading on the back of your bulletin ends. It is our point of connection with
the text. What do you do with God’s Word? You have heard it today. You are
hearing it explained, proclaimed, and applied to you here and now. What will
you do with it the rest of this day? What will you do with it the rest of this
week? This month? This year? The Lord calls for you to repent so that you may
benefit from the delivery of His life, salvation, and forgiveness. His Word is
good seed that can remain hidden or dead, or it can be planted and bear fruit.
Which will it be for you?
World magazine, 23 February 2013, p. 4: How far and how quickly [our nation
has moved on social issues, away from what God’s Word says,] from [declaring
something] “taboo/criminal à toleration à acceptance à approval à normalization à protection à preferential treatment.” Indeed, what’s to
keep the same pattern from repeating itself with reference to a variety of
moral issues? [This is the pattern our old evil foe uses to introduce false
teaching to a pastor, a Christian, a congregation, and even a church body. Pray
for steadfastness, for faithfulness, for courage to stand firm, for bold,
faithful, and winsome proclamation of God’s Word in all of its truth and
purity.
This sermon, like
any sermon, is unfinished. Faith responds to God’s Word with its “Amen,”
looking to Christ alone, breathing forth with good works, good works that are
faith’s “thank you” to the Lord, not good works misunderstood as bribes to the
Lord. Salvation is in Christ Jesus alone. Period.
Jeremiah proclaimed
the Lord’s Word. That is what you and the Lord has called me to do. The Lord still
wanted His people that He gathers to Himself and His Word to repent, listen to
His Word, and repent. Instead, apathy reigns. So many people don’t want to take
even an hour of their time on a Sunday morning to pay attention. Ignorance of
the Bible is to be expected in America. It is common for me to meet adults who
have never been baptized. It is common for me to meet children who have rarely,
if ever, set foot in a church. It is common for me to meet nursing home
residents who haven’t been near a preacher in thirty years. It is easy to be
distracted even while in the pews. Once the service ends, we all leave this
place and go forth into our vocations. What will you do with God’s Word? How
will you respond in faith?
I can tell you the
rest of the story for the people in Jeremiah 26.
16 Then the officials and all the people said to
the priests and the prophets, “This man does not deserve the sentence of death,
for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God.” 17 And certain of the elders of the land arose and
spoke to all the assembled people, saying, 18 “Micah
of Moresheth prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and said to all
the people of Judah: ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “ ‘Zion shall be plowed as a field; Jerusalem shall
become a heap of ruins, and the mountain of the house a wooded height.’
19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put
him to death? Did he not fear the Lord and entreat the favor of the Lord, and
did not the Lord relent of the disaster that he had pronounced against them?
But we are about to bring great disaster upon ourselves.”
This is another good
time to pause. The government officials, representatives of the king affirmed
Jeremiah’s ministry and message. And elders of the land spoke to the people
from the scriptures. Proclaiming the Law of the Lord, they said, is not a cause
to call for the prophet’s death. No. It is time to repent and believe. And the
Lord relented on the disaster He had proclaimed as a judgment on
unfaithfulness. Finally, these elders said: “But we are about to bring great
disaster upon ourselves” [if we do not repent and believe].
These elders knew
what they were talking about. They also knew the account of a counter-example: 20 There was another
man who prophesied in the name of the Lord, Uriah the son of Shemaiah from
Kiriath-jearim. He prophesied against this city and against this land in words
like those of Jeremiah. 21 And
when King Jehoiakim, with all his warriors and all the officials, heard his
words, the king sought to put him to death. But when Uriah heard of it, he was
afraid and fled and escaped to Egypt. 22 Then
King Jehoiakim sent to Egypt certain men, Elnathan the son of Achbor and others
with him, 23 and
they took Uriah from Egypt and brought him to King Jehoiakim, who struck him
down with the sword and dumped his dead body into the burial place of the
common people.
So what happened in
this counter-example? Uriah the prophet faithfully proclaimed the Lord’s Word
like Jeremiah is doing. He fled to Egypt to escape a death sentence like the
people want against Jeremiah. Egypt extradited him back to Jehoiakim who killed
him and dishonored his remains. So much for the Lord’s prophet.
What is to become of
Jeremiah?
24 But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was
with Jeremiah so that he was not given over to the people to be put to death.
Jeremiah is rescued.
As I mentioned before, Jesus, too, is threatened with death (by Herod, “that
fox” [Luke 13:31–32]), but our Lord is undismayed. He still has work to do, and
He knows He will not die until the appointed time and at the appointed place:
Jerusalem, when the lambs are slain.
TLSB: Faithful proclamation of God’s Word often brings serious, even fatal
opposition by the worldly powers. Despite this, [we Christians] faithfully
defend those wrongly accused, and pray for fellow Christians who face
persecution. God often rescues His people from physical harm, but the greater
blessing is that He rescues you from eternal condemnation through Jesus Christ.
Amen.
In the Name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
