Spin the Prophet

Then all the commanders of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least to the greatest, came near and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Let our plea for mercy come before you, and pray to the Lord your God for us, for all this remnant—because we are left with but a few, as your eyes see us— that the Lord your God may show us the way we should go, and the thing that we should do.” Jeremiah the prophet said to them, “I have heard you. Behold, I will pray to the Lord your God according to your request, and whatever the Lord answers you I will tell you. I will keep nothing back from you.” Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act according to all the word with which the Lord your God sends you to us. Whether it is good or bad, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God to whom we are sending you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.” -- Jeremiah 42:1-6

These folks sound like the right kind of people with the right response to God’s word. They are seeking to know God’s will, and they assure the prophet that whatever he comes back with, they will do. Jeremiah’s credentials as a prophet were already well established. Nebuchadnezzar had taken Jerusalem just as Jeremiah had said he would. Many of the Jews had gone into Babylonian captivity, but a few had been left behind. They were uncertain of their future, fearful of what might happen next. They wondered if they should abandon the land of their ancestors and flee – perhaps back to Egypt, as that seemed the only nation strong enough to oppose the might of Babylon’s military machine.

Despite their claim of willing submission to God’s will, the people are already hinting that they do not quite trust God since what He says might be “good or bad”. I cannot say as I blame them. When tragedy strikes, it tends to unbalance our perspective. A good friend of mine lost her husband to heart failure a few days ago. They were just getting to the point of thinking about retirement, travel and enjoying life a little. Only a few months ago, they welcomed their first grandchild. I am sure my friend finds herself questioning the goodness of God. She no doubt still believes in Him, but it would be a rare person indeed who did not feel, to one degree or another, betrayed were they in her circumstances. Life owes us nothing, yet we have come to believe that karma is instant after all.

I will not quote the entirety of Jeremiah 42, but it is worth reading. After ten days, Jeremiah meets again with the remnant and tells them empathically that they must stay in Jerusalem and under no circumstances are they to go down to Egypt. It is a clear, unequivocal message. To flee to Egypt is certain disaster and death. Beginning in the 43rd chapter, we have the people’s response:

When Jeremiah finished speaking to all the people all these words of the Lord their God, with which the Lord their God had sent him to them, Azariah the son of Hoshaiah and Johanan the son of Kareah and all the insolent men said to Jeremiah, “You are telling a lie. The Lord our God did not send you to say, ‘Do not go to Egypt to live there,’ but Baruch the son of Neriah has set you against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may kill us or take us into exile in Babylon.” So Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces and all the people did not obey the voice of the Lord, to remain in the land of Judah (Jeremiah 43:1-4)

The entire remnant was forced to relocate to Tahpanhes in Egypt. They even dragged a very reluctant Jeremiah along with them. What the Jews did was place themselves directly in the line of Babylon’s next conquest. Instead of fleeing to safety, they ran into the path of destruction.

I used to practice a form of bibliomancy, but I never took it too seriously since I would routinely reject passages until I hit one that I liked. Those who inquired of Jeremiah were not much ahead of me. They were really playing “spin the prophet”. They knew all along what they intended to do, but they were seeking a pretext to support their decision. Assuming that God wanted them out of Jerusalem, they expected Jeremiah to tell them to run away. Instead he assured them that God had not forsaken and was not going to forsake them. He would protect and provide for them if they were willing to remain in their place and be obedient.

We want to think that when God calls us to something He is calling us to an inevitable success. This is practically part of the gospel preached in churches across America. Yet we often see in the lives of saints, missionaries, and martyrs far less of what the world would define as success than we might expect. Was Eric Liddell a success as he died of an inoperable brain tumor in a World War II prison camp? Was Oswald Chambers a success dying of a ruptured appendix as a chaplain in World War I Egypt? Are Christians being persecuted and imprisoned in China or being sold into slavery in Africa or being murdered in Pakistan successful? Yes, they are. It is reported that Eric Liddell’s last words were, “It is complete surrender.” The issue is not what we are able to achieve in terms of fame or fortune, safety or security or status, but rather whether we are willing to allow God to live through us in power.

I used to think that “power” had something to do with visible and exciting gifts like words of knowledge, wisdom, and prophecy, or gifts of healing and miracles, or transformative preaching and teaching, or even talents like music and art. Those are, I believe, all part of the reality of the kingdom, but the power I need most is the power to make the right choice on the decision that is in my hand at the moment. Ninety-nine times out of a hundred I do not require a Voice From On High to advise me to do the right thing (or else), and if I make the right choice on 99 little things the 100th big thing will be a snap.

Jeremiah’s listeners, though, were hampered – as I am too often – by past failures. I have made the wrong choice too many times, and, when I hear the word or the still, small voice, I am worried. Perhaps after all those bad choices, I will be punished if I step out in obedience on this one. Thoughts like that haunt me all the time. Maybe I’m the only one. Maybe I’m wrong in thinking others might feel the same way. But it is Jeremiah himself who gives us the answer out of the midst of his weeping and lamentation: But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness (Lamentations 3:21-23).

We can decide to make the right choice this time, to make the decision on what is before us in obedience to the Lord. At that point everything changes. We are on the right road – whether that road is one of prosperity or poverty. The road of obedience is the road of peace.

I have some friends, a family that is in the ministry – a husband, wife and some young children. I have known the wife since she was a little girl. I was at their wedding. They are almost like my own family. Right now they are preparing to go to a country that I cannot name for fear that I would further endanger them. They have learned a new language and the subtleties of a new culture. The husband will be working in a business. If their true purpose is exposed they will, at best, be deported. There is a chance someone could be imprisoned and charged with a crime. In my opinion, they are going into one of the most volatile and dangerous regions on earth at a time of great upheaval and potential disaster. A part of me says they are foolish to go and even more foolish to drag their children into such a hazardous situation. Yet, at the same time, I believe they are being obedient. I do not know if they will succeed in their endeavor, in one sense -- while the very act of going is already a success in a far more significant way. If they are imprisoned, if they are tortured, if they are subjected to atrocities, if they die, in the end, it will not matter if they are transformed by their “complete surrender”.

Perhaps you say, “I could never do that.” I say the same thing. But it is not my calling or likely yours. Nevertheless, our conformity to God’s will in whatever small matter is at hand is just as much a sacrifice in His sight as what seems to us the far greater trials my friends could face. All that matters is “complete surrender”.