Illumination | Week 3

Read | Jeremiah 29:1–23

This is the text of the letter that the prophet Jeremiah sent from Jerusalem to the remaining exiled elders, the priests, the prophets, and all the people Nebuchadnezzar had deported from Jerusalem to Babylon. This was after King Jeconiah, the queen mother, the court officials, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metalsmiths had left Jerusalem. He sent the letter with Elasah son of Shaphan and Gemariah son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. The letter stated:

This is what the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles I deported from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat their produce. Find wives for yourselves, and have sons and daughters. Find wives for your sons and give your daughters to men in marriage so that they may bear sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease. Pursue the well-being of the city I have deported you to. Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for when it thrives, you will thrive.”

For this is what the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Don’t let your prophets who are among you and your diviners deceive you, and don’t listen to the dreams you elicit from them, for they are prophesying falsely to you in my name. I have not sent them.” This is the LORD’s declaration.

For this is what the LORD says: “When seventy years for Babylon are complete, I will attend to you and will confirm my promise concerning you to restore you to this place. For I know the plans I have for you”—this is the LORD’s declaration—“plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. You will call to me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you search for me with all your heart. I will be found by you”—this is the LORD’s declaration—“and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and places where I banished you”—this is the LORD’s declaration. “I will restore you to the place from which I deported you.”

You have said, “The LORD has raised up prophets for us in Babylon!” But this is what the LORD says concerning the king sitting on David’s throne and concerning all the people living in this city—that is, concerning your brothers who did not go with you into exile. This is what the LORD of Armies says: “I am about to send sword, famine, and plague against them, and I will make them like rotten figs that are inedible because they are so bad. I will pursue them with sword, famine, and plague. I will make them a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth—a curse and a desolation, an object of scorn and a disgrace among all the nations where I have banished them. I will do this because they have not listened to my words”—this is the LORD’s declaration—“the words that I sent to them with my servants the prophets time and time again. And you too have not listened.” This is the LORD’s declaration.

Hear the word of the LORD, all you exiles I have sent from Jerusalem to Babylon. This is what the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says about Ahab son of Kolaiah and concerning Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, the ones prophesying a lie to you in my name: “I am about to hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and he will kill them before your very eyes. Based on what happens to them, all the exiles of Judah who are in Babylon will create a curse that says, ‘May the LORD make you like Zedekiah and Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire!’ because they have committed an outrage in Israel by committing adultery with their neighbors’ wives and have spoken in my name a lie, which I did not command them. I am he who knows, and I am a witness.” This is the LORD’s declaration.

Click here to listen to the Scripture in ESV.

God commanded the Israelites to seek the peace of the city of their exile. As you practice self-examination, where are you resisting God’s place in your life and trust in his purposes, rather than confessing your discontent?

Ask God to illuminate the “false prophets” (cultural voices, unbiblical advice, or self-deception) you are currently listening to. What false, easy comforts do you need to confess and abandon today?

Focus

Read this devotional made available from the Story of Scripture team at Dallas Theological Seminary.

The Long Wait
by Kraig McNutt - based on Jeremiah 29

“'For I know the plans I have for you' — this is the Lord's declaration — 'plans for your well-being, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'” —Jeremiah 29:11

The prophet Jeremiah’s words are to an original audience of Jewish exiles in Babylon who have been deported or displaced. Even worse—if that’s possible—is that the temple has been destroyed, the city burned, and the king is actually in chains. Things aren’t going so well for God’s people.

So, what does Jeremiah suggest God's people do while in captivity? He tells them to build houses, plant gardens, marry, settle in. Why does the prophet give this counsel? Because “When seventy years for Babylon are complete, I will attend to you and will confirm my promise concerning you” (Jeremiah 29:10).

What's going on here? It seems the instructions are for the current exiles in Babylon, but the promises in verse 11 are for their grandchildren. Seventy years. Two full generations later.

So a paraphrase would read something like “Restoration is coming,” Jeremiah says, “just not on your timeline, and not in the way you expect.”

It doesn’t sound that encouraging for the audience it’s written for and even less timely for the present day! Since none of us live in ancient Babylon, how do we bridge the gap between the ancient (Israel in captivity) and modern day? It is good to remember when studying that most Scriptures were written for us but not to us.

Most of us know something about waiting. Whether it is the wayward adult child who is estranged from the family, the strained marriage you’ve been praying about, or that chronic illness or diagnosis that feels paralyzing—waiting can be brutal and exhausting.

The message Jeremiah's letter gives us is this: God's faithfulness isn't bound by our timeline. The same God who kept his word across seventy years and two generations is keeping faith with you, right now, in your wait—even if the outcome you're praying for doesn't arrive when you expect it or how you expect it. Waiting is still hard. But you are not waiting alone and there is still a purpose to be found in the waiting...even if you don’t fully understand it now.

Pray

Eternal Source, our human race has wandered, forgetting You. Only Your power can recall Your children and give lasting grace. You know my secret desire to spread Your gospel. Make me an instrument to bring comfort to the hurting, hope to the despairing, and love to the prodigal. Blow away my unbelief by Your Spirit’s breath, replacing it with the fire of Your love. Fill my soul with Your gentle peace, that my life may bear fragrant fruit. May I fulfill my great purpose: to glorify You and bless others.

— Adapted from The Valley of Vision, "Things Needful"

Going Deeper

If you are also following the BibleProject’s One Story That Leads to Jesus reading plan, complete today’s reading.