The Unrighteous Reactions
Jeremiah 26

Lesson 24

background notes

doctrinal / teaching points

1.  Believers are responsible to present the whole content of God’s message.

2.  Believers are subject to various reactions to the presentation of God’s message.

 

practical application

We must leave the sad fallout in the hands of God.

 

questions

1. We believe that this sermon of Jeremiah is the same as the so-called Temple Sermon of Jeremiah in chapter 7 because it is given at the same place at the same time.  In chapter 7 we have more of the content of the sermon, while here in chapter 26 we have more of the ________ and _________ to the sermon.
2. Verse 3 of the sermon indicates that the predicted coming judgment of Judah was _______________.  That is, if the people repented, then God would relent and Jerusalem would be spared.
3. Shiloh was the town where the ___________________________ was taken into battle and captured by the Philistines. During this battle (1 Samuel 4:1-11), Israel was defeated and thirty thousand of their foot soldiers were slaughtered.
4. The bad news of Jeremiah’s prophecy was that if the people continued in their sinful ways, then the Lord would allow the city of Jerusalem to be destroyed, including the beautiful Temple. At this point in history, how many years had the Temple been standing?
5. In verses 7-11, the false prophets, corrupt priests and self righteous religious people tried to convince the officials of Jerusalem that they should sentence Jeremiah to death.  Can you identify a similar scene of accusation in the New Testament?

 

answers

1. Here in chapter 26, we have more of the response and reaction to Jeremiah’s sermon.
2. God’s judgment was conditional, since He offered to relent if the people repented.
3. The Ark of the Covenant was captured by the Philistines at Shiloh.
4. At this point in history,609 BC, the beautiful Temple of Solomon would have been standing for over 300 years.
5. In all four of the Gospels, we find the account of a very similar event of accusation.  In this case it was our Lord who was being accused and whose life was demanded.  Read Matthew 26, Mark 14, Luke 23 and John 18 and 19.

 

discuss / consider

Just as Jeremiah was to speak all the words of the Lord, that is, both the good news and the bad news, so it is that all believers have the responsibility to present the whole content of God’s Word.  Is it not much easier to concentrate on presenting just the good news of the gospel, such as John 3:16, than to include the truthful bad news, such as John 3:36?  Consider a life-time commitment to responsibly presenting the whole content of God’s Word.

challenge

Are the depth of your faith and the strength of your commitment to share the good news of the gospel sufficient to withstand the potentially hurtful response and reaction to your witness?  From the lessons you have learned in this chapter of Jeremiah, are you now better prepared for negative reactions to your witness, even those that may be threatening?

memorize

• "Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Behold, disaster shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great whirlwind shall be raised up from the farthest parts of the earth.” Jeremiah 25:32