Jeremiah 26:16-24.  In yesterday’s reading Jeremiah warned the prophets, priests, and people about the destruction of the Temple and the city of Jerusalem if they would not return to him and start listening to the true prophets.  This happened “at the beginning” of the reign of Jehoiakim.  Some scholars think that that term is a technical term that means between the time the king is crowned and the next New Year’s celebration.  If that is correct then chapter 26 happened in between September 609 BC and March 608 BC.  Perhaps this was a warning to the incoming king as well to change police and turn the kingdom back to God.  Instead of listening the people wanted Jeremiah executed and put him on trial.  In yesterdays part of the trial The people made it clear that they wanted Jeremiah executed and why; he had predicted the destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem.  The people saw this as a contradiction of what God would surely want, so Jeremiah must be a false prophet deserving death.  Jeremiah’s response or defense was basically, “Yep.  That’s what I said because Yahweh (the personal name of the God of the Israeiltes, the one true God) told me to.  If you decide to kill me you will be the guilty ones because I am innocent (of being a false prophet.”  In today’s reading we will see the verdict by the “officials”, the political leaders, and also get a glimpse of how serious this trial was for Jeremiah.

In verse 15 Jeremiah repeated his claim that his message was entirely from Yahweh.  In verse 16 we see that the leaders decided that he was telling the truth, his message was from Yahweh, and he would not be executed.  In verses 17-19 some elders step forward and remind the people about an event in their history that was very similar, and how one of their good kings handled it.  The people thought that the destruction of the Jerusalem and the Temple could never happen; they incorrectly thought that they had unconditional protection from Yahweh.  Jehoiakim was one of three sons of Josiah.  His younger brother, Jehoahaz, had been put on the throne by the people when Josiah died in a battle with Pharaoh Neco in 609 BC.   Jehoahaz was only king for three months when Pharaoh Neco removed him and put Jehoiakim ( also called Eliakim) on the throne instead.   Eventually the third brother Mattaniah (also called Zedekiah) would also rule Judah.  Josiah had been king from 640-609 BC and had tried to turn the people back to Yahweh.  It worked during his reign but they quickly turned back to their false gods after his death (see 2 Kings 23:32, 37).  Josiah’s family had been on the throne of Judah for a long time, a few of his ancestors had been considered good kings, faithful to Yahweh, but most were not.  Josiah’s great –grandfather, Hezekiah, was one of the good ones.  During his reign the prophets Isaiah and Micah brought messages to him from God, which helped him honor God during his reign.

Looking back to those days, some of the elders at Jeremiah’s trial remembered that Micah had made a very similar prediction about the destruction of the city of Jerusalem and the Temple.  Depending on the translation you are reading verse 18 might say Temple or house, sometimes the Temple was called the house of the LORD, and Micah clearly was saying that the hill that the Temple was built on would one day would become overgrown like other hills in Judah. The good king, Hezekiah, and the people of Jerusalem didn’t execute Micah, instead they listened to him started to honor God with their lives.  And God did not destroy Jerusalem and the Temple at that time.  At the end of verse 19 the elders who had come into Jeremiah’s trial suggest that the people of their time do the same thing.  They seemed to recognize that the path they were on was evil and that it would have consequences; they probably recognized that Jeremiah’s predictions might come true if they didn’t change their ways.

In verses 20-23 we get a little picture of how dangerous what Jeremiah was saying and doing was.  In verse 20 we meet Uriah another prophet who was speaking for Yahweh.  We are told that his message was very similar to the one Jeremiah had delivered; Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed.  Maybe the officials running Jeremiah’s trial had heard him too and that helped convince them that Jeremiah was telling the truth.  One person who did not appreciate the message was Jehoiakim, the king.  According to verse 21 Jehoiakim, his soldiers, and all of the officials heard the prediction of Uriah and were very unhappy.  I’m not sure if the officials in charge of Jeremiah’s trial were part of this or not.  Either way it is really amazing that they had decided not to execute Jeremiah, as we will see.  The king decided he wanted Uriah dead.  Uriah ran away to Egypt but Jehoaikim sent a representative to bring him back.  Remember that Jehoiakim had been put on the throne by Neco the king of Egypt.  Basically Judah was a territory or province of Egypt at this time and Jehoiakim would have had authority to get Uriah back.

The representative Jehoiakim sent was named Elnathan and we are told he was the son of Achbor.  In the Bible there are a couple of guys named Achbor, one was a king of Edom long before the time of Jeremiah.  Another one was a spiritual leader or advisor to Josiah (Jehoiakim’s father) during his reign at the time when they found scrolls of the Old Testament that had been hidden in the temple (2 Kings 22:1-10).  It seems likely that Elnathan was the son of that same Achbor.  If so then the son of the advisor became an advisor and representative to the son (say that three times fast).  It also seems like, just as Jehoaikim had turned his back on his father’s love for God, that Elnathan had done the same.  Elnathan traveled to Egypt and brought Uriah back to Jerusalem.  In verse 23 we see that the king immediately executed Uriah, no trial here, no remembering former prophets and their messages.  As a further insult Jehoiakim had Uriah’s body thrown out where other unknown people’s bodies were disposed of.  According to 2 kings 23:6 this was in a valley near Jerusalem called the Kidron Valley.  It was a place where trash was dumped and burned.  People dumped there were usually quickly forgotten.  Uriah on the other hand has been remember down through history.

In verse 24 we return to the trial and see that Jeremiah is protected from the people (who still seem to want him dead in spite of the official’s decision and the elder’s advise) and he is not executed.  We are told that he was protected by Ahikam the son of Shaphan.  Back in the days of Josaih, when Achbor was one of his advisors, we see another one of the key people involved with the restoration of the Temple and the finding of the scrolls was a guy named Shaphan.  It seems pretty likely that this is the same Shapahn who’s son protected Jeremiah.

There are a couple of interesting parts to this whole story.  First it is interesting that Jeremiah (well actually probably Baruch at this point) puts the story of Uriah right in the middle of the story about Jeremiah’s trial.  I think the key to this is in the information that he includes.  First we are told that both of these prophets said pretty much the same thing.  Second the author includes information about two guys who had the two prophets lives in their hands.  The author also included information about both of these guys that tie them both back to the reign of Josiah; both of their fathers were guys who loved Yahweh and were involved in influencing the king and the  people in the same direction.  Unfortunately only one son followed his fathers good example, doing what was right (see Jeremiah 26:14), protecting God’s true prophet, and standing against the evil king, while the other sold out to the evil king and led another true prophet to be executed.  From this story I see that it can be dangerous to live for God.  Both prophets proclaimed the same message in basically the same place at the same time to the same people.  In one case the prophet was protected from execution in the other he lost his life.  It reminds me of Peter and John after the resurrection.  Jesus was having a pretty intense talk with Peter in which he challenges Peter about his love and devotion.  He instructs Peter that if he really does love Jesus that he needs to care for the people who have placed their eternity into Jesus’ hands.  Jesus then predicts that Peter will eventually die for his faith in Him.  At that point Peter looks over at John, another one of Jesus closest follower and basically asks, “Him too?”  Jesus answer is that Peter needs to walk the path Jesus has for him and John will walk the path Jesus has for him.  Not all servants of God live the same lives or die the same deaths.  The point is to trust God and be faithful to what ever he asks of us.  In Revelation 18 we see a picture of Heaven during the last 7 years of human history before Jesus take ultimate control of the earth; a period sometimes called the Great Tribulation.  In  Revelation 18:20 we see the saints (dedicated ones, believers in Jesus), apostles (including Peter and John, Matthew 10:2), and prophets (Do you think this included Jeremiah and Uriah?  Probably.) in heaven happy about the fact that evil is finally being dealt with.

Years ago 5 missionaries in South America were trying to help a tribe of Indians learn about Jesus.  They camped near the tribe and made some contact.  After some initial contact the Indians brutally killed all five.  The missionaries had weapons that they refused to use against the Indians.  Some of the wives stayed in the area and continued to try to reach the same Indians for God and eventually did.  At some point before his death one of the missionaries, Jim Elliot, was asked about risking his life to help others learn about Jesus.  He said, “No man is a fool who gives up what he cannot keep, in order to keep what he cannot lose.”  His point was that we die, no one can keep his here and now life forever.  But if we love Jesus and trust him with our eternity (as seen in honoring him with our lives like Jeremiah and Uriah did) then we are assured a place in his forever kingdom; we gain what we can never lose.

The other thing that I think is interesting is the two men who were involved with the two prophets.  Both men came from families who loved God, or at least had fathers who loved and honored God.   But the two sons lived completely different lives.  Ahikam chose to risk his own life to honor God and protect one of God’s messengers, Elnathan chose to “play it safe” and help the evil king Jehoiakim execute an innocent man.  It is clear that our relationship with God has noting to do with who our family is.  It’s not about who our parents are or who our children are.  Even in the line of kings of Judah we see a few good kings surrounded by extremely evil ones.  Hezekiah’s dad was evil, his son was evil, his grandson was evil, his great-grandson was good.  Each man had to make their own decision as god gave them a choice.  Peter had a choice, to follow Jesus where ever that led (and he was warned it would lead to his death).  John had a choice that had a different path. But all of these obedient lives led them, and others, to the same place eternity with God.  The question for us is will we follow the path before us that honors God and leads others to Jesus even if it is narrow and difficult or will we take the “easy” way out and find ourselves on the outside in eternity? (Matthew 7:13-14).

God help me chose the path that honors you.  Help me make the right  decisions even if they are hard or even seem impossible.  Let me keep eternity in mind.  Help my actions benefit those around me.  Thank you for giving me a choice and helping me see and make the right one.  Help me continue to make choices that honor you.  Help my children make the right choice and choices too.  Let my legacy be a dynasty of Christ honorers.  Let me show your goodness and mercy to all who meet me.  Thank you for Jeremiah and Uriah’s faithfulness.  Keep me faithful. 

Jeremiah 26:1-15.  Yesterday I talked about how prophets were supposed to be messengers from God and that a big part for their job was to remind people about things God had already communicated in the Bible.  In Jeremiah’s day that would have been part or most of the Old Testament.  You might want to read “The Old Testament Connection” to get an idea of what the Old Testament is mainly about (Hint:  It’s about our messed up relationship with God and how God is going to fix it).  Jeremiah has been warning the people about how their relationship with God is messed up and what they needed to do about it.  Yesterday we saw the warning extended to “all the kingdoms of the Earth”.  We want to keep in mind that God is not really about punishing or destroying; he wants us back (2 Peter 3:9).  But sin (disobedience and rebellion toward Him) has consequences and he will ultimately banish from his forever kingdom those who reject Him.  The accuracy of the prophets in the Old Testament show us that this in no fairy tale but reality.

Today’s reading starts a section of Jeremiah that goes all the way through chapter 45.  Most Bible experts believe that this part of the book was written down by Jeremiah’s secretary, Baruch.  The events are about Jeremiah and his messages from God are in it but he probably didn’t write it.  If you notice those sorts of things the writing changes from first person to third person.  Don’t let it bother you that this part wasn’t written specifically by Jeremiah.  God used many people to write just the right words to be a part of His book, the Bible.  Jeremiah was a part of what the people of Jesus time (including Jesus) considered the writings of God (in the New Testament they usually use the word “Scriptures” as the name for their Bible.  A word that translates as “writings” and mostly refers to what we call the Old Testament).  If you have read “The Old Testament Connection” you know that the Old Testament (and the rest of the Bible as far as that goes) tells the story of certain people and events that is important to know in order to understand the mess we are in with God and what it is going to take for that mess to be fixed.  Many parts of these stories had to be finished by people who were not the main authors of the different “writings”; or books as we call them.  Obviously Moses, who wrote the first five books of the Bible, couldn’t write about his own death, someone else finished that part of the story.  But God was in control of all of it (1 Peter 1:20-21).

Today’s reading jumps back a little in time from what we have been reading (Remember that these “writings” were not written to be a “timeline” of history but had a purpose.  Sometimes the events are in order and sometimes the author jumps around to make his point).  The message in chapter 25 was originally given in the “fourth year of Jehoiakim” (Jeremiah 25:1) now we are “at the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim” (Jeremiah 26:1).  In verse 2 Jeremiah is told to go to the Temple (called the house of the LORD) and to talk to “all the cities of Judah who are there to worship.”  In Israel there were certain feast days when the citizens of Israel were supposed to go to the Temple to remember God and honor him.  Of course not every Jew could go every time and there were provisions in the Law of Moses for that, but Jerusalem would be very crowded on those days and all of the cities of the kingdom would have probably been represented.  On any given day in the Temple offerings were being made and even on a regular day most of not all of the cities of Israel might have some of their people there.  Visiting the Temple would have been a big deal to any Israelite interested in God and hearing a prophet speak would have been a big deal too. If Jeremiah was speaking in the Temple it would have gotten around.  Of course we want to remember that by Jeremiah’s time the nation of Israel had been split in two, the Northern and Southern Kingdoms, and that the Northern Kingdom (also called Israel) had been destroyed by the Assyrian’s 100 years earlier. That left only the people of the Southern Kingdom (called Judah) to hear from Jeremiah.

It seems interesting that God specifically told Jeremiah not to leave anything out from the message (v. 2).  I wonder if Jeremiah though, “Really?”  He wasn’t in the habit of leaving parts out.  Or maybe he though, “Whatever!” Knowing the people didn’t really want to hear what he was going to say and were becoming more and more hostile to him.  The fact that the people were not in the habit of listening can be seen in verse 3 when God says, “Maybe they will listen and every one will turn away from this bad ways…”  There is something more interesting in this verse though, why does God say “maybe” or “perhaps”?  Doesn’t God know how the people will react?  In Psalm 139:4, 16 the Psalm writer insist that God knows what he is going to say before he says it and that he knows what is going to happen in every day of the persons life even before he lives even one of them.  So what God is saying to Jeremiah has nothing to do with what he knows it has to do with how people (like you and me) are going to respond.  God knows what we are going to do but we still need to live out our lives and make those decisions that he know about.  We also see in this verse that God’s actions are dependent on ours.  We don’t control God but he doesn’t control us either.  He gives us real choices  with real consequences good and bad.  The warnings for their bad actions were conditional; “if…then…”  God still controls the universe he just decided to give us freedom to chose or reject Him.   In verse 4 we see the “if” and in verse 6 we see the “then”.  In this case it is a negative, “if you will not listen and obey, then …”.

The “then” mentions several things.  First he says that he will make “this house” the Temple) like Shiloh.  Many years earlier, when Joshua led the Israelite people into the land they honored God in the “tabernacle”, sort of a portable church or temple that they had used during the forty years they had spent wandering around in the desert before entering the land.  In fact the Tabernacle was where the Israelite people honored God for about 450 years after they entered the land.  For the first 400 years they had no central government, God was supposed to be their king, and they were held together by their worship of Yahweh (the personal name of God).

One place that the Tabernacle was set up after they entered the land was in a town called Shiloh.  One important item that was in the Tabernacle was the “ark of the covenant”.  It was a fancy box or chest, covered with gold with carved angles on top of it.  Inside were the stone tablets that God carved and gave to Moses with the first ten rules for the people on them (the Ten Commandments).  It also had a jar of “manna” in it (the miraculous food God had provided during the 40 years of wandering) and the staff (walking stick) that belonged to Aaron (Moses’ brother) that he used during the miracles that were supposed to convince Pharaoh to allow the Israelites to leave Egypt (Exodus 7-12).  (See also Hebrews 9:4).  This “ark” represented the presence, promises, and power of God in the Israelite’s live.  In 1 Samuel 4 the Israelites lost a battle to the Philistines (some of the original inhabitants of the land that the Israelites were to conquer).  The Israelites mistakenly thought that they were in control and that all they needed to do was take their magic box out to the battlefield and they would win the next battle.  They lost again and this time the Philistines took the “ark”.  The destruction of Shiloh that Jeremiah talks about probably happened at that time, the year was about 1050 BC.  Eventually the Israelites Got the Ark back from the Philistines and kept it in a place called Kiriath-Jearim for a while.  Eventually it was taken to Jerusalem that became the new capital of Israel and finally the third king of Israel, Solomon, built a Temple as the permanent place for honoring God (about 950 BC).  Here in Jeremiah almost another 400 years later the Temple was in danger of being destroyed just like Shiloh had been and for very similar reasons.  The people in 1 Samuel though that they could manipulate God and here in Jeremiah’s time the false prophets and the people were doing the same thing; going their own way (See Judges 21:25 which describes the attitudes at the end of the first 400 years in the land about the time of the 1 Samuel story).

In verses 7-9 we see the reaction of the priests and prophets (the religious leaders who were supposed to be helping the people honor God) and all the people.  The clearly hadn’t learned much over the 400 years since Shiloh, they were still confusing places and things with a living God.  Because Jeremiah predicted the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple they thought he was speaking out against God.  In Deuteronomy 18:18-20 we see God promising to send prophets to the people to “speak all that [He] commanded” them to speak.  If the people didn’t listen they would be punished but if the prophet spoke on his own and claimed it was from God then he was to be put to death.  Because they improperly linked God to the Temple and the city the people of Judah felt Jeremiah was making his own predictions and deserved to die.

In verses 10-19 we have an actual trial.  In verse 10 the political leaders of the territory gathered near the Temple to conduct the trial.  In verse 11 the priests, prophets, and people present they claim and ask for Jeremiah to be put to death.  It is interesting that they propose the punishment before they even make their case.  In verses 12-15 Jeremiah gives his defense.  Really his only defense is his claim that he actually is speaking for God.  He then repeats his warning about how they are living and appeals to them to turn back to God.  No question about what he said, the only question is did he speak from God or not.  He said he was.  In verse 14 he then puts his “fate” in the hands of the leaders hearing the case.  But he warns them that if they put him to death that they will have innocent blood on their hands. In another part of the Law we learn that killing an innocent person is a serious offence (Deuteronomy 19:1-13).  In verse 15 Jeremiah tells them that he expects them to do what is “good and right” and then ends by repeating his claim to be speaking for God.

Tomorrow we will see the outcome of his trial but will also see what happened to another prophet who was giving the same message around the same time.  For us today we need to see that it can be difficult to honor God with our lives.  He has given each one or us a job to do and words to speak to those around us (2 Corinthians 5:16-20).  At least for now, for us here in the United States, most of us will probably not be faced with death for standing up for God.  In other parts of the world people are not so fortunate.  We need to be careful to “speak all that God has commanded us and to not omit a word”.  Jeremiah didn’t get that bold over night remember at this point he had been speaking out for God at least 19 years, and in the beginning it was easy during the reign of the good king Josiah.  We need to practice now while we have a chance so that if and when more serious trouble comes we will be able to say to our enemies, “I am in your hand, do what is good and right, I have spoken honestly to you from God.”

God help me get lots of faithful practice being your representative in the world (ambassador, 2 Corinthians 5:20).  Help me repeat all that you have given me to say.  Let me leave nothing out.  Give me boldness, strength, and peace.  Let me be strong and courageous in the face of our enemies.  Help me remember that this life is passing but that eternity is forever.  Let me bring you honor.