A well intentioned father told his son, “Big boys don’t cry.” Our culture throughout the years has reinforced the idea that it is not manly to cry. The common belief seems to be that tears are a sign of weakness or worse yet a sign of a lack of faith in God. As a result throughout the years people have squelched such expressions of sorrow and hurt both themselves and others. So the big question is, “How does God view the shedding of tears?” I believe the answer is He views them in the exact opposite way than we do. In Psalm 56:8 we learn that He takes note of our tears and remembers them. John records in his Gospel record an account of Jesus weeping bitterly beside Lazarus’ graveside. To those who witnessed this event and saw Jesus’ tears viewed them as a sign of the great love He had for His close friend. Throughout Scripture we will find many examples of people expressing their sorrow before others and God through the shedding of tears. The prophet Jeremiah even went as far as recording his sorrow in a book we now know as Lamentations. This series will focus on the portrait of human pain that Jeremiah paints throughout this book. Before we begin our journey through Lamentations I believe we need to get acquainted with this man named Jeremiah. Today we are going to look at the historical and cultural setting for the book of Lamentations as well as the man Jeremiah and his ministry. Our first stop will be the first chapter of the book of Jeremiah where the majority of this information can be found.
I. Jeremiah and the setting in which He lived.
A. In many cases there is more meaning in a name than meets the eye.
1. The prophet’s name is Jeremiah; the name is not uncommon in Hebrew, though its precise significance is uncertain. It probably means “the Lord throws”, though the sense could be “the Lord loosens.”
2. When you look at the ministry to which the Lord called him, it does not take long to discover that he did not fit the stereo type for being a successful prophet of God.
3. He was thrown into his culture during a time of great turmoil to deliver a very unwelcomed message to a people that had wandered far away from God.
B. An overview Jeremiah’s hometown and family tree.
1. Jeremiah was born in the tiny town of Anathoth which was located about three miles northeast of Jerusalem.
2. Jeremiah is identified as the son of Hilkiah, one of the priests at Anathoth.
3. It is likely that these priests of Anathoth were descendants of Eli and Abiathar, priests who at one time presided over worship before the Ark but who were exiled to Anathoth early in the reign of Solomon.
4. This places Jeremiah in a rather unusual position as there is an almost automatic antagonism between Jeremiah and the Zadokite priests who preside over temple worship. This inbred antagonism explains the bitterness one senses in some of the conversations between Jeremiah and the temple priests
5. The bottom line was that Jeremiah was a priest by birth and a prophet by divine call.
C. The world and culture in which Jeremiah lived.
1. To put this all in perspective we need to have a history lesson about the Nation of Israel.
2. During the reigns of David and his son Solomon Israel became a force both militarily and politically.
3. After the death of Solomon in 931 BC civil war broke out as a result of their unfaithfulness to God resulting in Israel being divided into two kingdoms.
4. The northern Kingdom retained the name Israel and the Southern kingdom was called Judah.
5. The division led to religious corruption, political and economic instability which would eventually lead to the demise of both nations.
6. Israel would last for two hundred years as a nation after the division while Judah would last for 345 years.
D. The situation in Judah when Jeremiah was called by God.
1. Under Judah’s twenty kings there would be three great religious revivals and four periods of great spiritual decline.
2. Jeremiah was called to prophetic ministry in the thirteenth year of King Josiah, 627 BC.
3. As early as his eighth year, when he was but sixteen years of age, Josiah began “to seek the God of his father David.” In his twelfth year Josiah launched a religious reformation.
4. Jeremiah was called to ministry to aid this last heroic effort to change the direction of Judah. While the king was attacking the external and public aspects of idolatry, the preacher would attempt to root out idolatry from the hearts of the people.
5. How many today could continue faithfully proclaiming God’s word for forty years in spite of total rejection, ridicule, and threats?
6. Jeremiah would have been considered a failure by today’s standards of success, but in God’s evaluation he was an outstanding success. Why? Because God judges us by a different standard from the world’s criteria for success.
II. Jeremiah and the ministry to which God called him.
A. Jeremiah’s call follows a pattern which one finds several instances of in the Old Testament, when a prophet or some other leader is chosen by the Lord.
1. The Lord speaks or appears to the one being called.
2. The person speaks some reasons why they are not fit for the task to which the Lord is calling them.
3. The Lord promises to make up for what is lacking so that they are fit for the task.
4. The person accepts the task or is given their first assignment.
5. This sequence of events serves to demonstrate the person’s humility. The person recognizes that, on his own, he is not able to do the job to which God is calling him.
B. A series of divine affirmations impressed upon Jeremiah’s mind the fact that he and he alone could do the job which God had in mind for him.
1. God had “formed” him in his mother’s womb; he was a unique person, endowed with attributes to accomplish what no other man could accomplish.
2. God “knew” him, recognized his strengths and weaknesses, yet chose him anyway. God “consecrated” him, set him apart from all others to fulfill a specific mission.
3. This series of divine affirmations impressed upon Jeremiah’s mind the fact that he and he alone could do the job which God had in mind for him.
4. Jeremiah had been appointed “a prophet,” an official ambassador of God who spoke in his name and by his authority.
C. Jeremiah’s reluctance to accept this call is shown in the two excuses he gives.
1. Jeremiah, struck with terror over the magnitude of the task, pled his youth and inexperience.
2. Realizing that ability in public speaking was essential to the prophetic office, he stated his lack of eloquence.
3. What God required for Jeremiah’s ministry, which was to be so sad and denunciatory, was a tender heart able to sympathize with the pain and struggles of others.
4. Little could the young man know how difficult, hopeless, and heartbreaking his task would be.
5. When God calls, he equips us with what is needed to carry out the assigned task. For Jeremiah it was the promise of God’s presence and deliverance from any threatening situation that the reluctant prophet would face.
III. God’s warning and Jeremiah’s personality.
A. God did not leave Jeremiah in the dark; he let him know exactly what he was in for.
1. He has given Jeremiah a taste of what he will be prophesying to the people of Judah, and he recognizes that this will not be an assignment that Jeremiah will cheerfully accept.
2. From the outset of his ministry Jeremiah is a preacher of judgment. As Isaiah speaks of the salvation of the Lord, Ezekiel of the glory of the Lord, and Daniel of the kingdom of the Lord, so Jeremiah incessantly proclaims the Lord’s judgment.
3. God tells Jeremiah, Get yourself ready! Literally, this is, “Gird on your loins!” This is the language of war, of military preparation. Jeremiah is to expect a hostile audience.
4. They will consider him a threat to their religious beliefs and wish to silence him, so he must be ready for a fight.
5. To fulfill his duties nothing less than utter commitment to God and to his strength would suffice. With God, Jeremiah would be invincible. In his darkest hours these words sustained him mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.
6. Jeremiah: sad, lonely, unappreciated and even hated carried on the task God had given him. Although he felt like quitting with the Lord’s help he refused to give in to the temptation.
B. Some words of application from Jeremiah’s experience.
1. There will be times when we feel: unsuccessful, discouraged, misunderstood and mistreated. During these times we need to remember Jeremiah and the fact that the Lord does not call us to life filled with human applause and earthly reward.
2. Some of us will have to stand and serve unwelcomed and unappreciated.
3. Regardless of the task we have been called we can take comfort in the fact that God is with us accomplishing His purpose.
4. Remember nothing is to difficult for the Creator of the universe and sustainer of life to accomplish.
Wishing to encourage her young son’s progress on the piano, a mother took the small boy to a Paderewski concert. After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her.
Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked "NO ADMITTANCE."
When the house lights dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that her son was missing.
Suddenly, the curtains parted and spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage. In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star."
At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano, and whispered in the boy’s ear, "Don’t quit ... keep playing!!" Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with his left hand and began filling in a bass part. Soon his right arm reached around to the other side of the child, and he added a running obligatio. Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience.
