Why do you think Jeremiah was so ‘afraid’? It’s not really hard to figure out, is it? God had a message He wanted delivered, and He wanted Jeremiah to deliver it. But here’s the thing about God’s message: Not everyone wants to hear it. Why not? Because it exposes sin and calls for repentance. It means change. And people have a natural aversion to change. And any number of things might happen when you start telling people that’s what they need to do. Some may welcome your counsel and actually turn to God. But most won’t. Most will ignore you. Others will reject you. Some may resist you. And there will be those who try to silence you. So, when Jeremiah heard the Lord’s summons to be His messenger, what came to mind was not the privilege of being selected by God to speak His Word. No, what came to mind were the hazards involved.
But that’s the way God gets His Word out. He doesn’t write it in the stars for all to read. He chooses people to speak His Word, and it is through His Word that He accomplishes His purpose. So, despite the risks, we are the ones who must speak His truth. And this passage from Jeremiah, chapter 1, gives us four very good reasons for doing so. First, God’s Word reveals His sovereignty. Second, it reveals His power. Third, His purpose. And, finally, His character.
I. God’s Word Reveals His Sovereignty (Jer. 1:4-5)
So, perilous as it is to speak God’s Word in a world like ours, we must do it all the same. And the first reason is: God’s Word reveals His sovereignty. If we look again at verses 4 and 5, we will see God’s sovereignty on display.
In His Sovereignty God Sets His Love Upon Us (vv.4-5a)—And what we see first is that, in His sovereignty, God sets His love upon us. Beginning with verse 4, we read: ‘Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…”’ Now, when God says to Jeremiah, “I knew you,” He means far more than we might mean when we say we ‘know’ someone. In the Scriptures, knowledge has to do with relationship—and, more specifically, it has to do with a covenant relationship. There’s in it more than a trace of divine sovereignty. God’s knowledge of us is the exercise of His grace in choosing to set His love upon us and thereby to distinguish us as His own. In Genesis 18:19, the Lord says of Abraham, ‘I have chosen him,’ and the English word ‘chosen’ in that verse is, in Hebrew, the same word rendered ‘knew’ here in Jeremiah.
And what is more, you notice, this knowledge dates from ‘before’—how does God say it here?—‘before I formed you in the womb—that is, before conception. There was nothing that Jeremiah did—or could do, for that matter—to qualify for such favor. Nor can we. God sets His love upon us, as Paul would say later, “before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4). To quote Paul further, he said in another place that “those whom [God] foreknew he also predestined” (Rom. 8:29). His foreknowledge was not simply advance information. It was His sovereign choice to set His love upon His elect—those for whom Christ would die.
In His Sovereignty God Sets Us Apart (v. 5b)—Now, back to Jeremiah 1. There’s more to be seen of God’s sovereignty. Not only is it true that God sets His love upon us, but it is also the case that He sets us apart. He saves us through Christ and anoints us for service in Christ. Listen again to the last half of verse 5, where the LORD says to Jeremiah, ‘And before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
There is more going on here than a divine search for volunteers. Your calling and mine—like that of Jeremiah—was decreed before the beginning of time. And you and I need to know and remember that we are on a divine mission that has been planned from all eternity. Is it hazardous to speak God’s Word into a culture that resents, resists and rejects it? It can be! But we were born—and born again—for this: to publish abroad the salvation of our God. And we need not fear those who may hate us for it. Jesus Himself said, ‘If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you’ (John 15:18). Does that seem like meager comfort? Then look at this.
II. God’s Word Reveals His Power (Jer. 1:6-8)
Not only does God’s Word reveal His sovereignty; it also reveals His power—His power over us and His power on our behalf.
We See His Power Over Us (vv. 6-7)—First, we see His power over us. We do not get a choice in this matter of bearing witness. I guess Jeremiah thought he did. In verse 6, he says, ‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.’ He reminds me of Moses when God met him at the burning bush and called him to be Israel’s deliverer. Moses tried every way he could think of to decline the honor. Remember? ‘Who am I to do this, and for that matter, ‘Who are you?’ he said to God. And when those tactics didn’t work, he resorted to other measures—the implausibility of his message, his ineptitude in speaking it, whatever he could think of. He was reaching for anything he could find to get out of God’s claim on him (Exod. 3:11, 13; 4:1, 10).
But, just as God did not release Moses from his mission, so He does not now release Jeremiah. No. He asserts His power over him, and He says to him, “Do not say, ‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you, you shall go, and whatever I command you, you shall speak.”
We See His Power on Our Behalf (v. 8)—But, if God asserts His power over Jeremiah, He also asserts His power on Jeremiah’s behalf. Notice verse 8. The LORD says to Jeremiah: “Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD.” To whom does the word “them” refer? It refers to the people of Judah who would resist God’s message and punish the messenger. Oh yes, they did punish Jeremiah. On one occasion, the king cut up the scroll that Jeremiah had dictated to Baruch, his scribe, and threw the fragments into the fire. Sometime later, a gang of thugs threw Jeremiah down a well, where he sank in the mud. People did not want to hear God’s message, and they took it out on the messenger. But God said to him, as He says to us, “Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the LORD.” God’s Word reveals to us His power over us—we will go where He sends and speak what He commands—but it also reveals God’s power on our behalf.
III. God’s Word Reveals His Purpose (Jer. 1:9-10)
There’s third thing God’s Word reveals. It reveals His sovereignty and His power. God Word also reveals His purpose. And what is His purpose? Judgment and redemption. Judgment, calling for repentance, and redemption, calling for faith.
His Word Announces Judgment on Sin (vv. 9-10a)—First, we see that His Word announces judgment on sin. Look at the first part of verse 10. ‘See,’ the LORD says, ‘I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow.” These are words of judgment. They serve as a warning. And they call for repentance. In Jeremiah 15:19 we read: ‘Therefore thus says the LORD: “If you return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before me.”’ But if repentance is not forthcoming, what then? We read in chapter 7 how the LORD says, ‘When I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer, therefore…I will cast you out of my sight’ (Jer. 7:13, 15). The Word of God is a word of judgment.
His Word Announces Redemption from Sin (v. 10b)—But it is also a word of redemption. Looking back at our text—chapter 1, the latter part of verse 10—we see that, not only does God’s Word announce judgment on sin; His Word announces redemption from sin. God says to Jeremiah, ‘See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms…to build and to plant.’ Those are words of redemption. Those are words of salvation.
And they tell us that God’s salvation from sin always comes through His judgment on sin. We see this principle here in Jeremiah, but we see it most clearly in the gospel. When Jesus died on Calvary’s cross, He took upon Himself the sin of all those whom the Father had given Him. He bore their judgment—so that they might be granted His salvation. God’s Word reveals His purpose, announcing both judgment and mercy.
IV. God’s Word Reveals His Character (Jer. 1:11-12)
God’s Word reveals His sovereignty, His power, His purpose, and now, finally, we see: God’s Word reveals His character. Look again at verses 11 and 12: ‘And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Jeremiah, what do you see?” And I said, “I see an almond branch.” Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word too perform it.”’
Here again, it helps to look at the original language. The word for ‘almond’ in verse 11 and the word ‘watch’ in verse 11 sounds very much the same in Hebrew. In fact the only difference is the vowels. The consonants are the same. So, it is a play on words. The almond branch serves as a symbol of the fact that God will do what He says He will do. He ‘watches’ carefully over His Word, to make sure that everything He declares will come to pass. That reveals His character. He is true, and He is truth.
And, as much as people may hate what God has to say to them—and as fierce as they may be in opposing His warnings and spurning His promises—and as forcefully as they may seek to restrain those who speak His truth, His truth is not restrained. His promises abide, and His warnings hold. As Paul once wrote, ‘I am bound with chains…. But the word of God is not bound’ (2 Tim. 2:9). Therefore, we must speak up and speak out. We must spread God’s Word. Like Jeremiah, we must uphold His truth, sound His warnings, and declare His promises. For His sovereignty will be vindicated, His power prevail, His purpose be fulfilled, and His character displayed. He has chosen us, equipped us, and defended us, and He has given us His message of judgment and salvation, of repentance and faith—and there can be no doubt that He will keep His Word and bring to pass all that He has said. So then, let’s do as He says, and let’s tell the world.
