The Potter and the Clay
Jeremiah 18:1-11
Jeremiah 18:1–11 NKJV
The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying: “Arise and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause you to hear My words.” Then I went down to the potter’s house, and there he was, making something at the wheel. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter; so he made it again into another vessel, as it seemed good to the potter to make.
Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter?” says the Lord. “Look, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel! The instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, to pull down, and to destroy it, if that nation against whom I have spoken turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I thought to bring upon it. And the instant I speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it, if it does evil in My sight so that it does not obey My voice, then I will relent concerning the good with which I said I would benefit it.
“Now therefore, speak to the men of Judah and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I am fashioning a disaster and devising a plan against you. Return now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good.” ’ ”
When re read this morning’s text from Jeremiah, we are immediately reminded of these words of a well-known hymn:
Have Thine own way, Lord; Have Thine own way.
“Thou are the potter; I am the clay.
Mold me and make me, after Thy will,
While I am waiting, yielded and still.”
This Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah more than 2600 years ago, but it still speaks to us today. Jeremiah is called to go to the potter’s house to observe his work. A potter is one who made pottery by hand. Today, it seems like something you might see at a craft fair along with demonstrations of blacksmithing and glassblowing. We have lost the idea of individual artistry in an age of things being mass-produced in a factory, where every jar is exactly like the other, every car is like the other, and so on. Craftsmanship puts a sense of style and the imprint of the craftsman. Every clay jar or pot is a little different, yet is marked by the individual characteristics of the maker.
When we read this passage, we must realize that its purpose is not to give us advice on how to make clay pots. Clay pots and jars were very useful in a day where there was no plastic. They were made for various uses, some common and others ornamental. We realize that god is using this visit to the potter’s house as an illustration. The importance of an illustration is that it sheds light on something else which is more important. It explains this concept. This is how a pastor correctly uses illustrations. It must not be so ornamented that it places emphasis on our skills as orators, but rather upon the Gospel. It is all about Him.
The potter uses a spinning wheel to help shape the wet clay. When the vessel was properly formed for the purpose it was made, it would then be placed in an oven to harden the clay. Proper ornamentation could be glazed upon the vessel before firing or painted afterward. If things did not look right while working on the wheel, the potter could simply start over. Once it was fired, there was no cure. It would only be good to be broken to make shards which might be useful for scraping pots. In other words, there is a point of no return.
Jeremiah noticed that the potter saw something amiss while he was forming the vessel. As the clay was soft, he rolled it up into a ball and started again. the potter was in control of the process. The clay was simply the means the potter used according to his will.
When looking at this illustration we realize that the LORD wants us to understand that He is the potter in the illustration. We are the clay. This demonstrates the absolute sovereignty and free-will of God. He decides what vessels to make, according to His purpose. The clay has no part in this decision making. It is simply the medium that the potter uses. Clay has no will of its own. As Paul notes, the vessel cannot say to the one who made it: “Why have you made us thus.”
The potter in the illustration did not like what he saw. Because the clay was soft, it could be reshaped, How it is to be understood in this passage is that Judah and Jerusalem had not yet been hardened in the fire. There was still time to correct the situation by repentance. Judah is reminded that the LORD had the right and power to plant or to pluck up, to heal and to destroy. Whereas clay pots have no will of their own, humans can be quite willful. They can and do resist their maker. They need to be reminded of the disastrous consequences of hardening their own hearts. This leads to destruction as the hardened and fired clay cannot be reshaped, only broken. But if there is repentance, the heart remains soft to God and our vessels can be renewed, When the process is complete, we will be a vessel fit for the master’s use.
The LORD in this passage gives a final warning to Judah and Jerusalem through Jeremiah. He was devising disaster upon them. Jerusalem was about to be broken into shards. Judah and Jerusalem would be utterly shattered just like the Northern Kingdom of Israel had been a hundred years earlier. But the final firing had not yet happened, It was time for the to soften their hearts in repentance and obedience. The fact that they kept hardening their hearts would lead to disaster.
We should be reminded at this point that illustrations are not allegories. There is a point of no return for a clay vessel once it has been fired. If this were an allegory, Judah and the people would have been utterly destroyed, never to return. We would be missing the main point of the story which is a call to repentance on the part of the Jews. Indeed, the inhabitants continued in their hardness and were crushed and the survivors sent into exile. But this is not the end of the story. An earthly potter cannot fix a vessel once it has been fired and broken into shards. But with God, all things are possible. He is able to reconstruct even a hardened vessel and make it perfect. For this we must be thankful. He is able to heal nations, churches, and people even when it seems too late. We should not presume upon this, of course, but this gives us reason to hope that after severe and well-deserved judgment in this life, we might be restored. But, having said this, there is an ultimate point of no return. while there is life in this age, there is hope. But if things are not mended before we die, we should have no hope. As it has been said: “‘The wages of sin is death’. Repent before payday.”
Hear these words from the Prophet Isaiah:
Isaiah 55:6–7 NKJV
Seek the Lord while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
Another way to look at this is that we are the Temple of His body. The ancient world was very proficient in making temples to their gods. Much of the stone was quarried off site and brought to the site to be assembled. This was very intricate work. Every piece had to be precisely crafted so that it might fit. If the craftsman at the quarry found a stone with a defect in it or it broke while being chiseled, the stone would be put into a discard heap and a new stone was carved instead. It is beyond and economic sense to try to repair a broken stone. The power of God is demonstrated in the fact that the stone that earthly builders rejected could be used by God in His Temple. This is truly remarkable. The quote from the 118th Psalm about the rejected stone becoming the chief cornerstone does apply to Jesus first. The rejection was not by the Father who stated His approval of His son, Jesus, at Jesus’ baptism. He also demonstrated His approval of Jesus when Jesus was raised from the dead on the third day, who also ascended to the right hand of the Father on the third day. The rejection came from His own people who falsely found fault. He is become the chief cornerstone. But in a way, it also applies to us. The world will reject us and call us unfit for use. they reject anyone they think is too heavenly minded to be any earthly good. This is not true at all. They might accuse people like John Calvin of this. But look at his Geneva! He provided orphanages, hospitals, and for restoration of law and order. The crime-ridden city of Genevan who sent orphans to the Turks to become slaves became a model city in this world. He did an awful lot of earthly good while talking about heaven. It is those who accuse us that must be reminded of that they are too earthly minded to be any good at all, heavenly or worldly. But I digress.
We must remember that Jesus, as the head of the Church is Sovereign over it as He is also Sovereign over all of the universe. He is the church’s potter. He determines what we, His vessels, will be, and where we fit. We are made for purpose. Some might be made into pastors, others evangelists, others to witness in the workplaces and the market places in the world, etc. He calls and uses Jews and Gentiles, men and women, rich and poor, etc., to make the Church after His will. What we must do is to yield to the leadership of the Holy Spirit. He is able to correct our flaws (sins) on the flywheel without having to roll everything into a ball and start again. But at the same time, whatever God makes of each of us is an unique vessel, a piece of art of the highest craftsmanship. We are made special to the potter and should strive to show the skill of the one who has formed us. It is He who ornaments us and fires us in the furnace of affliction. The final result will be stunning, a Temple made of perfect stones which were once broken and rejected. So let us as we sing our final hymn “Have Thine Own Way” reflect upon these things.
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