The Potter And The Clay: Jeremiah 18:1-11

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.”