Direct Opposition
Jeremiah 28 comes in direct opposition to Jeremiah 27. In the prior chapter, Jeremiah told the
gathering emissaries that their coup would fail. Jeremiah told them that the Lord had given
Nebuchadnezzar the right to rule.
Jeremiah told them that they were to place themselves under the yoke of
Nebuchadnezzar. Remember that God also
told Jeremiah that any who placed themselves thusly would be allowed to remain
in their nations.
What is it that Hananiah claims that the Lord says to him? “The yoke of Nebuchadnezzar is broken.” If that statement does not fly directly into
the face of Jeremiah’s earlier declaration I don’t know what else does. I think the most offensive portion of this
story is that Hananiah declares that this message came from the Lord.
As I ponder this statement, I can’t help but wonder all of the
claims that are made in the Lord’s name today.
I’m sure some of them are absolutely true. I’m also sure that some of them are
absolutely not from the Lord. But I
wonder where the line between the two really resides. I wonder just how many people in the world
today are like Hananiah. They are
proclaiming what they want to be true as truth.
They claim that it really comes from the Lord just to appease their lack
of hope.
Of course, Hananiah has also stated that the furnishings of the
temple would be brought back. Hananiah
was from Gibeon, which Joshua 21:17-18 tells us was a city that was given to
the priests. Thus, it is possible that
Hananiah was not just a prophet but a priest.
If Hananiah was a priest, it would make sense that he would show special
concern for the temple furnishings.
Rebuttal
Jeremiah stands up to convict Hananiah. He tells Hananiah two things. First, he tells Hananiah that he really does
hope that Hananiah’s version of the future would happen. I believe Jeremiah really would prefer for
the coup to work and the people to be saved.
Jeremiah knows that the vision that the Lord has given to him will be
difficult.
However, Jeremiah also tells Hananiah that prophets have a long
tradition of speaking about gloom and doom.
This is the really interesting part.
Jeremiah is making a really profound statement about humanity in verse
8.
Essentially, Jeremiah is saying that the one thing we can always
count on with respect to humanity is that they will sin. They will bring about war with each
other. Sin will be dealt with through
famine and pestilence. Humanity has a
knack for bringing these upon themselves.
This is why prophet after prophet can speak of such things with
confidence. We know people are
self-centered. We know that human beings
are self-mongers. It’s a fact. Without God, we can count on people behaving
a certain way.
Then Jeremiah lowers the boom.
Jeremiah tells Hananiah that time will tell. The mark of a true prophet is that the
prophecy comes true. Jeremiah knows that
he has God and the self-monger nature of humanity on his side. He is sitting pretty comfortable when he
suggests that they wait and see what happens.
In this, I absolutely love Jeremiah’s response.
Hananiah’s Rebuttal
Hananiah then takes the yoke off of Jeremiah’s neck and breaks the
bars. He does this as a symbolic act to
try and sway people back to his version of the truth. Hananiah knows that human nature isn’t in his
favor. He should also know that God
didn’t really speak to him. So he has to
do something drastic to Jeremiah to bring the people back to his side.
Jeremiah’s Response
The last sentence in Jeremiah 28:11 is going to become one of my
favorite verses. I think I need to make
it one of my mantras. This verse alone
makes the reading of Jeremiah worthwhile for me. “But Jeremiah the prophet went his way.”
I’m so proud of Jeremiah in this.
Jeremiah knew he was right. Logically
he was right. From the human perspective
he was right. From the divine
perspective he was right. Jeremiah had
every reason to stay and fight. But he
doesn’t. He moves on.
I love this. This is like
the Old Testament’s parallel to Matthew 5:39.
There Jesus gives an incredible statement. “Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek,
turn to him also the other.” An
injustice has been done to Jeremiah. But
Jeremiah doesn’t resist. Jeremiah walks
away. After processing this – and as
dark as this book has been to read – this verse makes Jeremiah rise up in my
estimation.
The End
Sometime afterwards, God sends Jeremiah back to Hananiah. God sends Jeremiah to tell him first that the
Hebrew people will not be freed from the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar. But perhaps more importantly, Jeremiah tells
Hananiah that God will remove him from the face of the earth.
Imagine that for a second.
Yes, we all die. But we will
likely die because of the natural course of human history. Not so with Hananiah. Hananiah’s death was a calculated move by God
to remove him from having influence on the earth. That gives me some pause today.
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