Prophets Faithfull to God's CovenantCourageous Prophets of Change
Live in the light of God (Isaiah 2:5) Jeremiah: The Suffering Preacher of DoomJeremiah 37:11-16
New International Version11 After the Babylonian army had withdrawn from Jerusalem because of Pharaoh’s army, 12 Jeremiah started to leave the city to go to the territory of Benjamin to get his share of the property among the people there. 13 But when he reached the Benjamin Gate, the captain of the guard, whose name was Irijah son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah, arrested him and said, “You are deserting to the Babylonians!” 14 “That’s not true!” Jeremiah said. “I am not deserting to the Babylonians.” But Irijah would not listen to him; instead, he arrested Jeremiah and brought him to the officials. 15 They were angry with Jeremiah and had him beaten and imprisoned in the house of Jonathan the secretary, which they had made into a prison. 16 Jeremiah was put into a vaulted cell in a dungeon, where he remained for a long time. For ReflectionBecause of the threat they pose to the powerful, prophets are often ridiculed and treated unjustly when they speak truth to the powerful. The spreading of misinformation and lies about the prophet is magnified by the people's fear that what is erroneously alleged might be true. After all, Jeremiah passed on God's advice that they surrender to the Chaldeans safely. This directive was not only counter-intuitive but also opposed by religious leaders. PrayPray and contemplate how you may have reacted when confronted by Jeremiah's message. Would you be swayed to ignore or dismiss the prophet because established religious leaders doubted that God would destroy your city and its people, or would you have taken God's advice as spoken to Jeremiah and surrendered to Babylon?
Forward to a friend | 
