The Powerful Word

I have been thinking a lot about the weeping prophet Jeremiah.   I vividly remember standing in the City of David, looking down at a deep, dark cistern in the ground and being told historians believe this is where Jeremiah was imprisoned. (Jeremiah 38)  How sobering to stand where this sad, sad prophet once stood.  

Other than Baruch, his scribe, Jeremiah, was pretty much alone in his life. God spoke, and Jeremiah obeyed, but repeatedly, he was ostracized and hunted by those around him.  

Standing alone isn’t easy, and Jeremiah certainly stood alone.  

Jeremiah had one message: Repent, and God will hear your prayer.  But if you don’t, you will reap the consequences—a Babylonian takeover would be coming!  

Jeremiah had called for his scribe Baruch to come with parchment and quill in hand.  Baruch wrote and wrote-recording all the words God had spoken to Jeremiah.  Jeremiah was confined during this process, yet he didn’t waste a minute.  Jeremiah had been banned from the temple, and so Jeremiah instructed Baruch to take the completed scroll to the temple and read it to the people.  God’s word held power; whether Jeremiah or Baruch read the words, the message was there!

Later, sitting by a warm fireplace in the palace, King Jehoiakim heard the words read.  The arrogant king took a knife every few paragraphs, cut off the parchment, and threw it in the fire.  This slow paragraph-by-paragraph destruction of the scroll must have been agonizing to watch.  The king thought this action would stop God’s word from going forward.  Oh, he was so mistaken!  

Thwarting God’s word and his plan isn’t possible.

You see, Jeremiah, now energized by this resistance, took another scroll and dictated again to Baruch all that he had before- only this time, he added MUCH MORE.  (Jeremiah 36:32)

This is where I want to stand and shout—GO, JEREMIAH!!!  Once, when writing my book, I thought I had lost all of my writing. It was only momentarily, but my heart sank, and I wondered if I had what it would take to do a rewrite.  My fleeting thought was no way!!  Luckily, the “finder app” on my computer revealed its whereabouts.  

I am so glad that Jeremiah didn’t think like I had.  I am so happy he persisted, took a deep breath, and began again.  Can you imagine the determination that took?  I am so glad that he added so much more detail the second time, and I am so glad God preserved the words of this weeping prophet for us.

The lesson here is twofold: First, when God gives direction, obey! Second, God’s word is never to be messed with. Over the centuries, many have tried the same thing Jehoiakim attempted but never succeeded. Man can attempt to destroy God’s word or cut it into acceptable pieces, but time and time again, God preserves his word.

King Jehoiakim suffered a great loss because he destroyed the prophet’s writings. The people he was meant to lead also suffered significantly when the Babylonians took over and destroyed Jerusalem. For seventy years, they paid for their lack of obedience.  

David Guzik tells a story in his commentary on Jeremiah.  Here is what he wrote:

“Early in the 20th century, an Armenian patient in an American hospital in Turkey was given a Bible, which was the first he had ever possessed. When he left the hospital, he proudly took the Bible to his village and showed it to friends. A Muslim teacher snatched the Bible from him, tore it from its binding, and threw the pieces into the street. A grocer passing down the street picked up the pages and used them for wrapping paper. Soon the pages of the Bible were scattered all over the entire village. Customers read the pages and asked for more. Sometime later, a Bible seller came to the village and was amazed to find a hundred people eager to buy the Holy Bible. Even the torn-up Bible survived and did a great work.”

The good news is God’s word remains! I am so thankful that the ancient words of truth and hope have been preserved for us.