Jeremiah 26:1-3

1. A divine directive (Jeremiah 26:1-3)

Four specific points relating to a divine directive which came to Jeremiah are brought out in Jeremiah 26:1-3. First, there is a word as to the time of the directive. The word of the Lord came to the prophet in the beginning of the reign of king Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 26:1). This probably refers to the year 608 B.C. Righteous Josiah had been slain the year before in the battle of Megiddo; Jehoahaz his son had been able to hold the throne only three months before being deposed and deported by Pharaoh Necho. Now wicked Jehoiakim was sitting on the throne of David. These were turbulous times. World supremacy was being contested on the banks of the Euphrates river. No doubt the inhabitants of Jerusalem were jittery. Would the combined force of the Assyrian and Egyptian armies be able to withstand the armies of the Chaldeans There were ominous implications for Judah no matter which force emerged as world conqueror.

The divine directive contains a specific word as the place Jeremiah is to preach (Jeremiah 26:2). He is to go to the court of Solomon's Temple and preach to the masses of people who assembled there from all the cities of Judah to worship the Lord. On a previous occasion in the reign of Josiah, Jeremiah had stood in this same courtyard and preached the word (see Jeremiah 7:1 to Jeremiah 8:3). Many scholars, perhaps a majority, believe that chapter 26 contains a summary of that earlier message and relates the consequences of it. However the grounds for equating the Temple sermon of chapter 7 and the Temple sermon of chapter 26 are singularly and collectively weak.[234] There is not one hint of hostility to Jeremiah's first Temple sermon. The message no doubt received a sympathetic hearing in the days of good king Josiah. But now the climate has changed. The religious and civil authorities are in no mood to tolerate criticism.

[234] For a discussion of these arguments, see comments on chapter 7.

The divine directive to Jeremiah also contains a specific obligation (Jeremiah 26:2 b). The Lord commands Jeremiah not to diminish a single word from the message he had received from God. This commandment is reminiscent of the initial instruction given to Jeremiah at the time of his call when he was told, whatsoever I shall command you, you shall speak (Jeremiah 1:7). The Lord knew that Jeremiah needed to be reminded of this obligation at this point in his ministry. Even the most stalwart man of God might be tempted to omit or water down certain unpopular and unpleasant portions of his message when faced with the prospects of arrest, imprisonment and possibly death. No longer would Jeremiah enjoy the protection of the pious Josiah; he would feel for the first time the full impact of public hostility.

The divine directive also included a note as to the purpose for Jeremiah's preaching on this occasion. Jeremiah's message was harsh. It was a message of judgment. But the object of all that he said was the salvation of the nation. Perhaps they will hearken! This verse reveals the eagerness of God to turn away from His announced purpose to destroy the nations. If they would only repent! What fantastic possibilities can be set in motion through sincere repentance! If Judah would turn away from rebellion against God then He could repent or relent with regard to his intentions to destroy the land (cf. Jeremiah 18:8).