There is a remarkable contrast in the events described in this chapter between the grace of God and the hostility of the people of Judah. The narrative steps back into the early reign of Jehoiakim to show how even at this late hour God is still giving his people a chance to avert disaster by turning back to him. The warnings come from God’s fatherly heart of love that does not want to see his people suffer and the temple destroyed. At this stage the disaster is imminent. History was about to cave in upon them; it was inevitable. You would think that the people would have been grateful for the warning. Instead, however, they react to Jeremiah with hostility. It is a little like attacking a doctor for telling you that you have a fatal disease, even though he tells you because he is both willing and able to cure it. It was a ridiculous move on their part. Jeremiah records these things so that subsequent generations would see, not only the kinds of irrational things that people did, but the kinds of things people do. We all have a tendency to be irrationally defensive. We don’t like people pointing out our errors and shortfalls. But it is often in this way that God wants to lead us to positive growth. Learn to embrace constructive criticism. Respond positively to correction. This is the key to growth.
Reflect on your ability to receive correction.
Read Jeremiah 26
