Jeremiah 26
In today’s gospel, Jesus speaks about the destiny of prophets: “Prophets are not without honour except in their own country and their own house.” And this is demonstrated in the first reading today. The people of Judah threaten the life of Jeremiah because he delivered the message from the Lord.
What was the message? It was a call to faithfulness. God was calling Judah back to the law He gave through Moses. Jeremiah cried out for the renewed faithfulness to God’s law. Through his prophecy, Jeremiah calls for repentance and conversion and also announces God’s punishment for unfaithfulness.
This is a classic pattern of the biblical prophecy. The prophets did not bring a novel message. On the contrary, they directed Israel back to its original commitment to God and his law. But they deepened the understanding of God’s law. They highlighted the spirit of the law. In a sense, they were teachers of the law before the scribes and rabbis. But most prophets are remembered for their foretelling the consequences of unfaithfulness to God and injustice to people. This made them very unpopular and rejected from their own country.
Probably you have heard all the baptized share the three-fold office of Christ as priest, prophet, and king. Then, now we know what we are expected to do by the prophetic office. First, to discern the truth of faith. Second, to witness to the truth. Third, to teach the truth.
But here is a caveat: the words of Jesus still hold today. If you exercise this prophetic office by proclaiming and teaching the truth of faith to your families and friends, you may well be rejected and can expect lots of backlashes. However, rejection and hatred are consoling signs for prophets. Because they are the indications of true prophecies. Prophets are the signs to be opposed and spoken against, as Simeon foretold about the baby Jesus at the temple.
