Rev. Mark Squire, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in St. Ansgar, IA, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 12:1-17.
Jeremiah picks up the common lament of the Scriptures: why do the wicked prosper? Jeremiah wonders why he suffers affliction and persecution while the wicked grow and thrive under the LORD, and so the prophet prays for justice against them. The LORD does not condemn Jeremiah’s plea as whining, nor does He answer in a way that we might expect. Instead, the LORD tells Jeremiah the affliction will only grow and steels the prophet for the task. The LORD will give His people over to their enemies, yet He still calls them “My people.” He promises that He will yet have compassion on His people and on all nations who turn to Him in faith.
“A Time to Destroy and a Time to Build” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that goes through the book of Jeremiah. The prophet calls the people of Judah and Jerusalem to repent of their faithless idolatry and warns them of the destruction that is coming in the Babylonian exile. Yet Jeremiah does not leave us without hope in the midst of such dark days. Jeremiah and all who believe the Word of God he preached survive because of hope that is found in the righteous Branch from the line of David, Jesus Christ.
