The Lodestar

Though Jeremiah had to preach the message of doom that Judah and its capital would be devastated by the Babylonians, the Lord also told him to preach that all that would be restored one day. Jeremiah preached that after seventy years in Exile, the people of God will return to their homeland.

“For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfil to you my promise and bring you back to this place” (Jer 29:10).

When the political developments were moving in the direction that Jeremiah prophesied about the impending destruction, the Lord entrusted the prophet with the hope that the destruction and subsequent exile would not be the end of their history.

He preached hope: “For thus says the LORD: Just as I have brought all this great disaster upon this people, so I will bring upon them all the good that I promise them” (Jer 32:42).

The Lord told Jeremiah to preach the hope that the people would return to the land after seventy years and that life would return to normal; they would build houses and buy and sell land as usual.

Jeremiah had to preach hope and but also act on it. When the Babylonian army had surrounded Jerusalem, and its fall was only a few days away, the Lord commanded Jeremiah to exercise his faith. He had to buy a piece of land from his relative to prove that the land would be restored after seventy years of captivity. He did according to what the Lord told him; he bought the land that would fall into the enemy's hands within a few days (Jer 32:9—15).

When he entrusted the purchase deed of the land to the safe custody of Baruch, his assistant, he repeated what the Lord had told him: “For thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land.” (Jer 32:15).

Jeremiah believed that the restoration would happen only after seventy years. He also knew he may not live to see the restoration or possess the land. But it was an act of faith to instil hope in the hearts of people who would march to Babylon in chains that the Lord would restore their fortunes.

Jeremiah did not live long enough to see the restoration, but the people returned after seven decades, as the Lord promised. Jeremiah’s role was to risk his money and instil hope in the hearts of people who had lost all hope.

After purchasing the land and anticipating God’s future restoration, Jeremiah prayed to the Lord, “Nothing is too hard for you.” This affirmation that the Lord is sovereign and that what he can do is beyond human imagination was a powerful one. Jeremiah did what the Lord told him; he believed the Lord would fulfil his promises and that the Lord could fulfil promises.