JEREMIAH 18

Jeremiah 18:1-15

If any of you have been tempted to read straight through the whole book of Jeremiah, you may end up getting quite confused because the book appears to be anything but coherent.

From the time I was in high school, this was my opinion of most of the books of prophecy and a lot of the other books in the Bible. It disturbed me because I loved great works of literature. The Bible certainly contained great individual passages, but often each individual book did not seem to be organized as a whole so that it all fit together and flowed well. I thought I was alone in my negative view of the literary value of biblical books such as Jeremiah until I started reading commentaries. Here are a few examples taken from the recent literature on the subject:

“Why the book was arranged as it was, we do not know. Every outline of Jeremiah is somewhat arbitrary.”

            “It is hard to discern a principle underlying the order of the book.”

            “It must be obvious even from a cursory examination that the contents of the prophecy are not arranged in what, to the western mind, would be called a logical order.”

            “Neither of the standard criteria for arranging the prophetic books, chronology and subject matter, works very well in an analysis of this book.”

            “When we come to inquire whether any principles of arrangement can be observed in the book

 of Jeremiah, we have to admit that any consistent principles escape us."

 

            One can scarcely blame [the reader] for concluding that he is reading a hopeless hodgepodge

 thrown together without any discernible principle of arrangement at all.”

If the Bible was truly inspired by the Holy Spirit and God is a God of order, why this hodgepodge? As

 usual, the problem was not with God but with my own lack of understanding.

Figure 1: The Structure of Jeremiah

I. Historical Introduction (1:1-3)

II. Prophet to the Nations (1:4-12)

III. Prophecies Concerning Judah and Israel (1:13-13:27)

IV. Woe to the Leaders (chs. 14-25)

III'. Prophecies Concerning Judah and Israel (chs. 26-44)

II'. Oracles to the Nations (chs. 45-51)

I'. Historical Conclusion (ch. 52)

These seven sections contain a total of seven similar statements such as “The Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah” with slight variations of wording so that they also form symmetrical pairs. Seven is a symbolic number in the Bible, usually indicating completeness or totality

If you look at the subject matter of this center section of the book, you also find perfect symmetry.

Figure 3: The Structure of Section IV (chapters 14-25)

A. No Cup of Consolation (14:1-17:18)

B. Message to the Kings (17:19-27)

C. The Potter's Vessel (18:1-23)

1. Vision and Meaning (18:1-17)

2. Plot against Jeremiah (18:18)

3. Jeremiah's Lament (18:19-23)

C'. The Clay Jar (19:1-20:18)

1. Symbol and Meaning (19:1-15)

2. Jeremiah Arrested and Beaten (20:1-6)

3. Jeremiah's Lament (20:7-18)

B'. Messages to the Kings (21:1-22:30)

A'. The Cup of Wrath (23:1-25:38)

The vision in Chapter 18 shows a potter molding the pliable clay as he pleases, with the closing message that it is not too late for Judah to repent. The probable historical background here is in the early reign of King Jehoiakim well before the Babylonians took Jerusalem in 597 BC. By contrast, the symbol of the baked clay jar of Chapters 19-20 prepares us for its end in destruction since the nation hardened its heart and was only fit to be broken in pieces.

1 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2 “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I 

will give you my message.” 3 So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel

. 4 But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into

 another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.

This is not the first time that God has spoken to Jeremiah through things that he has observed in daily

 life (see the almond shoot and boiling pot in chapter 1). When I know in advance that I am going to

 teach a Bible study on a particular subject, it is amazing how often I run across illustrations for it from

 movies I see, TV programs, books I am reading, etc. And I notice that our pastor does the same thing in

 coming up with sermon illustrations. Are we on the lookout for spiritual lessons in the everyday

 activities around us? Louis Pasteur said on his accidental discovery of penicillin: “Chance favors the

 prepared mind.”

Jeremiah 18:3 “Potter” in Hebrew is literally “shaper,” The verb from which it is derived first appears

 in Genesis 2:6 where God shapes man from earth.

Jeremiah 18:4 Like the parables of Jesus, we can't push the details too far. Otherwise it would seem to

 teach that God sometimes makes mistakes in his work of creation. It is usually the quality of the clay

 that frustrates the potter's original intention rather than his lack of skill (the implication of the

 subsequent verses). It is commonly held that this “parable” teaches the patience of God in slowly

 forming us according to His will, but that is not the conclusion drawn from the following verses. It

 is God's sovereignty over our lives rather than his patience that is being stressed.

The NIV translation of verse 4 is not the best here. The original reads more like “whenever the pot he

 was shaping was marred...” indicating that it happened more than once, perhaps with the same lump 

of clay.

5 Then the word of the LORD came to me. 6 He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter 

does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel. 7 If at

 any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, 8 and if that

 nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. 9

 And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, 10 and if it 

does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it.

There is some heavy theology here and some ideas easy to misunderstand.

 

Jeremiah 18:6 Why did God call Judah Israel?

Designating Judah as the nation of Israel reminded the people of their heritage and original purpose as a

 unified covenant people before the split in the Kingdom. It also reminds them of the fate of the

 Northern Kingdom.

Jeremiah 18:7-8 Can you think of a concrete Biblical illustration of this teaching? The story in Jonah on

 repentance of Nineveh is prime example. “Harder for a Jew to swallow than it was for the fish to

 swallow Jonah,” as one commentator joked.

Jeremiah 18:8 I first read this verse in KJV, where it states that God will repent of the evil he planned to

 do. That caused me a lot of problems. Look at more recent translations. NIV says “relent,” NRSV says

 “change my mind” and AB has “think better of.” It is a different Hebrew word from the one applied to

 the nation repenting of, or turning from, its evil ways.

This brings up the difficulty in understanding the complex relationship between God's actions and

 man's actions. There are two extremes of understanding: One is ultra-Calvinism in which man's actions

 have no effect on God whatsoever since God is totally unchanging and has everything planned in

 advance including who will and won't be saved. The other extreme, more recent, is Process Theology.  

It is derived from ideas of philosopher Alfred North Whitehead

Cobb states concerning this view, “The character of the world is influenced by God, but it is not determined by him and the world in its turn contributes novelty and richness to the divine experience.”

Consequently, God is in some sense dependent on the universe to be complete. Whitehead wrote, “... (God's) derivative nature is consequent upon the creative advance of the world”"

In other words, according to this belief system, GOD IS IN THE PROCESS OF BEING, hence the name of the movement. He is not immutable. Also, His change and development is contingent on the development of the universe.

I am reminded of one definition of heresy: a truth taken too far.

The standard evangelical position seems to be clearly taught in these verses and is somewhat in the

 middle: God may change his course of action depending on man's actions (God grants us the dignity of

 our choices) but He by no means changes His nature or His overall plan for the universe, and He is

 never surprised by man's actions.

There is even more of a problem in the two usages of the same word (ra'a) for evil in verse 8. Most

 translators describe God's action here as disaster, harm or even judgment. For God, the classic

 statement is found in Isaiah 45:7: “I form the light and I create darkness. I make peace and create evil. I

 the Lord do all these things.” Are there a different base meanings to the word in Hebrew? Generally

 speaking, when an author uses the same word several times in a given passage, the meaning is the same

 in each. My conclusion: the meaning of evil is the same in each case, something that is bad in the eye

 of the beholder. When it comes to God labeling something evil, this is made clear in verse 10 by the

 modifying phrase “in God's sight.” which appears about 45 other places in the OT. Even when it

 doesn't occur, it is understood that God is doing the judging and His judgments are righteous. On the

 other hand, evil from God toward us, from our perspective, is whatever we do not like, even though it

 may ultimately be good for us and certainly forwards God's overall plans.

Jeremiah 18:9-10 demonstrates the two sides to God's sovereignty. It clearly teaches the contingent 

nature of God's blessings for a nation. This is especially appropriate for our own nation to contemplate.

11 “Now therefore say to the people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem, ‘This is what the LORD 

says: Look! I am preparing a disaster for you and devising a plan against you. So turn from your evil

 ways, each one of you, and reform your ways and your actions.’ 12 But they will reply, ‘It’s no use. We

 will continue with our own plans; we will all follow the stubbornness of our evil hearts.’”

Jeremiah 18:11 Each word and phrase is loaded with meaning. Preparing, or shaping, is a verb that the

 noun potter comes from. There is a two-part repentance of turning (initial act) and reforming

  (continuous process). This is somewhat parallel to the subtle difference between ways (attitude) and

 actions (results arising from our changed attitude). Each one of you: Note that the call to repentance

 here is to the individual, not the nation as a whole. It is easy to zero in on verses 7-10 which refer to

 nations and point the finger at godless society. Some of those who rant and rave the most about moral

decline in our nation could use some reformation in their own character. It is harder for us when we

 have to personalize the teaching. Jesus described this as trying to take the dust particle out of another

 person's eye when we have a log in our own.

Jeremiah 18:12 Discuss the meaning of “It is hopeless.” It may reflect despair (no ability to change or

 bowing to inevitable fate) but more likely means unwillingness to change (rebellion). J. A. Thompson

 said that the end result of continuous evil doing is a state “where all desire and hope of repentance is

 lost and men are content to follow the uninhibited promptings of their own rebellious and wicked

 hearts.” This is quite a bit like the end result described by Paul in Romans 1 when people follow their

 own plans vs. God's plans. Three times Paul says, “God gave them up to their lusts and passions.”

New Bible Commentary: “The sin of the people is as irrational as it is tragic.” It has been said that

 atheism is an irrational response driven more by moral reasons than intellectual ones. A book I would

 recommend to anyone interested in apologetics was written by Bertrand Russell, the prominent

 philosopher and logician titled Why I Am Not a Christian. It is one of the most illogical books I have

 ever read. Russell's deep-seated hatred of Christianity and America stemmed from an incident where 

he was denied a visa to enter the country by pressure from Episcopalian and Catholic clerics due to his

 immoral teachings and lifestyle.

13 Therefore this is what the LORD says:

“Inquire among the nations:

 
Who has ever heard anything like this?

 
A most horrible thing has been done

 
by Virgin Israel

.
14 Does the snow of Lebanon

 
ever vanish from its rocky slopes?

 
Do its cool waters from distant sources

 
ever stop flowing?

 
15 Yet my people have forgotten me;

 
they burn incense to worthless idols,

 
which made them stumble in their ways,

 
in the ancient paths

.
They made them walk in byways,

 
on roads not built up.

Jeremiah 18:13 The idea is that even the pagan nations would be appalled that Israel had abandoned her

 God. This is an idea expressed even more clearly in Jeremiah 2:10-11: Cross to the coasts of Cyprus 

and look, send to Kedar and examine with care; see if there has ever been such a thing. Has a nation

 ever changed its gods, even though they are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for 

something that does not profit. This sort of negative witness has a modern application since outsiders

 may be looking to us as examples.

Jeremiah 18:14 There are many translation problems with the Hebrew in this verse. I won't go into the

 details, but the main point seems to be clear. Mt. Hermon, the highest mountain of Lebanon, remains

 snow-capped almost all the time. And the streams coming from the mountain provide a never-ending

 source of water. These two perennial conditions are given in contrast to the changing attitude of Judah.

 Nature is constant, but Judah is not.

Jeremiah 18:15 NIV and TEV have burning incense to “worthless idols;” New English Bible has “mere

 idols;” There is actually no adjective in the original. A more literal translation is vanity or emptiness

 (KJV), nothing (Jerusalem Bible), delusion (NRSV) or The Fraud (AB). The verse literally reads that

 the idols made them stumble, but is better understood as saying that their worship of idols made them

 stumble. Instead of following the clear paths that God has marked out, they are always trying to find

 shortcuts