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Jeremiah 28:7-9. "Yet hear now this word which I speak in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people. The prophets who preceded you and me from ancient times prophesied war, famine, and pestilence against many countries and great kingdoms. As for the prophet who prophesies peace, when the word of that prophet comes to pass, then it will be known that the Lord has truly sent the prophet."

 

Jeremiah is speaking to Hananiah, a false prophet who has just prophesied that God will "break the yoke of the king of Babylon", and, within two years, bring back Judah's exiled king and people, and all the temple treasures. (Jeremiah 28:1-4). This is taking place in front of the priests and people, so Jeremiah, who knows what God has actually said is going to happen, has to tread carefully. Hananiah is prophesying a false peace, but one in which the priests and people certainly want to believe. Jeremiah, on the other hand, has only words of further destruction and suffering, which are, unfortunately, the truth he is tasked with delivering.

 

So Jeremiah begins gently. He says to Hananiah "Amen! May the Lord do so; may the Lord make the words which you have prophesied come true" (Jeremiah 28:6), before he goes on to point out that prophecies of peace are not the normal way of things. Of course, it would be nice if Hananiah's words came true, so Jeremiah can publicly wish that they would, but he knows they will not, he knows there is much worse coming. Further, his job as a prophet is to warn the people and call them to repentance, even though they do not want to listen.

 

In some very unforeseen ways, the craziness of the COVID era was a blessing to me. One of them was that it showed me what prophets like Jeremiah faced, and how to at least try to speak to people who don't want to hear what I have to say. When people are filled with fear, and false prophets are fanning that fear for their own purposes, and then offering their own false solutions, it feels hopeless to speak against all of that, and it can be very dangerous to try. Yet we are called nonetheless to be like Jeremiah, to speak up when we see the people and the priests being deceived; to call out injustice; to call for repentance; to warn that there is worse coming if the people don't wake up and seek the truth. When paralyzing fear has a firm grip on people, no one wants to hear any of this. They instead want to be told the comforting words of the "experts" who, in the case of COVID, both created the fear, and offered their own man-made remedy for it. The people want Hananiah, but we have to be Jeremiah.

 

The intensity of the COVID lies and manipulation has abated, but the underlying issues with our culture and society are still there. God is still relying on those who see the truth, or some small part of it, to speak to His people, to warn them against false promises of peace and security. These things don't exist apart from God, and a people who continue engaging in wickedness, such as abortion, do not have peace and security in their future. Further suffering is a difficult truth, but one that has to be spoken to the people if they are ever going to seek salvation from the only One who can give it.

 

God raises up prophets to warn and guide us, which is why their messages are typically not consoling. We do not need prophets to tell us everything will be fine, and there's no need to change. We certainly don't need them to try and force us to accept their proffered solutions which promise peace and security (and we should be very wary when they try!). Rather, we need prophets to call us to repentance and change, which is always a difficult message to hear.