Jeremiah 26:7-11: a reflection

7The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the LORD’s house. 8When Jeremiah had finished speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “You shall surely die! 9Why have you prophesied in the LORD’s name, saying, ‘This house will be like Shiloh, and this city will be desolate, without inhabitant’?” All the people were crowded around Jeremiah in the LORD’s house. 10When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king’s house to the LORD’s house; and they sat in the entry of the new gate of the LORD’s house. 11Then the priests and the prophets spoke to the princes and to all the people, saying, “This man is worthy of death, for he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears.”

When Jeremiah delivers God's message that the temple and city would be destroyed if the people did not repent, the response is fury. The priests, the prophets, and all the people seize him, crying, You shall surely die! For daring to prophesy against the temple and the city, Jeremiah is threatened with death, his faithful delivery of God's word met not with repentance but with hostility and a demand for his life. Speaking God's truth had made him the target of the crowd's rage.

Notice what faithful truth-telling brought Jeremiah: hostility, even a threat to his life. He had not softened or altered God's message; he delivered it faithfully, and precisely because it was unwelcome, the people turned on him. This is a recurring pattern in Scripture: the faithful messenger of God's truth is often met not with gratitude but with hostility, because the truth is unwelcome. Faithfulness to God's word can make us the target of those who do not want to hear it.

That is a sobering reality for anyone called to speak or live God's truth. We may hope that faithfulness will be welcomed, but it is not always so; sometimes faithful witness to God's truth provokes hostility, opposition, even hatred, from those who do not want to hear it. Jeremiah faced death threats for his faithfulness. Do not be surprised if faithfulness to God's truth costs you the crowd's approval, or worse. When it does, remember Jeremiah, and the many faithful who suffered for the truth, and above all Christ, who was crucified for it. Hold to the truth faithfully, even when it brings hostility, trusting the God for whose truth you stand.

Lord, when Jeremiah faithfully delivered your unwelcome word, the people turned on him and threatened his life; his faithfulness to your truth brought hostility, not gratitude. Prepare me for that reality. I may hope that faithfulness will be welcomed, but sometimes faithful witness to your truth provokes opposition, even hostility, from those who do not want to hear it. When faithfulness to you costs me the crowd's approval, or worse, keep me from being surprised or shaken. Help me remember Jeremiah, and the many who suffered for the truth, and above all Christ, who was crucified for it. Give me courage to hold to your truth faithfully, even when it brings hostility, trusting you, for whose word I stand. Let me fear you more than the crowd.