Let’s take a look at Jeremiah 2:26-28:
“As a thief is disgraced when he is caught,
so the people of Israel are disgraced—
they, their kings and their officials,
their priests and their prophets.
They say to wood, ‘You are my father,’
and to stone, ‘You gave me birth.’
They have turned their backs to me
and not their faces;
yet when they are in trouble, they say,
‘Come and save us!’
Where then are the gods you made for yourselves?
Let them come if they can save you
when you are in trouble!
For you, Judah, have as many gods
as you have towns.Jeremiah 2:26-28 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/jer.2.26-28.NIV
The recipients of this message, we might say, are “busted”. God knows what they have been doing, and is calling them out on it. (If this weren’t going to result in serious consequences for their choices, and if we weren’t guilty of our own sins, this might even be comical.) Here, whether literally or figuratively, they are saying to idols of wood and stone that these are their gods who created them. When you’ve physically created an idol out of natural materials, it is just nonsense to say that the idol is a god who created you. (Now, I realize that some people see idols as a means to connect with a god that already exists, but that’s a topic for another day.)
Who will they call out to when they need help, though? What will they do when their idols of wood and stone fail to help them (which is what we rationally conclude will happen)?
When they do call out to the true God (the “I AM”), it sounds like God will remind them of what they had put their faith in, and challenge the people to consider whether those idols can do anything for them.
I wonder, when Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal (see 1 Kings 18:16-40), did those prophets suddenly remember the true God and call out to Him once they saw fire from heaven on His altar, or when they were being executed for their corruption of the people?
Back in Jeremiah 2, the last part of verse 28 shows how bad idolatry had become, with as many gods as cities in Judah. As is often the case, there are far more wrong answers than right ones, and no quantity of false gods can replace the one true God.
Let’s take a look at a couple of verses from Jeremiah 4:
“If you, Israel, will return,
then return to me,”
declares the LORD.
“If you put your detestable idols out of my sight
and no longer go astray,
and if in a truthful, just and righteous way
you swear, ‘As surely as the LORD lives,’
then the nations will invoke blessings by him
and in him they will boast.”Jeremiah 4:1-2 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/jer.4.1-2.NIV
Here’s God’s offer, though: Israel can still return. There is still hope. If, after remembering God’s blessings and understanding the pointlessness of following anything else, Israel wants to return to God, then they should absolutely do so!
However, this isn’t just going back to God along with other, false gods. It means getting rid of the idols, and embracing truth, justice, and righteousness. Going back to the Ten Commandments (see Exodus 20:1-7, in particular), God is willing to be Israel’s God (as He is willing to be our God), but He should not have to share the throne of our hearts with anything or anyone else, including our selfishness or pride.
I like what the Lookout study guide said about the good things that could happen if God’s people would return: “Essentially Judah would end up advertising for God. The nations would see God’s care for his people and boast of the God of Israel.”
I believe that this is not because God is arrogant or selfish (i.e., selfish in the ways that people are), but rather because He knows that His way is better for us, and He loves us too much to enjoy letting us hurt ourselves by following anything less.
As Jeremiah 4 reminds us, if we’re willing to commit to it, we can return to God. If you’ve never met God through Jesus Christ, or if you’ve drifted away from Him, the offer is still open! For more information about that, feel free to contact me, reach out to a trusted follower of Jesus, or read what the Bible has to say (perhaps starting in Mark 1 to learn about Jesus).
From Sunday School lesson prepared for June 11, 2023
References:
- The Lookout, June 11, 2023, © 2023 Christian Standard Media.
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – Jeremiah-Lamentations, by Timothy M. Willis. © 2002 College Press Publishing Co.
Those Who Sin Differently 