“Ah Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You,”
Jeremiah 32:17 (NASB)
The beginning of Jeremiah’s prayer in today’s verse is an awesome statement of faith in hard times. The Israelites had disobeyed God and followed pagan gods, they faced the prospect of invasion and exile in a foreign land as punishment for their sins. Despite this God called Jeremiah to purchase a field from a close relative, securing the deeds in a jar and bury them for future use. This made no worldly sense considering the imminent invasion of the Babylonians, but Jeremiah believed God and did what he was told. Our verse today is the beginning of Jeremiah’s prayer of faith in God.
God’s answer highlights the sins of His people and the judgment to come upon them, but in verses 37 – 38 there is good news:
Behold, I will gather them out of all the lands to which I have driven them in My anger, in My wrath and in great indignation; and I will bring them back to this place and make them dwell in safety. They shall be My people, and I will be their God;
Jeremiah 32:37-38
He will redeem His chosen people after their exile, bringing them home to the promised land. He will rejoice over their return and make them prosperous again – fields will be bought and sold again (verses 43 – 44). Thus, the purpose of Jeremiah’s field was an encouragement to him and his people that they would someday return and be blessed in their land.
Dear Reader, what faith Jeremiah shows in our verse today, regardless of the desperate times he lived in. He was willing to obey God even when it did not make worldly sense to do so; but as we know, God told Isaiah “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD (Is. 55:8). May we follow Jeremiah’s example in our own hard times today.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Devotional Treasures
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