Jeremiah 11 “Trusting in People”

Jeremiah 11 NIV

Suggested Praise Songs:

• You Never Let Go – Matt Redman
• Vertical Worship – Faithful Now
• As I Am – Hillsong Young & Free

Resources for Family Worship (with Children):

• Trusting God | Sunday School Lesson for Kids
• I Will Trust You God | #Preschool Worship Song | Sing-along Christian kids song 🎵 #kidsworship – Song for Kids
• Go and Make Disciples Kid Worship Song – Song for Kids
• My God Is Powerful | True North VBS Music Video | Group Publishing – Song for Kids
• My God is So Big 👍 Kids Songs 🐘 Hi Heaven – Song for Kids
• Discussion Questions for Children & Youth are located in the section after Explanation, Meditation, and Prayer (at the end of this email/blog).

Explanation:

The Lord commands Jeremiah to proclaim to the people of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem the covenant that God had given through Abraham and Moses. According to this covenant, those who obey the word of the Lord will receive blessings, and those who disobey will face curses (vv. 1–5). When Jeremiah agrees to do so, the Lord tells him that the people of Judah have chosen rebellion instead of obedience, and therefore, in accordance with His promise, He will judge them for their evil deeds (vv. 6–8). The Lord continues to accuse them of returning to the sins of their ancestors, rejecting His word, and worshiping idols. When God brings judgment upon them, they will call upon the idols they have worshiped, but those idols will be powerless to help them (vv. 9–13).

The Lord also tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people (v. 14), because even though they offer many sacrifices in the temple, they continue to plot evil. At one time, Judah was praised by the Lord as “a green olive tree, beautiful with goodly fruit,” but now it can no longer escape judgment (vv. 15–17).

During this time, the people of Jeremiah’s hometown, Anathoth, conspire to kill him. Anathoth was the place where the priest Abiathar was dismissed and banished by King Solomon. Because of this historical background, the priests of Anathoth had long been disliked and discriminated against by the people of Judah. To make matters worse, the resentment that the people of Judah felt toward Jeremiah was directed at the people of Anathoth. As a result, the priests of Anathoth demanded that Jeremiah stop prophesying. When he refused, they plotted to take his life. Fortunately, the Lord revealed their plan to Jeremiah (v. 18). Jeremiah then prayed to the Lord, asking Him to vindicate him and bring justice (vv. 19–20). The Lord answered by declaring that He would bring judgment upon the people of Anathoth (vv. 21–23).

Meditation:

After King David’s death, Prince Adonijah declared himself king, and Abiathar, who was serving as the high priest, sided with him (1 Kings 1). However, through the intervention of the prophet Nathan, Solomon was established as king, and Adonijah was executed as a rebel. At that time, Solomon spared Abiathar’s life in consideration of his past loyalty to King David. Instead, Solomon removed him from the high priesthood and exiled him to Anathoth.

From that point on, the people of Anathoth were regarded by the people of Judah as descendants of a traitor. When Jeremiah began proclaiming messages of disaster and judgment, the prejudice and hostility toward Anathoth grew even worse. The people of Anathoth urged Jeremiah to keep silent, but when he refused, they conspired to kill him.

When Jeremiah learned of this plot, he appealed to God. Having been called by the Lord, he had only spoken God’s word “like a gentle lamb led to the slaughter” (v. 19). Yet he was hated and threatened with death by his own townspeople. The anguish he must have felt was beyond words. Jeremiah’s prayer at this moment reminds us of one of David’s psalms, written when David himself suffered betrayal from close friends:

“If an enemy were insulting me, I could endure it;

if a foe were rising against me, I could hide.

But it is you, a man like myself,

my companion, my close friend,

with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship

at the house of God, as we walked about among the worshipers.”

— Psalm 55:12–14 (NIV)

Jeremiah was deeply shaken because those who should have understood, supported, and defended him—his own people from his hometown—had turned against him. Yet, like David, he found his strength in God and confessed, “As for me, I call to God, and the Lord saves me” (Psalm 55:16).

People are not meant to be the object of our faith. When we place our trust in people, we inevitably face disappointment and betrayal. The only One worthy of our full trust is God. David knew this truth, and Jeremiah learned it through the betrayal of his own people. Human beings are not the object of faith, but the object of love. Because we know how fragile and unreliable people can be, we strive to love them even more.

Prayer:

Lord, may our faith rest only in You. And for the people You have placed in our lives, help us to respond to them only with love. By doing so, may we become a source of comfort and refuge to others. Amen.

Discussion Questions for Children & Youth:

Key Point: Jeremiah’s own friends and neighbors turned against him, but he still trusted God. Like Jeremiah, we can rely on God’s love even when others hurt us.

• For Preschool-Elementary
  • Have you ever felt sad because a friend didn’t treat you kindly? What did you do?
  • Why do you think God wants us to keep loving others, even when they hurt our feelings?
  • When people disappoint us, how can we remember that God will never leave us?
    
• Youth
  • Jeremiah was betrayed by people who were supposed to care for him. Why do you think trusting people can sometimes lead to hurt?
  • What’s the difference between trusting people and loving people?
  • When you feel alone or misunderstood, what helps you remember that God is still with you and understands you completely?