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22-23 May. Jeremiah chapters 30-33
The prophesies in these chapters summarise the bittersweet message of Jeremiah: the bad news is that God’s punishment on them can be put off no longer, for such blatant sins as sacrificing children to false gods and setting up idols in the Temple could not be pardoned even by the all-loving One. The good news, that he would not visit their sin on future generations, who would be allowed to return and rebuild.
So sure of this is Jeremiah (chapter 32) that he spends his own money on the apparently foolish act of buying agricultural land outside the city, even as the enemy army is besieging it and even as he himself is being held in custody for the crime of speaking against the king. And so sure is he that he has the deeds to the land put in a safe place in front of witnesses, as proof to future generations that his prophecies had come true. It is not enough to know what God’s will is in a certain situation: to prove it, we need to act, even at a cost to ourselves.
The other point to note is the frequent reminders of God’s covenants – the one with all humanity that the established order of earth and sky, day and night and the seasons would never fail, and that with the descendants of Israel (Jacob) that he would always love them. God makes a further promise in 33;14-18 that there would never fail to be a descendant of David on the throne of Israel – a promise which taken literally is of course no longer true, but in Christian theology this has always been seen as a reference to Jesus, who since his resurrection has been reigning in spirit not only in Israel but over all the earth.