Do not listen to
the dreams you encourage them to have (Jeremiah 29:8).
After the first wave of captives was taken from Judah to
Babylon, there was an expectation among those exiles that their release would
be speedy and they would soon return to their beloved Jerusalem. The prophets who accompanied them
not only shared that expectation, but felt pressured to tell the people what
they wanted to hear. They encouraged the Judean exiles that they would not be
there long; that deliverance was at hand.
Jeremiah knew differently and wrote God’s people a letter
from Jerusalem: Build houses and
settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce… Find wives for your sons
and give your daughters in marriage (vv. 5,6). He went on to warn
them not to listen to those whose prophecies were influenced by the
expectations of those around them. Even though they might be well meaning, they
were too reluctant to give the people bad news.
The bad news: Get
comfortable; you’re going to be here awhile. The good news: Even seventy years in Babylon cannot thwart
God’s plan for you (Author’s Paraphrase, v. 10) . . . plans to prosper you and not to harm
you, plans to give you hope and a future (v. 11)
Is bad news ever really bad news if God has your back?
TODAY’S MEDITATION
Ask for strength to speak
the truth this week, knowing that even bad news falls under the promise of
Romans 8:28 – “In all things God works for the good…”
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