In Jeremiah 32, God tells Jeremiah to buy a field from the son of his uncle. At the time, it was dumbfounding as to why God would ask Jeremiah to buy a field during a time the Israelites were under siege Babylon. This vision came to Jeremiah when he was shut up in court of the guard in the palace of the king of Judah. He was previously detained in a cistern and Zedekiah transferred Jeremiah to the court of guard to watch over him. Has God ever called you to do something irrational or out of the ordinary in life.
Jeremiah's cousin, Hanamel, came to him in the court of the guard. He said, "Buy my field that is in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, for the right of possession and redemption is yours; buy it for yourself." It was at that moment in time that Jeremiah knew this decision to buy the field was from God. Jeremiah knew what God prophesied will come true. When God reveals something to us, we have to trust he will lead us.
In the preceding verse nine, Jeremiah bought the field and weighed out the money to him, which was seventeen shekels of silver. Coins are not in general use at the time, so Jeremiah had to weigh out the coins. As far as how silver was valued, we do not know in Biblical terms. This shows that Jeremiah paid full price for Hanamel's land. In verse ten, he received the deed, sealed it, got witnesses, and weighted money on the scales. Then he took the sealed deed with the purchase, that contained the open copy as well as the conditions and open copy.
Next, Jeremiah gave the deed of purchase to Baruch, his scribe and assistant, in the presence of Hanamel, his cousin, all the who signed the deed of purchase, and in the presence of the Judeans who were sitting in the court of the guard. This shows that this act is a highly public event. When the Israelites are taken into exile, the would be able to see this deed to buy land. The Israelites would be able to find hope in this deed of land. It is a positive message when most of Jeremiah is negative in tone.
Last, Jeremiah calls Baruch, to take the deeds, both the sealed deed and the open deed, and put them in an earthenware vessel for a long time. God says this would be done to give the people hope for the future return after exile. God speaks through Jeremiah saying, "Houses and fields and vineyards shall again be bought in this land." Verse 15 emphasizes the true nature and purpose of God calling Jeremiah to buy the field. It shows how the destruction of Jerusalem and exile will not the end of the story for the Israelites. Lastly, there will be a day for the Israelites when they will be able to reclaim their land and plant crops and vineyards again.
As I close out this blog post, first we can see that Jeremiah sought God's voice daily. Two, Jeremiah heard a vision from God and he follow up with it and it came to pass. Third, God called Jeremiah to do something irrational and he trusted God with the symbolic action. This symbolic action would set the stage for Israel's return out of exile. This action was a level of confidence for the future for the people.
Jeremiah 32:15 is a passage that gives us hope with all the crazy situations that take place in our life. It reminds us to put our hope in God in the midst of wars, famines, and broken-ness in this world. Lastly, Jeremiah 32:15 reminds us that God is still at work in our lives. We have to bring that hope to our world. It is important we remind other people of that hope we have that Jeremiah 32:15 promises.
Through these points in this story, we have to examine what ways God is calling us to take a step out of faith. Jeremiah was in tune with where God was leading him and he trusted God. What is God leading us to do or say to a certain person? I used the resource, Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15 – Sermon Writer. How can we trust God greater with whatever he is calling us to do?
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