When the whole transaction was over, Jeremiah prayed to the Lord. His
prayer revealed the struggle he had gone through in order to be obedient.
This purchase of property had stretched Jeremiah’s faith. In verse 17 he
praised God as the sovereign Lord who made the heavens and the earth.
There was nothing impossible for Him to accomplish. He praised God for
being loving, holy, and just. He also thanked God that He was mighty in His
deeds and would reward all people according to their conduct (verse 19).
The God of Israel was a God of miraculous signs and wonders whose power
was known throughout the earth. He demonstrated that power when he
brought His people out of Egypt. He showed His love and faithfulness to
His people by giving them their land. His people had enjoyed the
fruitfulness of that land, but they did not follow the Lord and His ways.
God demonstrated His justice and holiness by punishing their sin and
unfaithfulness. He brought disaster to the land He gave them (verse 23). In
this section of his prayer, Jeremiah reminded himself of God’s sovereignty,
love, and justice. He reviewed in his mind the many ways in which God had
proven faithful. He did not understand why God was asking him to buy this
property, but, knowing that God’s ways are perfect, he was willing to act in
faith (verse 25).
Having reminded himself of who God was, Jeremiah expressed honestly his
feeling about what had just taken place. He reminded the Lord that the city
was, at that moment, being captured. Everything was happening just as the
Lord had told him it would. While Jeremiah saw that the Lord was
accomplishing His purposes, he expressed his concern about the transaction
he had just made with his cousin. He did not understand why the Lord had
asked him to make this purchase at this time of insecurity.
It is important for us to see that Jeremiah did not wait until he understood
before obeying. There have been times in my life when I failed to act in
faith because I could not understand why God was leading me to do
something. Sometimes God asks us to obey without full understanding. If
we wait until we understand everything, we will never move forward.
The Lord spoke to Jeremiah’s concerns in verse 26, reminding him that
nothing was too hard for Him. God told Jeremiah that He was about to hand
this city over to the Babylonians. These Babylonians would attack and set
the city on fire. They would do so because God’s people in the city had