“Letter to the Exiles”

Jeremiah 29:1, 4-14

¹Jeremiah wrote a letter from Jerusalem to the elders, priests, prophets, and all the people who had been exiled to Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzar.

⁴ This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says to all the captives he has exiled to Babylon from Jerusalem: ⁵ “Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. ⁶ Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! ⁷ And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.”

⁸ This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: “Do not let your prophets and fortune-tellers who are with you in the land of Babylon trick you. Do not listen to their dreams, ⁹ because they are telling you lies in my name. I have not sent them,” says the Lord.

¹⁰ This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. ¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. ¹² In those days when you pray, I will listen. ¹³ If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. ¹⁴ I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.”

This morning’s reading reminds me of the one about a rumor that got round the forest one day. It said that the bear kept a list of all the animals he planned to kill. Scared and confused, the wolf went to confront the bear. “Um, excuse me, Mr. Bear,” said wolf. “Do you really keep a list of all the animals you plan to kill?” “I do.” said the bear. “And…is my name on it?” asked the wolf. “It is,” the bear growled. And the following morning, the wolf was found dead on the forest floor. The fox came later that day to confront the bear. “Pardon my asking, Mr. Bear,” she said. “But do you really keep a list of all the animals you plan to kill?” “I do.” said the bear. “Soooo…is my name on it?” she asked. “It is,” the bear growled. And the following morning, fox’s mangled remains were found lying on the forest floor. That same day the rabbit, too, decided to confront the bear. “Mr. Bear,” he said. “Is it true you really keep a list of all the animals you plan to kill?” “I do,” said the bear. “And…is my name on it?” asked the rabbit. “It is,” the bear growled. “Well, cccccan you remove it by chance?!” “Oh, for sure!” responded the bear. And the rabbit went about its day.

Not necessarily funny as it is absurd. Who knew the animals simply had to ask the bear to be removed from the kill list? Well, none of the animals except for the bold and daring rabbit. It just goes to show that no plan is unchangeable, that the future is always open. The animals that confronted the bear about the rumored kill list were resigned to their fate. They didn’t put up any type of resistance and the bear simply responded to their resignation by killing them. But the truth is all the animals of the forest could always be easily killed by the bear. The threat was always there with or without the list. In the end, it was their resignation that got them killed.

For a few weeks now, we’ve been walking with the prophet, Jeremiah, and Jeremiah had the unfortunate task of confronting the wayward King Jehoiakim and getting him to change his ways. The king wasn’t leading his people in God-pleasing ways and needed to get back on track. Jeremiah pled with the obstinate king over and over again until finally God had had enough and allowed the Babylonian empire to overtake his kingdom. God’s people were then taken captive and sent into exile in the Babylonian empire. Now then, God’s people could have resigned themselves to being a captive people. They could have lived in fear of what their capturers might do to them. They could have just sat around and not done anything. After all, they were in a foreign land with no access to resources. No jobs, no homes, no connections to getting either. Sure, they had each other but what good is that without any access to resources? They could have become resigned to their fate and the bear would have gladly killed them off. Or they could do something completely different and actually listen to Jeremiah. Their king wouldn’t listen, but they were longer under his reign. They were free of his evil reign and could choose their destiny. Jeremiah offered them an unusual message though: “Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. Marry and have children. Then find spouses for them so that you may have many grandchildren. Multiply! Do not dwindle away! And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.” These are not words a captured people want to hear…plan to stay, plant roots, pray for the welfare of your capturers! Who would want to hear such words in such dire times? The captive people want to know how to overtake their capturers. And if they can’t do that, then when they’ll be able to go home. God tells them to hunker in and make the best of their situation. He even gives them a timeline of their captivity: 70 years. Unfortunately, 70 years a looooong time. Everyone who heard that number realized they’d be dead before they could return home. Only their kids and grandkids would be able to go home, not a very hopeful message for them. But there is hope in Jeremiah’s words. We hear that familiar verse 11: “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.”

Very few people’s situations are ideal situations. Most of us have struggles and obstacles to overcome in this world. We can choose to feel sorry for ourselves, resign ourselves to a dismal future, allow the bear to destroy us. Or we can choose to cling to hope and God’s plan for us. God has a plan for us, a plan for good and not for disaster. We might not understand his plan, but we can have faith that they are for our good. What does God tell us through the prophet, Isaiah? “’My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,’ says the Lord. ‘And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” (55:8-9) And then in Romans, Paul reassures us, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (8:28) I love that verse because it’s a conditional verse. Not everything works together for good, but everything works together for good of those who love God. Meaning we should stop worrying about our future and more about loving God, plain and simple. If we love God the way He wants us to love him, He’ll take care of us and make sure we have everything we need.

King Jehoiakim and his people failed to love God and listen to Jeremiah’s pleas to change their ways. Look at what it got them…70 years in exile. But God never stopped loving them and gave them hope and a future. In those 70 years, I imagine they grew to love God again…love and obey and honor him. Proverbs tell us, “Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” (16:3) Let us commit our actions to the Lord. Let us heed the wisdom of those around us who help us love God the way we’re supposed to love him. Our God is a good and loving good who graciously bestows hope when times are bad. So let us give thanks for it. Thanks be to God!

In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.