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A
Shocking Prayer In
Jeremiah 20, we read about a priest named Pashur who has Jeremiah beaten and
put in the stocks, “a wooden frame with holes for the hands, neck, or feet of a
prisoner” (CEV footnote). After Jeremiah
is released, he prophecies that Pashur will die as a captive in Jeremiah calls God a liar The
first words in Jeremiah’s prayer are, “O Lord, You have deceived me and I was
deceived” (Jeremiah 20:7 NASB). This
echoes Jeremiah’s prayer in Jeremiah 15:18, “Will You indeed be to me like a
deceptive stream” (NASB), or, as the old King James put it, “wilt thou
altogether be unto me as a liar?” At
that time, God told Jeremiah to “repent” (Jer. 15:19 TNIV). And, likewise, Jeremiah should now repent of
charging God with deception. God had not
deceived Jeremiah, for God “never lies” (Titus 1:2 ESV). In fact, “it is impossible for God to lie”
(Hebrews 6:18 ESV). Jeremiah feels like throwing in the towel Next,
Jeremiah spoke of his persecutions, and then said that those persecutions
tempted him to quit being a prophet. He
said: “Sometimes I say to myself, ‘I will forget about the Lord.
I will not speak anymore in his name.’
But then his message becomes like a burning fire inside me, deep within
my bones. I get tired of trying to hold
it inside of me, and finally, I cannot hold it in” (Jeremiah 20:9 NCV). Now Jeremiah sets a good example. As the Life Application Study Bible notes,
“When God’s living message of forgiveness and love becomes fire in your bones,
you also will feel compelled to share it with others, regardless of the
results.” Jeremiah prays for vengeance Next,
Jeremiah speaks of his enemies, and prays, “I have told you my complaints, so
let me watch you take revenge on my enemies” (Jeremiah 20:12 CEV). A couple of chapters before, Jeremiah was
even more shocking: So let their children starve! Let them die by the sword! Let their wives become childless widows. Let their old men die in a plague, and let
their young men be killed in battle! Let
screaming be heard from their homes as warriors come suddenly upon them. For they have dug a pit for me and have
hidden traps along my path. Lord, you know all about their murderous
plots against me. Don’t forgive their
crimes and blot out their sins. Let them
die before you. Deal with them in your
anger (Jeremiah 18:21-23 NLT). Some
commentators try to defend Jeremiah in passages like these. For example, our brother Wayne Jackson says
that Jeremiah’s words should be viewed as “a call for divine justice, not personal vindictiveness” and notes similar New
Testament passages (Luke 19:27; Galatians 5:12 and Revelation 6:10). Nevertheless, I think I would personally have
difficulty praying such prayers in good conscience. Among other things, I notice a contrast between
Jeremiah’s prayer, “Don’t forgive their crimes” (Jer. 18:23), and Jesus’
prayer, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34
ESV). Jeremiah wishes he had never been born In
the last part of Jeremiah’s prayer, he says, “Cursed be the day on which I was
born! The day when my mother bore me,
let it not be blessed!” (Jeremiah 20:14 ESV).
This is just like what Job said: "Let the day perish on which I was
born […] Let those curse it who curse the day (Job 3:3-8 ESV). Jeremiah continues this unhappy note,
saying: Put a curse on the man who told my father, "Good news!
You have a son." Jeremiah
is almost saying, “I wish my mother had had an abortion.” Then Jeremiah concludes his prayer, saying,
“Why did I have to be born? Was it just to suffer and die in shame?” (Jeremiah
20:18 CEV). Conclusion |