One thing we cannot say about prophecies of Jeremiah
We cannot say God was silent –he did not sit back and watch passively,
- as his people destroyed their religion, their nation and themselves
• Jeremiah says God rose early to send all his prophets (Jer. 25:4)
◦ in the Old Testament, to rise early signifies eagerness, a compelling energy
• God eagerly sent his word to his people
◦ they would have heard him if there were equally eager to listen
- but we also notice, God had a funny way of speaking at times
• for instance, the chapter I read begins with two baskets of figs
◦ we can’t help but wonder, Where is God going with this?
• this is not unusual, but how God spoke frequently to his prophets
◦ he begins by showing the prophet a vision, then asks "What do you see?"
◦ the message was in the object or scene, which God used for its symbolic value