Strength for the Weary Prophet

Rev. Dr. Thomas Egger, president of Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 15:1-21.

Jeremiah preaches in one of the most painful times in the history of Israel. The LORD tells Jeremiah that even if the greatest intercessors from the past were to pray for His people, still He would not relent. The sins of Manasseh were the tipping point, and His people have had no lasting repentance. Judgment and destruction will come; the LORD has wearied of relenting. Jeremiah cries out in anguish. On the one hand, the LORD’s Word has been to him a joy, and yet the prophet has suffered mightily for his faithful preaching. He wonders if God will be true to His promises. The LORD calls Jeremiah to remain in repentance and faith, and He strengthens His prophet in the call He gave to him. This chapter calls all to repentance and faith in Jesus before the Last Day comes, because Jesus is the One who receives God’s wrath in our place and who stands before the Father to plead for us.

“A Time to Destroy and a Time to Build” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that goes through the book of Jeremiah. The prophet calls the people of Judah and Jerusalem to repent of their faithless idolatry and warns them of the destruction that is coming in the Babylonian exile. Yet Jeremiah does not leave us without hope in the midst of such dark days. Jeremiah and all who believe the Word of God he preached survive because of hope that is found in the righteous Branch from the line of David, Jesus Christ.