True Hope Doesn’t Come from False Prophets

Rev. Mark Barz, pastor at Crown of Life Lutheran Church in San Antonio, TX, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Jeremiah 29:15-32.

Jeremiah continues his letter to the exiles by warning them against the false prophets who are active even there in Babylon. Jeremiah reminds them of the truth that those who remain in Judah and Jerusalem will be visited by sword, famine, and pestilence. False prophets such as Ahab and Zedekiah will be punished not simply as treasonous against Nebuchadnezzar but as rebellious against the LORD. Another false prophet, Shemaiah, wrote a letter back to Jerusalem demanding that the priest there punish Jeremiah. The LORD told that false prophet that he would not see the good that the LORD was going to do for His people. That is why the true preaching of God’s Word remains so important, that He would give to His people the true hope and future that is found in repentance and faith in Jesus Christ.

“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.