Isaiah 32
Jeremiah 32 records how Jeremiah proclaims God’s message amid the situation where Jerusalem is surrounded by the Babylonian army. This chapter can be divided into three main parts. First (verses 1–5) explains why Jeremiah is imprisoned and the circumstances of the time; second (verses 6–25) describes Jeremiah’s symbolic act of buying a field according to God’s command; and third (verses 26–44) is where God’s pronouncement of judgment and His promise of restoration are declared.
1verseBehold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in justice.
2verseA man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the storm, as streams of water in a dry place, as the shade of a large rock in a weary land.
3verseThe eyes of those who see will not be dim, and the ears of those who hear will listen.
4verseThe heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.
5verseThe fool will no longer be called noble, nor the scoundrel be highly respected.
6verseFor the fool will speak folly, and his heart will work iniquity, to practice profanity, and to utter error against the LORD, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
7verseThe ways of the scoundrel are evil. He devises wicked plans to destroy the humble with lying words, even when the needy speaks right.
8verseBut the noble devises noble things, and he will continue in noble things.
9verseRise up, you women who are at ease! Hear my voice! You careless daughters, give ear to my speech!
10verseFor days beyond a year you will be troubled, you careless women; for the vintage will fail. The harvest won’t come.
11verseTremble, you women who are at ease! Be troubled, you careless ones! Strip yourselves, make yourselves naked, and put sackcloth on your waist.
12verseBeat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.
13verseThorns and briers will come up on my people’s land; yes, on all the houses of joy in the joyous city.
14verseFor the palace will be forsaken. The populous city will be deserted. The hill and the watchtower will be for dens forever, a delight for wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks,
15verseuntil the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is considered a forest.
16verseThen justice will dwell in the wilderness; and righteousness will remain in the fruitful field.
17verseThe work of righteousness will be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.
18verseMy people will live in a peaceful habitation, in safe dwellings, and in quiet resting places,
19versethough hail flattens the forest, and the city is leveled completely.
20verseBlessed are you who sow beside all waters, who send out the feet of the ox and the donkey.
The Meaning of the Prophetic Act of Buying a Field
While Jeremiah is in prison, the story of Jeremiah paying money to buy the field of a man named Hanamel from a prophet is highly symbolic. In a time of imminent crisis when Jerusalem is about to fall, buying someone’s field might seem irrational, but God tells Jeremiah to show them symbolically that after the exile, houses, fields, and vineyards will be bought and sold again in this land—as a sign. Along with the disaster that will soon come, this action delivers a message of hope that restoration will certainly follow.
God’s Sovereignty and the Promise of Restoration
From verse 26 onward, God reveals that He is the sovereign ruler of all the world and again states that Judah and Jerusalem will be judged because of their sins. At the same time, God does not abandon them completely, and He provides a firm promise that when the appointed time comes, He will restore them. You can see the message of grace: the people of Israel will repent and turn back, and God will bring them back to Himself.
Meditation Points to Learn from History
- Even in bleak circumstances, we can learn to believe that God’s promises will surely be fulfilled.
- As a person of faith, it makes you think about the importance of trusting God’s will and living a life of obedience.
- You can also receive the message to have a perspective that looks at history within God’s great and broad plan, not just from a short-term viewpoint.
Applying It to Myself
- Even when the situation I’m in is as difficult as it is incomprehensible, I reflect on whether I can trust God’s will and His Word and obey.
- I make a decision to cling to the promises and comfort God gives whenever I feel like giving up, and to have faith that looks to the future with a long-range perspective.
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