Jeremiah 4

In this chapter, God sends a clear invitation to Israel to repent from their idolatry and return to Him. He wants them to escape the impending invasion by the Babylonians, but it seems they want nothing to do with God and His plan to rescue them. At every turn, they continue to reject His protection.

Their total defeat is described later in the chapter, and to it, God’s heart-wrenching reply: “Oh, my anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain. Oh, the agony of my heart! My heart pounds within me, I cannot keep silent. For I have heard the sound of the trumpet; I have heard the battle cry.” (vs 19)

Here’s the thing that is really confounding me right now, though: God knew the Israelites were not going to repent. Nearly one hundred years before this, Isaiah prophesied that Israel would fall to Babylon. Yet, God called Jeremiah to pick up the torch and continue to plead with Israel for their repentance.

In effect, God called Jeremiah to a life of prophetic failure. He knew—and He knew ahead of time—that Jeremiah would not only be ignored, but openly challenged. He actually told Jeremiah that up front: “‘Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land—against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land. They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you,’ declares the Lord.” (Jer 1:18-19)

There is something about this that I find difficult to understand. I mean, why bother? God knows His people through and through. He knows they’re not going to heed His warnings or advice, so why not just give up?

That’s what my mind would say—I guess unless I was dealing with my own children. Perhaps when it came to them, even if I knew my efforts would fail, I would still try. How could I not? How could I just give up on the ones I love so much?

If that’s what love is like, and if God is Pure Love, then it must be all but impossible for Him to come to the place where He’ll give us up. He will leave no stone unturned in pursuit of us—even if He knows that He’ll find no satisfaction underneath those stones. Always, He is compelled by His heart of love to keep going, to try harder, to find another way.

He can’t help Himself.