Approaching studies within Jeremiah, instead of trying to follow chronologically, which is difficult with this book, for roughly the first half of the book, the first 29 chapters, we will instead only produce studies within their appropriate chapters, theming them as follows:
- Jeremiah’s Calling Ch.1
- Jeremiah’s Main Message Ch.2,3,5,7,21,22
- Jeremiah’s Action Parables Ch.13,18,19,27
- Jeremiah’s Opposition Ch.11,12,14,18,20,26,28
- Jeremiah’s Message of Hope Ch.3,23,24,25,29
For those who may wish to ‘study’ this chapter, and the particular theme, as with studies elsewhere, each passage has a four-Part approach to help you take in and think further about what you have read on the main Bible page.
Message of Hope: 3. Two Baskets of Figs
Jer 24:1-10
After Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the officials, the skilled workers and the artisans of Judah were carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early; the other basket had very bad figs, so bad they could not be eaten.
3 Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”
“Figs,” I answered. “The good ones are very good, but the bad ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.”
4 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent away from this place to the land of the Babylonians. 6 My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me with all their heart.
8 “‘But like the bad figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah king of Judah, his officials and the survivors from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt. 9 I will make them abhorrent and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword, a curse and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish them. 10 I will send the sword, famine and plague against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.’”
A. Find Out :
- When did this picture come? v.1
- What did the Lord ask? v.3
- What was the picture? v.2,3
- Who were the good figs and what would happen to them? 5-7
- Who were the bad figs and what would happen to them? v.8-10
B. Think:
- Look up the Introduction page of these notes for when this occurs.
- How is there a surprising message of hope in the picture that Jeremiah receives?
- How does God show that He knows the heart of the last king of Judah?
C. Comment:
The Lord gives a picture to Jeremiah. Just as with the very first pictures that He gave Him, so the Lord checks to see if Jeremiah is being truly observant. Jeremiah sees that there are two very distinct lots of figs, one very good and the other very bad.
Approving Jeremiah’s observation, the Lord goes on to give the interpretation of this picture. Rather surprisingly the good figs are the people that He has just sent into captivity to Babylon. They are yet to make good and the Lord will watch over them so that when they repent (as they eventually will in captivity) He will bring them back and re-establish them in the land. Captivity is not the end for them!
We should perhaps take note more clearly here that merely because there appears judgement, that is not necessarily the end. God is the God of resurrection who can bring life after death, restoration after captivity in a foreign land! The Lord knows men’s hearts and He knows who will repent and who won’t (like Zedekiah!). He therefore plans accordingly.
D. Application?
- Thank the Lord that He is a God of restoration, constantly seeking life for His people.
- Thank Him that even in discipline there is hope as it comes with His love.