(First in a series of unforgettable passages in Jeremiah.  It’s a huge book–52 chapters–so this series will be ongoing.)   

1:4-5  The Foreknowledge of God

“Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you;  Before you were born I sanctified you;   I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”

Paul said, “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles….” (Galatians 1:15)  He’s saying, “God set me apart when I was still in the womb.”

Other scriptures on this subject are Isaiah 49:1, Luke 1:13-17, and Romans 9:10-23. And of course the pre-eminent passage on “before you were born” is the 139th Psalm.

1:4-19 The call of God upon Jeremiah.  You will enjoy comparing this call–and Jeremiah’s response!–to Moses’ in Exodus 3-4, Isaiah’s in Isaiah 6, and Paul’s, given in three different places in Acts (chapters 9, 22, and 24).

–First, God gives His plan for His spokesman

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My people have committed two evils: They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and they have hewed out for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.  –Jeremiah 2:13

The Heavenly Father thinks His children do some truly stupid things.

And He doesn’t mind saying so, in no uncertain terms.

Put yourself in God’s  place….

God sees us turning away from Him–with the provisions and blessings of Heaven before us–and trying to improve on what He has given.

God said to David, “I’ve given you everything! And if that wasn’t enough, I’d have given you more. But no–you had to take Uriah’s one wife and destroy him in the process!”  What is wrong with David?  (2 Samuel 12:7-8)

Imagine how God feels, watching us…

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