Jeremiah was a prophet to the southern kingdom of Judah in the Old Testament, right before Judah ultimately fell to Babylon and was led away into captivity in 586BC. God sent Jeremiah to a crumbling nation to warn of their impending demise—a warning they didn’t heed. So, who Jeremiah and why was he know as the weeping prophet?
Well, first, Jeremiah was alone. He was not allowed to marry, and his family abandoned him. The people turned against him and didn’t believe him. He was alone with the knowledge of the horrors coming for Judah. Jeremiah spent forty years delivering God’s messages to Judah. His early messages focused on condemning false worship and social injustice, with calls to repentance. He proclaimed a coming foe, and after the reforms under Josiah, he urged the people to adhere to the covenant.
He continually urged focusing on the inner spirit and right actions rather than external religious practice. To say the least, Jeremiah lived at a truly terrible time in history. Not only did he experience the horrors of war, starvation, siege, and captivity, he was called upon to tell the people of it, urging them to repent. Worst of all, they didn’t listen.
Judah was sent into captivity, the Promised Land stripped from them, and it was entirely their own fault. They were warned, over and over and over, but they did not repent. God did not deal with them with any unusual harshness; in fact, the fact that he gave the wicked people such a long time to repent shows His love. He sent dozens of prophets proclaiming repentance, but these messengers were killed, abused, and mocked.
After Jerusalem was destroyed, the Babylonians released Jeremiah from prison and allowed him to live in the land under the protection of a governor. Unfortunately, the governor was murdered two months later, and Jeremiah was carried off to Egypt against his will.
Jeremiah led a tumultuous life, and, most likely, death. However, his words live on thousands of years later, offering teaching and hope even today, perhaps the most famous is Jeremiah 29:11: “‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”
Jeremiah served God even when it meant giving up everything and facing persecution in a culture that had abandoned God. Are we willing to do the same?