Jeremiah 31-32

I don’t know if it is just me but I think the events described in Jeremiah 32 are absurd. I’m not saying that they didn’t happen exactly as written. What I mean is that God is messing with our standards. He took a normal, everyday event; the selling of a field, and he placed it in an absurd situation; in the prison of a besieged city. Jeremiah is a prison in courtyard of the royal palace. He was not the only prisoner. There were a number of people locked up by the king. Some may have heeded Jeremiah’s message and wanted to defect to the Babylonian army. Regardless of why they were there they were in prison. One day Jeremiah receive a visit from his cousin Hanamel. He want Jeremiah, the prisoner, to buy a piece of land. Jeremiah had been prepared for this even by a word from God. The divine instructions; buy the land from your cousin. This wasn’t territory inside of Jerusalem. It was a field in Anathoth of Benjamin. Property located outside of the siege works that surrounded Jerusalem. Is it just me or does this story sound insane? I wonder why Hanamel wanted with the money? Did he think he could buy food? Was he hoping that he would have something to take with him after the fall of Jerusalem? Then comes another funny aspect; where did Jeremiah get the silver? It could be that his servant Baruch brought him the money. I wonder if he had Baruch bring the money after God gave him the message and before Hanamel showed up. If so what did Baruch think of the request? “Baruch,” Jeremiah could have said, “Go fetch me 20 shekels of silver.” Baruch would have looked through the bars of his imprisoned master with a puzzled look on his face. Then he asked, “Why?” I imagine Jeremiah speaking with a straight face, “God said I’ll need it to buy some land.” In a few days Hanamel shows up and Jeremiah buys the land with the silver Baruch had given him. Jeremiah had his fellow prisoners witness the transaction, and prepared the customary sealed and unsealed documents regarding the transaction.” The scrolls were given to Baruch to put in a “safety deposit box.”

 

If I’m reading it correctly Jeremiah tells the events of this story as answer to king Zedekiah’s question as to why he was prophesying as he did (Jer 32:3-25). Maybe Jeremiah’s answer to the king was the rest of the words of chapter 32.  Regardless it is a good reminder that what may seem absurd or even foolish in my eyes may be exactly what God wants me to say or do.

 

Stuart