Don’t Pray for Them: Jeremiah 7

“However, the LORD did not turn from the fierceness of His great wrath with which His anger burned against Judah, because of all the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked Him” (2 Kings 23:26, NASB).

Several years ago I decided to read through the book of Jeremiah. I knew from my studies of the twelve Minor Prophets in Bible College that the Major Prophets were about the same events. We had Sunday school lessons from Jeremiah 7. These lessons emphasized that the people of Judah refused to believe the prophet’s warnings because the temple of the Lord was located in Jerusalem. So, as I was reading through the book I came upon these words: “As for you, do not pray for this people, and do not lift up ery or prayer for them, and do not intercede with Me, for I do not hear you” (Jer.7:16, NASB). I must admit that I was surprised to know that the Lord had commanded the prophet not to pray for His people. I continued reading through the book and I learned that the Lord had given this commandment not to pray two additional times in the book—Jeremiah 11:14; Jeremiah 14:11.

I was surprised that the Lord commanded the prophet not to pray for God’s own people, the Israelites. I had been taught that we ought to pray in every situation. We ought to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17). Prayer can change things. Prayer can change us. Yet, the Lord commanded the prophet not to pray for His own people. So, as I was thinking about all the mass murders, the pandemic, the shortage of food and baby formula, I noticed that the president of the United States had a lot to say. He challenged the country to take action to end the violence, hate, and discrimination. I also noticed that unlike many of the past presidents he has not called the nation to prayer. I have noticed that leaders in this country; especially political leaders and religious leaders are stressing the need for legislation to solve our problems. There is less emphasis on prayer. Maybe, we should read the context in which the Lord commanded the prophet not to pray for the people. Why did the Lord tell the prophet that He would not hear him when he prayed?

The prophet Jeremiah prophesied during the reign of Josiah, Jehoiakim, and Zedekiah, kings in Judah (See Jer. 1:1-3). The time of God’s commandment to Jeremiah was during the reign of Josiah. We know this because this prophecy took place before Babylon attacked Jerusalem after the death of Josiah. (See 2 Kings 23:28-33; 2 Chronicles 35:26-27). In Jeremiah7 the Lord warned the people for their sins. These included injustices such as oppression of the alien, the orphan, the widow, the shed of innocent blood, and walking after other gods.(See Jer. 7:5-6). The people were very religious. They worshiped the Lord and believed that God would always be in their midst because the temple was the place where the Lord lived. As long as the temple stood, they must be alright in the sight of the Lord, they reasoned.

The people believed that the Lord would always be in Jerusalem. He lived in the temple. They praised Him and worshiped Him. However, they were guilty of breaking the first commandment: “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exod. 20:3, NASB). The people did not understand that the Lord did not hear their praise. The Lord did not honor their worship. From the time that the Lord delivered Israel out of bondage in Egypt the people had been guilty of breaking His covenant. The sound of praise and worship was of no effect even though they continued to offer burnt offering and sacrifices. God hears and honors the praise and worship of only those who honor the Lord by being obedient to the covenant. “Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal and walk after other gods that you have not known, then come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name and say, ‘We are delivered!’—that you may do all these abominations” (v. 9)?

The presence of the temple would not prevent the people from the judgment of the Lord. The Lord said, “But go now to My place which was in Shiloh, where I made My name dwell at the first, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of My people Israel” (v. 12; See 26:6; 26:9; Ps. 78:60). God had placed His name at Shiloh when the Israelites first possessed the land of Canaan. However, the Lord removed His name from Shiloh because of the wickedness of the people (v. 12). God removed His name because the Lord does not dwell in an unclean temple. God does not look at what can be seen with the eye. God looks at the thoughts and intents of the heart. What does all of this have to do with the Lord’s command to the prophet not to pray for the people?

There comes a time when the Lord ceases to offer His grace and mercy. There comes a time when God says that’s enough. There is a time when we reach the point of no return; when we have gone beyond the limits of God’s mercy. Although grace and mercy are sovereign they are not without limits set by God. Jeremiah painted a picture in which the Lord was getting ready to raise up the Chaldeans (Babylon) to take the people into exile. The false prophets said that the presence of the temple was proof that the words of Jeremiah were not true. Since God had warned the people and they had ignored Him it would be useless for the prophet to pray for the people. God had made the decision. The prayer of the prophet would not affect what the Lord was about to do.

The command that God gave to the prophet does not affect our need to pray. The prophet believed in prayer. He believed in interceding for the people. In this particular case, God’s command that the prophet not pray was a warning of the judgments surely to come. We too can learn from this experience of the prophet. We should always pray for people. At the same time we should be telling people that if they continue to be disobedient to God’s commands grace and mercy have their limits. God will not always withhold His judgment.