Jeremiah 29:11: Jeremiah 29:1-23

“For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11, NASB).

Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the most quoted verses in the bible that I hear repeated in speech and print. It seems to me that this verse is used as words of encouragement and comfort when people are going through hard times. I believe in the providence of God. I believe that God comes to our rescue when we need God to do so. Yet, I am concerned about the way I find that people look at this passage. It seems to me that people use this passage to say that God is going to get you out of this messy situation, because God has plans for you to be in a better situation in life. I believe that God has shown Himself to be a God that does all of these things for people. I do not believe that this is the message in this text. Jeremiah 29:11 is not a message that God is going to fix things; that God is about to change your situation, bring your troubles to an end and make good things happen in your life.

Jeremiah 29:11 is part of a letter that the prophet Jeremiah writes to the exiles that have been taken from Jerusalem to Babylon by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar (Jer. 29:1-32). The first thing that we notice in these verses is that we see in the letter is that God sent the exiles to Babylon (v. 4). It is not the work of the devil. It is not Satan inflicting pain and suffering on God’s people. Many Christians have the belief that everything bad that happens to them is the work of the devil. This is not true because God is like a parent that disciplines their children to make them better. Jesus describes Himself as the vine that His disciples (branches) are to remain in so that they can bear fruit (Jn. 15). The good branch connected to the vine sometimes need to be pruned.

God wants the exiles to know that they are still His people, but they are going through a season of discipline. Even in their exile the Lord is present with them. God has plans for them now and in the future. His plans are not to eliminate some disaster brought onto them by the devil. God’s plans include the discipline of the exiles and their return to Jerusalem after they have served their seventy year penalty.

Jeremiah 29:11 is addressed to a group. Every individual member in the group is valuable to God, but the truth is this. Every individual will not live to return to Jerusalem, because the exile will be for seventy years. The false prophets say that the exile will be for only two years. They said, “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I am going to bring back to this place all the vessels of the LORD’S house, which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place and carried to Babylon” (Jer. 28:2-3, NASB). Many of the people that hear the words in this letter will die in the exile period. The author of Hebrews tells us that many individual persons die in the faith without having received the promise that God has made (11:13, 39).

Jeremiah 29:11 tells us to prepare for difficult days that last for a long time. In verses 5-6 the Jeremiah tells the people to make the most of their life during their long stay in Babylon. They are to build houses, plant gardens, and marry (29:5-6). They must seek the welfare of the city because if the city does well they will be partakers of the blessing that comes upon the city. During hard times we should have hope for better days, but at the same time there are some harsh realities that we must face. The exiles are not going home to Jerusalem anytime soon. They must not take an attitude of doom and defeat. They simply must say, “Let me live the best life that I can despite some undesirable circumstances. We need to know that God prunes the branches not to destroy them. Rather God prunes the branches so that they bear more fruit (Jn. 15:2). How do the exiles bear more fruit? They are being pruned by the discipline that they endure during their stay in exile.

Jeremiah 29:11 is not a promise that God unconditionally has plans for a future and a hope. This is especially true when we find ourselves in situations that are caused by our wrong doing. The one that commits a crime will pay the penalty. The text is telling us that while we are going through hard times God is with His people. God is waiting for us to accept that we have done wrong in the eyes of God. Our experiences help us to know that we need the Lord. Then, we will seek the Lord. We will confess our wrong doings. We accept the consequences of our actions. We believe that in God’s own time we will be free to return to our Jerusalem and begin the process of rebuilding our lives. Instead of thinking of Jeremiah 29:11 as a promise of God to give us pardon, we should think of it as a call for us to seek the Lord. We do not merely quote some scripture; instead we assist them in their seeking the Lord. We pray with them. We share our experiences with them. We study the scriptures with them. We spend time with them and allow them to ventilate their experiences and concerns.

When the seventy years of exile are completed, God calls Cyrus King of Persia to decree that those that want to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple may go. “It is I who says of Cyrus, ‘He is My shepherd! And he will perform all My desire.’ And he declares of Jerusalem, ‘she will be built,’ And the temple, ‘Your foundation will be laid” (Isa. 44:28, NASB, also see 2 Chronicles 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4). From the exile in Babylon the sons of Israel scatter among the nations. They build synagogues for the people to be educated in the Law of Moses, their history, and the synagogue is a place of worship of their God in a Greco-Roman culture steeped in philosophies and people that serve a pantheon of gods (see Acts 17).

Jesus dies on the cross and He is resurrected from the dead. He commissions His disciples to go to the whole world to spread the good news (gospel) that forgiveness of sin and reconciliation to God is possible through the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8). The Day of Pentecost comes. There are Jews in Jerusalem that come from the nations where the Jews have been scattered to celebrate the Feast. The Holy Spirit comes and the church is born. The good news is taken to the whole world. The apostles begin their preaching in the synagogues of the Jews, and it is heard among the people of the nations. Can you see that the exile was God’s plan for a future and a hope for the exiles in their time? Their pruning made them a better people and a future of being the means by which the love of God is communicated throughout the world.

We are in the midst of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. People have different attitudes and behaviors. God is pruning the church of Jesus Christ. Churches have closed their doors. Some are having virtual services. This pandemic is lasting longer than first expected. Now, with the threat of mutations of the virus we are learning that we may continue in the pandemic even longer. Regardless, we can be sure that God is with us during this crisis. God is pruning the church so that it will produce more fruit. God is the God with plans for a future and a hope. Ultimately, God’s plan for a future and a hope entails more that the things that take place on planet earth at the time. His plans include a future and a hope that we will have eternal life. We will live with God and His Son Jesus Christ that is coming with new heavens and a new earth.