I WISH I WAS NEVER BORN

Text: Jeremiah 15:10-21

Introduction:

Have you ever endured a period in your walk with Christ where everything seemed to be against you? Perhaps as you tried to share the Gospel you were met with severe opposition. Maybe you have even endured persecution from those who were closest to you because of your faith. Perhaps you have endured such a period of testing that you wished you would have never been born.

This morning as we continue our series through the Book of Jeremiah, we come to perhaps one of the most difficult passages I have ever had to work through. This morning’s text is difficult not just because of its emotional content but also because the language of this text is extremely difficult. But this passage is very important for the church to consider as we all wrestle with self-pity, depression, and oppression.

Turn in your Bibles to Jeremiah 15 verse ten. As we turn in the Scripture to our text let us remind ourselves of where we are. Jeremiah chapter fifteen begins with God’s response to Jeremiah’s appeal to Yahweh for mercy toward Judah. God’s response is nothing less than negative. The Lord basically tells Jeremiah that even if great intercessors such as Moses and Samuel were to join his cause in interceding for Judah there WAS NO HOPE!

This leads to Jeremiah feeling like his ministry is in vain. He is suffering persecution and oppression for no reason. So, as we turn our focus to chapter fifteen verse ten we begin with Jeremiah’s lament.

Read Jeremiah 15:10-21...

Jeremiah 15:10–21 CSB

10 Woe is me, my mother, that you gave birth to me, a man who incites dispute and conflict in all the land. I did not lend or borrow, yet everyone curses me. 11 The Lord said: Haven’t I set you loose for your good? Haven’t I punished you in a time of trouble, in a time of distress with the enemy? 12 Can anyone smash iron, iron from the north, or bronze? 13 I will give up your wealth and your treasures as plunder, without cost, for all your sins in all your borders. 14 Then I will make you serve your enemies in a land you do not know, for my anger will kindle a fire that will burn against you. 15 You know, Lord; remember me and take note of me. Avenge me against my persecutors. In your patience, don’t take me away. Know that I suffer disgrace for your honor. 16 Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became a delight to me and the joy of my heart, for I bear your name, Lord God of Armies. 17 I never sat with the band of revelers, and I did not celebrate with them. Because your hand was on me, I sat alone, for you filled me with indignation. 18 Why has my pain become unending, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? You truly have become like a mirage to me— water that is not reliable. 19 Therefore, this is what the Lord says: If you return, I will take you back; you will stand in my presence. And if you speak noble words, rather than worthless ones, you will be my spokesman. It is they who must return to you; you must not return to them. 20 Then I will make you a fortified wall of bronze to this people. They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you to save you and rescue you. This is the Lord’s declaration. 21 I will rescue you from the power of evil people and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.

I. The Lament (Vs. 10)

Notice in verse ten that our passage begins with Jeremiah’s lament. Jeremiah sees his ministry as fruitless and unsuccessful. He is hard pressed from all sides. He is battling depression and an overwhelming sense of failure. In his depression he cries out, “Woe is me, my mother, that you gave birth to me, a man who incites dispute and conflict in all the land.” This opening line gives the summary of how Jeremiah viewed his ministry.

He did not see his ministry as beneficial to the people or to himself. Many Bible preaching ministers today battle depression and a sense of failure today. As church attendance continues to decrease throughout the nation and oppression against the truth increase many ministers feel a sense of failure. Where the truth is preached in contrast to the sinful desires of a society there has and always will be conflict.

God was preaching a message of repentance, restoration, and retribution through Jeremiah to the people. However, the people wanted no part of this message. They wanted Jeremiah to simply “shut up.” Everywhere Jeremiah preached throughout Judah there was opposition. This kind of conflict was usually the result of money; however, for Jeremiah it was a result of his ministry.

When we run into opposition for our faith, we must ask the question: “Why we are facing such fierce opposition?” Is this opposition because of the sincerity for our faith or is there another reason for why we are hated? Can we like Jeremiah say that the reason we experience suffering and opposition is because of our ministry, not our fallenness?

1 Peter 4:12–19 CSB

12 Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you, as if something unusual were happening to you. 13 Instead, rejoice as you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may also rejoice with great joy when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are ridiculed for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. 15 Let none of you suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or a meddler. 16 But if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed but let him glorify God in having that name. 17 For the time has come for judgment to begin with God’s household, and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God? 18 And if a righteous person is saved with difficulty, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner? 19 So then, let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator while doing what is good.

2 Timothy 2:1–13 CSB

1 You, therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in the concerns of civilian life; he seeks to please the commanding officer. 5 Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer ought to be the first to get a share of the crops. 7 Consider what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything. 8 Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead and descended from David, according to my gospel, 9 for which I suffer to the point of being bound like a criminal. But the word of God is not bound. 10 This is why I endure all things for the elect: so that they also may obtain salvation, which is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory. 11 This saying is trustworthy: For if we died with him, we will also live with him; 12 if we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he will also deny us; 13 if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.

We will experience depression and even a sense of failure during our ministry. The challenge and encouragement are even though we lament we must strive to remain faithful.

II. Yahweh’s Judgment (Vs. 11-14)

Now we come to expounding perhaps the most difficult part of the passage. In verses eleven to fourteen God offer’s a response to Jeremiah’s lament in verse ten. However, verse eleven which opens this response contains perhaps some of the most obscure and difficult Hebrew in the Old Testament. Some here this morning can attest how much of a struggle this verse has been. In fact, the attempt to gain a proper understanding of this verse has been a challenge.

Perhaps you noticed that as I read verse eleven from the CSB it sounded very different from the NIV’s many of you have on your laps. A proper understanding of this verse determines how we understand the remaining portion of verse twelve through fourteen. Of all the translations available there is very little consensus on how this passage should be translated into English. The NASB, KJV, NKJV, sound very similar to the NIV where as the NRSV, NET sound very similar to the CSB. However, the ESV and CSB through different focuses are the only to that translate the Hebrew phrases as questions rather than statements.

Through the course of study, I found that most commentators expounded on the English rendering of the passage but often shied away from the original Hebrew. Most commentators and English translations seem to use the Septuagint translation of Jeremiah fifteen eleven as their base text even though they use the Hebrew Masoretic Text for most of the book. However, even the Jewish translators that made the Septuagint were unsure of the original rendering of this verse it its entirety.

If we follow with the NIV’s translation of this verse, then God’s answer in verses eleven is directed to Jeremiah’s lament. God is encouraging Jeremiah that he has been chosen for a good purpose and that eventually even Jeremiah’s enemies will come to him for intercession. This is the direction that the NASB, NIV, KJV, NKJV, and even the ESV have taken. God is reminding Jeremiah that Yahweh is sovereign and will fulfill his will.

However, this rendering is difficult in context of the passage. Verse twelve seems to abruptly change to Jerusalem and shift the entire focus onto the people of Judah. The Hebrew of this passage is difficult to be sure; however, the phrase “the enemy” is never throughout the Hebrew text of Jeremiah used to refer to Jeremiah’s political and religious opponents. The verb in Hebrew translated “surely I will make your enemies plead” does not carry this meaning anywhere else that it appears in the Old Testament. The verb can carry the meaning of encounter or meet, but also to strike.

While this is a textual issue the overarching meaning of the passage does not change. As Jeremiah laments his ministry God responds with a reminder to Jeremiah that is ministry is not fruitless. His ministry was to preach the need for repentance and restoration because retribution or judgment was coming. Jeremiah’s ministry was successful was by God’s standards because it was fulfilling the role to which God had called Jeremiah. Perhaps in context we should not see this as simply a response to Jeremiah’s lament but rather God continuing what was said in verse nine after Jeremiah’s interruption?

You and I will experience difficulties as we proclaim the truth. We will be oppressed, and we will be experiencing a sense of failure. The question is not about numbers but about faithfulness!

III. Jeremiah Crosses the Line! (Vs. 15-18)

Verse fifteen begins with Jeremiah crying out The Lord once more. “You know, Lord; remember me and take note of me. Avenge me against my persecutors. In your patience, don’t take me away. Know that I suffer disgrace for your honor.” Jeremiah’s response to God’s proclamation of Jeremiah’s success is “Lord avenges me don’t delay so long I get caught up in the punishment of Judah.”

The problem here is that Jeremiah is desiring God’s vengeance not because of the opposition to the message but rather to the harsh mistreatment and opposition he has endured because of the message. There is a distinct difference between asking God to avenge and guard the truth verses asking God to provide retribution because you have struggled because of the mission.

Even someone charged by God to proclaim the Gospel in the face of opposition can lose sight of the ministry and in their anger say something they regret. Here Jeremiah defends himself and his request for vengeance by proclaiming his righteousness. He says,

“Know that I suffer disgrace for your honor.

Your words were found, and I ate them.

Your words became a delight to me

and the joy of my heart,

for I bear your name,

Lord God of Armies.

I never sat with a band of revelers,

and I did not celebrate with them.

Basically, Jeremiah is saying that for you Lord I suffer. I have gladly taken in Your Words because I follow you. I avoided becoming involved with sinners. It is here that Jeremiah crosses a line. Jeremiah continues, “Because your hand was on me, I sat alone, for you filled me with indignation.” Jeremiah says that because of the Spirit he was alone. This is very reminiscent of Elijah who cried out to God about being the only prophet left. Yet Yahweh reminded Elijah that he had other faithful prophets. Furthermore, Jeremiah was never truly alone for the Lord was with him.

Jeremiah is saying that it is God’s fault that he was alone and enduring such opposition. The blame; however, was not on God but on the people’s sinful rejection of the message. Jeremiah: however, is at a point where his emotions are running rampant. He continues with, “Why has my pain become unending, my would incurable, refusing to be healed?” Jeremiah’s question is a result of the burden of the message of the Lord weighed so heavily upon him. The simple truth is that in the burden of the ministry Jeremiah experienced left him feeling lonely and isolated.

Jeremiah was so identified with God’s message that he felt the same indignation God did regarding people’s sin. This identification cost him human associations. To Jeremiah this is a grievous and incurable wound. Jeremiah concludes that God is deceptive. Jeremiah had forgotten that God had warned Jeremiah about the nature of his ministry and the persecution he would experience in chapter one verses seventeen through nineteen. Jeremiah had gone from considering God to be a life-giving stream to a deceptive brook.

Like so many Christians today Jeremiah decided his ministry was going to look a certain way. He did not desire to endure the difficulty of his calling. He did not want to alienate his countrymen. He did not want to endure the hardship of the truth. Sadly, many within the church today have adopted the same stance. They sacrifice the truth for relevance and convenience.

IV. Yahweh’s Rebuke (Vs. 19-21)

A few years ago, while we were on our way to Kentucky for the church Ark trip we were traveling along the interstate and Emylie received a message from another car in the caravan imploring me to speed up because they had a semi riding their bumper. So, I put the pedal to the metal. As we came around a corner and proceeded downhill, which of course, resulted in even more increased speed. There down at the bottom of the hill was a state trooper. We zoomed past well over the speed limit. I began to slow down anticipating the inevitable. Humorously the next text from the individual who had asked us to speed up was a resounding, “oops.”

My sin had found me out. It is never a pleasant experience when we are rebuked and corrected by other people let alone by God’s Word. Yet here Jeremiah the prophet of God is going to be called to repentance by Yahweh himself. Jeremiah had given into the opposition and allowed his emotions to run rampant. God’s response…

“If you return, I will take you back; you will stand in my presence. And if you speak noble words rather than worthless ones, you will be my spokesman.” God rebukes Jeremiah for his foolishness and promises that if he repents then he will be restored to be the mouthpiece of God. Those who do not speak the truth and communicate accurately the Words of God are not and cannot be God’s spokesman. Scripture time and time again speaks adamantly about the stricter judgment endured by teachers and preachers. God’s promise to Jeremiah is “Be faithful and I will deliver you.”

Conclusion…