Certain verses seem to find their way to prominence in our memories. One such verse is Jeremiah 29:11, which reads, "'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.'" More often then not, this verse is removed from its context and used as counsel for troubled times, and certainly this is part of the sentiment expressed here. However, when the verse is put back in its original context, a far more profound truth emerges:
This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says to all those I carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, "Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce. Marry and have sons and daughters; find wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too might have sons and daughters. Increase in number there; do not decrease. Also seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the LORD for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper... Do not let the prophets and diviners among you deceive you. Do not listen to the dreams you encourage them to have. They are prophesying lies to you in my name. I have not sent them," declares the LORD. "When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place (Jerusalem). 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 29:4-11, NIV
This passage is absolutely fascinating, giving us a great insight into the will of God for a people in exile. While there certainly is an element of God promising to deliver people from their suffering, as 29:11 is usually taken to mean, the context suggests that God's plans also have an immediate contingency. To Israel, King Nebuchadnezzar of the Babylonians had carried them away into exile, but in this passage we see God claiming twice that He is responsible for their exile (vv. 4, 7). This statement is stunning to the Israelite who believes that God's dominance is asserted by Israel's rule in this world. God's plans are different than Israel's plans.
Here is the point where this passage applies to the church in a much more profound way than traditionally understood. We too are in exile. This world is not our home (1 Peter 2:11-12), and our citizenship lies elsewhere (Philippians 3:20). God, through Christ, has begun a work to rescue us from our exile, but here in Babylon we remain, at least for now. On this topic I'd like to dwell for a couple posts. How should we exist as exiles in a foreign land? What exactly are the plans of Jeremiah 29:11 that God has for the church? We'll take a look at these questions as I proceed.
For now, I'll point you to a couple resources. John Ortberg preached a sermon entitled "Good News in Bad Places," which inspired writing on this topic. He used Timothy Keller's book The Gospel in Life, which I cannot wait to read, as the main source for the sermon. Both of these resources will shed tremendous light on a topic that I can only skim here. As I go forward, when I use the term "Babylon" in a metaphorical sense, as it applies to us, I am referring to the world. As kingdom citizens, we are in exile in this world, because the world is under Satan's rule (John 12:31, John 16:11, 1 John 5:19, etc.). I am not referring to any single country or political system within the world, and to read these posts in such a way would be greatly missing the point.
I hope this sufficiently introduces the issue. The following posts will be focussing on the two ways exiles tend to respond while in Babylon as well as offer the third response, which Jeremiah 29:4-11 offers as God's plan for the exiles.
Until next time, grace and peace to you all.
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