Daily Devotions
Jeremiah
"The prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah"
Text: Jeremiah 28:5
TWO PROPHETS WITH TOTALLY DIFFERENT PROPHECIES
To the people in Jerusalem and Judah, Jeremiah and Hananiah were “prophets”. The question was who was the true prophet?
“Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah
in the presence of the priests
and in the presence of all the people who stood in the house of the LORD,
and the prophet Jeremiah said,
‘Amen! The LORD do so;
the LORD perform your words which you have prophesied,
to bring back the vessels of the LORD’s house
and all who were carried away captive, from Babylon to this place.'”
Jeremiah 28:5-6
1. “Then the prophet Jeremiah spoke to the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests and in the presence of all the people who stood in the house of the LORD”
a) Jeremiah
i) Personally, he knew Hananiah was not a true prophet.
ii) He was conscious that the general public had much respect for Hananiah.
b) Prophets for hire
i) He was “a prophet for hire” (like Balaam of old, Numbers 22-24).
ii) There may have been a time when he could have been a prophetic voice.
iii) But like Balaam, money was his vice.
iv) He would “prophesy” for anyone who would pay him his “prophetic fees”.
c) The people at this public meeting:
i) The priests
ii) The people (general public)
2. “And the prophet Jeremiah said, ‘Amen! The LORD do so; the LORD perform your words which you have prophesied, to bring back the vessels of the LORD’s house and all who were carried away captive, from Babylon to this place'”
a) Jeremiah’s apparent agreement.
i) “Amen! The LORD do so”
ii) It may appear as if Jeremiah was in full agreement with Hananiah.
b) Hananiah’s prophecy
i) That all would return to Jerusalem.
ii) The vessels that had been sent to Babylon.
iii) The people who had been taken captive there.
c) The Prophet Micaiah
i) In the days of King Jehoshaphat there lived a prophet called Micaiah.
ii) There were many false prophets living in Israel in the reign of king Ahab.
iii) These were prophets for hire too (2 Chronicles 18).
d) On one occasion, Micaiah was summoned to appear before the two kings
(Ahab and Jehoshaphat).
i) The prophets of Ahab spoke in support of his plan to battle Syria
which had captured Ramoth Gilead (a Levitical city of refuge).
ii) Micaiah said “Go and prosper, and they shall be delivered into your hand!”
(2 Chronicles 18:14b)
iii) Ahab knew better.
He knew that Micaiah was speaking sarcastically. He meant the opposite of what he said (2 Chronicles 18:15). He admonished Micaiah to speak plainly.
iv) Micaiah went on to give a totally opposite prophecy! He saw Israel defeated and scattered if they battle Syria (2 Chronicles 18:18-27).
v) Opposing Micaiah was a false prophet called Zedekiah (2 Chronicles 18:23).
e) Jeremiah’s situation resembled that of Micaiah battling Zedekiah and the false prophets (2 Chronicles 18).