Daily Devotions
Jeremiah
"Shemaiah the Nehelamite"
Text: Jeremiah 29:24
ANOTHER OPPONENT OF JEREMIAH
Jeremiah had many opponents. Some called themselves prophets. Some others were priests and even princes! Little is known of this man but he was certainly active in opposing Jeremiah. The LORD actively took the side of Jeremiah and defended him.
“You shall also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying,
Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying:
You have sent letters in your name
to all the people who are at Jerusalem,
to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest,
and to all the priests, saying,
‘The LORD has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest,
so that there should be officers in the house of the LORD
over every man who is demented and considers himself a prophet,
that you should put him in prison and in the stocks.
Now therefore, why have you not rebuked
Jeremiah of Anathoth who makes himself a prophet to you?
For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying,
‘This captivity is long;
build houses and dwell in them,
and plant gardens and eat their fruit.””
Jeremiah 29:24-28
1. “You shall also speak to Shemaiah the Nehelamite, saying”
a) Jeremiah need not be afraid of Shemaiah.
b) Shemaiah was identified as “a prophet” (Jeremiah 29:31).
c) But he was a false prophet.
2. “Thus speaks the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying”
a) The LORD Himself had spoken against Shemaiah.
b) He who is omniscient is well-aware of what this false prophet had done.
3. He had sent letters to the high priest and to all the other priests under him.
“You have sent letters in your name
to all the people who are at Jerusalem,
to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest,
and to all the priests, saying,
‘The LORD has made you priest instead of Jehoiada the priest,
so that there should be officers in the house of the LORD
over every man who is demented and considers himself a prophet,
that you should put him in prison and in the stocks.
Now therefore, why have you not rebuked
Jeremiah of Anathoth who makes himself a prophet to you?
For he has sent to us in Babylon, saying,
‘This captivity is long;
build houses and dwell in them,
and plant gardens and eat their fruit.””
Jeremiah 29:25-28
a) This letter was addressed to Zephaniah who took the place of Jehoiada.
i) Jehoida was a prominent high priest who helped Joash to be installed as the rightful king of Judah (2 Chronicles 23-24).
ii) He demanded to know why Zephaniah had done nothing against Jeremiah.
b) His description of Jeremiah.
i) He considers Jeremiah “demented”.
ii) He rejects Jeremiah as a true prophet.
c) He suggested strongly:
i) That Jeremiah should be imprisoned.
ii) That he should be put in the stocks.
iii) Or at least, that he should be rebuked.
d) His complaint against Jeremiah.
i) Jeremiah had written a letter to the Captives in Babylon.
ii) He had told them that this captivity would be a long one.
iii) He cited some of the things Jeremiah had written.
“This captivity is long; build houses and dwell in them,
and plant gardens and eat their fruit.”
Jeremiah 29:28