A blog inspred by the second week of Calling a Wounded Earth Home, a  Lent Course produced by Green Christian. You can read the first post in this series at this link.

From Jeremiah by Horace Vermet 1844

Pretty much everything we know about Jeremiah comes, either directly or indirectly from the Hebrew Bible. According to the book that bears his name he was a prophet for forty years spanning the late 7^th and early 6^th centuries BCE. During this time Babylon overtook Assyria is the main super-power in the region. The Babylonians eventually invaded Israel, laid siege to and captured Jerusalem, deported most of its influential citizens to exile in Babylon and destroyed the Temple. The exile was catastrophic for the Israelites and nearly destroyed them.

The consensus amongst Biblical scholars is that the Book of Jeremiah was written either during the Exile or shortly after the return to Jerusalem 60 years later. It was not written as the factual records of events that we might expect of history today, but more as an attempt to explain why those events had happened – how could God have allowed such a disaster to happen to his chosen people?

The language attributed to Jeremiah is complex and poetic. Statements tend to be broad and general rather providing detail about specific events. This makes it difficult for scholars to match what Jeremiah says to the precise historical context, but it has the result that much of the text can speak very powerfully to the situation in which we find ourselves today. The passage contained in verses 8 to 20 of the 6^th chapter are a good example.

It starts with a warning from God that Jerusalem is on the verge of being wiped out (v8) but that the people have closed their ears to what he has to say (v10). Everyone is going to suffer -children, youths, husbands and wives, and the elderly (v11) – because they are all greedy and corrupt (v13). They claim there is peace when there is no peace (v14). They have done things they should be ashamed of but have shown no shame and deserve to be punished (v15). God tells them they should “stand at the crossroads” and walk “were the good way lies” (v16), he has raised watchmen for them and summoned them with trumpets (v17) but they choose not to listen and thus bring disaster upon themselves (v19). God rejects the false worship of people who choose not to do his will (v20).

The catastrophe that befell the Israelites at the hands of the Babylonians is presented not as one that God has ordained, but rather as one that the Israelites have brought upon themselves by not following his word. The fall of Jerusalem is not a consequence of God’s divine will but of human failure to follow God’s will.

For those of us that are concerned about what is happening to our planet today the words resonate powerfully. We are on the verge of being wiped out and everyone is going to suffer – those I the Global North who been responsible for emitting greenhouse gases and continue to emit, but also those in the Global South who have been responsible for very low emissions but are generally even more vulnerable to the consequences. There is greed and corruption everywhere and it is that greed and corruption which both caused the problem and prevents us taking restorative action. Often, we claim there is progress but there is no progress. Often, we have done things of which we should be ashamed, but we show no shame. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has been warning us of what is happening for nearly 40 years and telling us exactly what we need to do to avoid disaster. In 2007 it was awarded the Nobel peace prize, but even that is not enough. We prefer to ignore the warnings and continue to march towards disaster. Many of us continue to worship God but choose not to protect His planet and His people.

When we reflect on the events and behaviours that led the people of Jerusalem to catastrophe 2600 years ago, we recognise exactly the events and behaviours that are leading us toward catastrophe today. This catastrophe is not a consequence of God’s will any more than that earlier catastrophe, but of our refusal to do what God wants. Jeremiah is presented as lamenting for his people who are doomed by their own actions. We are driven to lamentation for our world today which is doomed by our actions. The message that the Book of Jeremiah speaks to the world of today is not pleasant or reassuring but it is honest and therefore terrifying.

The one element of consolation comes in verse 16. There is still a chance. Even though this passages was at least editted, and possibly writtne after the catastrophe, it is setin the run up to it. God is still presented as offering an opportunity for the Israelites to repent and change their ways. We still have the choice to “stand at the crossroads” and choose the “path where the good way lies”. The IPCC reports describe clearly the options we must take to avoid the worse scenarios, and we still have time to choose to take them – as a world community we can still choose to act and avoid catastrophe. The ancient Israelites had this choice but turned away from it, we must take a different path.

But verse 16 also contains a word of hope for the individual. If we choose the path “where the good way lies” we will also “find rest for our souls”. Regardless of what decisions others take, regardless of the horrors that our corporate actions will lead to, we can still make choices as individuals to do what God wants. This may not avert disaster, but it will allow us to feel at peace with God and be at rest in Him.