I write this post with fear and trembling. This verse is a favorite for a lot of people and I have had it memorized for many years.
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV 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.
But looking at it in the context of the whole paragraph puts it in a new light.
Jeremiah 29:10-14 NIV This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 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. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the LORD , “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD , “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”
God is speaking here to Jeremiah regarding Israel. I don’t know if this necessarily means the premise is invalid but I think there is other Scripture that may be more appropriate like Habbakuk 3:17-19, Matthew 6:33-34, Romans 8:28, Romans 15:13 etc. We need to “be prepared to endure everything with patience while joyfully giving thanks to the Father who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light” which may be subject matter for a future post. (Colossians 1:11-12)
During my hesitation to post this I came across this review of The Purpose Driven Life which gives further perspective. I try to stay away from direct criticism of others on this blog because I want to stick to Scripture and because there are a ton of other blogs for that stuff. But I think this quote is beneficial.
‘First we will examine promises Warren says apply to all Christians. One clear example of this is Jeremiah 29:11 which he uses multiple times in the book. On page 31 we read “Wonderful changes are going to happen in your life as you begin to live it on purpose. God says “I know what I am planning for you…’I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future’.” When read in context we see that this verse is not written to apply to all Christians. It is a promise given specifically to the Israelite exiles. By Warren’s logic Jeremiah 44:27 should also apply to all Christians. It reads, “I am watching over them for harm and not for good, and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt will meet their end by the word and by famine until they are completely gone.” A pastor once told me “that verse wouldn’t sell as many plaques at the Christian book stores.”’
http://www.discerningreader.com/review/the-purpose-driven-life/
I found your site on technorati and read a few of your other posts. Keep up the good work. I just added your RSS feed to my Google News Reader. Looking forward to reading more from you.
Chris Moran
A very important reminder, indeed: context is king. As it is so often put, a text without a context is merely a pretext!
What I think is the most important lesson this teaches is that people should stop looking for inspirational “promises of God” (i.e., mantras) in the Scriptures. For such things, they should consult the crass and shallow tripe put out by the likes of Depak Chopra and Joel Osteen. What they should look for in a passage like this, rather, is an application of its content that is true both to the historical context and the message of the book as a whole.
So, for instance, the point of passage like this is not God’s totally awesome and radtastically cool plan for, like, YOU, but rather God’s radical faithfulness to His people (which translates into deliverance) even in spite of their unfaithfulness to Him (which always results in judgment from which they need to be delivered)–a common theme running through the prophetic writings. Of course, this (calling as it does for radical obedience, that is faithfulness, to God) is much more sobering than the vacuous high that a contextless Jer. 29:11 produces, and thus such considerations are not nearly as popular.
The author at the “Discerning Reader” is quite right–Jer. 44:27 would not sell many plaques, or whatever other blasphemous trinketry is found in Christian bookstores these days. I have often thought that I should start my one Christian gifts company, specializing in such products as framed pictures of delightful baskets of kittens with inset Bible verses: perhaps Psalm 137:9 (”Happy shall he be, that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones”) or Hebrews 10:31 (”It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God”).
Anyway, thanks for this, and sorry for the rant.
Thank you for ranting. I liked it better than mine and you articulated many of the same sentiments I have but in a more awesomer way than I could.
Would you say the Jeremiah 29:11 would be applied to those christians that are in the midest of a dark situation where it seems hopeless.
Hi William,
I think there are many more general Scripture passages like those found here. Hab 3:17-19 is nice is someone feels hopeless. Although it’s also specific to Israel it finds support in other Scripture.
Jeff
I agree that much scripture is taken out of context and that it is difficult to understand without that context, but here you have a pretty clear message. The problem, to me, seems to be one of perspective – God’s view of prosperity vs. ours and God’s plan vs. ours. It is similar to Paul’s “all things work together for good…” or any of a number of other “prosperity promises” so prevalent today. We overlook the simple fact that we are also promised suffering – and that it’s a good thing. Just because we don’t like it doesn’t make it bad, it may make it hard… but that’s different than bad.
It is too simplistic to pigeon-hole God as a celestial Santa Claus, expecting the tree to be surrounded by all the shiny, new things we want. That being said, many short change themselves by making God too small and powerless. Scripture is there to help us get to know Him, to teach others about Him, and, through that relationship, to find hope and a future – and, yes, perhaps even a little prosperity.Sorry to go on so long… Peace
Thanks Darren. That was a very good comment. Peace to you.
Jeff
i agree that it’s important not to take the Bible out of context as if it’s a big fortune cookie, but i also believe that there are times that God will use His living Word to encourage you in times of need. i had some really bad news this week and drove home asking Him, “Lord, i only want your will in my life, but i don’t know what you want me to do in this situation. are you really there? do you have a plan for me?” as soon as i got home, the phone rang and it was a friend who told me to read the verse. when i read it, it was a revelation for me. i understood for the first time in 32 years of going through this difficult journey that even when God tells you “no” or “not yet”, He is still working out His perfect will in my life. Through this paragraph in Jeremiah, i got it that the “no” and “not yet” is just as important in a lifelong walk with God as the “yes” and “right now”, and as a result, i feel joyful about the situation that all of my family and friends think is devastating.
again, i agree that we have to take the Bible in context, but we can not discredit those times when God can use Hid word as He sees fit to encourage.
and i like the reference to Habakkuk….as a matter of fact, as i drove home asking God for direction, i began by telling Him that i am so grateful for His sovereignty and i rejoice even though this situation is difficult. my prayer was eerily similar to the Habakkuk passage. and no one can convince me that God did not use the Jeremiah verse to help me understand why He doesn’t always give you the answer you hope for. He is always, however, faithful to fulfill His perfect will and plan in our lives when we seek Him. And i am not one of those nuts who just opens their Bible for today’s “fortune cookie message”. I get it….i totally get it.