Preaching against false prophets, Pt4

THE TRUE PROPHET MUST KEEP PREACHING.

Cp v28-29.

The presence of liars and false teachers is not to deter the faithful servants of God from continuing to proclaim His word. Their presence makes their work more difficult but it must go on!

1. Let him speak my word faithfully, v28. Truly, accurately and in a manner to be believed, he must go on speaking.
2. A distinction, v28! The difference between chaff and wheat is applied to the difference between the truth of God and the lies invented by these false prophets. The life giving benefits of the truth must be uppermost in the preacher’s mind. Everything else is chaff—empty, worthless, fit only to be blown away or burned. The analogy brings before us the idea of the day of harvest/threshing. Cp 1Cor 3:13-15.
3. Power, v29. The prevailing, conquering power of the truth is to be present in the mind of the those who faithfully declare the truth.

• The truth of God is a fire to burn. It will destroy the chaff in the end! It will warm the hearts of the people of God, Luke 24:32. It will be the means of consuming the wicked for its threat against them will stand.
• It is a rock-breaking hammer. How hard are the hearts of rebellious sinners. The word of God breaks men in grace and/or in wrath. It can soften in grace to break pride and rebellion. In the unrepentant it becomes the instrument of crushing. Cp Matt 21:44.

III  THE MESSAGE JEREMIAH HAD TO DELIVER.

Cp v33-40.

1. A proper description. Language that had been properly used previously to describe the work of the prophet was no longer appropriate or to be used. The burden of the prophet was a description of his personal sense of responsibility and concern to deliver the word God had laid upon him. It was in a sense a description of his subjective feelings. This had been counterfeited by the false prophets and made a jest of by the people, and had become an empty form of mocking words, v36. A word from God was the thing to be looked for, v35.
2. The real truth, v39-40. The sad reality of wrath against apostasy is simply stated again.