Jeremiah's Letter to the Exiles
29 These are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem to the surviving elders of the exiles, and to the priests, the prophets, and all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had taken into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon. 2 This was after King Jeconiah and the queen mother, the eunuchs, the officials of Judah and Jerusalem, the craftsmen, and the metal workers had departed from Jerusalem. 3 The letter was sent by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent to Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. It said: 4 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon: 5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.8 For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Do not let your prophets and your diviners who are among you deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams that they dream,[a] 9 for it is a lie that they are prophesying to you in my name; I did not send them, declares the Lord.
10 “For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare[b] and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear 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 I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the Lord, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.
Jeremiah 29:1-13
Jeremiah 29:11 is a very famous Bible verse. I see this verse shared on social media when people are trying to encourage one another through some difficult time. Encouragement is part of the original intent of the passage for God’s people, but knowing the full context helps bring a depth to this verse that is often missed.
One of the problems with English is that the singular “you” and plural “you” appear exactly the same. This verse is not about a singular you, it is about God’s people: “For I know the plans I have for ya’ll” would be a better translation (Yes, God loves us southerners).
In this part of God’s redemptive story, God’s people have been exiled from their homeland, their temple has been destroyed, and their old way of life has seemingly disappeared over night; but all of this is a direct result of their own inability to seek God. Because of their failure, they must suffer in exile. Frustrated of their new life in Babylon, the Israelites and were trying to get back to Jerusalem as soon as possible.
Here, God says to the Israelites, “A lot of prophets are claiming to speak for me, but don’t listen to them (v. 8-9). You guys get comfortable in exile because you will be there for a while. Unpack your bags, build houses, plant gardens, get married, have children, and learn to live life in this new situation by praying to God (v. 5-7). But don’t lose heart, I have great plans for y’all. Keep hoping because my plan is to turn you back to me and so you will seek me with all ya’lls hearts. When ya’ll seek me you will find me.”
When our family read this passage the other day, Bella said, “God is bad at hide and seek.” And that is true! God is not hiding from any of us. When we go through difficult times, whether it is because we deserve to be in exile or simply because this fallen world sometimes gives us more than we can handle, it is always an opportunity to turn back and seek God. That is the purpose of this passage in Jeremiah. In spite of the troubles they brought on themselves, God gave his people hope for the sole purpose of leading them back to Him. The same invitation is there for us today: to turn our hearts back toward God so we can live into his great story of hope even in the exile of all that is going on around us.
13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.
How might we feel like we are in exile now?
Are their others struggling through exile who need encouragement?
What are false prophets telling us?
In what ways do we miss the full meaning of Jeremiah 29:11 when we take it out of context?
How can we find God?
Ray Sanchez is the Pastor of Worship and Administration at FBC Weslaco. While he has treasured his years of Seminary study, the simple idea of understanding the context of the Bible has deepened his faith, but also using the wisdom of his children to interpret the scriptures!