For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for prosperity and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11
This Bible verse is a favorite among many. It used to be one of my favorites until I read it in context and realized that this was part of a letter that Jeremiah wrote to the people of Israel at the beginning of their exile in Babylon. These words were part of a prophecy to give them hope during their 70 years in Babylonian captivity. They could look towards a future in which they would be free to return to Jerusalem after decades of captivity in which Daniel served under four Babylonian kings. Esther would have become queen and saved her people from the treacherous schemes of Haman. Ezekiel while also in captivity would echo the prophecy of Jeremiah for a hope and future for the exiled Jews. Later, a pagan Persian king would usher in the fulfillment of these prophecies.
Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he sent a proclamation throughout his kingdom, and also put it in writing, saying: “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says: ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and He has appointed me to rebuild for Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may his God be with him! Go up to Jerusalem which is in Judah and rebuild the house of the Lord, the God of Israel; He is the God who is in Jerusalem. Ezra 1:1-3
Finally, the prophetic words Jeremiah wrote 70 years before came true, although many Jews would have died during this time. But for the prophecy to be fulfilled, there were conditions. God had sent His people into exile because they had rebelled against Him and His ways and had turned to idol worshipping as they disobeyed His commands. God knew that they would continue on this path unless they were punished. So, He choose captivity for them because He loved them and wanted them to repent and return to Him where they would receive His protection and blessings. He always wanted good for them, but in order for them to receive the good plans He had for them, they had to experience the bad.
“For this is what the Lord says: ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place. For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for prosperity and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart. I will let Myself 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 where I sent you into exile.’ Jeremiah 29:10-14
The context makes a difference, doesn’t it? I am not as quick to embrace this verse anymore because this prophetic word came at a time when the Jews had been in rebellion and they were receiving God’s retribution because He knew their hearts had turned from Him and He desired for them to turn back to Him. Therefore, they had to be in a place where they not only recognized His sovereignty and His holiness, but also where they would remember that He was their Redeemer. Then they would call upon Him and pray to Him and He would listen to their cry because He loved them. They would start yearning for Him and so they would seek Him and He would allow Himself to be found. They would search for Him with all their hearts. And with their hearts turned towards Him, He would bring them restoration and they would return to Jerusalem. He knew how to let the Jews get back to seeking Him and calling out to Him.
God knows also what will get us back to seeking Him. Sometimes what moves us away from Him may not look like outright rebellion. We may be distracted by family and work, even church work. Sometimes we are so busy doing what we think is God’s work we forget to spend time in His presence to seek Him in order to know Him more and for Him to show us what work He really wants us to do for Him. God knows our hearts and we may appear holy doing all the good works, but in the end, it would be horrible to hear Jesus say He never knew us although we did so much using His name. Only those who do the will of the Father will enter the kingdom of heaven. To know His will we have to be in His presence and let Him reveal the plans He has for us because God alone knows. It is amazing how the God who knows everything will do whatever it takes to bring us back to Himself because He loves us.
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