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Jeremiah 6 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
A few years ago, I discovered that the agitator in our washing machine was not turning like it was supposed to. After disassembling the whole thing, I discovered that the bolt had worn down over time and could no longer hold the agitator in place. The harsh elements of the water combined with the continuous back and forth motion really just destroyed this small part. Because of this damage, it was incapable of doing what it was created to do.
So, in order to fix this issue, I replaced the bolt. However, 6 months later, the same thing happened. The design flaw of this particular model causes it to break down and require a new bolt to be put in after a set amount of time. When reading about Israel and Judah, I thought of my washing machine. Yes, it sounds strange at first, but it makes sense. Over time, the people’s hearts wore down just like this rusted bolt. They became hard and calloused and eventually they were not serving the purpose they were created for – the glorification of God.
“The LORD Almighty said to me, “Israel will be stripped clean like a vineyard from which every grape has been picked. So you must rescue everyone you can while there is still time.” 10 I answered, “Who would listen to me if I spoke to them and warned them? They are stubborn and refuse to listen to your message; they laugh at what you tell me to say.”
Jeremiah 6:9-10 GNB
No matter how much I cleaned up that old bolt, there was just no way it could still be used. No matter what God said to His people, they just couldn’t listen. Not only that, they became hostile toward the Word of God through His prophets. It was a hindrance to them and brought them no delight. They had set their hearts on doing what they wanted to do, and the consequences were coming.
Purification
Though I don’t think that I’m worthless, I do believe that I can become useless. If I am unteachable, I am useless. This is precisely the analogy that God gives to Jeremiah in the closing verses of this chapter.
GOD gave me this task: “I have made you the examiner of my people, to examine and weigh their lives. 28 They’re a thickheaded, hard-nosed bunch, rotten to the core, the lot of them. 29 Refining fires are cranked up to white heat, but the ore stays a lump, unchanged. It’s useless to keep trying any longer. Nothing can refine evil out of them. 30 Men will give up and call them ‘slag,’ thrown on the slag heap by me, their GOD.”
Jeremiah 6:27-30 MSG
When a refiner purifies silver, lead is used to remove the impurities. But if the lead is consumed, the dross in the silver ore cannot be removed. That chunk of metal is deemed useless because the time and energy required to purify such a stubborn lump is not worth it in the end. Does this bring someone to mind?
There are many today who are so proud and unteachable that the amount of effort required to help them change just doesn’t seem worth it. Maybe you are this person? How would you know? I’m all about practicality, so here are 5 signs you may be unteachable. Pray and humbly ask the Holy Spirit to confirm if these traits describe you.
- When given time to speak, you almost always talk too much
- You typically make decisions without asking any questions
- You almost always ignore or are angered by criticism
- You can’t remember the last time you admitted you were wrong or said you were sorry
- When others share the joy of their accomplishments, you can’t resist sharing why yours are equal or better
The truth of Jesus is that His love burns white-hot. What the law could not do in Jeremiah’s time, Jesus has done through His sacrifice. Even the most stubborn dross will not survive the penetrating love of Christ. However, we must place ourselves into His fiery furnace and allow that process to take shape!