When Praying is a Fatal Mistake

Jeremiah 42:19-20: "O Remnant of Judah, the LORD has told you, 'Do not go to Egypt.' Be sure of this: I warn you today that you made a fatal mistake when you sent me to the LORD your God and said, 'Pray to the LORD our God for us; tell us everything he says and we will do it.'"


After the Babylonians had laid waste the region of Judah, destroying much of Jerusalem and taking many Jews captive to serve as slaves, a small remnant of Jewish people led by certain army officers found themselves wandering in the southern regions of Palestine, trying to avoid capture.


By this time, these people who previously were abrasive to Jeremiah for his prophecies of doom and judgment, now approached him to discern what the LORD would have them to do. These officers realized that Jeremiah was a man of God and that His proclamations were directly from the LORD Himself; and for this reason, they sought out the prophet to receive Divine guidance as to where they should go. At least it appeared this was the case.


One almost can see the enthusiasm in Jeremiah's response when he told them that he would "certainly pray" to the LORD for them. The prophet of God promised to share with these Judeans everything that the LORD wanted them to know and do. The people then made a covenant to do whatever the LORD desired of them, and requested that the LORD act as a witness against them if they failed to do EVERYTHING that the LORD would dictate to the prophet. This remnant even acknowledged that the LORD might present something rather unfavorable to them; still, they professed their allegiance to the LORD and would do whatever He instructed for them.


God was not immediate in His response to Jeremiah's prayer. Though we are not given the exact reason for the delay, we can conclude that God knew that these people could get worked up into an emotional frenzy based upon their circumstances, and He wanted to reveal the lack of substantive commitment by these supposedly "recommitted" followers of the LORD. It also may be that the LORD delayed His response to reinforce to these people that He would not be manipulated by their sudden response of spirituality and be forced to give an immediate response. It may be that God wanted to make certain that these people knew that He was the One True God and would reply in His perfect, Providential time. It was not until ten days later that God would respond to the prophet . . . a seemingly long time for those who wanted to get quick answers to their probing questions.


When Jeremiah did receive the Word from God, he called together the army officers to give them the LORD's directive. The LORD instructed the people to stay in the land of Judah and not be concerned by the Babylonian presence there; the LORD wanted His people to trust in Him to guide and protect them, even though it appeared that the same demise that had befallen many of their brothers would overtake them should they stay in the land. God's directive was counter to their own understanding of personal survival (what faith is all about), and they did not like it at all.


The LORD already knew the intent of these people's hearts. They had made up their minds even before inquiring of the prophet, that they would make their way to Egypt to escape the Babylonians. These Israelites saw Egypt as their sanctuary from hunger and war, and they were determined to go there. They simply wanted to get the LORD's blessing for their predetermined intent; and even though they professed their commitment to do whatever the LORD commanded them to do, the LORD knew that they would never follow through with His command for them. The prophet warned the people that if they would go to Egypt, then the famine and sword that they attempted to avoid would follow them there and destroy them.


Sadly, these Judeans accused Jeremiah of lying and conspiring to hand them over to the Babylonians. In direct defiance to the LORD, these people headed for Egypt; they were intent on saving themselves rather than listening to the LORD. And given that we later find Jeremiah with this remnant in Tahpanhes (Egypt), we can speculate that these officers forced the prophet of God to go with them as well.


The true intent of these people's hearts was revealed after they settled in Egypt, for soon after their arrival, these Jews began to offer incense to false gods, including the Egyptian gods and goddesses. To exonerate their actions, these Israelites even fabricated a lie, saying that they were doing everything they had promised to do (44:17) [of course, they previously had promised to follow the LORD's commands to them (see 42:5-6)]. These Jews even suggested that the "Queen of Heaven" [i.e. Ishtar, goddess of Egypt] was the one that provided for them in Judah, and the judgments that they had experienced in Judah were the result of their failing to continue to offer incense and sacrifices to her. Jeremiah rebuked them by reminding them that the LORD of Hosts was the one who brought judgment upon them; but they would have none of it. Jeremiah then communicated to them the following judgment: The LORD had seen the duplicity of their actions that did not follow the verbal promises that they had made; therefore, He never again would permit them to invoke His Name. Instead, God promised by His "Great Name" that He would bring harm upon the Israelites, not good; and the overwhelming majority would be destroyed in Egypt. As a sign to confirm this Divine disaster for these Jews, the LORD would hand Pharaoh Hophra of Egypt over to the Babylonians, permitting the Babylonians to invade the Egyptian territory.

This is a tremendous word for us today. It is a tragic pandemic within Christendom to see people presumably make a covenant to follow the LORD, yet quickly fall away from their commitments when there is no personal benefit for them. Just as with the Jews who migrated to Egypt to escape God's judgment and continue to enjoy their idolatrous ways, so too we find people today who say they want to hear God's will for their lives, but they soon disavow any allegiance to His dictates and return to their sinful ways of rebellion against the LORD. The foundational problem here is a lordship issue . . . who is on the throne of one's life. If the person is more interested in personal satisfaction and exaltation, he will seek out the LORD only to get some benefit or sanction for behavior. The concept of discipleship is foreign to such a person, as they desire themselves to be a god unto themselves. May we never find ourselves in this condition; rather, may we continue to submit ourselves to the Lordship of Christ and be attentive to His will for our lives, no matter how difficult the directive may be for us.

We must remember that praying to God and not listening is a fatal mistake. Let's attune our ears and hearts to the Lord, listen for His directives to us, and follow them faithfully.