"Accurately Handling The Word of Truth"

When reading and examining God’s Word, we must consider the context! Why? Because each chapter, paragraph, sentence and word derives meaning from how it relates to the words, sentences, paragraphs, and chapters around it! Understanding the importance of context is critical for not isolating verses and missing what’s being said! Many Christ followers are guilty of this as they try to have faith for what God is saying! Let me share an example with you. Visit any Christian bookstore and you’ll come across many items with Jeremiah 29:11 written on it. It says, “For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord; plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and a hope.” The reason people love this verse is because they wrongly interpret it as the Lord saying He’ll keep us from harm and bless us instead! But, is that really what Jeremiah intended to communicate to us? If we examine the context of this verse, we'll find some very interesting things! Verses 1-10 show us that Jeremiah is writing to Jewish exiles being held captive in Babylon! They’d gone into captivity as punishment for their rebellion against God! Jeremiah’s counsel to them was to take all the steps needed for living as exiles for 70 years! And, then comes 29:11!! God promised that He indeed had a plan for these exiles that included restoring them to their land after their days of exile were over. This verse is not written to individuals at all! This passage is written to a whole group of people—an entire nation. For all the grammarians out there, the “you” in Jeremiah 29:11 isn’t singular, it’s plural! The “welfare and not calamity” promise refers to the period after the 70 years of being captive! The “future and a hope” promise refers to the period after their 70 year captivity! We misuse Jeremiah 29:11 by assuming that it could be applied to every circumstance as a promise of prosperity! It’s important to consider who Jeremiah was addressing and why! Be encouraged!