lessons 134 and 135 Jeremiah 17-33

Lesson 134: Jeremiah 17–29

The Lord commanded Jeremiah to warn the people in Jerusalem that unless they repented, the city would be destroyed. Because of this preaching, Jeremiah was smitten and imprisoned by the people. He wrote a letter to the captives already in Babylon, warning them against false prophets and offering encouragement.

I. Jeremiah 17  Jeremiah stands in the entrance of the city and warns the people to heed the Sabbath day

---two landscapes on the board, one dry and parched and the other fertile with a river.

vs 6 and vs 8

Words to describe the 2 places

---These landscapes could represent the spiritual condition of our lives.

---Think about whether the spiritual condition of your lives is more like a desert or a fertile valley or somewhere in between.

---Look for principles in Jeremiah 17–29 that can make your lives richer and more fruitful, like the fertile landscape.

---Jeremiah 17:1–4 tells us that through Jeremiah the Lord told the people of Judah that they would be forced out of the promised land to serve their enemies elsewhere. Vs. 5-6 tell us that cursed is the man that trusts the arm of flesh.

---What are some examples of the behaviors that show that people trust the arm of flesh? How might doing these things be similar to living in a desert?

---Read Jeremiah 17:7–8 aloud looking for the Lord’s description of those who trust in Him rather than in man.

---How did the Lord describe those who trust in Him?

---What could the waters represent in this imagery?

---In Jeremiah 17:9–20  Jeremiah prayed, expressing his hope in the Lord. The Lord told Jeremiah to stand at the gates of Jerusalem and preach to the inhabitants of the city. Remember that in ancient times, the gates of a city were places where business was transacted and where laws were made and enforced. (Ruth)

---Scan Jeremiah 17:21–22 looking for what Jeremiah was commanded to tell the people at the gates of Jerusalem.

---What did the Lord command Jeremiah to tell the people?

VS 23—How did they respond?

---Read Jeremiah 17:24–25 aloud looking for what would happen if the Jews kept the Sabbath day holy.

---What did the Lord promise the Jews if they kept the Sabbath day holy?

(He would preserve them and help them prosper.)

---What principle can we learn from these verses about keeping the Sabbath day holy?

If we keep the Sabbath day holy, then the Lord will preserve us and help us prosper. on the board under fertile landscape.

--- Jeremiah 17:27  if they continued to break the Sabbath they would be destroyed (devour the palaces).

II. Jeremiah 18:1–19:13  God uses the art of making pottery to teach Jeremiah that the Israelites can repent and avoid destruction

---Lump of soft clay. Invite a student to quickly form a pot out of the clay in front of the class. If you do not have clay, ask students to imagine they are creating a pot out of soft clay.

---What can you do if you do not like the look of the pot you have just made?

---Start over and form another pot.

--- The Lord used the art of making pottery to teach Jeremiah about the house of Israel.

---Read Jeremiah 18:6 looking for what God taught Jeremiah.

---Using the art of making pottery, what did God teach Jeremiah about the house of Israel?

---Read Jeremiah 18:8 aloud looking for what the Jews needed to do so that God would reshape them into a mighty nation.

---Notice verse 8, footnote b, God was not repenting; He was revoking the punishment.

---If the Lord has warned a nation that it will be destroyed, what can the people do to be spared and reshaped by Him instead?

---If we liken ourselves to the Israelites, what can we do to allow God to mold or reshape our lives?

if we choose to repent, the Lord can mold and reshape our lives. on the board under the image of the fertile landscape.

---Elder Hugh W. Pinnock of the Seventy. Ask the class to listen for phrases that give them hope in the Savior’s ability to help them change for the better.

“The Lord explained to Jeremiah that when we make mistakes, as ancient Israel was making, we can take what we have marred and begin again. The potter did not give up and throw the clay away, just because he had made a mistake. And we are not to feel hopeless and reject ourselves. Yes, our task is to overcome our problems, take what we have and are, and start again.

“Some of you who are listening have sinned in ways that are significant, embarrassing, and destructive. Yet, by following the simple instruction given by the Master, you can talk with your bishop, when necessary, and begin again as a renewed person” (“Beginning Again,” Ensign, May 1982, 12).

---Which teachings from Elder Pinnock offer hope that we can overcome our mistakes and change for the better?

---Read Jeremiah 18:11–12 aloud looking for the Jews’ response to Jeremiah’s message of hope.

---How did the Jews respond to Jeremiah’s message of hope?

---Jeremiah 18:13–23 says that because the people rejected the words of the Lord, He said that they would suffer and be scattered. The Jews then plotted to harm Jeremiah. Though he mourned over their wickedness, Jeremiah asked the Lord to let the Jews suffer for their sins.

Display a hardened clay pot. If you do not have one, draw one on the board.

---As recorded in Jeremiah 19:1–9, the Lord told Jeremiah to take a hardened clay pot to the valley of Hinnom, which was just outside of the walls of Jerusalem. In this valley was a place called Tophet, which means the place of burning. There some of the Israelites had built altars and sacrificed their children as burnt offerings to false gods.

---Read Jeremiah 19:10–11 aloud looking for what Jeremiah was told to do in this valley.

---What was the Lord trying to teach the Israelites by having Jeremiah break the clay pot?

III. Jeremiah 19:14–28:17  Jeremiah prophesies of false prophets and Judah’s coming destruction

---Raise your hands if you have ever felt like others wanted you to change your standards or to stop talking about the gospel.

---Jeremiah 19:14–20:6 states that after Jeremiah preached in the valley of Hinnom, he declared his warnings in the court of the temple. The chief governor of the house of the Lord, Pashur, was angry with Jeremiah because of his message. Pashur smote him and imprisoned him by putting him into the stocks until the next day, but Jeremiah continued to warn about the Lord’s impending judgments.

---In Jeremiah 20:7–9 Jeremiah refuse to be silent even though at one time he wanted to stop declaring the Lord’s message?

---What can we learn from Jeremiah’s example that can help us declare the gospel even when it is difficult?

(as our testimonies of the gospel deepen, our desire to do the Lord’s will increases.

---Consider people you know who feel the Lord’s word like a fire in their bones. Share how the people you thought of demonstrate this fire or testimony.

---What can you do to gain this kind of testimony?

---In what ways might this depth of testimony help you in the future as a missionary, parent, or Church leader?

---Encourage students to act on the promptings of the Holy Ghost as they seek to deepen their testimonies.

---Explain that as Jeremiah continued to preach to the people as recorded in Jeremiah 20–28, he specifically warned them about teachers and false prophets who told the wicked what they wanted to hear.

IV. Jeremiah 29  Jeremiah writes a letter to the Israelite captives in Babylon

---During Jeremiah’s day, in about 606 B.C., a select group of Jews was carried away captive to Babylon. In chapter 29, Jeremiah promised these captives that if they searched after God with all their hearts, they would find Him, and the Lord would hearken unto them (see Jeremiah 29:11–14).

---Notice the images of the landscapes on the board. Act on any promptings you may have received during the lesson and follow the principles that will help you lead rich, fruitful lives.

Lesson 135: Jeremiah 30–33

I. Jeremiah 30–31  In the last days, the house of Israel will be gathered and enter into a new and everlasting covenant with the Lord

---Ask students if they prefer happy or sad endings in stories.

---Have you ever wondered if your life will have a happy or a sad ending?

---What would be a happy ending to your life? A sad ending?

---The Lord sent the prophet Jeremiah to call Judah to repentance just before Babylon conquered Jerusalem and carried many of the Jews to Babylon. As a result, his warnings and prophecies often have a tone of impending doom. However, Jeremiah also knew what the future held for the Jews.

---Read Jeremiah 31:17 aloud looking for what Jeremiah said the ending for the Jews in his day would be.

---What does the phrase “there is hope in thine end” mean?

(It means that there is hope for you in the future [see verse 17, footnote a].)

---Look for truths in Jeremiah 30–31 that can give you hope for your future even if you experience trouble or gloom.

---When the Israelites kept their covenants, the Lord blessed them in many ways, including giving them a promised land. However, when they broke their covenants, the Lord took these blessings away, and the people became separated from their promised land, or scattered.

---Read Jeremiah 30:12 aloud using the Joseph Smith Translation in footnote a.

---What does the Joseph Smith Translation of this verse reveal about Israel’s condition?

(While Israel’s condition of spiritual decay and physical bondage is grievous and difficult, it is not incurable or hopeless.)

---Write the following verses on the board:

Jeremiah 30:3, 7, 8, 10, 17; 31:3, 8, 9, 13.

---What would the Lord do for scattered Israel? (Gather them back to their lands of promise.)

---Do you think gathering to a certain geographical location is all the Jews would need to do to be healed from their spiritual wounds? Why or why not?

---While Jeremiah referred to a physical gathering in the land of promise after the Jews’ exile in Babylon, there is another, even more important component of the gathering that he taught.

---Read Jeremiah 31:31–34 aloud looking for what the Lord would do as part of the gathering of Israel.

---According to verse 31, what did the Lord say He would make with the house of Israel? (A new covenant with them.)

---The word new in this context means that God’s covenant—the fulness of the gospel—would be revealed anew to the house of Israel. While God had previously established His covenant with their fathers, the patriarchs, over time some of the components of this covenant had been lost, such as the Melchizedek Priesthood, the higher law, and the fulness of temple ordinances. Jeremiah foresaw the day when the house of Israel would at last accept God’s new and everlasting covenant (see History of the Church, 1:313–14).

---According to verse 33, what relationship will the house of Israel be in when they accept God’s new and everlasting covenant? (Jehovah will be their God, and they will be His people.)

---Anciently, the Israelites struggled with keeping God’s covenant and living His laws with all their hearts.

---When God’s law is written in our hearts, we desire to live the gospel with all our hearts and are truly converted to it. We obey God because we love Him, rather than for external reasons like wanting others to think we are righteous.

---According to verse 34, what is a result of living the gospel with all our hearts?

(If we keep our covenants and live the gospel with all our hearts, we will come to know God.)

---How has living the gospel of Jesus Christ helped you come to know Him better?

---To help students understand this principle, invite a student to read aloud the following statement by Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles. Ask the class to listen for what Elder Nelson taught about living the gospel and keeping our covenants.

“When we realize that we are children of the covenant, we know who we are and what God expects of us. His law is written in our hearts. He is our God and we are His people. Committed children of the covenant remain steadfast, even in the midst of adversity. …

“The greatest compliment that can be earned here in this life is to be known as a covenant keeper. The rewards for a covenant keeper will be realized both here and hereafter” (“Covenants,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2011, 88).

II. Jeremiah 32–33  Jeremiah purchases property in the promised land to symbolize the return of scattered Israel

---Jeremiah 32:1–15 tells of when King Zedekiah had Jeremiah put in prison because Jeremiah prophesied that the king would be taken captive and Jerusalem would be conquered by the king of Babylon. While Jeremiah was in prison, his cousin came to him and asked him to buy property in their family’s ancestral homeland, which was near Jerusalem. The Lord revealed to Jeremiah that purchasing this land was a symbolic witness that the Jews would someday return from captivity and possess the promised land once again (see Jeremiah 32:15, 43–44).

---In Jeremiah 32:16–44 Jeremiah prayed to God and recounted many of the miracles He had performed in giving the promised land to the children of Israel. It also records the Lord’s response to this prayer.

---Read Jeremiah 32:27

---Why might it have been comforting for Jeremiah to receive confirmation that nothing is too difficult for the Lord?

(Help students understand that Jeremiah may not have known how the Lord would restore the Jews to their homeland, but since he had a testimony that nothing is too difficult for the Lord, he knew it could be done.)

---Point out that there are people today who feel lost spiritually and believe it would be too difficult for them to ever return to Heavenly Father and experience a happy ending.

---Write the following phrase on the board:

Regardless of what we have done or how lost we may feel, the Lord can …

---The Lord described what He would do for Israel.:.

“Gather them” (Jeremiah 32:37)

“Cause them to dwell safely” (Jeremiah 32:37)

“Bring upon them all the good that [He has] promised them” (Jeremiah 32:42)

“Cure them” (Jeremiah 33:6)

“Build them” (Jeremiah 33:7)

“Cleanse them from all their iniquity” (Jeremiah 33:8)

“Pardon all their iniquities” (Jeremiah 33:8)

---Think about how you may need to repent or more fully live the gospel of Jesus Christ.

---Act on the promptings you receive so the Savior can give you hope in your future and help you be happy.

---Testimony of the Savior’s desire and ability to build, cleanse, heal, and pardon us.

---Conclude by reading Jeremiah 33:10–11, 14 aloud looking for words and phrases that confirm how the story will end for the house of Israel.

Quotes:

“The Lord explained to Jeremiah that when we make mistakes, as ancient Israel was making, we can take what we have marred and begin again. The potter did not give up and throw the clay away, just because he had made a mistake. And we are not to feel hopeless and reject ourselves. Yes, our task is to overcome our problems, take what we have and are, and start again.

“Some of you who are listening have sinned in ways that are significant, embarrassing, and destructive. Yet, by following the simple instruction given by the Master, you can talk with your bishop, when necessary, and begin again as a renewed person”

Elder Hugh W. Pinnock of the Seventy. Ask the class to listen for phrases that give them hope in the Savior’s ability to help them change for the better.

“The Lord explained to Jeremiah that when we make mistakes, as ancient Israel was making, we can take what we have marred and begin again. The potter did not give up and throw the clay away, just because he had made a mistake. And we are not to feel hopeless and reject ourselves. Yes, our task is to overcome our problems, take what we have and are, and start again.

“Some of you who are listening have sinned in ways that are significant, embarrassing, and destructive. Yet, by following the simple instruction given by the Master, you can talk with your bishop, when necessary, and begin again as a renewed person”