Jeremiah 18:5-10

B. The Interpretation for the Prophet Jeremiah 18:5-10

TRANSLATION

(5) And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (6) Am I not able to do to you as this potter (oracle of the LORD)? Behold, like clay in the hand of the potter, thus are you in My hands, O house of Israel. (7) One moment I may speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom to pluck up, to tear down and to destroy; (8) but if that nation repents of its evil on account of which I have spoken, then I will relent concerning the evil which I had thought to do unto it. (9) One instance I may speak concerning a nation and concerning a kingdom to build and to plant; (10) but if it does evil in My eyes that it not hearken to My voice, then I will relent concerning the good which I have spoken to benefit it.

COMMENTS

The nation of Israel is but clay in the hands of the divine Potter. He can dispose of them as he wills. If the nation yields and submits to the working of the divine hand, He will produce from it a beautiful and useful vessel. But if Israel refuses to allow the Potter to have his way then Israel will be discarded and God will start all over again with a new creation.
A word of caution is in order on this passage. Analogies when pressed beyond their intended purpose yield bad theology. One should not conclude from this episode that in God's dealing with Israel He has been at fault in the ruination of the vessel. The potter which Jeremiah watched may have made an error of judgment in the amount of clay he selected or in some other respect that caused the first vessel to be inadequate. But no one should attribute such errors of judgment to the master Potter. The analogy breaks down in another respect. Clay is inanimate and material. The human heart possesses the power to willfully rebel against the Potter. Man can choose to be pliable in the hands of the Creator or to be a hard as sun-baked clay. Every child of God should be praying: Have Thine own way Lord, Have thine own way. Thou are the potter, I am the clay.

A most important principle of Biblical interpretation emerges in Jeremiah 18:7-10. Simply stated the principle is this: Neither God's threats nor His promises are unconditional. The attitude of God toward any people depends entirely upon their response to Him. He is not an arbitrary God ruled by whims or fancies. He is the God of unchanging justice and mercy. God may decree the destruction of a nation and give no hint that the nation can survive. Yet if that nation repents of its sin God will rescind the execution order. One thinks immediately of Jonah's mission to Nineveh. Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown, he cried. The message was absolute and unequivocal without any hint of hope. Yet Nineveh repented and Nineveh found forgiveness. The threat was not executed and Jonah's prophecy of doom went unfulfilled. The principle enunciated by Jeremiah in these verses helps to explain why some prophecies in the Bible have not been fulfilled. Biblical prophecies must be interpreted as conditional even though the conditional element may at times be missing.