Our year-long discipleship class is designed to guide you through an enriching spiritual journey. Over the next 12 months, people are grouped together, they’ll engage in meaningful Bible studies, participate in community discussions, and hopefully develop lasting relationships with fellow believers. This class isn’t just about learning; it’s about living out the faith.
This page includes the conversations and the questions that each group has, and includes the answers that were given.
Each group had been given a number to keep anonymity
Topic for Discussion
Among the many wonders of the Holy Scriptures is their ability frequently to compress into a sentence truth so vast, so complex, as to require a whole shelf of books to expound. Even a single phrase may glow with a light like that of the ancient pillar of fire and its shining may illuminate the intellectual landscape for miles around.
An example is found in Jeremiah 10:1-25. The Lord had spoken of the vanity of idols and had set the glory of the living God, the King of Eternity, in contrast to the gods of the heathen. The prophet then responded in an inspired exclamation that very well states the whole problem of humankind: “I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.”
What is the message in Jeremiah 10?
Discussions/Questions From Each Group
Group 1
Idolatry Brings Destruction (1-16):
- The first four verses, God is warning them that they are doing something wrong; it shows how great of a God He is.
- Verse 1-5: Jeremiah is telling us that their gods are just figure heads and they are worthless and they cannot do any harm to you nor can they do any good.
- I also noticed how he mentioned their gods with a lowercase “g”, but this is who they glorify.
- Verse 16: Jeremiah is warning them that these “gods” and idols will not last when God sends His wrath they will all perish and fall.
The coming Destruction and Jeremiah’s prayer (17-18):
- God is telling them that destruction is going to come upon them and they will feel his anger; there is certainty in this verse.
- As humans, we want control over our lives and then we want to try to make God fit into our plans and Jeremiah is telling God that I don’t have ownership over my own life and I should not want it.
- Verse 23: Can be used as a caution verse to help warn us about control and want to be “mini god”. ( 1 corinthian 10:12)
- Verse 21: Jeremiah is warning the teachers that they need to be careful not to focus on their strength and they need to go to God for help and Knowledge because if they don’t, it will lead to the destruction of them and the people God entrusted to them. (James 3:1). This just warns pastors or religious preachers that they need to be careful because their judge will be stricter than that of a regular person.
Summary: The passage is a warning to people who have created false idols; these idols are not to be feared or worshiped because they are not God. We must remember that the Lord is the one true God and omnipotent. Wrath will come to those who are not following the Lord.
Questions:
(1): Verse 24: what is the discipline Jeremiah talks about is it in connection to (himself or for the nation)? Is it for this passage or in general?
(2): Understanding verse 19-20 (who is speaking and who is this in reference to)
(3): Who is Jeremiah talking to through the passage? (Jews or Gentiles)
Group 2
Jeremiah 10 is warning people against worshiping idols and why they shouldn’t and why worshiping idols is futile since they are made by man and have no power at all. The Lord, through the prophet Jeremiah, speaks to Israel about the issue of copying the other nations in their idolatry.
• The Lord is the greatest that there is, the idols are simply unmoving replicas of gold and wood that cannot move or talk or have any effect on life. They are man made and so thereby have no real power within them.
• Verse 14 especially highlights that the goldsmith will be put to shame by what he makes because the idols he carves have no power. The gods they worship will put them to shame and they will perish. Depending on who you worship you can be put to shame, but not if you trust in the Lord who formed everything (verse 16).
• Verse 19-21 highlights the distress that comes when the Lord is neglected and when humans stupidly choose their own way and do not inquire of the Lord. But the prophet accepts the affliction and believes he must bear it. (Verse 19).
• We were slightly confused as to what verse 23 means. Does it mean that we have no ability to actually direct our own steps or plan the course of our lives? Compared the NLT version as well to get a better understanding.
• It is named Jeremiah’s Prayer and it says: “I know, Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are not able to plan our own course. So correct me, Lord, but please be gentle. Do not correct me in anger, for I would die.”Jeremiah 10:23-24 NLT
• There was confusion about verse 22 – as we weren’t sure where the roar was coming from – are they under attack or in a war while Jeremiah warns against idols? But we thought that possibly verse 22 meant that there was a coming attack from the north towards Jerusalem to cause destruction to it as punishment for idolatry.
Group 3
Vs 5. Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field and they cannot speak.
-I got that idols that we create are vanity and nothing compared to God.
-Idols cannot sustain and satisfy.
Vs 6. There is none like you, O Lord; you are great, and your name is great in might
-With this verse I got that God is the ultimate, there is nothing that can compare to Him. In him we find everything we need because He is everything.
-I learned that God sees idolatry as worthless because it results in shame.
Vs 23. The way of man is not in himself….
-We live for God and not for us.
-God should be the center of our lives.
-Live for the will of God, not for our will.
-Daily surrender to His will.
-God will pour out His wrath against idolaters.
The passage is a reminder of the story in 1 Kings 18 where Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to see who’s god is truly God. In that passage the prophets of Baal were praying for hours with no response and Elijah replied in verse 27 “And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.””
-Reminder of the essence of what Jeremiah 10 is talking about. How there is only one true God and others make their own out of wood and adorn it with metals and colors.
-Verse 11 says “Thus shall you say to them: “The gods who did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens” that stood out because of the” from” under the earth part because their gods do not dwell in heavenly places.
-Verse 14 also stood out because it says “there is no breath in him”. When God created us he breathed the breath of life in us. But when we create things with our hands we cannot breathe life into it because we are not God and cannot create living things with our hands. Therefore idols are dead and inanimate objects.
-Verse 16 also says “for he is the one who formed all things”. During creation all that needed to be created was created, we cannot now come and start creating gods.
Questions
verse 15. Whose punishment is being referred to?
Group 4
Jeremiah 10 felt like a compare and contrast between idols/idolatry and the nature of God
* We really liked (verse 11) which just reminded us that eventually everything will fade away
* We learned that Jacob’s portion is meant to reflect Israel/the Lord’s people
* The Lord is great, powerful and alive and much better than anything we can have in this world.
* People tend to lack faith and don’t fully surrender to God rather they serve the idols that they/are created.
* Depending on God even though we can’t physically see Him, is better.
* We were reminded to be intentional with God in every step and not believe in your own hype that you can lead yourself or worldly things can guide you because we as humans don’t know the way only Christ does so we have to keep in step with Him.
Question(s)
* (Verse 25) Do the people not know that their lives are not their own?
* (Verse 23-24) Why was Jeremiah asking to be disciplined? >> Our Bible commentary mentioned “ Jeremiah fully identified with his people. He wanted to be judged by the same standards by which he had judged them. In spite of all the indications of God‘s wrath, Jeremiah prayed that God would finally judge him and Judah with justice and not anger”
* Could verse 21 correlate with Jude 1:12–15 and Revelation 3:17 particularly people thinking they are alive when they are actually dead and/or having shepherdless shepherds/leaders?
* (Verse 19) What was Jeremiah suffering from?
Group 5
– Any sort of wisdom or knowledge that we derive from our “own human understanding” is foolishness
– we need to be weary of what idols we create or follow. Jeremiah talks about idols formed from human hands, but in present day
– we can also create or appoint idols with in our minds. Ex: a bunch of people think a wealthy business person is smart. So they begin follow all of their advice in an effort to be like them, thinking that that person “knows everything”
– This passage also shows that God is the only true God. The passage describes the level of foolishness people had by cutting down trees and making a grave for them to worship. a worthless god that creates nothing would never give something good but evil and they shall all perish. Any nation that doesn’t know God shall suffer.
Group 6
Jeremiah 10 Notes:
Verses 1-5:
*We believe what is being communicated is the lack of power & significance found in the religious practices of man. The Lord is communicating to the people not to conform to the ways of those practicing idolatry. The idols are also powerless.
Questions:
1. Is the warning for Israel and are the nations God said not to copy those outside of Israel?
2. Are the signs from the heavens in verse 2 (that they are told not to be terrified of) the same as the ones in verse 13?
Verse 6-11: Jeremiah reaffirms that the Lord alone possesses all the power not these idols or the people worshiping them. These idols are all made from human hands and are posers & will be destroyed for the Lord is the only true God and should be feared.
Verses 12-16: These verses go into detail of some examples of the great power that the Lord possesses vs the lack of power by these idols. (The Lord is the creator of the world, wise & understanding, and in control over everything on earth). Whereas there is no power found at all in these idols. (They are senseless, frauds, and will perish). The idols are also created by the hands of man and are going to be an embarrassment to the people who created them. Only God can bring Judgment and pour out wrath so he should be feared.
Verses 17-18: A warning of destruction that is coming to the land, as a judgment to Verses 19-22
*Jeremiah is lamenting because of the state of his people for they do not follow the Lord. But we are unsure if the timeline is pre wrath or post the wrath of God.
Questions:
1. What is Jeremiah referring to in verse 19 of when he said “this is my sickness, and I must endure it”?
2. What is the timeline of these verses? Pre-wrath or post wrath of God?
Verses 23-25: The problem of human kind is that we think our plans will prevail. But it is truly the Lord who directs our steps. Jeremiah states that the Lord is in control. He is also asking for mercy for himself, but destruction for those who don’t acknowledge God as Lord.
Questions:
1. Verse 24: Is Jeremiah asking for discipline because of the wrath that is ahead?
2. Why is he asking for mercy for himself but not for everyone else?
3. Is verse 25 referencing the nations that are coming to invade Israel or is it everyone who doesn’t acknowledge God and forsake his name?
Overall message of Jeremiah 10: The Lord is the only true God, he possesses all the power. He frowns upon idolatry and his wrath will be poured out on those who don’t fear him. In today’s day and age, idolatry isn’t just physical idols. It can refer to anything we put before God, in our lives. So we should also be careful of that.
Group 7
-Jeremiah’s warning to Israel also applies to us today. God is telling us not to be consumed by our own ways. When we leave God out of our decisions, we are acting foolishly.
-This passage highlights the power of God and also that nothing made by human hands can truly last. Just as God has dominion over all He creates, we cannot expect our creations to have power over us.
-Idols will fade away along with the earth, but our living God is eternal.
-Verses 21-22 remind us that when we are scattered like sheep without a shepherd who hears and get direction from God, we become easy prey for the enemy, symbolized here by jackals
Group 8
Our first initial thoughts when reading the passage today were on the context of the passage? Who are the nations the Lord is referring to, the nations he instructs the Israelites not to copy? Where are the Israelites at this point in time?
– We notice that in the Bible the Israelites, like us, have a pattern of falling away from God so we assume this is one of those moments that the Lord is calling them back to him and based on the scripture we think that they are within a Gentile surrounding where they are being influenced to participate in idolatry.
– deviating from God, this is a cycle that is present today, a cycle of sin and running away from God, a cycle of idolatry; how do we break out of this pattern?
The first part of the chapter did a lot of comparison between idols and God and we believe everything that was discussed earlier about false Gods reached a peak in verse 10 where the truth about God is proclaimed and this verse completely nullifies everything that an idol claims to be, which is alive, having power, and long lasting. In verse 10 we see that God is the only living God, who is an everlasting king, and through the rest of the chapter we see examples of his power, through the wind and rain and quaking of the earth to his wrath.
Our interpretation of vs 23
Jeremiah is acknowledging the shortcomings of man and often the posture we take to direct our own steps, especially through the act of idolatry. Idolatry is a way of trying to have control over our lives. We can’t see God or touch him. Human beings crave connection, and lack faith without sight. The idolatry mentioned here seems like the people looking for a physical representation of a higher power even if that physical representation has absolutely no power. This is what we do as well by turning to so many other things in this world that we can see, touch, or that bring us pleasure, before God who has the power to help us. But God, despite the fact that we can’t see him or touch him, all he asks for is our faith in him, and our surrender and he makes himself present and known in our lives! We think this is why Jeremiah states what he states in verse 23, and in verse 24 pleads for the mercy of Israel from God’s promise of destruction. Jeremiah asks for justice instead of God’s wrath and instead asks for God to destroy the nations around them who are clearly doing idolatry with no remorse.
Question: God is a decider of who he has mercy on (Exodus 33:19). A lot of prophets plead on behalf of Israel, asking God for mercy. Do our prayers have an effect on God’s decision of mercy? Does the prayer of ONE man, the prophet Jeremiah for example, have an impact on God’s decision to have mercy? Is God’s mercy given regardless of our actions? In this context, does Jeremiah’s plea for mercy have any bearing on the punishment/destruction of Israel?
What is the meaning of Jeremiah 10?
We believe this chapter is a reminder to not be deceived by what other people or nations are doing, specifically the false power and adornment of idolatry. God revealed the truth to Jeremiah which he communicated to the people of Israel- that these false idols have no power, but God is living and an everlasting King. With that truth, we believe they were instructed to not be afraid to be the minority among the majority. To not follow the customs of their surroundings, but to separate themselves and follow the one true God, by rejecting idolatry.
We also must surrender. This is what God asks from us, our dedication and to know truly and decide that God is the one in control of our lives, and if God is in control and has power- we must reject our own way, a way of living in idolatry.
Answers/Discussion At Night
Q and A:
Do our prayers have any effect on God’s decision of mercy? Does the prayer of one man, the prophet Jeremiah for example, have an impact on God’s decision to have mercy?
- Check Jeremiah 11:9-15 for clarity on the answer. The Lord tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people and He also tells him why he shouldn’t pray for them because they worship other gods. In chapter 12 it is obvious that God has decided to punish His people. Sometimes the Lord will turn back His anger. The power of sovereignty is that God can say yes or say no as He likes. There are many prophets who have interceded such as Moses and God has turned back His anger; it all depends on His sovereignty.
Is the warning for Israel and are the nations God said not to copy outside of Israel?
- It is for Israel (10:1). The warning is for nations around Israel. Israel and Judah. They had copied the nations around them and had begun to worship idols. Israel is breaking the first commandment which states that you shall have no other gods before God.
Are the signs from Heavens in verse two (that they are told not to be terrified of) the same as the ones in verse 13?
- Verse 13 describes the natural pouting of rain and thunder. The signs which are to not be terrified of are the signs which the Lord sends to the other nations but they are not too scared of them.
What does Jeremiah refer to in verse 19 when he says: this is my sickness and I must endure it?”
- Verse 19-21 is one thought. He is speaking as Israel because they are about to suffer. He states that the “shepherds” (which represent the elders of the people who are supposed to guide the people) are stupid. Jeremiah is called the weeping prophet because he speaks for the people. He does not talk for himself.
What does he mean about the cords in verse 20?
- The main idea is that there is major destruction that’s happening. Tents are made with cords and they are being destroyed.
Do the people not know that their lives are not their own?
- (Verse 25) In the entire context, we realize that Israel has forgotten the same way that Christians tend to forget. We think that life is simply a game but it is not. We simply have one and if you know Christ, then you have two.
Why was Jeremiah asking to be disciplined in verse 23-24?
- He is not speaking for himself but speaking for the people in general (on behalf of them). He is asking for God to not bring His wrath upon the people of Israel because no one can survive the wrath of God. The only one who survived the wrath of God was Jesus.
Whose punishment is being referred to in verse 15?
- It refers to the men who made the idols.They are the ones who shall be punished.
What does verse 22 mean?
- The Lord is going to bring destruction upon the Israelites because of their idolatry.
Notes on the passage:
- What happens when you don’t fully love God? When you love Him with only your strength but not your heart? How are you different from Israel? God must have all of our hearts.
- Jeremiah asks that the people are dealt with justice not with anger/wrath because they cannot recover from wrath. That is why on the last day no man can stand before God because He shall pour out His wrath and His justice and the man who does not know His son shall feel the full force of His wrath.
- Everything that was read today boils down to verse 23. The way of man is not in himself. Some people think that the way of man is in himself but it’s not. We do not control ourselves. There is sovereignty above us and we only have as much control as the Lord in His sovereignty allows us.
- When Jeremiah refers to the idols he only uses lowercase “g” because he does not even regard them as anything to be feared or regarded.
- In verse 5, Jeremiah explains the reality of the idols and why they are not to be feared. They are mere idols who have no power. There is nothing they can do, neither good nor evil.
- Jeremiah has to highlight to them that idols have no power because the people were probably afraid. An idol only has power over you when you’re afraid of it.
Side notes that are important to remember:
- Research shows that Christians are the easiest people to fall for conspiracy theories. It should not be so. We should not search for answers in signs but we should search for them in the Word of God.
- How can you ask for signs when you have not fully surrendered to the Lord ? What shall you do with the revelation you receive?
- Whether you’re told the truth or not doesn’t change the fact that it is the truth. It is self deception to not want to be told the truth.
- Do not break up scripture- read it as one continuous thought.
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