Jeremiah 24 (HCSB)
The Good and the Bad Figs
1 After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had deported Jeconiah son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, the officials of Judah, and the craftsmen and metalsmiths from Jerusalem and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs placed before the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket contained very good figs, like early figs, but the other basket contained very bad figs, so bad they were inedible. 3 The Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?” I said, “Figs! The good figs are very good, but the bad figs are extremely bad, so bad they are inedible.”
4 The word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Like these good figs, so I regard as good the exiles from Judah I sent away from this place to the land of the Chaldeans. 6 I will keep My eyes on them for their good and will return them to this land. I will build them up and not demolish them; I will plant them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am Yahweh. They will be My people, and I will be their God because they will return to Me with all their heart.
8 “But as for the bad figs, so bad they are inedible, this is what the Lord says: in this way I will deal with king Zedekiah of Judah, his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem—those remaining in this land and those living in the land of Egypt. 9 I will make them an object of horror and disaster to all the kingdoms of the earth, a disgrace, an object of scorn, ridicule, and cursing, wherever I have banished them. 10 I will send the sword, famine, and plague against them until they have perished from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.”
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 7): Father, I know I am a “good fig” per Your example here, but I have been lost for so long. Please forgive me for not returning to You with all my heart sooner in my life, Father. Forgive me for my stubbornness in trying to appease this world instead of focusing on You through all things. Forgive me for hardening my heart so much that I have lost my way from You many times, neglecting to get back on the path You have chosen for me. Thank You for this renewed spirit within me and slowly but surely for softening my heart again for You.
PROMISE (verse 6): You make us a promise here that the “good figs” may be safe from the devastation that the “bad figs” will go through, they are not a “finished product” per se. You promise us in this verse that You will be there for us to build us up, not to break us down. You promise us that Your way is to develop us into a plant worth of Your name, not one that will be uprooted and discarded. Thank You for this promise, Father, as I often find myself lacking in so many areas, trying to “fix” it on my own even though I know You are always there for me to help build me up in Your ways.
ATTITUDE (verses 6-7): Help me to have an attitude that is accepting of Your instruction and counsel, Father. Just like the example of the “good figs” in these two verses, You assure us that You are there to build us up, not to break us down. You assure us that You are preparing us for the day that we will return to You with all of our heart. Help me to have a softened heart that continues to soften throughout this journey, so that I may have an attitude that wants to walk in Your will for Your glory and not my own, Father.
COMMAND (verse 7): Such a powerful single verse You give us here, Father. Although it’s a foretelling for those that are faithful to You, it’s also a command. You tell us that You WILL be our God and that we WILL be Your people so much so that we will return to You through any brokenness and failures we experience in this life so that our hearts will be fully devoted to You. Help me to follow this command, Father, so that I always remember that You want me to be one of Your people so much that You are willing to always give me counsel and instruction no matter how often I screw up in this life and this faith journey. Thank You for Your faithfulness to me, Father.
EXAMPLE (All verses): This entire chapter gives such an amazing and practical example to us. You use a plant that is well known to exemplify the difference between Your people and those against You. You show us an example of how a “good fig” is still not perfect in Your eyes and requires continued teachings from You. The “good fig” may not be perfect, but through their imperfections they still choose to come back to You. You show us how a “bad fig” is also not perfect but has chosen their path and has made the intentional decision not to come back to You. Thank You for always giving me a practical example that I can understand at my level, Father. An example that I understand well enough to be able to place myself in it and understand the way I am to go moving forward.
*DAILY NOTE: A whopping 10 verses, yet I was able to learn and take so much away from this short chapter in Jeremiah. Really, aside from the amazing example You provided in this entire Scripture, most of my lesson from You today was gleaned from only 2 of the 10 verses. How amazing is that! You are able to speak to me in a way that I can understand, but also in a way that I can take so much out of such a small number of words. Thank You for being such a perfect teacher and counselor for me, Father. Thank You for always finding a way to move the Holy Spirit in me so that I not only understand Your word clearly in the moment but am also able to learn quite a bit from so little quite often. I am so grateful to have the most perfect instructor and counselor available to me at all times, even though I do struggle quite often. Please continue to work on me like the “good figs” in this Scripture, Father. Thank You for being there to build me up in Your ways and to work on me slowly but surely as I allow You to so that I may become an amazing plant working towards Your glory and not my own.
*GENERAL NOTE: I always "sandwich" my quiet time with God in prayer and do it in a location that I will not have any distractions so that I can be focused on my quiet time with God. Do not worry about how short or long your journal entries are for that day's quiet time. Just focus on the actual quiet time and relational conversation with God through the Holy Spirit and His Word. The journaling is an enhancement to your quiet time conversation with God, but also to allow you to reflect on things later as you can look back on your journal entries later when you do the chapters again in the future to see how you have grown. See the FAQ for more detail on how I do my quiet time.
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