Jeremiah Watches the Potter at His WheelBible World
18:5Jeremiah 18:5
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
The verse records the coming of the word of the Lord to Jeremiah at the potter's house, opening the potter-and-clay lesson for Israel. It introduces the Lord's message given through the potter's work, showing how He deals with His people. Rejecting that message and opposing the messenger does not prevent God from prevailing.
The lesson compares Israel and His people to clay in the potter's hand, with God as the Potter and Master who has authority and rule over nations and individuals. As clay is in the potter's hand, so Israel is in God's hand, and nations and individuals alike are under His authority. He is the Master who molds and fashions His people for His purposes, as a potter shapes clay into a vessel fit for use.
God's dealings with a nation depend on its course: He may announce judgment yet relent if it turns from evil, and He may promise good yet withdraw it if it does evil, disobeys, and refuses His voice. Ancestral sins do not condemn a nation that turns to God, and ancestral virtues do not shield children who choose wrongdoing. In this message Judah and Jerusalem are warned, pleaded with, and called to repent, reform, change conduct, turn from evil, and learn to do good. But they refuse and choose their own evil plans and ways, abandoning God and the ancient paths.
The potter's working, pressing, and shaping shows God's purpose to mold, fashion, and polish His people and workers according to His likeness into shapely vessels fit for use, service, fruit-bearing, and honor. In shaping them He removes defects, peculiarities, a wrong mold placed on the work, everything unfinished and imperfect, selfishness, and unsuitable plans. He knows the work and place for which each person is best fitted, forming those who submit into vessels bearing Christ's likeness, revealing His glory and the perfection He desires every human being to reveal. Grace and truth fashion the human clay to make the shapely vessel, molded and polished for service, so that glory appears in it.
The clay's part, given as reproof to save the worker, is to yield completely to God's guidance, instruction, and will rather than try to direct His work, shape themselves, or insist on plans contrary to His will. Yielding means being turned again and again until His will is worked out, being ready to receive divine impressions, letting grace and truth fashion the life and letting the Spirit of truth inspire and govern every movement. It means emptying the soul of pride and self-sufficiency to make room for Jesus, accepting advice and counsel from others, submitting the will to Christ, seeing imperfections as shown and putting them away, and living in constant connection with Jesus in entire dependence on God for grace and guidance. If they heed, surrender self, and submit to be molded, the Potter's hand produces the shapely vessel, they receive promised blessing as followers in righteousness, are saved, and become more useful workers for God than before. If they refuse to be molded, persist in their own ways, throw off responsibility, and balk, growth is left deformed with defects looked upon as virtues and tendencies to wrong marring the character, they prove unfaithful under trial, cannot receive His blessing, and become ruined.
The verse records the coming of the word of the Lord to Jeremiah at the potter's house, opening the potter-and-clay lesson for Israel. It introduces the Lord's message given through the potter's work, showing how He deals with His people. Rejecting that message and opposing the messenger does not prevent God from prevailing.
The lesson compares Israel and His people to clay in the potter's hand, with God as the Potter and Master who has authority and rule over nations and individuals. As clay is in the potter's hand, so Israel is in God's hand, and nations and individuals alike are under His authority. He is the Master who molds and fashions His people for His purposes, as a potter shapes clay into a vessel fit for use.
God's dealings with a nation depend on its course: He may announce judgment yet relent if it turns from evil, and He may promise good yet withdraw it if it does evil, disobeys, and refuses His voice. Ancestral sins do not condemn a nation that turns to God, and ancestral virtues do not shield children who choose wrongdoing. In this message Judah and Jerusalem are warned, pleaded with, and called to repent, reform, change conduct, turn from evil, and learn to do good. But they refuse and choose their own evil plans and ways, abandoning God and the ancient paths.
The potter's working, pressing, and shaping shows God's purpose to mold, fashion, and polish His people and workers according to His likeness into shapely vessels fit for use, service, fruit-bearing, and honor. In shaping them He removes defects, peculiarities, a wrong mold placed on the work, everything unfinished and imperfect, selfishness, and unsuitable plans. He knows the work and place for which each person is best fitted, forming those who submit into vessels bearing Christ's likeness, revealing His glory and the perfection He desires every human being to reveal. Grace and truth fashion the human clay to make the shapely vessel, molded and polished for service, so that glory appears in it.
The clay's part, given as reproof to save the worker, is to yield completely to God's guidance, instruction, and will rather than try to direct His work, shape themselves, or insist on plans contrary to His will. Yielding means being turned again and again until His will is worked out, being ready to receive divine impressions, letting grace and truth fashion the life and letting the Spirit of truth inspire and govern every movement. It means emptying the soul of pride and self-sufficiency to make room for Jesus, accepting advice and counsel from others, submitting the will to Christ, seeing imperfections as shown and putting them away, and living in constant connection with Jesus in entire dependence on God for grace and guidance. If they heed, surrender self, and submit to be molded, the Potter's hand produces the shapely vessel, they receive promised blessing as followers in righteousness, are saved, and become more useful workers for God than before. If they refuse to be molded, persist in their own ways, throw off responsibility, and balk, growth is left deformed with defects looked upon as virtues and tendencies to wrong marring the character, they prove unfaithful under trial, cannot receive His blessing, and become ruined.