Monday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time
(Jeremiah 28,1-17; Matthew 14:13-21)
Prophets were not scarce in ancient Israel. Evidently, many men and, no doubt, a few
women felt a call from God to advise kings and people. Not all of those called, however, accurately described
the present reality or predicted the future.
They were the false prophets, one of whom faces-off with Jeremiah in
today’s first reading.
Hananiah, a court prophet, announced sunny days ahead for
the Southern Kingdom after Babylon’s thrashing of Judah. The false prophet said that king, people, and
Temple plunder would return soon from Babylon where they had been exiled. Jeremiah knew that a beneficial outcome would
not take place so quickly or easily. He
glimpsed God’s mercy finally winning out but had to announce that Judah would
suffer much more before that mercy was felt.
All of us should be aware that our belief in a good and
gracious God does not mean our escaping suffering. Both our sins and the sins of others will
cause trouble that we must face. Jeremiah
helps us to remain confident, however, that God in the end will save his
faithful people.
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