Session 7 | Jeremiah 29:4-14
God’s instructions to the exiles on how they could live prosperous lives, even though they were in captivity.
4 This is what the LORD of Armies, the God of Israel, says
to all the exiles I deported from Jerusalem to Babylon:5 “Build houses and live in them. Plant gardens and eat their produce.
6 Find wives for yourselves, and have sons and daughters.
Find wives for your sons and give your daughters to men in marriage
so that they may bear sons and daughters.
Multiply there; do not decrease.”7 “Pursue the well-being of the city I have deported you to.
Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for when it thrives, you will thrive.”
Remind adults that Jeremiah’s letter probably followed closely
on the heels of the second Babylonian deportation.
Share that this deportation was massive,
involving ten thousand Jews.
King Jehoiachin, who had been deposed by Nebuchadnezzar,
and Ezekiel, who would become a prophet to the exiles in Babylon,
were both taken in this event.
identify the instructions God gave
to the people living in captivity.
give a one-sentence summary
of these instructions.
Imagine you are an exile living in captivity far from your home—
what emotions might you be feeling?
we might feel anger, fear, or a desire for revenge.
regarding verse seven
the Northern Kingdom had basically disappeared,
but God gave Judah a reason to hope.
If they would follow His instructions, they would find peace and security
in the moment, along with the hope for a return to the promised land.
Even in captivity, God wanted His people
to thrive. So He directed them to pray for their captors.
The exiles’ lives were to reflect their faith in God.