Session 11 | Jeremiah 42:7-22
Jeremiah’s stern warning to the people of Judah.
19 “The LORD has spoken concerning you, remnant of Judah:
‘Don’t go to Egypt.’ Know for certain that I have warned you today!
20 You have gone astray at the cost of your lives
because you are the ones who sent me to the LORD your God, saying,
‘Pray to the LORD our God on our behalf,
and as for all that the LORD our God says,
tell it to us, and we’ll act accordingly.’”21 “For I have told you today, but you have not obeyed the LORD your God
in everything he has sent me to tell you.
22 Now therefore, know for certain that
by the sword, famine, and plague you will die in the place
where you desired to go to stay for a while.”
Point out that if the people disobeyed God’s instructions and fled to Egypt,
they would experience great devastation.
Note that the very things they feared would follow them if they ran away from God.
Affirm that in delivering God’s message, Jeremiah made the consequences clear.
it became obvious to Jeremiah
that the people had no intention of doing what God told them to do.
These were the same deceitful, disobedient people
after the destruction of Jerusalem as they were before it.
They were willing to listen to God as long as God told them what they wanted to hear.
They already had made up their minds to do what they wanted to do.
State: Trusting our own plans and judgment ultimately leads to destruction.
Invite volunteers to name where they see evidence of that statement in today’s Scripture passage.
Read aloud Jeremiah 42:6,
highlighting that this is the memory verse for the session.
Distribute Pack Item 8 (Handout: Memory Verses Bookmark) to the group
and encourage them to work on memorizing this verse during the week.
Encourage the group to reflect on the adjustments they need to make
to trust Him more and lean on your own understanding less.
Guide the group to discuss the activity under Apply the Text on page 95:
Discuss the role the group should play in helping one another to know and live according to God’s Word.
As a group, hold one another accountable for memorizing Jeremiah 42:6 this week.
Reinforce the session by contacting any group members who have been absent recently, encouraging them to get back in the habit of participating in group time.