01/04/2026
Jeremiah 27:18 “But if they be prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon.”
Jesus is telling these so-called prophets in Jerusalem, to pray that the sanctuary tools and implements will not go to Babylon! Of course Jesus has already decided what would happen, and He told Jeremiah to let the people know of their punishment. These false prophets and messengers have no power, to stop God’s plan to save His people!
They can’t make Nebuchadnezzar leave behind the vessels of the sanctuary, and not carry them to Babylon. These prophets are weak and worthless. Jesus wants the people to see their lack of preventing anything!
When God decrees what will happen, it will work out exactly as He has foretold. His children need to understand this reality! These liars can say and pray and insist all they want, but nothing will happen, unless God allows it.
When the people of God see the vessels going to Babylon, they will finally understand that Jeremiah knew the truth, and that these false prophets and teachers and preachers, were all liars! Then Jeremiah will be vindicated and the people will know who was telling them the truth. All those liars will be exposed.
But none of this had to happen if they would have only listened and obeyed! When the prophet told them to repent and cleanse their hearts and minds from sin, God would have been able to bless them! But they loved their sins and selfishness and would not give them up! It had to get bad enough to let those pet sins go.
This has always been the case in this world. We will only avoid sin when those sins take away our freedoms and happiness! Jesus has been saying this from the very beginning. But his prophets were being ignored or denied or hated!
The people wanted to hear smooth words, and comfortable words so that they could keep their sins, and God would take them home anyway! And those false prophets and speakers are more than willing to lie to them.
So Jesus tells them to prove their power or their promises! If they are so wise and know how to keep the vessels from going to Babylon, show us! And as usual, they are found out to be deceitful from the very beginning. They had no power at all. So the people will finally see that they were lying to them! But in order for them to get this, all of the sanctuary’s vessels had to be taken in front of their very eyes!
We cannot imagine this kind of devastation and destruction. Their sanctuary was the pride of the people! It was so huge and magnificent and God lived there! Nothing could ever happen to this glorious edifice, or so they thought. And the liars were insisting that this could never happen! But Jeremiah said different. Who was telling the truth?
Would the vessels stay or be taken? Would these false professors be telling the people the truth, or were they lying? Jesus will let the people see the truth, all by themselves. Jeremiah doesn’t have to say anything, just let things play out.
So the people wait and watch:
Jeremiah 27:18 “But if they be prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon.”
~Joey Olson