“But the LORD is with me as a dread warrior;
therefore my persecutors will stumble;
they will not overcome me.
They will be greatly shamed,
for they will not succeed.
Their eternal dishonor
will never be forgotten.”
Jeremiah 20:11
As I read over this verse, reflecting on Jeremiah’s firm confidence in the power of his God and the complete inability of his enemies to overcome the God who is with him, my heart is intrigued by the connection with another passage I read this morning.
In 2 Samuel 5, we see this account: “Now the Philistines had come and spread out in the Valley of Rephaim. And David inquired of the LORD, ‘Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?’ And the LORD said to David, ‘Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.’…And David did as the LORD commanded him, and struck down the Philistines from Geba to Gezer” (2 Samuel 5:18-19, 25).
This highlights both the importance in our seeking the Lord’s will in the midst of our circumstances, and in trusting that He will come through for us as we obey. As we face key decisions, we must seek His face and listen for His answer. And when the answer is received, we can move forward with confidence knowing that our God is with us. Whatever He calls us to, however impossible or difficult it appears, we know that God is for us.
Our faith can reflect the declaration of Jeremiah, “the LORD is with me as a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble; they will not overcome me.” His words are bolstered by those spoken to him by God Himself, at the first call of Jeremiah into his role as prophet: “And behold, I make you this day a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests, and the people of the land. They will fight against you, but they shall not prevail against you, for I am with you, declares the LORD, to deliver you.”
Our confidence is further strengthened in these words from Isaiah 54:16-17, “Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals and produces a weapon for its purpose. I have also create the ravager to destroy; no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.”
Our God created all things. All powers, all dominions, all kings, all those who come against us—all were created by Him, all answer to Him, and all will ultimately bring Him glory and bow at His feet. What greater confidence could we have, than in knowing that the One who owns and rules all things is the One who is on our side, going before us and determining our salvation and deliverance?
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?…Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.”
Romans 8:31-34
“But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”
2 Corinthians 4:7-10
“Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet and they will learn that I have loved you…The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.”
Revelation 3:9-12
In Pleasant Places 