“O earth, earth, earth, Hear the word of the LORD!” (Jer. 22:29)
What an interesting verse! The casual reader of the Bible might mistakenly think that the prophet Jeremiah is telling the planet Earth to heed God’s word. Actually, “earth” in this context is a figure of speech known as metonymy, which means a word that is closely associated to another word is used to describe the other word.
For instance, I, being the typical southerner might say, “Please hand me a coke,” when I actually mean, “Please hand me a soda,” in general. Or someone might say, “Please hand me a Kleenex,” when they mean, “Please hand me a tissue,” generically speaking.
When the prophet Jeremiah says, “O earth, earth, earth,” he’s not referring to the planet Earth. Rather, he’s referring to the inhabitants of the earth. Thus, we have the metonymy of the word “earth” being substituted for something closely associated to it, the inhabitants of the earth.
The Earth’s Greatest Problem
What is the greatest problem in all the Earth? The environmentalist might say pollution, climate change, rising sea levels, drought, over-crowding, or over-population. Not so! Certainly, God has given mankind dominion over His creation (Genesis 1:26, 28), which implies that man must be responsible stewards of it, but Earth’s manifold problems have very little to do with the ecological and have much more entirely to do with sin.
Examine the context of Jeremiah chapter 22. What you will find is that the prophet is detailing the coming destruction of Judah, resulting from an extended period of rebellion on the part of God’s people. Verse 21 rightly sums up Judah’s attitude: “I (God) spoke to you in your prosperity, but you said, ‘I will not hear.’ This has been your manner from your youth, that you did not obey My voice.”
The chapter is riddled with examples of sinful things that God’s people had embraced instead of faithfulness to God, seen priorly in the life of the faithful King Josiah. While Josiah had reconciled the Kingdom back to the Lord (2 Kings 23), his descendants did not follow in their father’s footsteps.
The list of sins found in Jeremiah 22 is staggering:
Improper execution of justice, unrighteousness, turning a blind eye to oppression, doing violence to strangers, orphans and widows, and shedding innocent blood (all implied by God’s instruction in verse 3).
Forsaking the covenant of the Lord and worshipping other gods (verse 9).
Improper (dishonest) building of wealth and houses, and refusing to give laborers their wages due (verse 13).
Becoming very comfortable in these lavish homes they had built dishonestly (verse 14).
Practicing covetousness, shedding innocent blood, and practicing oppression and violence (verse 17).
Practicing promiscuity (implied in verses 20 and 22).
Refusing to hear and obey the Lord (verse 21).
What would be the consequences?
“O earth, earth, earth, Hear the word of the LORD! Thus says the LORD: ‘Write this man (Coniah, a descendant of Josiah) down as childless, A man who shall not prosper in his days; For none of his descendants shall prosper, Sitting on the throne of David, And ruling anymore in Judah.’”
Earth’s greatest problem is sin, and those who refuse to acknowledge this problem in their lives and make correction will suffer the same fate as the children of Judah.
Chase Green is a good friend that I spent some time with in preaching school - he graduated in the class before me. Chase preaches for the Marietta Church of Christ in Marietta, Oklahoma.
Chase hosts the Everyday Christian podcast with the Scattered Abroad Network.
Very interesting. Thanks for writing.