1. What point did God make by having Jeremiah go to the potter’s house?
That as clay in the hand of a potter, so was Israel in His hands as their maker: “The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter's hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel” (Jeremiah 18:1-6).
God tries hard to draw clear pictures for people to see (Isaiah 20:1-6, Jeremiah 13:1-17, and Ezekiel 4:1-17).
The potter and clay (Isaiah 64:8).
The marred clay and the making of another (Romans 9:20-26).
God can, as a potter with his clay, do whatever he wants to humanity at any time He wishes (Psalms 115:3, Psalms 135:6, and Isaiah 46:10).
2. What could a nation have done to prevent God’s destruction upon them?
Repent: “At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it; If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them” (Jeremiah 18:7-8).
Under the physical, economical Law of Moses, God did pick His nation and protected them when they did right (Ezekiel 20:5 and Zephaniah 2:9-10).
God chose times wherein nations rose and fell (Isaiah 13:1-29:24 and Jeremiah 1:10).
When nations chose to ignore God’s work He also humbled them (Isaiah 10:5-27).
Repentance, before it is too late (Jeremiah 5:23, Jeremiah 13:21-27, Romans 1:16-32, and Hebrews 10:26-39), turns away God’s wrath (Jeremiah 26:1-3, Jonah 3:1-10, and Revelation 3:19-20).
3. When God built a nation, how did that nation ruin having the benefits of God?
Disobey God: “And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; If it do evil in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them” (Jeremiah 18:9-10).
God did plant nations (Jeremiah 11:17 and Daniel 5:21).
Must obey (Deuteronomy 30:15-20, I Samuel 13:13-14, and Isaiah 1:19-20).
Remember, His motive was to bring Christ through Judah (Hebrews 7:14).
4. What was Israel’s response to God’s call for them to repent?
They choose to walk after their own devices: “Now therefore go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you: return ye now every one from his evil way, and make your ways and your doings good. And they said, There is no hope: but we will walk after our own devices, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart” (Jeremiah 18:11-12).
The message of God has framed evil against you should have been terrifying (II Samuel 6:6-7, Psalms 76:7, Psalms 89:7, Nahum 1:6, Zephaniah 3:8, Matthew 10:28, Acts 5:1-10, and Hebrews 10:31).
They felt hopeless (Jeremiah 2:25).
They wanted to walk after their own devices (Proverbs 1:24-31 and Jeremiah 16:10-12).
Of humanity, this mindset has not changed (Jude 1:17-18).
5. What point was God making by bringing up the heathens as a source for answers?
He was saying that even the heathen would realize the choice of Israel to forsake the good God did for them was not wise: “Therefore thus saith the Lord; Ask ye now among the heathen, who hath heard such things: the virgin of Israel hath done a very horrible thing. Will a man leave the snow of Lebanon which cometh from the rock of the field? or shall the cold flowing waters that come from another place be forsaken” (Jeremiah 18:13-14)?
Even the heathen’s are shocked by Israel (Ezekiel 22:1-5).
Similar point was made about fornication amongst the church of Christ in Corinth (I Corinthians 5:1).
The world watches and knows (Joshua 5:1, Joshua 7:1-12, Ezekiel 36:20, and Titus 2:3-5).
As God illustrated, Israel’s choice to leave God was dumb (Psalms 46:1, Jeremiah 6:8, and Hosea 9:12).
6. What would the passersby think of Israel’s condition in their disobedience to God?
Wag their heads over it: “Because my people hath forgotten me, they have burned incense to vanity, and they have caused them to stumble in their ways from the ancient paths, to walk in paths, in a way not cast up; To make their land desolate, and a perpetual hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished, and wag his head” (Jeremiah 18:15-16).
They forgot God as was Israel’s history and seemingly regular practice (Deuteronomy 32:15-18 and Hosea 4:1-6).
They were stumbling blocks to themselves (Isaiah 3:12, Isaiah 9:16, and Malachi 2:1-8).
They would not walk in the ancient paths (Jeremiah 6:16 and Malachi 4:4).
Every passerby would be astonished (Psalms 44:14-15 and II Kings 21:12).
Shame is powerful (II Thessalonians 3:14-15).
7. Would God be there for His disobedient people in their day of calamity?
No: “I will scatter them as with an east wind before the enemy; I will shew them the back, and not the face, in the day of their calamity” (Jeremiah 18:17).
God was done and would not hear them anymore (Deuteronomy 31:16-17, Judges 10:13-14, I Chronicles 28:9, Isaiah 59:1-3, Jeremiah 23:34-40, etc.).
8. Did Israel love Jeremiah for telling them the truth?
No: “Then said they, Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah; for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, and let us smite him with the tongue, and let us not give heed to any of his words” (Jeremiah 18:18).
This is typical of sinners toward preachers of truth (I Kings 18:17-18, I Kings 21:20, I Kings 22:1-38, II Chronicles 24:20-21, II Chronicles 36:14-16, Proverbs 15:12, Jeremiah 20:8, Matthew 23:34, John 3:19-21, John 7:7, John 8:31-59, Acts 5:25-42, Acts 7:51-58, Acts 17:1-13, and Galatians 4:16).
9. Did Jeremiah have the same mindset towards his enemies as Jesus (Luke 23:33-34) or Stephen (Acts 7:51-60)?
No: “Give heed to me, O Lord, and hearken to the voice of them that contend with me. Shall evil be recompensed for good? for they have digged a pit for my soul. Remember that I stood before thee to speak good for them, and to turn away thy wrath from them. Therefore deliver up their children to the famine, and pour out their blood by the force of the sword; and let their wives be bereaved of their children, and be widows; and let their men be put to death; let their young men be slain by the sword in battle. Let a cry be heard from their houses, when thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them: for they have digged a pit to take me, and hid snares for my feet. Yet, Lord, thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me: forgive not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from thy sight, but let them be overthrown before thee; deal thus with them in the time of thine anger” (Jeremiah 18:19-23).
We must understand that the Law of Moses, which we are not under (Romans 7:1-6), was their economical law. It was a system of carnal justice as their civil law (Exodus 21:12, Exodus 21:15-17, Exodus 21:29, Exodus 22:19, Exodus 33:14-18, Numbers 15:30-36, etc.). Jeremiah was minded toward that.
Jeremiah’s mindset was consistent with other times he requested God’s judgment without mercy (Jeremiah 10:25).
What Jeremiah did NOT want was God to deal with him in anger (Jeremiah 10:24).
The spiritual mindset we have, which they under the Law of Moses did not have (Romans 8:3-8), is sorrow over the lost even if they do us harm (Acts 23:12; cf. Romans 9:1-3).