Context That Compliments

It is vital to keep the big picture in mind when we read, interpret and apply Scripture.  Many well-meaning people can be led astray from sound doctrine when they deviate from the immediate context of passages, cherry-pick phrases or view a verse as standing alone when the accurate interpretation is supported by verses around it.  Because the entire Bible is God's word, no verse stands alone as an outlier.  What can seem contradictory at first glance may be complimentary after consideration.  Understanding the immediate context and to whom the book originally was directed can aid us in rightly dividing God's word and living our lives according to His truth.

An example of this is seen in the book of Jeremiah.  Through the prophet, God spoke pointed words to His people and foretold of coming judgment He would bring upon them for their sin they refused to acknowledge or repent of.  He asked in Jeremiah 7:9-10:  "Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, burn incense to Baal, and walk after other gods whom you do not know, ¹⁰ and then come and stand before Me in this house which is called by My name, and say, 'We are delivered to do all these abominations'?"  Did God deliver His people from slavery in Egypt to remain slaves of sin?  Did He bring them into a good land so they could justify what the LORD deemed abominable?  God forbid.

Later in this section God said to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 7:16:  "Therefore do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or prayer for them, nor make intercession to Me; for I will not hear you."  If we read this verse on its own, we might think it falls to us to judge if people are worthy of being prayed for, and we should not pray for people who are in sin--but this would be a very bad interpretation as it violates what God says in other places in the Bible.  For instance, when Jesus was being crucified, He interceded on behalf of the Romans who crucified Him and even the Jews who mocked Him:  "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."  Paul said it is God's will we pray for everyone in 1 Timothy 2:1-4:  "Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, ² for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. ³ For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."

It is not difficult to reconcile the command not to pray for the inhabitants of Jerusalem though it is God's will for all people to be prayed for and saved.  The problem was, Jeremiah's hearers refused to heed God's warnings or repent of their sin.  The judgment God would bring upon His people would not be turned away by the prayer and intercession of God-fearing people, for their continuance in sin meant their judgment was set in stone.  If they would be broken and repent of their sin, the commandment to destroy could also be broken.  In the case of God's people in Judea, what was needed was contrite hearts and repentance of sin before God, and God would not force their will.  Praying for ourselves and others--knowing God hears us and answers--is to be our rule of life as Christians because this is God's will.  The Jeremiah 7 passage in no way prohibits us praying for others, but it reveals when the iniquity of people is full, intercessory prayer on their behalf will not benefit them.