who deliberately abuse it are choos-ing the way of death. But those whocorne to God's Word, believe it, andact on it are choosing the way of life.

When spokesmen of God declarethese two ways and make clear topeople the two alternatives, peopleare not always pleased. They don'talways want to hear the truth andmay not appreciate those who speakit. Jeremiah and other prophets,some of whom are listed in Hebrews11, were wonderful spokesmen' ofGod who heard God's voice and whoset before the people of their timesthe truth of God's Word. Hebrews 11describes how some of these prophetsand believers were treated in re-

Special Excerpt from Volume Vof Studies in Abundant Living: "ORDER My STEPS IN THY WORD"

Victor Paul Wierwille

Jeremiah, an Old Testamentprophet, has been called the weep-

ing prophet because he was alwaysweeping over Israel when they turnedaway from God.1 Regardless of whatpeople may call those who seek Godand His way, God still reveals Him-

1. Jeremiah 13:15-17; 22:9,10; 48:29-32.

Victor Paul Wierwilleis the FoundingPresident of TheWay International.

4 The Way Magazine/March-April 1985

It is God's Word which sets before mankind the twopresented these choices to the

self to the meek. And sometimeswhat God reveals is intended to givethe unbeliever, who is meek, an op-portunity to leave his spiritual dark-ness and the valley of death and tofollow the way of life. Jeremiah wasGod's messenger to offer God's planto the people of his day. "There aretwo ways before you," Jeremiah toldthe children of Israel. "One way isthe way oflife; the other is the way ofdeath. Now you choose which you willfollow. You choose your destiny."

I think we of The Way Ministryare again setting before the people ofour time those two choices-the wayof life and the way of death. Thosewho reject God's Word and those

choices of life and death. Jeremiah, as God's spokesman,inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Judah.

sponse to their speaking for God.Hebrews 11:37 and 38:They were stoned, they were sawn asunder[cut up into pieces], were tempted, wereslain with the sword: they wandered aboutin sheepskins and goatskins [The skins offreshly skinned animals were sewedon them. When the skins dried, thebodies would be compressed inside.];being destitute, afflicted, tormented;(OJ whom the world was not worthy:) theywandered in deserts, and in mountains,and in dens and caves oj the earth.

These were men and women ofGod who in their day and in theirtime endeavored to carry out God'sWord; they held it forth to the best oftheir abilities. The people's response

to these men and women of God waswhat we just read. And peoplehaven't changed. Some individuals,yes, but whole nations, no. We muststill come to the position of again set-ting before people what I believe isthe way of life for those who believeGod's Word and the way of death forthose who do not, regardless of theirresponse to the person presenting thechoice.

You set the Word before peopleand people make up their mindswhether they want to believe it orwhether they don't want to believe it.Those who believe it get the results oftheir believing. Those who do notbelieve it get the consequences of

their unbelief. For those who believe,it is the way of life. For those who donot believe, it is the way of death.

In the Book of Jeremiah, we arecertainly impressed by the number oftimes Jeremiah was instructed byGod to offer the inhabitants ofJudaha way of escape from the doom whichtheir unbelief would bring uponthem. By chapter 19 of Jeremiah,where this study begins, God hadrepeatedly told Jeremiah to declare tothe people of Jerusalem and Judahthat unless they destroyed their idolsand returned to worshiping Jehovah,

.they would be taken captive toBabylon for seventy years. Literalcaptivity would be their consequencefor not heeding God's voice via theProphet Jeremiah. Now, the peopledidn't want to hear this! They didn'twant to rid themselves of their idola-try; they didn't want to change. SoGod once again told JeremIah to goto the people of Jerusalem and pro-nounce their doom to them.Jeremiah 19: 14 and 15:Then came Jeremiah from Tophet, whitherthe Lord had sent him to prophesy; and hestood in the court oj the Lord's house [theTemple]; and said to all the people,Thus saith the Lord oj hosts, the God ojIsrael; Behold, I will bring upon this cityand upon all her towns all the evil that Ihave pronounced against it, because theyhave hardened their necks, that they mightnot hear my words.

Jeremiah's declaration of God'srevelation to him-"I [God] willbring upon this city and upon all her.towns all the evil that I have pro-nounced against it"-was not newsreceived with appreciation andmeekness. In the days of the ProphetJonah, the entire city of Ninevehresponded to a similar warning andpenitently turned to God. But thepeople of Judah rejected the preach-ing of Jeremiah and felt no remorse,refusing to hearken to God's Word.In fact, the Book of Jeremiah con-tinues this account by telling theabuse which Jeremiah had to endurefor having been God's spokesman.

Jeremiah 20:1:Now Pashur the son oj Immer the priest,who was also chief governor in the house ojthe Lord, heard that Jeremiah prophesiedthese things.

We are about to find out how thisman Pashur dealt with God andGod's man, Jeremiah. ClearlyPashur was a man of prestige andauthority. Besides being the son of apriest, thus having status in thereligious circles of his time, he was

The Way Magazine/March-April 1985 5

also the "chief governor in the houseof the Lord," the Temple. What anelevated position of leadership tohave! Such religious and socialprestige!

But Pashur, the son of a priest andthe chief ruler of the Temple, wasneither meek nor open to God and HisWord as delivered by the ProphetJeremiah.Verse 2:Then Pashur smote [nakah] Jeremiah the

prophet, and put him in the stocks thatwere in the high gate of Benjamin, whichwas by the house of the Lord.

the house," the Temple. By pun-'ishing Jeremiah in the area of thehouse of Jehovah, Pashur made theprophet a public exhibition at thevery place where God said He wouldmeet His people. Pashur was makinga mockery of God's spokesman, andtherefore a mockery of God, in thevery area of God's own House!

First of all, Pashur had Jeremiahbeaten with thirty-nine lashes. Thenhe put him in stocks at the high gateof Benjamin, making him an exam-ple and causing fear in the people sothat they would not believe Jer-

It took a lot of courage for a man in Jeremiah'sposition-having just been beaten, put in stocks,and publicly disgraced-to speak out with thegreatness of the truth of God's Word at the momentof his release.

When Pashur heard that Jeremiahhad prophesied Judah's doom,"Pashur smoteJeremiah the prophet."Jeremiah hadn't hurt anybody. Hewasn't out stealing from people. Hewasn't going around destroyingproperty. And yet Pashur, this manof prestige and authority, a manhighly respected by the vast majorityof the people, smote Jeremiah theprophet, God's spokesman.

Now what do you think of whenyou read, "Pashur smote Jer-emiah"? What exactly did Pashurdo? Maybe you never gave it muchthought. It's just a word, "smote."The Hebrew word for "smote" isnakah. Deuteronomy explains whatthis word means, which is translated"beaten" in Deuteronomy 25.Deuteronomy 25:2 and 3:... if the wicked man be worthy to bebeaten [nakah], that the judge shall causehim to lie down, and to be beaten [nakah 1before his face, according to his fault, by acertain number.Forty stripes he may give him, and not ex-ceed: lest, if he should exceed, and beat[nakah] him above these with manystripes, then thy brother should seem vileunto thee.

Pashur' forced Jeremiah to endurethirty-nine lashes with a whip. That'show Pashur smote Jeremiah. Then hehad Jeremiah put into stocks, with hishands, his -feet," and his neck lockedbetween tWb large pieces of wood, atthe high gate of Benjamin.

The high gate of Benjamin was atthe north side of the Temple area,leading to the city. This gate was "by

6 The Way Magazine/March-April 1985

emiah's pronouncement of doom. Ifanyone believed what Jeremiah said,they would receive the same treat-ment he had received. Nobodywould dare to listen to him, to followhim, or to join him.

Pashur left Jeremiah in the stocksall day and all night to punish anddisgrace him and to spread fear andthereby to maintain control over thewhole city.

Jeremiah 20:3:And it came to pass on the morrow [thenext day1, that Pashur brought forth

Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then saidJeremiah unto him, The Lord hath notcalled thy name Pashur, but Magor-missabib.

Pashur was causing people to fear.Jeremiah told Pashur, "The Lorddid not speak of you as 'Pashur,'meaning 'most noble.' That's notyour name so far as God is con-cerned. Your name is 'Magor-missabib,' 'fear all around. ' " It tooka lot of courage for a man in Jer-emiah's position-having just beenbeaten, put in stocks, and publiclydisgraced-to speak out with thegreatness of the truth of God's Wordat the moment of his release. Wouldyou have had that much boldness?Verses 4 and 5:For thus saith the Lord, Behold, 1willmake thee a terror [magor] to thyself [I'llmake you have fear yourself), and toall thy friends: and they shall fall by thesword of their enemies, and thine eyes shallbehold it: and I will give all Judah into thehand of the king of Babylon, and he shallcarry them captive into Babylon, and shall

slay them with the sword.Moreover I will deliver all the strength ofthis city [all the manpower], and all thelabours thereof, and all the precious things[valuables1 thereof, and all the treasuresof the kings of Judah will I give into thehand of their enemies, which shall spoilthem, and take them, and carry them toBabylon.

It was not God's will that thisshould happen to Judah, but thepeople caused it to happen by theirunbelief, by their rejection of God,and by their treatment of God'sprophet, Jeremiah, who spoke forGod. When they rejected the way oflife and treated Jeremiah with con-tempt, it was as if God were beingtreated with contempt.

Man can do a lot of things; butthere is one thing he can't do and getaway with-and that is to mock God.It may look like he's getting awaywith it at times, but don't be fooled.It looked that way here when Pashurwas wielding authority. But circum-stances change. Pashur's life wasn'tover yet.

Jeremiah had the boldness to lookdirectly at Pashur and say, "Look,you can put me in stocks, you canbeat me, that's okay. But I want totell you something: You and allJudah are going to suffer becauseyou have not obeyed my warning."Verse 6:

And thou, Pashur, and all that dwell inthine house shall go into captivity: and thoushalt come to Babylon, and there thou shaltdie, and shalt be buried there, thou, and allthy friends, to whom thou hast prophesiedlies.

Pashur could make a public mock-ery of the prophet. But in the end,the truth of God would indeed pre-vail. The prophesied end of Pashur,the powerful chief officer of the Tem-ple, was death in Babylon along withhis friends. The Word of the Lordwas spoken clearly by Jeremiah, andthat's exactly what happened.

After seeing the boldness of Jer-emiah in the first six verses of Jel--emiah 20, the next three verses in theKing J ames Version seem out ofcharacter for him.Verses 7-9:o Lord, thou hast deceived me, and 1wasdeceived: thou art stronger than 1, and hastprevailed: 1am in derision daily, every onemocketh me.For since 1spake, 1 cried out, 1 criedviolence and spoil,' because the word of theLord was made a reproach unto me, and aderision, daily.Then I said, 1will not make mention of

him, nor speak any more in his name. Buthis word was in mine heart as a burningfire shut up in my bones, and I was wearywith forbearing, and I could not stay.

These three verses are hard to un-derstand after observing Jeremiah'sforthrightness in the precedingverses. A much better and a clearertranslation of verses 7, 8, and 9 isfound in Dr. George M. Lamsa'sAramaic translation:Oh Lord, thou hast comforted me, and Iam comforted; thou art stronger than I, andhast prevailed; I have become a laughing-stock daily, everyone mocks me.

Jeremiah couldn't bear not to speakGod's Word.

Worn down by the smiting, theridicule, and the mocking, Jeremiahhad wanted to close his mouth andstay out of trouble. But then just ashe was going to withdraw and bequiet, God's Word became like aburning fire in his heart. God'sWord welled up within Jeremiah. Hecould not keep silent. As God's Wordburned in his heart and in hisbones-his whole inner being- Jer-emiah couldn't keep still. He had tospeak what he was called by God to

Man is like the grass of the field-here today andgone tomorrow. It's the Word of God that remains.It is God's Word which sets before mankind the twochoices of life and death.

For at the time when I spoke and cried out,I spoke against the extortioners and againstthe robbers; because the word of the Lordhas becomefor me a reproach and derisiondaily.Then I said, I will not make mention ofhim [the Lord], nor speak any more in hisname. But his word became in my heartlike a burning fire kindling in my bones;and I sought to be patient, but I could notendure it. 2

This is tremendous. How wonder-ful these words of Jeremiah are.Jeremiah praises God for being hiscomfort. "Lord, you've comfortedme. I am at peace."

Within himself Jeremiah was asevery human being would have beenin his situation. He wanted to berespected, loved, and blessed. Hewasn't speaking God's Word justbecause he wanted to make trouble.He spoke God's Word because thatwas the only thing he knew to do.But then as he spoke God's Word, hewas punished for it by people'sreproach, derision, and mocking. Asa human being, Jeremiah becamediscouraged. Who wants to be alaughingstock and suffer reproach?Jeremiah became weary of this, andhis emotions almost overcame him.He thought that if he didn't mentionJehovah or speak in His name any-more, people would leave him alone.But then, Jeremiah declared, "Hisword became - in my heart like aburning fire kindling in my bones. ' ,

2. George M. Lamsa, trans., The Holy Bible fromAncient Eastern Manuscripts (Nashville, Tenn.: A.J.Holman, 1957).

speak no matter what the conse-quences; otherwise, he said he couldnot have endured it.

Throughout the centuries, menhave come and gone, but the Word ofGod has lived and will continue toabide forever. Jeremiahs come andgo, but the Word of God that theyproclaim comes to pass. It's theWord of God that comes to pass. Andit's the Word of God that stands nomatter what men say, think, or do.Don't be fooled by the world. Do youthink the people of the world havepower? Man has no power. Man islike the grass of the field-here todayand gone tomorrow. It's the Word ofGod that remains. It is God's Wordwhich sets before mankind the twochoices of life and death. Jeremiah,as Qod's spokesman, presented these

choices to the inhabitants of Jeru-salem and all Judah in his day.Jeremiah 21:8:... I set beforeyou the way of life, and theway of death.

The choice is that sharp. You'vegot to make up your mind whetheryou're going to believe God's Wordor whether you're going to believethe Pashurs who speak contrary toGod's Word.Hebrews 1:12:For the word of God is quick [living], andpouierful [energetic], and [the Word ofGod is] sharper than [or above] arrytwoedged sword, piercing even to thedividing asunder of soul [natural life]and spirit [spiritual life], and of the

joints and marrow, and [the Word ofGod] is a discerner [critic; the Word ofGod is the critic] of the thoughts and in-tents of the heart [the mind of man].

The Word of God is the critic. Yetmany people think that they are thejudges of God and His Word. Manalways gets things backward when hegoes his own way.

You must make up your mindwhether or not you're going to walkfor God and live according to HisWord. Whether or not you live ac-cording to that Word, now andalways the Word of God is still yourcritic. We, of our own free will,choose either the way of life or theway of death. Pashur couldn't out-smart God by ridiculing the personwho spoke God's Word. Neither canwe outsmart God by devising ourown ways and working contrary toHis ways. Rather, we need to kindlethe fire of God's Word in our heartsand let it ignite our lives with thepower of God. Thereby we choosethe way of life. (J

Soon to be released!Studies in Abundant Living

Volume V

ORDERMy STEPS

IN THYWORD

by Victor Paul WierwilleThis exciting volume will be released at the

Opening and Dedication of The Word OverThe World Auditorium.

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