Jeremiah 32:16-25
Faithful prayer acknowledges both God’s mighty works and the difficult realities of His judgment while trusting His purposes.
16 Now after I had delivered the deed of the purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed to Yahweh, saying,
17 “Ah Lord Yahweh! Behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you.
18 You show loving kindness to thousands, and repay the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them. The great, the mighty God, Yahweh of Armies is your name:
19 great in counsel, and mighty in work; whose eyes are open to all the ways of the children of men, to give everyone according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings;
20 who performed signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even to this day, both in Israel and among other men; and made yourself a name, as it is today;
21 and brought your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs, with wonders, with a strong hand, with an outstretched arm, and with great terror;
22 and gave them this land, which you swore to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.
23 They came in and possessed it, but they didn’t obey your voice and didn’t walk in your law. They have done nothing of all that you commanded them to do. Therefore you have caused all this evil to come upon them.
24 “Behold, siege ramps have come to the city to take it. The city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword, of the famine, and of the pestilence. What you have spoken has happened. Behold, you see it.
25 You have said to me, Lord Yahweh, ‘Buy the field for money, and call witnesses;’ whereas the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.”
Faithful prayer acknowledges both God’s mighty works and the difficult realities of His judgment while trusting His purposes.
To record Jeremiah’s prayer to the LORD after purchasing the field, acknowledging God’s sovereign power, covenant faithfulness, and righteous judgment while wrestling with the tension between the promise of restoration and the present devastation of Jerusalem.
Jeremiah 32:16–25 follows the prophetic act of purchasing the field in Anathoth. The narrative pauses as Jeremiah responds with a prayer of reflection. The prophet recounts Israel’s covenant history and acknowledges the justice of God’s judgment while seeking understanding about the symbolic command he has just obeyed.
Jeremiah offers this prayer during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem after obeying God's command to purchase land in a city that is about to fall.
Buying a Field Under Siege: Nothing Is Too Hard for the LORD
Even while Jerusalem is under siege and judgment is certain, the LORD commands Jeremiah to buy a field as a sign that restoration is just as certain, because nothing is too hard for the God who judges, gathers, renews, and plants his people.