A prayer of hope
Jane Denniston
September 28, 2025
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Jeremiah 32:1-3a, 6-15 (NIV)
1 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar. 2 The army of the king of Babylon was then besieging Jerusalem, and Jeremiah the prophet was confined in the courtyard of the guard in the royal palace of Judah.
3a Now Zedekiah king of Judah had imprisoned him there, saying, “Why do you prophesy as you do?
6 Jeremiah said, “The word of the Lord came to me: 7 Hanamel son of Shallum your uncle is going to come to you and say, ‘Buy my field at Anathoth, because as nearest relative it is your right and duty to buy it.’
8 “Then, just as the Lord had said, my cousin Hanamel came to me in the courtyard of the guard and said, ‘Buy my field at Anathoth in the territory of Benjamin. Since it is your right to redeem it and possess it, buy it for yourself.’
“I knew that this was the word of the Lord; 9 so I bought the field at Anathoth from my cousin Hanamel and weighed out for him seventeen shekels of silver. 10 I signed and sealed the deed, had it witnessed, and weighed out the silver on the scales. 11 I took the deed of purchase—the sealed copy containing the terms and conditions, as well as the unsealed copy— 12 and I gave this deed to Baruch son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and of the witnesses who had signed the deed and of all the Jews sitting in the courtyard of the guard.
13 “In their presence I gave Baruch these instructions: 14 ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Take these documents, both the sealed and unsealed copies of the deed of purchase, and put them in a clay jar so they will last a long time. 15 For this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Houses, fields and vineyards will again be bought in this land.’
God of hope,
God of vision,
God of the future,
when I watch the news, read the papers,
think of the way societies are polarised,
and the poor, the humble, as always, paying the price
for the ambitions of the rich,
it's difficult to have hope
to have a vision
to have faith in the future.
There are wars and rumours of wars.
There are hunger and deprivation.
There are cruelty and oppression.
Division and hatred are too often fomented by leaders
who should encourage unity and build safety.
Fear and suspicion walk the streets
and neighbour turns against neighbour.
God of love,
God of peace,
God of unity,
may your light break through the darkness.
May your love break through the fear.
May your hope break through the despair,
and may I be an instrument of hope
for this broken and mourning world.
As Jeremiah invested in a future he could not see
lead me in my journey
that I might know
what fields to purchase:
where to invest
how to invest
what to invest
for the future of my community, my nation, my world, Amen
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