At The Bottom Of The Well (Part 1)

Jeremiah 38:6 “Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the dungeon of Malchiah the son of Hammelech, that was in the court of the prison: and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire: so Jeremiah sunk in the mire.”

Jeremiah was born in a small village about an hour's walk from Jerusalem. He was called as a young man to speak for God. During his life Jeremiah saw Israel turn from God and in turn it was defeated internally by immorality and externally by military might. He saw Jerusalem captured and pillaged and its residents forced into slavery or exile. He tried to warn Israel of their fate, yet they ignored Jeremiah’s warnings and pleas to turn back to God.



Now the problem with being a prophet is that it doesn’t necessarily make you the most popular kid on the block. You see the prophet’s message is not one of motherhood, apple pie and lower taxes. Prophets preach turn or burn messages, prophets don’t preach feel good sermons. After one particular sermon that Jeremiah preached the powers that be decided that he wasn’t doing a great deal for public morale and so they decided to do something about it. 

Here's what he preached:

Verses 2, 3 "Thus saith the Lord, He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live; for he shall have his life for a prey, and shall live. Thus saith the Lord, This city shall surely be given into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, which shall take it."

Now in the church tradition of today if you don’t like the preacher you call the Head Bishop and ask for a change. Obviously this was a different time and different place because they threw him into an empty cistern, which is like a well. It wouldn’t have been right for them to kill a prophet of God, but if he was at the bottom of a well without food and starved to death, then whose fault was that?

So Jeremiah looks up and all he could see was a circle of blue. He looked down and watched the mud squish between his toes. And he wondered how he had ended up at the bottom of a pit hated by the very people he wanted to save.

Some people know what it’s like to look at the world from the bottom of a well.

-Maybe it was your fault and maybe it wasn’t that you ended up there, but that doesn’t change the fact that the bottom of the well is not a nice place to be.

-Maybe you did all you could to better things, but you still became a victim of circumstance.

-Maybe others made promises that people expect you to fulfill, but you just don't have those abilities and instead of understanding you received rejection.

Pardon the grammar, but it ain't no fun at the bottom of the well. All you can hope for is mercy and that someone will reach down and pull you up and out.

When you've fallen into the mire at the bottom of the well and you can't go any lower than you already are there's someone who can help you. His name is Jesus.

Jeremiah 33:3 "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.