And there was no water in the cistern, but only mud, and Jeremiah sank in the mud.
– Jeremiah 38:6
This is part of the book of Jeremiah, where he is cast into a cistern for his prophecy. The officials had said to the king, “Let him be put to death”. And the king said, “He’s in your hands”. So they took him and threw him into a cistern to die.
Jeremiah 38:6 shows the cost of proclaiming God’s word with courage.
As I read this, I can’t help but think about our brothers and sisters in Christ, our family today, who are in a similar place. Some who are in prison right now because of their proclamation of the gospel. Because they’re giving their lives to making disciples among the nations. And I think about brothers and sisters who are in camps in North Korea, for example, who are suffering in immeasurable, unimaginable ways as a result of following Jesus and pointing others to Jesus.
And we have a responsibility to pray for them regularly, to remember them. I just think about all the times where Paul writes, “Remember my chains, pray for me”. And so I’m going to lead us to do that right now in light of Jeremiah 38:6.
Jeremiah 38:6 pictures the cost of faithfulness in a hostile world.
God, we praise you for Jeremiah’s faithfulness to proclaim your Word. Even when he knew that that might mean his suffering or would likely mean his suffering could mean his death.
God, we praise you for Jeremiah’s all around the world right now. Our brothers and sisters who are in prison in different places because of their proclamation of your grace and truth in Jesus. God, we pray, please strengthen them. Please strengthen their faith. Please help them hold fast. God help them to stand strong, just like Paul said from Roman prison, “Be strong in the Lord, in the strength of his might”.
God help them to be strong in you and the strength of your might. We pray that they would know you’re with them, for them. God, we pray for their families who are suffering without them, for their church families suffering without them, and prone to worry, to fear. God, we pray that you would deliver them from fear, from worry. That you would comfort them. You would help them in every way they need. Provide for kids whose dads or moms are in prison, for wives, husbands whose spouses are in prison.
God, we pray for our brothers and sisters in labor camps in North Korea. God, please, please have mercy on them. Please sustain them physically, spiritually. God in every way. And God, we pray in light of what Paul wrote so many times from prison, we pray for their sustenance and their boldness. We pray that the gospel would spread through them.
This verse reminds us to pray for those who persecute the church.
God, we pray for jailers like the Philippian jailer, for persecutors, for those who are holding our brothers and sisters captive. We pray that you would redeem them and save them, that you would draw them to yourself through our brothers and sisters. Lord, we pray, just like we read in Acts 7, in the stoning of Stephen. God, we pray that suffering, persecution, even martyrdom, would lead to the spread of the gospel. God, we pray you would help in every way our brothers and sisters in suffering need and that you would cause their suffering to lead to their good and the good of many others. And ultimately, the glory of your name and the spread of your grace and your mercy among all the nations.
And God, we pray that you would help us to faithfully share your Word, make disciples no matter what it might cost us. It might cost a reputation, jobs. Help us to go wherever you call us to go, no matter what risks that may mean for us. God, help us to faithfully follow in Jeremiah’s footsteps, in the footsteps of other sisters around the world who are in chains right now, and ultimately in the footsteps of Jesus, who, for the joy set before him, endured the cross and is now seated at your right hand. We pray all this in light of your Word in Jeremiah 38:6. In Jesus’ name, amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
