Intercede No More

By Andrew Williams

“Pray no more for these people, Jeremiah. Do not weep or pray for them, for I will not listen to them when they cry out to me in distress.
Jeremiah 11:14 NLT

Prayer: Father God, I will obey your instructions. Amen.

Good morning fellow disciples.

God told his chosen prophet Jeremiah:

Do not intervene between Judah and me with a view to reconciling our differences;

Do not mediate on their behalf;

Do not plead on Judah’s behalf; or

Do not intervene on behalf of them.

Wow! God was harsh.

Why was God so adamant that Jeremiah should stop praying for God’s chosen people? He tells us why in Jeremiah 11:9‭-‬14 NLT:‬

Again, the Lord spoke to me and said, “I have discovered a conspiracy against me among the people of Judah and Jerusalem. They have returned to the sins of their ancestors. They have refused to listen to me and are worshiping other gods.

Israel and Judah have both broken the covenant I made with their ancestors. Therefore, this is what the Lord says: I am going to bring calamity upon them, and they will not escape. Though they beg for mercy, I will not listen to their cries.

Then the people of Judah and Jerusalem will pray to their idols and burn incense before them. But the idols will not save them when disaster strikes! Look now, people of Judah; you have as many gods as you have towns. You have as many altars of shame—altars for burning incense to your god Baal—as there are streets in Jerusalem.

“Pray no more for these people, Jeremiah. Do not weep or pray for them, for I will not listen to them when they cry out to me in distress.