Jeremiah 35:1-19 (NASB) 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying, 2 “Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak to them, and bring them into the house of the Lord, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.” 3 So I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, son of Habazziniah, and his brothers and all his sons, and all the household of the Rechabites, 4 and I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was next to the chamber of the officials, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the doorkeeper. 5 Then I set before the men of the house of the Rechabites pitchers full of wine, and cups; and I said to them, “Drink wine!” 6 But they said, “We will not drink wine, for Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, commanded us, saying, ‘You shall not drink wine, you or your sons, forever. 7 You shall not build a house, and you shall not sow seed nor plant a vineyard, nor own one; but you shall live in tents all your days, so that you may live many days in the land where you live as strangers.’ 8 And we have obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab, our father, in all that he commanded us, not to drink wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, or our daughters, 9 nor to build ourselves houses to live in; and we do not have a vineyard, a field, or seed. 10 But we have lived only in tents, and have obeyed and have done according to all that our father Jonadab commanded us. 11 However, when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, we said, ‘Come, and let’s go to Jerusalem away from the army of the Chaldeans and the army of the Arameans.’ So we have lived in Jerusalem.”
12 Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, 13 “This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Go and say to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, “Will you not accept instruction by listening to My words?” declares the Lord. 14 “The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab have been followed, which he commanded his sons: not to drink wine. And they do not drink wine to this day, for they have obeyed their father’s command. But I have spoken to you again and again, yet you have not listened to Me. 15 Also I have sent to you all My servants the prophets, sending them again and again, saying: ‘Turn now every person from his evil way and amend your deeds, and do not follow other gods to worship them. Then you will live in the land which I have given to you and to your forefathers; but you have not inclined your ear or listened to Me. 16 Indeed, the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have followed the command of their father which he commanded them, but this people has not listened to Me.’”’ 17 Therefore this is what the Lord says, the God of armies, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am bringing on Judah and on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them; because I spoke to them but they did not listen, and I have called them but they did not answer.’”
18 Then Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, “This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father, kept all his commands, and done according to all that he commanded you, 19 therefore this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “Jonadab the son of Rechab will not lack a man to stand before Me always.”’”
Jeremiah is one of the prophets in the Old Testament. In the passage we read, Jeremiah received instructions from the Lord to involve the Rechabites in a task. The Rechabites were a group of nomadic people, and according to the various Bible scholars who connected these dots, they are mentioned in 1 Chronicles 2:55 which says, “And the families of the scribes who dwelt at Jabez were the Tirathites, the Shimeathites, and the Suchathites. These were the Kenites who came from Hammath, the father of the house of Rechab.” Knowing that information, then we see they are the same people who are mentioned in Judges 1:16 which says, “Now the descendants of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up from the city of palms with the sons of Judah, to the wilderness of Judah which is in the south of Arad; and they went and lived with the people.” So, these people are descendants of Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law.
Jeremiah was to bring them into a chamber of the temple and offer them wine to drink. Jeremiah did this. He brought “all the household of the Rechabites” into a chamber and, as it says, “set before the men of the house of the Rechabites pitchers full of wine, and cups; and I said to them, ‘Drink wine!’” But they would not drink the wine. They explained to Jeremiah why they do not drink wine. They said that Jonadab, the son of Rechab, their father, had commanded them not to. He also commanded them not to build houses or settle down in one location but to live in tents and be nomads, traveling from place to place. And that is what they had been doing- not drinking wine, nor building houses, nor farming, only living in tents.
According to the Bridgeway Bible Commentary, the reason the Rechabites avoided farming was in order to avoid the temptation for Baal worship that farming presented. That makes sense, for I know that people at that time worshiped baal and thought he was a fertility god and would pray to him for rain and help with crops. That commentary also pointed out that by living a nomadic lifestyle, the Rechabites were able to escape the corrupting effects of city life, although now, as we learn from the text, they were forced to temporarily seek safety in Jerusalem when the Babylonian troops invaded Judah.
Jeremiah followed the Lord’s instructions and offered them wine to drink, but did you notice he did not say that the Lord was commanding them to drink it? Jeremiah would have known of their of their commitment to not drink wine, and of course, the Lord knew their commitment to not drink wine. So the point of this exercise was not to persuade them to do it, but to prove their obedience to their commitment. The Rechabites refused the wine and passed the test.
God then revealed the reason why He had Jeremiah make that offer of wine to them. They were used as an example to show their faithfulness and obedience to their father, in contrast to the unfaithfulness and disobedience of the people of Judah towards the Lord.
The Lord speaks through Jeremiah and says in verses 13-14, “This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Go and say to the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, “Will you not accept instruction by listening to My words?” declares the Lord. “The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab have been followed, which he commanded his sons: not to drink wine. And they do not drink wine to this day, for they have obeyed their father’s command. But I have spoken to you again and again, yet you have not listened to Me.”
I don’t think the Lord was praising the Rechabites because they followed that particular instruction to not live in houses or plant vineyards or not to drink wine. He was praising them because they stayed faithful to obey their father who gave the instruction. In Ellicott’s commentary he writes, “The temper of faithfulness to any rule of life sanctioned by prescription, whether it be that of a school, a college, a guild, or a religious order, is in itself praiseworthy as compared with that of individual self-assertion and self-will.” I would like to make a caveat to that statement, though, that blind allegiance to something for the sake of allegiance is not necessarily praiseworthy. In fact, it can end up hurting people if the allegiance is to something destructive. But, I agree, faithfulness in keeping commitments that we make is praiseworthy, as Ellicott said. I think that is indeed why God was impressed with them. They were people of commitment and faithfulness.
Ultimately, isn’t this what God is looking for in us? He wants us to stay faithful to Him.
He wants us to prove our faithfulness, not just to Him, but in all our dealings in life. He will reward us and give us more or less, depending on our exhibited faithfulness or faithlessness. Luke 16:10 says, “The one who is faithful in a very little thing is also faithful in much; and the one who is unrighteous in a very little thing is also unrighteous in much.”
As we follow Jesus, we should grow in faithfulness, as a proof of the Holy Spirit working inside of us, changing us. For we see that faithfulness is one fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23, which says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Faithfulness is a characteristic that God honors and values. That is because He Himself is the greatest example of faithfulness. 2 Timothy 2:11-13 says, “The statement is trustworthy:
For if we died with Him, we will also live with Him;
If we endure, we will also reign with Him;
If we deny Him, He will also deny us;
If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.”
He is the husband who remains faithful to his faithless wife, as we see in the book of Hosea, when God instructs Hosea to marry an unfaithful woman. That is a picture of God’s faithfulness to Israel even when they turned from Him and worshiped false idols. He says about Israel, in Hosea 11:12, “Ephraim surrounds Me with lies And the house of Israel with deceit; Judah is still unruly against God, even against the Holy One who is faithful.” God stood ready to welcome them back if only they would repent and return to Him.
He is the One who explains in Isaiah 65:1b-2, “I said, ‘Here am I, here am I,’ to a nation which did not call on My name. I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts.”
He says about Himself in Exodus 34:6, “Then the Lord passed by in front of him and proclaimed, ‘The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in faithfulness and truth;’”.
I want to note, though, that faithfulness is not the same thing as unconditional approval. We only need to read the next verse in Exodus 34 to see God explain this. Verse 7 says, “who keeps faithfulness for thousands, who forgives wrongdoing, violation of His Law, and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, inflicting the punishment of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”
God is faithful, and yet He was going to punish Judah for their unfaithfulness toward Him, as verse 17 also says, “Therefore this is what the Lord says, the God of armies, the God of Israel: ‘Behold, I am bringing on Judah and on all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the disaster that I have pronounced against them; because I spoke to them but they did not listen, and I have called them but they did not answer.’”
And to the Rechabites, He is going to give a reward. Verses 18-19 say: Then Jeremiah said to the house of the Rechabites, “This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: ‘Because you have obeyed the command of Jonadab your father, kept all his commands, and done according to all that he commanded you, therefore this is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says: “Jonadab the son of Rechab will not lack a man to stand before Me always.”’”
This phrase, “stand before Me,” is a term we see used other times in Scripture. Deuteronomy 10:8 says, “At that time the Lord singled out the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to serve Him and to bless in His name, until this day.” To “stand before” the Lord means that you have permission or access to be in that position. In Adam Clarke’s Commentary on the Bible, he says, “True Christians may be considered as the genuine successors of these ancient Rechabites; and some suppose that the Essenes, in our Lord’s time, were literally their descendants and that these were they who followed our Lord particularly, and became the first converts to the Gospel. If so, the prophecy is literally fulfilled: they shall never want a man to stand before God, to proclaim his salvation, and minister to the edification and salvation of others, as long as the earth shall endure.”
There doesn’t seem to be any Essenes in existence today, but I think we can understand God’s prophecy to simply mean that those specific sons of Rechab would be with Him in eternity, or like Clarke said, all Christians who follow God could be considered successors of the Rechabites. I don’t know. But it makes sense in that true Christians do certainly “stand before” God and have access to His Holy presence the way it seems the Essenes, and certainly, the Levites were given that permission. We may stand before the Lord through the access Jesus has provided for us. Hebrews 4:16 says, “Therefore let’s approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace for help at the time of our need.” Not only may we approach boldly, as other translations say, but we may approach as children of God. For as Romans 8:15 says, “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’”
The account of this event in Jeremiah is still a powerful illustration for us today. Let’s read again what the Lord said through Jeremiah to His people in verses 15-16. It says, “Also I have sent to you all My servants the prophets, sending them again and again, saying: ‘Turn now every person from his evil way and amend your deeds, and do not follow other gods to worship them. Then you will live in the land which I have given to you and to your forefathers; but you have not inclined your ear or listened to Me. Indeed, the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have followed the command of their father which he commanded them, but this people has not listened to Me.’”
All God wanted from the Israelites was for them to listen and obey whatever He spoke to them. The Rechabites listened to their father and obeyed his words. Why wouldn’t the Israelites do the same for their Father; the Lord God most high? If they would have simply obeyed the Lord, turning from their evil ways, then He would have blessed them. Again and again, He faithfully offered forgiveness and healing to the people. Again and again, He sent them prophets to call them back to Him. And if they repented and turned to Him, every single time, He welcomed them back. But now, as the Lord said, they have not inclined their ear or listened to Him and so they were to reap the disaster they had sowed.
I am reminded of what Scripture says in Hebrews 3:7-8 (ESV), “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness.”
God wants us to be faithful to Him. If we are far from Him, let us repent today and turn to Him so He can forgive us and faithfully bring us back to Him. If we are following Him, let us not grow weary, but stand firm in our faith, trusting in Him. Let us examine ourselves and ask, what am I being faithful to do today? Am I honoring my commitments? Am I being faithful to God and what He has called me to do? In Matthew 24:42-51, Jesus explains the need for faithfulness. He says, “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. 43 But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. 44 For this reason you must be ready as well; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. 45 Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household slaves, to give them their food at the proper time? 46 Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes. 47 Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But if that evil slave says in his heart, ‘My master is not coming for a long time,’ 49 and he begins to beat his fellow slaves, and he eats and drinks with those habitually drunk; 50 then the master of that slave will come on a day that he does not expect, and at an hour that he does not know, 51 and he will cut him in two and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
Let us not be like the unfaithful servant. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will help us to be like the one Jesus describes in Matthew 25:21. In telling the Parable of the Talents, Jesus says, “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter the joy of your master.’” That is what the Rechabites were; faithful in their obedience to their father. God honored them for their steadfastness. The word that Jeremiah spoke to the people of Judah was this: “’Will you not accept instruction by listening to My words?’ declares the Lord.” This is the same question the Lord asks all of us today: “‘Will you not learn a lesson and obey My words?’ declares the Lord.” Let us learn the lesson from the Rechabites; let us be faithful to obey all that the Lord instructs us to do.
Pray: Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us Jesus so we can stand before You in prayer. Thank You for Your great love for us. Please forgive us when we fail to be faithful as You are faithful. Help us, by Your Holy Spirit, to remain faithful, steadfast, trustworthy, and constant in all areas of life. Help us to be people who keep our commitments and honor our words. Please fill us with more of Your fruit of the Spirit so we can be more like You, so that when You return or call us home, we may hear You say to us, “well done, good and faithful servant.” We love You and thank You for Your unending faithfulness toward us. In Jesus’ saving name, we pray, amen.
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