7/4 Jeremiah 5 - The Dangerous Message of False Prophets

We live in a world where false teachers abound. Sometimes, these false teachers grow in popularity because they give peppy, upbeat messages people want to hear. But today as we study Jeremiah 5, we'll see that avoiding the difficult messages of sin and judgment can lead to the spiritual decay of the people. Join us in this key chapter as we dive further into this important book of prophecy!

DISCUSSION AND STUDY QUESTIONS:

1.    If you have just read Jeremiah 5, how did it leave you? Encouraged? Discouraged? Why? 
2.    This chapter discusses the kinds of sins the people were engaging in plus the kinds of judgment they would face. What do you think are some good reasons to avoid sin? 
3.    What is the Lord’s challenge to the people in verse 1? What is God’s offer? What do you expect would have been the people’s response to this challenge and offer? 
4.    What were the people seeming to say in verse 2? How did the Lord regard these words? 
5.    What social classes are discussed in both verses 4 and 5? What is God’s indictment of both? 
6.    What hazards will the people face in verse 6? What does this indicate about the Lord’s removal of His protective hand? What reason is given in verse 6? Why would this affect their ability to prosper under the Lord’s protective care?
7.    What kinds of sins are spoken of in verses 7 to 11? What kind of society had formed among the people? What kind of society should they have formed? 
8.    Read verses 12 &13. What were the prophets saying? What does the Lord say about the message of the prophets? Do you any pastors or preachers still do this today? If so, what does it look like? 
9.    Read verse 14. How does Jeremiah’s message in verse 14 contrast with the prophet’s messages in verse 14? Which do you think would be more pleasant and popular? Which message was actually from the Lord?
10.    What is the Lord warning about in verse 15 – 17? What will happen? 
11.    Verse 18 gives a glimmer of hope. What is that hope and why is that important for us to remember about God’s ultimate plan for the Children of Israel? 
12.    What kind of spiritual receptivity did the people have towards the Lord in verses 20 to 24? How does verse 25 help us understand why God’s rebuke had so little impact on them? What principle can we learn for our own life about our need to walk in paths of righteousness? 
13.    What further description does the Lord give of the people in verses 26 to 29? Are there any similar parallels to some people in our world today? 
14.    Verse 31 gives a profound summary of the message of false teachers. What is the authority of a false teacher? What is (sometimes) the response of the people to their message? What might it look like for a false teacher, today, to teach on their own authority? How does this serve to warn us to have discernment with those teachers whom we listen to?

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