Free group study handout
Jeremiah 20: Group Study Handout
How to use: read Jeremiah 20 aloud together, then take the questions in order. One page is enough for an evening.
Overview
Pashhur, the chief officer in Yahweh’s house, reacts violently to Jeremiah’s prophecy. He strikes Jeremiah and puts him in stocks at the upper gate of Benjamin (vv. 1-2).
Key verse
“But Yahweh is with me as an awesome mighty one. Therefore my persecutors will stumble, and they won’t prevail. They will be utterly disappointed, because they have not dealt wisely, even with an everlasting dishonor which will never be forgotten.”
Jeremiah 20:11 (WEB)
Outline
- Jeremiah 20:1–2 Pashhur's Reaction to Jeremiah
- Jeremiah 20:3–6 Jeremiah's Prophetic Renaming
- Jeremiah 20:7–10 Jeremiah's Struggle with Prophecy
- Jeremiah 20:11–13 Divine Assurance Amid Persecution
- Jeremiah 20:14–18 Jeremiah's Lament and Despair
Discussion questions
- In v2, what act does Pashhur take against Jeremiah after hearing his prophecies?
- What does Yahweh rename Pashhur in v3, and what does it signify?
- In v9, why does Jeremiah describe God's word as a 'burning fire shut up in my bones'?
- Jeremiah’s lament in vv. 14-18: what does he express about the purpose of his life and calling?
- When have you felt like a 'laughing-stock' for standing by your beliefs as Jeremiah describes in v7?
Go deeper
Passages that echo Jeremiah 20: Romans 8, Jeremiah 1, Jeremiah 15.
Before next time: read Jeremiah 21.