“Pray that the Lord your God will tell us where we should go and what we should do.” (Jeremiah 42:3 ESV)

The people of Judah came to the prophet Jeremiah asking for his prophetic guidance to know if they should go down to Egypt to avoid King Nebucannezar of Babylon and his armies.

“I have heard you,” replied Jeremiah the prophet. “I will certainly pray to the Lord your God as you have requested; I will tell you everything the Lord says and will keep nothing back from you.” Ten days later Jeremiah gets the answer from the Lord:

“…hear the word of the Lord, you remnant of Judah. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: ‘If you are determined to go to Egypt and you do go to settle there, then the sword you fear will overtake you there, and the famine you dread will follow you into Egypt, and there you will die. Indeed, all who are determined to go to Egypt to settle there will die..not one of them will survive” (Vss 16-17)

Often we feel that we have the right intention to do a certain thing, go somewhere, advise someone, begin a new job, leave a spouse, and some go as far as to seek the Lord’s will as the people of Judah did. Notice that Jeremiah, speaking God’s word said “‘If you are determined to go to”, and they were determined to go, and to disobey.

The people had even said: “May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act in accordance with everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us. Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, we will obey the Lord our God, to whom we are sending you, so that it will go well with us, for we will obey the Lord our God.” (Vss 5-6)

They quickly asserted their own determination, contrary to the Lord’s revealed will — and clearly though it was unfavourable to follow the Lord’s will: “all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, “You are lying! The Lord our God has not sent you to say, ‘You must not go to Egypt to settle there’.” (Jeremiah 43:2)

Consider your own actions, prayers, and self-determined will. How do you behave when the revealed will of God is clear in His Word — do your own plans ever get altered or reconfigured to line up with the Word of God? The danger is this: Self-will can avoid acting on the revealed will of God.