(Please read this Scripture passage first, before the homily.)
In chapter 27 of the book of the prophet Jeremiah, the chapter immediately prior to the one used for today’s reading, Jeremiah was told by the Lord to make himself a wooden yoke and wear it. In today’s reading Hananiah took that yoke from Jeremiah’s neck and broke it. Hananiah then said to the people that this gesture was a sign that God would break the yoke or burden placed on the Israelite community by the king of Babylon.
It certainly would have been good were God to have done this. Jeremiah even said as much when he wished that this prophecy would come true. On the other hand, however, Jeremiah could see that this was not to be. He could grant that the wooden yoke could be broken, but not a yoke of iron.
Which prophet was right? Which one spoke the word of the Lord? The general principle is that if a prophet predicts something and it comes to pass, then that prophet is a true prophet. When a prophet predicts calamity and disaster, however, the general principle does not hold because there is not enough to time to check the result. So when a prophet speaks a word or warning or a call to repentance, we can presume that the prophet speaks in the name of the Lord. When a prophet promises good things, however, we have to wait for the outcome before knowing the truth of the prophecy.
Hananiah promised the return of captives and the restoration of the vessels belonging to the temple. Jeremiah promised that Hananiah would die before the end of the year. The promised captives did not return and things only got worse, but Hananiah died two months later. We now know the Jeremiah was the true prophet.
What about us? I cannot predict who will win the elections in November. I do not know when the Co-vid pandemic will stop. I cannot even predict the weather for tomorrow. When it comes to foretelling the future, you and I are in the same place, not knowing and not being called to speak in prophesy.
We can, however, still be prophets. Foretelling the future is not the first or even an important requirement for being a prophet. The word prophet means one who speaks for another. For example, we can call the president’s press secretary the president’s prophet because the press secretary speaks for the president.
For whom do we speak? We are appointed by God to speak for God the words God wants the people to hear. When we do the tasks and commissions assigned to us by the Lord, we do our service in the name of the Lord as God’s bona fide prophet.
We are all prophets of the Lord, each in her or his special way. We must, therefore, reflect on the word of the Lord so that we can speak with wisdom and understanding what God calls us to speak and act. Then our prophesying will unyoke the Word of God so that the Word of God can set others free.