For Israel or For Me? Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans that I have for you", declares the Lord, "plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope." Jeremiah 29:11

A lot of Christians today claim this verse as a direct promise from God that He has good intentions towards them, and that no matter how bad things are at the moment, God is going to help and/or materially prosper them at some point in this life.

Other Christians say that this verse has little or no application to believers today. They say it is a promise to ethnic Israel that was fulfilled when their seventy years of captivity in Babylon was over and they were returned by God to their land. This verse they say has historical value for contemporary believers to show us how God was faithful to Israel in the past, which should encourage us to trust God, but this promise is in no way directed toward Christians in the twenty-first century.

I believe there is truth and error in both of these positions. Interpreting and applying the Old Testament continues to be problematic for many believers today. They struggle to understand what applies to them in the Old Testament and how it applies to them. This verse is a good test case and example for us of how to apply the Old Testament scriptures.

First of all, in the context, the ethnic nation of Israel is clearly being addressed (v. 10). This is also a specific promise that the nation would be returned to its native land, and that God would prosper them materially after seventy years of captivity.It is an unconditional promise, but God also predicts that Israel as a nation will pray and seek Him at that time (vs. 12-13). So this verse cannot be taken as a direct promise to believers today, nor can the specifics be applied directly to contemporary believers, i.e., that God promises to prosper us materially. This promise is first and directly in all details to the nation of Israel. But that does not mean it has little or no application to Christians today.

Sometimes promises in the Old Testament are repeated in the New Testament but with different applications. Romans 8:28 says that "we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose." This verse is similar to Jeremiah 29:11 in that it is addressed to God's people, which today is the Church, Jews and Gentiles together in one body (see Ephesians chapters 2 and 3). It is also a promise that God has a plan and purpose for good for believers, and that He will ultimately make everything that happens to us work out for our good (and, of course, His glory). So when certain promises are repeated in the New Testament we can rightly apply the Old Testament promise but only with the New Testament application.

But even without a specific repeat of an Old Testament promise, there is always an application for us today. Paul told Timothy that "all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness." (I Timothy 3:16). The New Testament was not yet finished or readily available for most believers when Paul wrote this. For sure Paul is speaking in large part about the Old Testament scriptures when he said "all Scripture is...profitable for teaching." This means that all scripture is spiritually beneficial to teach us what to believe about God and how He deals with His children. The point is that there is application for us in every Old Testament scripture. There is a timeless principle of truth for us that we need to discover in every Old Testament verse or passage. I'm not saying it is always obvious. Usually it will take some study and prayer to discern it, but it is there for us if we are willing to do the spiritual work.

I would say that the timeless, spiritual, applicational principle of Jeremiah 29:11 is this: God always has a good and loving plan for His people so that we can be sure that we have a wonderful future ahead of us, no matter what is happening to us at this moment.