Jeremiah 24 · Grade 5
Exile as a Place of Grace
Read and Think
After Nebuchadnezzar took King Jeconiah, the princes of Judah, and the skilled craftsmen and smiths to Babylon, those left in Jerusalem assumed they were the faithful remnant. God gave Jeremiah a vision of two baskets of figs before the temple. One basket had very good figs, like the figs that are first-ripe; the other had figs so bad they could not be eaten.
The interpretation turned expectations upside down. Like these good figs, so I will regard the captives of Judah. Exile was not proof of God's rejection. It was the place where God would do his renewing work. I will set my eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land. The language of building and planting echoes Jeremiah's original call in chapter 1.
The heart of the promise is inward transformation. I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Yahweh. They will be my people, and I will be their God; for they will return to me with their whole heart. This anticipates the new covenant of chapter 31. By contrast, Zedekiah and those who stayed, along with those who fled to Egypt, were like the bad figs, because they continued in stubborn disobedience.
Show What You Know
What did those left in Jerusalem assume?
How did God reinterpret exile?
What earlier passage do building and planting echo?
Which later chapter does the promise of a heart to know God anticipate?
Crossword
Across
- Two ____ of figs were set before Yahweh’s temple.
- One basket had very ____ figs.
Down
- I will give them a ____ to know me.
- And the other basket had very bad ____.
- I will give them a heart to ____ me.
Think About It
Why is it dangerous to assume that comfort means God's approval?
What would it mean for God to give someone a heart to know him?
Memory Verse
“I will give them a heart to know me, that I am Yahweh. They will be my people, and I will be their God; for they will return to me with their whole heart.”
Jeremiah 24:7 (WEB)
Copy It
Prayer
Dear God, thank You for giving me a heart to know You. Help me . Amen.
Take It Home
For families: talk about these together.
- What does God want to give his people?
- How can we know God more?
- What is one way you could live out this chapter this week?
Scripture: World English Bible, public domain, eBible.org. © 2026 The Daily Rooted. Free to print and copy for church and home use; not for resale. Original line art.