Read 1 Kings 1 and 1 Kings 2:26. What was the background that led to the exile of Abiathar to his home in Anathoth?
After he strengthened his throne, Solomon, in a conflict with Adonijah over succession, removed Abiathar the priest from his office and sent him into exile back to his hometown, Anathoth, believed to be about three miles northeast of Jerusalem. Hilkiah, Jeremiah’s father, was a member of a priestly family that lived at Anathoth. Some have speculated that Jeremiah’s family may have descended from Abiathar. Either way, we know from Jeremiah 1:1 that the prophet had an exalted lineage. Thus, we can see here that all through prophetic history the Lord has called all types of people—shepherds, rabbis, fishermen, priests—to the prophetic office.
“A member of the Levitical priesthood, Jeremiah had been trained from childhood for holy service. In those happy years of preparation he little realized that he had been ordained from birth to be ‘a prophet unto the nations;’ and when the divine call came, he was overwhelmed with a sense of his unworthiness. ‘Ah, Lord God!’ he exclaimed, ‘behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.’ Jeremiah 1:5, 6.”—Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, p. 407.
The priests were to be the moral and spiritual leaders of the nation; they had been given important roles that impacted most every area of the nation’s spiritual life. Some had been faithful to that task; others abused and violated it in ways that we can’t imagine. As we will soon read in the book of Jeremiah, the prophet had very strong words to speak against these unfaithful priests, who had proved unworthy of the responsibilities and calling that they had been entrusted with.
What are your spiritual responsibilities, whether at home or in the church or both or anywhere else? If a prophet were to speak to you now about those responsibilities, what might he or she say?
Adventist Sabbath School Lesson for Adults
Q4 2015 «Jeremiah»
Lesson 1 – The Prophetic Calling of Jeremiah
