Jeremiah 25:15-28
Read Jeremiah 25:15-28
Helpful Background Information:
As our Lord Jesus interacts with the Sons of Zebedee, they have a blatant request: “Allow us to sit at your right and at your left in glory” (Mark 10:37, CSB). In their culture, the right hand of the king was the place of greatest prominence, and the left hand, second in prominence. James and John apparently expected Jesus to establish his kingdom and enter into his glory when he reached Jerusalem. They wanted a prominent place in the messianic, earthly kingdom. The brothers completely misunderstood the Kingdom Jesus came to establish. Despite the audacity of James and John, Jesus did not rebuke them directly but indicated they did not realize the implications of their request. In the kingdom, the way to glory is sacrifice, service, and suffering.
Jesus asks if they are able to “drink the cup I drink or to be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?” (Mark 10:38), obviously inferring they are not able to. Here, it is important to see the Old Testament imagery Jesus is using.
In the Old Testament, a cup is sometimes used as a symbol of joy and salvation (see Psalm 16:5; 25:3). However, it is more often used to symbolize the wrath of God, which we find here in our Jeremiah passage. The prophet is commanded to go to the nations and make them drink from the cup of God’s wrath (Israel, Judah, Egypt, Uz, Philistines, Edom, etc.) Whether Jeremiah physically went to all these places, or if it was a symbolic vision, the point is the same. God was about to pour out his judgment upon these nations for their rebellion against him: their civilizations will be devastated, death and destruction will fall on them, and their people will stagger.
Hence, when Christ says he’s about to drink from the cup, Christ is about to experience the full wrath of God against sin in place of sinners like you and me. Likewise, the idea of baptism here does not refer to Christian baptism, but to the idea of being engulfed or immersed by trouble, also found in the Old Testament (see Job 22:11; Psalm 11:16). This picture of baptism/immersion also points to Christ taking upon himself the wrath of God. Thus, in this one statement, Jesus is pointing towards his sacrificial death and showing the disciples what true greatness really looks like: giving up yourselves to serve others.
Reflection Questions:
What does it mean for you personally that Jesus willingly drank the cup of God’s wrath on your behalf? How does reflecting on Christ bearing judgment for your sin shape your gratitude, humility, and obedience?
Why do you think God uses the metaphor of a “cup” to describe His wrath rather than a more direct description?
How does the scope of judgment in Jeremiah (multiple nations, not just Israel) challenge common assumptions about who is accountable to God?