[RCL] Jeremiah 18:1-11; Psalm 139:1-5, 12-17; Philemon 1-21; Luke 14:25-33 Jeremiah 18:1-11 In this passage, the word potter in Hebrew is yoser. The verbal form of this Hebrew word is also used in the second creation story (Gen 2:7 and 19) referring to God forming humans and forming animals. Jeremiah is using the image of…

Jeremiah 18:1-11 In this image of the potter and clay, I hear a message about repentance and re-making. God is offering God’s people yet another chance to turn from their self-destructive ways and try again. A friend of mine has recently begun working with clay, and from her experience I see that throwing a block…

Jeremiah 18:1-11 The potter, the wheel, and the clay – one of the most beautiful and enduring metaphors for our creative and creating God in all of Scripture. The potter does not only mold and shape fresh clay at the wheel; the potter remakes his creations when they become spoiled and broken. The potter’s work…

Jeremiah 18:1-11 In this passage, Jeremiah intimates the Creation story in Genesis that tells of God forming humanity from clay. However, instead of being molded lovingly from clay in the Garden of Eden, the people of Israel are in the hands of an angry interventionist God. This latter image of God might be the more…