Jeremiah 32 finds the prophet imprisoned in Jerusalem while Babylon’s army surrounds the city, and God tells him to buy a field that he has every reason to think is worthless. These questions are for small groups, Sunday classes, and personal study. Each section gives a short leader’s note so you can move through the chapter without preparing a separate summary.
Jeremiah 32 at a Glance
The chapter opens with Jeremiah under arrest in the court of the guard, accused of predicting defeat. God then directs him to purchase his cousin’s field in Anathoth, a real transaction recorded with sealed and open deeds, witnesses, and weighed silver. Jeremiah prays, reminding God of his power and past faithfulness, and asks what the purchase means when the city is about to fall.
God’s answer runs in two movements. First he confirms the judgment on Jerusalem and explains its cause in the people’s persistent idolatry. Then he promises a restoration in which the people will be gathered, given one heart, and see fields bought and sold again in the land. The purchase becomes a sign that the future is in God’s hands.
Observation Questions
Use these first to make sure everyone has read the text closely and agrees on what happens before anyone interprets it. Ask the group to point to the verse each time, and let people find the details themselves before you add anything.
Jeremiah 32:17
“Ah Lord the LORD! Behold, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for you…
(WEB)
This is Jeremiah’s opening confession of God’s power over creation. Read it first to set the tone for the prayer and to remind the group that the one making promises is the Creator.
Jeremiah 32:27
“Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for me?
(WEB)
God’s reply to the prophet’s question is a single, direct challenge. Reading it aloud lets the group hear the answer to Jeremiah’s doubt in God’s own words.
Jeremiah 32:38-39
38 Then they will be my people, and I will be their God. 39 I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their good, and the good of their children after them.
(WEB)
These verses hold the covenant promise of belonging and unity. Read them slowly so the group can hear the relational heart of the chapter, not only its judgment.
Jeremiah 32:40
I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from following them, to do them good. I will put my fear in their hearts, that they may not depart from me.
(WEB)
The everlasting covenant and the promise that God will not turn away are central to the whole chapter. Pause here to let the group reflect on what it means that the covenant rests on God’s commitment.
Jeremiah 32:44
Men will buy fields for money, sign the deeds, seal them, and call witnesses, in the land of Benjamin, and in the places around Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah, in the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the lowland, and in the cities of the South; for I will cause their captivity to be reversed,” says the LORD.
(WEB)
The chapter ends with the image of fields bought and deeds signed across the land. Finish the reading here so the group leaves with the picture of restoration rather than only ruin.
Memory Verse for Jeremiah 32
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come to you as a group that often feels caught between what we can see and what you have promised. Like Jeremiah in the court of the guard, we bring questions we cannot fully answer. Thank you that nothing is too hard for you and that you hold our future in your hands. Give us one heart and one way as we follow you this week. Where we are tempted to doubt, remind us of your faithfulness. Help us to act in trust, even when the outcome is not yet clear to us. Amen.
