Jeremiah 18 King James Version

18 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, ² Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words. ³ Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels. ⁴ And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it. ⁵ Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ⁶ O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the Lord. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.

My mentee and I were sharing, and this portion of scripture came up in our discussion. She was focusing on the clay in the potter’s hand and the work that the potter had to do. I, however, for the first time really zoned in on the Potter! If you watch the video at the top of the blog, you see where the potter brought the lump of clay to the wheel. He then took off a portion of what he brought and placed it on the wheel. He had to basically massage the clay first before he could start the work on the wheel. While the clay was on the wheel, he did several things and used tools to get the shape and design that he had purposed for the clay. This took quite a bit of work, but he finally got it to look like what he imagined even though in the end he smashed it, and it was right back as at the start.

Jeremiah was told to go view the work of the potter. God in this scripture wanted Jeremiah to realize how yielded, and how pliable the clay was in the hand of the potter and expressed that this is how He would love for His children to be in His hand.

I, however, saw this as a love story! Yes, a love story. Picture God, creator of all things, looking at the variety of dirt with various shades and picking the specific ingredients that would so suit who you would be at the various stages of life. He did not allow an angel nor anybody else to get involved in the choosing of what your substance (physical or psychological) make-up would be composed of. In essence, He knew the kind of parents and environment you would need to form the basis for you to be able to effectively morph into the beauty and wonder you were destined to be on this earth. After He selected your ingredients, He used His hands to combine the ingredients, massaged it to get it to the form of pliability before placing you on a wheel to further your formation. He used various tools guided by His hands to skillfully craft you. There were times when you didn’t look right and He squashed your form and raised you back up. There was even a time He had to totally make you over a new.

Here is how the love comes in. Every step of the way He was Close! You were always in His hands. He never left you after He put your ingredients together. He was there every step of the journey. Our God is a God of intimacy who delights in playing an integral role in every area of our lives. Remember as the Potter, He alone truly knows the best way to make us and knows exactly who we were fashioned to be and what we were strategically purposed to do. Philippians 2:13 Amplified Bible says, “¹³ For it is [not your strength, but it is] ^[a]God who is effectively at work in you, both to will and to work [that is, strengthening, energizing, and creating in you the longing and the ability to fulfill your purpose] for His good pleasure.” Life is not being lived to the fullest outside of the Potter’s hand!

I love the fact that He is ever near also, ever working to get me to the best version of myself. I just need to remain pliable like this clay on the potter’s wheel but most importantly in the potter’s hand. Being on the potter’s wheel is like just existing, but real, life transformation and destiny shaping and fulfilling can only be as the result of the Potter’s hand.

In John 10:27-30, Jesus said:

²⁷ My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: ²⁸ And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. ²⁹ My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand. ³⁰ I and my Father are one.

You are in the Potter’s hand and you cannot be plucked out. The Greek word for pluck is harpázō. Helps Word studies defines it as–“seize by force; snatch up, suddenly and decisively – like someone seizing bounty (spoil, a prize); to take by an open display of force (i.e. not covertly or secretly).” So, no matter the force that comes to try to seize you, or intentionally aim to suddenly snatch you away, IT WON’T WORK! So not only will you find God being carefully careful, or precisely precise concerning your life and destiny, but He will defensively and offensively see to your protection while in His hands.