“You deceived me and I was deceived.” These are the honest words of Jeremiah directed toward the Sovereign God (Jer 20:7, see also 15:18). Jeremiah felt thoroughly deceived and tricked by the God he served. He perceived his calling, task, and maybe even the outcome of his ministry all in a certain way. Called into service he found himself disillusioned and frustrated. He felt as he says outright deceived by God.
This mission you put me on is not what I signed up for—what’s the deal? I am thankful that the Bible is filled with honest people and that the Bible records their honesty. God certainly could have edited out verses like this—but the fact that he did not and that there are many others in this same vein is a great comfort to me.
It also teaches us that God invites honesty and transparent dialogue. God welcomes our disillusionment and pain. His arms are open to our creaturely confusion and our grieving souls. This invite of the Sovereign toward limping creatures is one that is becoming more and more precious to me.