**The Vision of the Two Baskets of Figs**
In the days when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had besieged Jerusalem and carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, along with the princes of Judah, the craftsmen, and the smiths, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet. The people of Jerusalem were divided—some had been taken into exile, while others remained in the land under Zedekiah, the puppet king appointed by Babylon. The remnant in Judah boasted in their survival, believing themselves favored by God, while those in exile were seen as forsaken.
Then the Lord showed Jeremiah a vision.
**The Vision Unveiled**
Jeremiah stood in the courtyard of the Lord’s house, the scent of burnt offerings still lingering in the air. The morning sun cast long shadows across the stones as a divine presence settled upon him. Before his eyes, two baskets appeared, set before the temple of the Lord. One basket held figs of the finest quality—ripe, sweet, and pleasing to the eye. The other held figs so spoiled they could not be eaten—rotten, oozing, and fit only for decay.
A voice spoke, the voice of the Almighty: *”What do you see, Jeremiah?”*
The prophet answered, *”Figs. The good figs, very good, and the bad figs, very bad, so bad they cannot be eaten.”*
**The Interpretation of the Figs**
Then the Lord declared to him the meaning of the vision.
*”Like these good figs, so will I regard the exiles from Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good. For I will set My eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them back to this land. I will build them up and not tear them down; I will plant them and not pluck them up. I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord. And they shall be My people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to Me with their whole heart.”*
Jeremiah’s heart swelled with hope at these words. The exiles—those who had been torn from their homes and dragged to a foreign land—were not forsaken. Though they suffered the consequences of Judah’s rebellion, God had not abandoned them. He would refine them in the furnace of affliction, purge their idolatrous hearts, and restore them as a faithful remnant.
Then the Lord turned His word toward the figs that were rotten.
*”But like the bad figs which cannot be eaten, so will I treat Zedekiah the king of Judah, his princes, the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land, and those who dwell in the land of Egypt. I will deliver them to trouble, to all the kingdoms of the earth—to be a reproach and a byword, a taunt and a curse in all places where I shall drive them. And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence among them until they are utterly destroyed from the land that I gave to them and their fathers.”*
**The Fate of the Remnant**
Jeremiah trembled at the severity of the judgment. Those who remained in Judah—those who boasted in their safety, who trusted in false prophets declaring peace—would face devastation. Zedekiah, the weak and treacherous king, would see his eyes gouged out after witnessing the slaughter of his sons. The nobles who schemed against Babylon would perish by sword and starvation. Those who fled to Egypt, seeking refuge among the enemies of God’s people, would find no escape.
Yet for the exiles—those who had lost everything—there was hope. God would not cast them away forever. In His mercy, He would bring them back, renew their hearts, and reestablish His covenant with them.
**A Promise of Restoration**
The vision faded, but the words of the Lord burned in Jeremiah’s soul. He would carry this message to the people—both warning and comfort. To the proud and unrepentant in Judah: destruction. To the broken in Babylon: future redemption.
For the Lord, in His righteousness, judges justly—but He also remembers mercy. The good figs, though exiled, would one day return. The bad figs, though clinging to their land, would be swept away.
And so Jeremiah lifted his voice, declaring the word of the Lord to all who would hear. The choice was set before them: repent and be restored, or persist in rebellion and face ruin.
The baskets of figs stood as a sign—a reminder that God sees the heart, and He will separate the faithful from the faithless in His time.
