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You asked

how might we apply 'seek the shalom of the city' in modern contexts of displacement or migration?

The passage, plainly, with room to sit with it.

Jeremiah 29:7

Seek the shalom of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to Yahweh for it; for in its shalom you will have shalom.

The prophet Jeremiah wrote this letter to Jewish exiles in Babylon, around the 6th century BCE. They had been forcibly removed from their homeland in Judah and were living in a foreign land. This verse is part of Jeremiah's message that challenged their expectation of a quick return, instead urging them to settle in and contribute to the well-being of their new, unfamiliar home.

How might seeking the well-being of a place you didn't choose to be in change your own experience of belonging or resilience?

Keep thinking

Read alongside it

  • Deuteronomy 26:5-11

    This passage recounts Israel's history as sojourners and emphasizes gratitude for their eventual settlement.

  • Matthew 5:43-48

    Jesus' teaching on loving enemies and praying for those who persecute echoes the expansive spirit of seeking good for others, even those seen as 'other'.

  • Romans 13:1-7

    Paul's instruction to be subject to governing authorities can be seen as a way of contributing to the order and peace of the society one lives in.

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