God calls the community of faith to balance its proclamation with a concrete demonstration of the good news. The community is in the midst of a giant exodus from the land.
Disaster is near.
Jeremiah is confident that God is about to fulfill that which was promised if the people did not heed the warnings. Jeremiah is at this time imprisoned lest his words undercut the war effort. The Babylonian army was pounding at the walls of Jerusalem. It was only a matter of hours until the sure doom would fall, pitiless and dark. This was no time to think of the future.