Tim Barnett shares three reasons why Jeremiah 10:1–4 does not condemn Christmas trees.
Transcript
Original video: Does the Bible have anything to say about Christmas trees?
Tim: Not this again. Okay. Wait. All right, let’s do it.
Original video: “Hear ye the word which the Lord speaketh unto you, oh house of Israel. Thus sayeth the Lord, learn not the way of the” who? Of the heathen. “Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven, for the heathen are dismayed at them.” Watch this. Verse three. “For the customs of the people are vain, for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workmen with the axe. They deck it with silver and gold. They fasten it with the nails and with hammers that they move it not.” Does that sound like a Christmas tree? We drive through town here, and on both sides of the road, there’s all these trees that have been cut down, and they’re sitting there, and they’re selling them. Why are they selling them? They’re selling them for Christ-mass, so you can go buy one and with hammers and nail, fasten it into your house, and then decorate it with gold and silver. Sounds a lot like the custom that people do today of a Christmas tree.
Tim: Does the Bible specifically condemn Christmas trees? Well, some think so, and they cite Jeremiah 10:1–4 as proof. But here are three reasons why this does not work.
First, the context of Jeremiah 10 makes it clear that this is about carved idols, not Christmas trees. When you read the entire chapter, which you should do after watching this video, it becomes obvious that Jeremiah is contrasting pagan idols—or false gods made by the craftsman and the goldsmith—and Yahweh, the true God who made the heavens and the earth. Folks, context matters. The only way to find a Christmas tree in Jeremiah 10 is to read it into the text and completely ignore the context. That’s not good Bible study.
Second, the description in Jeremiah 10 fits the handcrafted idol, not a Christmas tree. After the tree is cut down, it is worked with an axe by the hand of a craftsman—verse 3. Notice the wood is being carved into something, which is exactly how idols get made. Later, in verse 8, Jeremiah says, “These idols are both stupid and foolish. The instruction of idols is but wood.” In verse 5, the idol is compared to a scarecrow, which has a mouth and legs but cannot talk or walk. Again, this fits the description of an impotent idol that may have human features like a mouth or legs, but it can’t actually do anything. While this pastor may find some superficial parallels, this certainly is not the description of a Christmas tree.
Third, reading a Christmas tree into Jeremiah 10 is anacronistic. An anacronism is attributing a custom, event, or object to a time period where it does not belong. There is no evidence that the Christmas tree dates back to a pagan ritual in Jeremiah’s day. The best evidence we have traces the Christmas tree back to the Middle Ages. So, reading Christmas trees into the time of the prophet Jeremiah just will not work.
No, pastor. Jeremiah 10 is not talking about Christmas trees.