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The Lord Asks Israel
6 When Josiah was king, the Lord said:
Jeremiah, the kingdom of Israel was like an unfaithful wife who became a prostitute on the hilltops and in the shade of large trees. 7-8I knew that the kingdom of Israel had been unfaithful and committed many sins, yet I still hoped she might come back to me. But she didn't, so I divorced her and sent her away.
Her sister, the kingdom of Judah, saw what happened, but she wasn't worried in the least, and I watched her become unfaithful like her sister. 9The kingdom of Judah wasn't sorry for being a prostitute, and she didn't care that she had made both herself and the land unclean by worshiping idols of stone and wood. 10And worst of all, the people of Judah pretended to come back to me. 11Even the people of Israel were honest enough not to pretend.
12Jeremiah, shout toward the north:
Israel, I am your Lord—
come back to me!
You were unfaithful
and made me furious,
but I am merciful,
and so I will forgive you.
13Just admit that you rebelled
and worshiped foreign gods
under large trees everywhere.
14You are unfaithful children,
but you belong to me.
Come home!
I'll take one or two of you
from each town and clan
and bring you to Zion.
15Then I'll appoint wise rulers
who will obey me,
and they will care for you
like shepherds.
16You will increase in numbers,
and there will be no need
to remember the sacred chest
or to make a new one.
17The whole city of Jerusalem
will be my throne.
All nations will come here
to worship me,
and they will no longer follow
their stubborn, evil hearts.
18Then, in countries to the north,
you people of Judah and Israel
will be reunited,
and you will return to the land
I gave your ancestors.
19I have always wanted
to treat you as my children
and give you the best land,
the most beautiful on earth.
I wanted you to call me “Father”
and not turn from me.
20But instead, you are like a wife
who broke her wedding vows.
You have been unfaithful to me.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
The People Confess
The Lord said:
21Listen to the noise
on the hilltops!
It's the people of Israel,
weeping and begging me
to answer their prayers.
They forgot about me
and chose the wrong path.
22I will tell them, “Come back,
and I will cure you
of your unfaithfulness.”
They will answer,
“We will come back, because you
are the Lord our God.
23On hilltops, we worshiped idols
and made loud noises,
but it was all for nothing—
only you can save us.
24Since the days of our ancestors
when our nation was young,
that shameful god Baal has taken
our crops and livestock,
our sons and daughters.
25We have rebelled against you
just like our ancestors,
and we are ashamed of our sins.”
How Israel Can Return
1The Lord said:
Israel, if you really want
to come back to me, get rid
of those disgusting idols.
2Make promises only in my name,
and do what you promise!
Then all nations will praise me,
and I will bless them.
3 People of Jerusalem and Judah,
don't be so stubborn!
Your hearts have become hard,
like unplowed ground
where thornbushes grow.
4With all your hearts,
keep the agreement
I made with you.
But if you are stubborn
and keep on sinning,
my anger will burn like a fire
that cannot be put out.
Disaster Is Coming
The Lord said:
*
Reflect
Do you listen to country music? Most of us probably wouldn’t admit it. Pickup trucks, pretty girls, lost dogs and the hardships of life. Hurt and revenge and a nostalgia for back home. Country music tends to be a whole lot of sadness and just a glimmer of hope.
Today’s scripture passage reminds me of a country music song. God describes himself as a lover who has given everything he has to the love of his life, Israel. He had lavished her with unending love. His gifts and goodness were amazing. He had made a promise to her of undying faithfulness and love and she reciprocated and sealed a covenant with him, as well. She loved him – for a while, then she turned away from him. And so, he pleads with her to come back to him.
I truly cannot imagine a sadder, more hurtful sensation than this. Through the prophet Jeremiah, he says that Israel’s and Judah’s unfaithfulness to him has soiled the land. They have become like a prostitute, by giving themselves away to idols. He asks, “Why should I even take you back?”
But he calls out to his people and begs them to come back to him. We discover in this text God’s justice and his mercy, his deep pain and undying love, his incredible knowledge of our darkest secrets and yet his relentless willingness to forgive, restore and renew us.
His anger increases as his people dig themselves into a deeper and deeper pit.
His willingness to forgive Israel and Judah is greater than his sadness, hurt and anger.
His eagerness to bestow blessings on his people only grows and grows as he longs for his people to come back to him.
Respond
God, you are altogether just and merciful. Forgive us when we turn our backs to you so easily. Thank you because even when we turn away, you keep pursuing us, calling us to come back. Renew in us all a desire to be faithful to you, through the power of your Spirit. Amen.
Terry Smith
Terry was Executive Director of Canadian Baptist Ministries, the national and global development and outreach arm of Canadian Baptist churches. He and his wife, Heather worked in France for 20 years, with inner-city youth, in urban church planting, inter-faith programs with Muslims in the francophone world, theological education and leadership development. He has co-authored Going Global (2011) with Gary Nelson and Gord King and wrote Wordeed, An Integral Mission Primer (2012). Terry has also written on evangelism, gospel and culture, urban mission and missiology. In addition to his work at CBM, he has taught at seminaries in Canada and around the world. Terry and Heather, live in Toronto, Canada. They have three adult children, Meghan, Caitlyn & Nathaniel.