Jeremiah has shared the
horrific conditions for the people of Jerusalem after the destruction
that occurred for their disobedience. The have cried out for
comforters, but there are none. They have shed many tears, yet no one
has pity upon them. They are paying the price for their insolence,
and no one has come to their aid. In chapter one and verse eighteen,
Jeremiah turns his attention to “the LORD”, and he gives
the reason for their troubles and the effect it has had upon their
virgins and young men. He wrote:
The LORD is righteous;
for I have rebelled against his commandment: hear, I pray you, all
people, and behold my sorrow: my virgins and my young men are gone
into captivity.
The
verse begins, “The LORD is righteous; for I have rebelled
against his commandment:”
There had to be a standard of judgment before the people of Jerusalem
could fall from it. “The LORD is righteous”
or “The LORD” is
“just, lawful, right and correct” in His ways, attitudes and
actions was and is that standard, and the people of Judah and
Jerusalem “rebelled” which
means “to be contentious, be rebellious, be refractory, and
be disobedient towards” “against His commandments”. God
shared the manner in which to live through His commandments and law,
and when the people of Jerusalem rebelled against them, they suffered
for their insurrection.
The
verse goes on to say, “hear, I pray you, all people, and behold
my sorrow:” After declaring the standard and source of the
problems, Jeremiah shared the plea of the people to others. They
desired, once again, that “all people” would look upon
them and see their “sorrow” or physical and mental pain.
Finally
the verse says, “my virgins and my young men are gone into
captivity.” As an example of the “sorrow” they
endured, Jeremiah draws attention to the “virgins” and
“young men” who have been captured and taken away. Even
youths were not exempt to paying the price for the people's
rebellion, and with a distressful plea they employ the children as
reasons they should be pitied.
It has
been stated that “misery loves company”, and the people of
Jerusalem were no different. Even though they rebelled against the
Lord and paid dearly for it, they still desired pity for their fallen
state. Sometimes we have difficulties that were caused by our own
insolence, and we desire that others pity us as well. We must
remember that the LORD is the standard for righteousness. The LORD
desires that we follow after Him with all our hearts, and when we do,
we are aligned in perfect relationship with Him. As we ponder the
state of Jerusalem within this verse, perhaps we have some correction
that needs to be made. Perhaps there are a few areas that need to be
realigned with His righteousness. May the Lord help us to not only to
know these areas, but depend upon Him and His dear Son Jesus to keep
us in fellowship with Him.
Next
time we will see what happened to Jerusalem's lovers and priests, so
read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ;
www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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