Sometimes when we endure
hardship we reach for words to describe to others about the way we
feel. Such is the case with Jeremiah as he continues his lament over
the fall of Jerusalem and Judah. In chapter three and verse twelve
Jeremiah pictured the Lord as an archer who has his bow drawn and his
arrow targeted toward him, and in verse thirteen he continues that
thought where we read:
The verse begins, “He
has caused the arrows of his quiver...” As we saw in verse
twelve Jeremiah described God as an archer who had his bow drawn and
was aiming at him, and he now magnifies the Lord's offensive. He said
“he has caused the arrows” which is the Hebrew word “ben”
and means “son, grandson, or member of a group” “of his
quiver” or the cylindrical container that holds his arrows to
be a part of this assault. The idea is that a full scale attack has
been waged against him, and there was no defense against the Lord's
arrows.
The verse goes on to say,
“...to enter into my reins.” The effect of this attack by
the Lord against Jeremiah is that he felt the arrows “enter into
my reins” which means “go into or come into” his “seat of
emotions, affections, and innermost mind”. In other words, the
Lord's actions or lack thereof sunk deeply into Jeremiah's heart and
mind, and his very soul was damaged by what he saw.
Have we ever felt like
situations and circumstances were like quivers full of arrows that
have been shot into our hearts and minds? Have we ever been so
emotionally distraught and mentally disturbed that we wondered if God
was shooting arrows at us? If so, we may be able to relate to
Jeremiah, but not only him, we can relate to our Savior Jesus. Jesus
endured the suffering of the cross, and He knew what it was like to
be ridiculed by His creation. He knew the greatest mental and
emotional suffering that has ever been known to man, and He
experienced it for us to have a relationship with Him. The next time
we wonder if the Lord has unloaded His quiver full of arrows against
us, perhaps we should remember that Jesus was the one who took the
arrows of all mankind that they may have fellowship with Him.
But
he was wounded for our transgressions, he was
bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was
upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. Isaiah
53:5
Next
time we see how Jeremiah was ridiculed by the people, 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
No comments:
Post a Comment