Jeremiah
the prophet poured out his heart through his words as he looked upon
desolate Jerusalem who suffered the judgment of God because of their
rebellion. Though they were warned by Jeremiah, still the people of
Judah and Jerusalem disobeyed not only him but God Himself. In
chapter one and verse sixteen we discover and even greater insight to
the depth of care that Jeremiah had toward his people where we read:
For
these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runs down
with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far
from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed.
The
verse begins, “For these things I weep;
mine eye, mine eye runs down with water,...”
When we read the Bible, it is beneficial for us to put ourselves in
the place of the characters or writers. In this case we might imagine
ourselves as Jeremiah and experience the sorrow he felt as he watched
over Jerusalem. For fifteen verses thus far we have studied his
description of the fallen city, and as though he cannot contain it
any longer he begins to “weep”
which means to “cry, bewail, sob convulsively and shed tears
bitterly”. This weeping was not just a tear or two but an
overwhelming cry that is described as “eye runs down with
water”. No doubt Jeremiah's
heart as well as the people of Jerusalem were in great sorrow over
their pitiful condition.
The
verse goes on to say, “because the comforter that should
relieve my soul is far from me:”
In addition to the conditions of Jerusalem, the reason for weeping
was they had no “comforter”
or one who would “console, pity, have compassion, or be sorrowful”
for them. The one they depended upon for comfort in the past was
absent from them as He is described as being “far from
me”. Since He is distant,
there is no one to relieve their grief.
Finally
the verse says, “my children are desolate, because the
enemy prevailed.” Not only
were the adults affected by the onslaughts of the enemies, but the
“children” which
means the offspring both children and grand-children were “desolate”
or “appalled, stunned, stupefied and awestruck” by these
conditions. “The enemy prevailed”
or became “great and mighty” and caused the people of Jerusalem
both young and old to suffer for their insolence.
As
we ponder this verse and the weeping within it, perhaps our minds
will be drawn to the words of Jesus in the gospel of Matthew in
chapter twenty three and verses thirty-seven and thirty-eight:
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you that kill the
prophets, and stone them which are sent unto you, how often would I
have gathered your children together, even as a hen gathers her
chickens under her wings, and you would not! Behold,
your house is left unto you desolate.
As
Jeremiah wept over Jerusalem in times of old, so Jesus wept over
Jerusalem while He was on the earth. The question for us is: “How
long has it been since we have wept over the cities in which we
live?” Do we care for them as Jeremiah and Jesus cared for
Jerusalem? Do we desire that they know the Savior Jesus Christ to the
degree that we will “sob convulsively” over them? May today be
the first day that such a depth of care reigns in our hearts and
drives us to tell others about the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
Heavenly Father, let it be so in us we pray. In Jesus' name, amen.
Next
time we will Zion calling out for help and see that she will find no
one, 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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