TODAY IN THE WORD

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 1:18-22
Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. - Psalm 32:1
TODAY IN THE WORD
One of the most astounding consequences of the 1970s Watergate scandal was the conversion of Charles Colson. With events exploding around him, he surrendered his life to Jesus Christ and found “strength and serenity, a wonderful new assurance about life.” The way out of despair always begins by turning to the Lord.

Yesterday we saw Jerusalem begin to turn to the Lord in her distress and despair. Today we will hear her first clear admission of her sin and acknowledgment of God’s righteousness (v. 18)--an essential first step toward restoration.

Prior to this, however, Jerusalem again implored onlookers to observe the high cost of sin: her young people were exiled (v. 18) and her so-called allies betrayed her (v. 19). Those that Judah had formerly trusted had betrayed the nation. As a result of Jerusalem’s rebellion, God destroyed the city. This devastation was so severe that even the religious leaders--who should have provided direction and comfort--perished.

With a tormented soul and a distressed heart, Jerusalem could no longer bear to keep away from the Lord (v. 20). A word play at the end of verse 20 only heightens the intensity of the situation. During the siege, those who left the city were killed by the enemy, but those who remained were exposed to pestilence. Metaphorically, this verse portrays a soul tormented by sin--external circumstances pierce, but internal anguish is a virtual death. Anyone who has been wracked by the guilt and remorse of sin understands this picture only too well.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
The turning point for Jerusalem was to admit her sin and to turn to the Lord--just as it was for Charles Colson and is for every believer.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 2:1-8; Jeremiah 7:1-15
The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. - Hebrews 12:6
TODAY IN THE WORD
In the nineteenth century it was said that the sun never set on the British Empire, so vast was its extent. Yet in 1899, a small band of determined Dutch settlers in South Africa defied the British in the Boer War and revealed the first crack in the seemingly invincible British Empire.

To Jerusalem’s inhabitants it was just as unthinkable that their city should ever fall as it was for British citizens that their empire would ever end. Jerusalem’s confidence was based on the Temple--surely God would never allow destruction to come upon His dwelling place!

Today’s passage from Jeremiah shows that this confidence was really deception (vv. 4, . Real hope was found only in the Lord and was incompatible with detestable practices (vv. 5–10). Just as the Lord destroyed the altar at Shiloh, so too He would destroy Jerusalem for its sickening sin (v. 12).

And destroy the Temple He did, as today’s passage from Lamentations reveals. The cloud of the Lord, formerly bestowing His protection, now revealed His terrifying anger in which He hurled Jerusalem from its exalted place (v. 1) and rejected His dwelling place--His footstool (Ps. 132:7). In His fury, the Lord destroyed Judah’s fortresses and debased her leaders (v. 2).

With relentless blows, the Lord cut off the strength, or horns, of the nation (v. 3). The right hand of blessing and victory now brought judgment; the comforting pillar of fire (Ex. 13:21-22) now consumed all in its path (v. 3).

God had become the enemy of His people (v. 5)! Provoked by their flagrant sin, His terrifying bow slew those in whom He delighted (v. 4). The seemingly indestructible Temple was leveled as easily as a garden shed (v. 6). Without priests or a king, the appointed feasts and Sabbaths were no more (v. 6). The triumphant shouts of the conquering enemy replaced shouts of praise to Yahweh (v. 7).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Although today’s passage seems hopeless, God’s complete judgment is encouraging. Just as discipline communicates love to children, so too our Heavenly Father’s discipline reveals His care for us.

Today might be a good day for a spiritual inventory. Is your devotion heartfelt and honest?

[Soldier4Christ]

Read:  Lamentations 2:9-12
As [Jesus] approached Jerusalem, he wept over
it and said, “If you, even you, had only known
on this day what would bring you peace . . .” - Luke 19:41–42
TODAY IN THE WORD
The twelfth-century abbot Bernard of Clairvaux beautifully captured the grieving heart of our Lord Jesus in his well-loved hymn, translated into English as follows: “O sacred Head now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down, Now scornfully surrounded with thorns Thy only crown . . .”

How God’s heart must have grieved when the destruction of His temple reached its horrifying crescendo, with the enemy’s shouts ringing through His house (v. 7). Today’s passage confronts us with the silence of disbelief and death that followed. With the city gates and their strong crossbars gone, the city was defenseless (v. 9). The king and princes likely refers to King Jehoiachin and his court, who were taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar in 597 b.c.

In ancient Israel, true prophets, in addition to receiving insights into the future, proclaimed God’s law and instructed the people in His ways. But when Jerusalem fell, the only “vision” received from the Lord was the outpouring of His righteous wrath.

No wonder the civic leaders “[sat] on the ground in silence” (v. 10). Elders were men who exerted considerable influence on Jewish society by advising, settling disputes, and witnessing legal agreements. But they now sat stunned, putting dust on their heads as a sign of their mourning and wearing sackcloth to lament their calamity (v. 10). Jerusalem was without vision or leadership!

Recalling the horror of the city’s destruction struck Jeremiah to his very core--the expression “I am in torment within” (v. 11) could be translated “my intestines are fermenting.” The nightmare of children gasping for basic food and drink (v. 12) was indelibly written on his heart.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Some have said that Jeremiah ministered more in tears than in proclamation. His example certainly challenges popular notions that crying--especially for men--shows weakness. Some Christians feel that tears indicate a lack of faith.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 2:13-17
Where there is no revelation [vision], the people cast off restraint; but blessed is he who keeps the law. - Proverbs 29:18
TODAY IN THE WORD
Former U.S. Senate chaplain Peter Marshall once offered this prayer, “Give us clear vision that we may know where to stand and what to stand for, for unless we stand for something, we shall fall for anything.” This insight certainly explains the sad situation that anguished Jeremiah. Forsaking the clear vision of the Lord, the people had fallen into shameful immorality and idolatrous spirituality.

Today’s passage opens with several rhetorical questions intended to show Jerusalem that its depravity and resulting judgment were unprecedented in history and nature. Although Jeremiah did eventually offer great comfort (Lam. 3:22), it was important for the people to mourn their sin adequately and to feel its full, grievous effects.

God’s judgment of Jerusalem may seem harsh, but it must be set against His numerous gracious warnings. Judah had already witnessed divine judgment on sin when Israel was destroyed by the Assyrians in 722 B.C. Moreover, a series of true prophets, such as Isaiah and Micah, had passionately warned of sin’s inescapable consequences and pleaded with the people to repent.

That’s why Jeremiah squarely blamed the so-called prophets with their “false and worthless” visions (v. 14). Instead of confronting people with their covenantal responsibilities, these prophets preached blatant lies: “You will not see the sword or suffer famine. Indeed, [God] will give you lasting peace in this place” (Jer. 14:13). Like whitewash on a decaying building, these prophets covered up sin rather than exposed it (Lam. 2:14). And Jeremiah 5:31 says that the people loved these false prophesies! Certainly God was justified in His wrathful judgment.

Judah’s enemies were only too happy to taunt “the city that was called the perfection of beauty” when it finally received its “just desserts”--a day they had longed for (v. 16). What these hissing enemies failed to recognize was that any sinful nation would eventually face divine justice.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Today’s passage shows the heartbreak of short-sighted rebellion. Hebrews 12:2–3 says, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our
faith . . . Consider
him . . . so that you will not grow weary and lose sight.”

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 2:18-22
Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death. - 2 Corinthians 7:10
TODAY IN THE WORD
Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of the classic antislavery novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin,wrote, “Any mind that is capable of real sorrow is capable of good.” This echoes today’s verse. Real (or godly) sorrow prompts one to repentance. “Worldly” sorrow, on the other hand, seldom gets past the regret of “getting caught.”

Having realized the link between their sin and God’s judgment, Jerusalem was beginning to experience that godly sorrow that would lead to its healing and salvation. Sensing their brokenness, Jeremiah encouraged the people to cry out to God with unending tears (v. 18). The first step toward wholeness begins by pouring one’s heart out before the Lord.

Verse 18 echoes Amos 5:24: “But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” In a poignant reversal, sorrow for sin has turned the river of justice and the stream of righteousness into an unending flow of tears!

But this river was for healing. So the prophet intensified his appeal by urging repeated prayer throughout the long, dark night of their travail (v. 19). The unforgettable sight of starving children prompted Jeremiah to exhort the people to pray not only for themselves but also for those whom their sin had most impacted--their children (v. 19).

The people’s prayer began well with an appeal to God’s mercy--“Look O Lord!” (v. 20). Soon, however, their prayer seemed to degenerate into a series of accusations against the Lord God. It’s almost as if the people were saying, “Lord, don’t You remember who You are dealing with?” Or, “Can You really allow such horrific things--women eating their children or priests and prophets slain in Your house--to happen?” (v. 20). This “prayer” ends by reminding God that none had been spared His wrathful slaughter (vv. 21, 22).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Jeremiah’s heart for children is felt throughout Lamentations, especially in his exhortation to pray for them in today’s passage. It’s sobering to consider how our actions impact our children or others’ children in our lives.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:1-18
In my alarm I said, “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help. - Psalm 31:22
TODAY IN THE WORD
Sometimes Christians are afraid to admit they get depressed. Emphasis on victorious Christian living makes it easy to feel unspiritual when we’re down. This is especially true if our depression is because of sin, although clearly that is not the cause of all depression. In today’s passage Jeremiah depicted the sadness of a life that is lived from within the cloud of sin.

In chapter 3 we hear the soul of the prophet. Yet the first person singular pronouns in this chapter enable all who have suffered because of sin to readily relate. Who has not felt driven into darkness when under the rod of God’s punishment? Using famine imagery, the prophet described the wasted, broken effects of sin; using military imagery, he portrayed God as the One who encircles with weapons of bitterness and hardship (vv. 1--5).

What a vivid description of the dark, inescapable prison that presses in on one in sin’s bondage! Emotional darkness feels like death, and chains weigh down. Even prayer feels shut out; the path seems blocked or tangled as a maze (vv. 6--10).

Not only does sin imprison, but a guilty conscience pictures God as though He were lying in wait, eager to pounce. This individual feels like “target practice” for His piercing arrows and like an object of ridicule for others (vv. 11--14).

Truly this experience tastes bitter! The idea of verse 16 is one of extreme humiliation, perhaps along the lines of “rubbing one’s face in the dirt.” Such circumstances make peace impossible and wipe out the memory of better times. In the saddest part of this chapter, the prophet’s soul cried out, “All hope is lost!” (vv. 15--18). Yet, as we will see tomorrow, a whisper of faith was about to appear.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Fortunately, Romans 6:23 adds, “But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:18-23
Weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. - Psalm 30:5b
TODAY IN THE WORD
“Bud” had finally reached the end. Years of alcoholism and gambling had taken away his family, his health, and his dignity. As he sat in his bathtub with a gun held to his head, his only thought was that it would soon be over. He pulled the trigger. Incredibly, nothing happened. With disgust, he taunted himself that he could not even pull off his own death. For a long time he sat there, tormented by his many failures. Just when it seemed completely unbearable, a song slowly began to come to him. Very faintly he started singing, “Jesus loves me this I know . . .” He put down his gun and wept for a long time.

Somehow when we reach our lowest point--as Jeremiah had--our gracious Lord begins to whisper truth into our hearts. This whisper is found in the expression, “So I say” (v. 18)--a literary technique of Hebrew poetry to announce the advent of something positive (cf. Psalm 31:22, yesterday’s verse).

This tiny flicker of hope was nearly snuffed out as the memory of affliction (v. 19) threatened a deeper bout of depression (v. 20). But just in time, this whisper of hope resurfaced (v. 21) and emerged as one of Scriptures most encouraging verses: the Lord’s compassions never fail (v. 22). The One who seemed so distant and wrathful is actually merciful and compassionate! The prophet exulted in the hope that anchored his soul (Heb. 6:19) and that could not disappoint (Rom. 5:5), a hope based on the unfailing love of God.

In his study on Lamen-tations, Chuck Swindoll lists three essential truths from this passage. First, God never stops loving us (v. 22). Second, God’s concern for us will never stop; His multifold compassions never fail (v. 22). Finally, His faithfulness never diminishes (v. 23). We’ll return to these verses tomorrow.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
It’s hard to read today’s verses and not start humming the hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” This wonderful expression of the truth of today’s passage has encouraged generations of believers.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:22-24
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - 1 Corinthians 13:13
TODAY IN THE WORD
Just about everyone will be talking about love today on Valentine’s Day! Cards will be exchanged, roses received, and chocolates consumed! With pink and red hearts everywhere, it’s hard to miss the “love” theme of this day. Yet the world often has no idea what real love is about.

It’s seems only fitting then that today’s verses are all about true love--God’s unfailing, compassionate love. As we saw yesterday, only God’s merciful love gives hope (vv. 21–22). The Hebrew word used for this love is hesed, one of the most important Old Testament words. This word describes the constant love that God shows to His people because of His covenantal relationship with them. Whether translated “lovingkindness,” “unfailing love,” “constant goodness,” or simply, “love,” this word always refers to God’s loyalty.

How comforting to know that God’s love is based upon His faithfulness and not ours. Our study thus far in Lamentations has shown quite clearly that neither the northern kingdom, Israel, nor the southern kingdom, Judah, remained faithful to the Lord. Whether through idolatry or immorality, God’s people had badly forsaken Him. God’s wrathful judgment for this infidelity was clearly stipulated in His Covenant. Thus, the terrible devastation of Jerusalem was to be expected. What was astounding, however, was the outpouring of God’s mercy!

What amazed Jeremiah looking out over destroyed Jerusalem--and what amazes us looking out over the failures of our lives--was that God’s compassion never fails. We can never reach the end of the Lord’s steadfast love; each day offers a new opportunity to experience His mercy. Because this mercy is rooted in His covenantal love, we can count on it . . . it’s as sure as the rising of the sun!
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
On this day focused on love, it’s good to remember that true love is all about God’s faithfulness!

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:25-33
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him! - Isaiah 30:18
TODAY IN THE WORD
Perhaps you were on a sports team as a teenager and remember long hours after school spent training and practicing. Sit-ups and extra laps never seemed fun, but the coach assured you that they would pay off. So you endured, resisting the temptation to complain and confident that the “gain” would outweigh the “pain.”

Although Jeremiah wasn’t in athletic training, today’s passage addresses the patience required of the soul undergoing God’s discipline. Leaving aside his own experiences for the moment, this passage records Jeremiah’s encouragement to those who are “trained” by waiting on the Lord (note the switch to the third person).

First of all, those who hope in the Lord can expect His goodness (v. 25). Second, those who persevere quietly, accepting the Lord’s discipline without complaint and with humility (vv. 28–30), can expect salvation, or healing. Third, those who receive the Lord’s affliction can expect His compassion (v. 32).

Verse 30 provides another clear picture of our Lord Jesus Christ, who endured insults and mistreatment (cf. Isa. 50:6) and encouraged his followers to do the same (Matt. 5:39). If the sinless One learned obedience from suffering (Heb. 5:, how much more do we, who are sinful, need the discipline of suffering to learn obedience?

Spiritual discipline enables one to see the Lord’s character more clearly. It is not in the Lord’s nature to reject forever (v. 31), but to show compassion (v. 32). Contrary to the hissing lies of the Evil One, the Lord takes no delight in bringing grief to His children (v. 33). That’s because the Lord’s final goal is never suffering, but the redemptive purposes He accomplishes through suffering, even suffering resulting from our own sinful actions. Hebrews 12:10–11 says, “God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.”
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Waiting on the Lord is difficult, especially in our fast-paced world! Here’s a way to keep focused on God while you wait on the Lord.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:33-39
The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all. - Psalm 103:19
TODAY IN THE WORD
When Queen Esther found out about the plot to kill her people, she knew that she had to seek the king’s help. If she hadn’t believed that the king had the authority to intervene, she never would have risked her life and approached him without an official summons. But she trusted God and bravely proceeded to the one human with the power to help.

The same is true in our lives: we rarely seek someone’s help without confidence in that person’s ability. Today’s passage concerns God’s nature and presents three essential truths about our Heavenly Father, one of which is His sovereignty.

The first truth is assumed throughout all of Lamentations: God is just. God takes no pleasure in our suffering, but His justice compels Him to punish our sin (v. 33). To underscore God’s justice, Jeremiah listed three violations of human dignity that never go unnoticed by the Most High: mistreatment of prisoners (v. 34); denial of basic human rights (v. 35); and abrogation of justice (v. 36).

But echoing faintly from verses 34 through 36 is the haunting question, “What if God isn’t really in control?” Verses 37 and 38 answer this terrifying thought by emphasizing a second essential truth about God: He is sovereign. Psalm 33:9 teaches that the Lord God sovereignly created: “For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.” Verse 37 extends this idea and teaches that God sovereignly rules: nothing can happen without the Lord allowing it.

In light of God’s justice and sovereignty, the final question posed centers not on God’s character, but on the response of every living human being (v. 39). This suggests a third aspect of the Lord’s nature: God is holy. Because sin is ultimately an affront to God’s holiness, His justice demands sin’s punishment and His sovereignty ensures that punishment. Yet it is also God’s holiness that desires that we be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:16).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
“[God] makes the releasing of captives one of the most important aspects of [Christ’s] work,” wrote one commentator. This refers to release from sin’s bondage, but today’s passage also reminds us of God’s concern for prisoners behind physical bars.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:40-47
Come, let us return to the Lord . . . he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. - Hosea 6:1
TODAY IN THE WORD
For the past few days, we have been considering the nature of God--His justice, His sovereignty, and His holiness. If you’ve been following the pronouns in this chapter, you may recall a shift from the first person singular of Jeremiah himself (vv. 1–24) to the third person of his instruction on God’s character (vv. 25–39). Today’s passage shifts to the first person plural indicating the people’s response.

It’s not surprising that a prayer of confession is the soul’s response to God’s character. Isaiah responded similarly when he beheld the Lord’s holiness (Isa. 6). Today’s passage opens with a call to self-examination and repentance (vv. 40–41). A renewed vision of God revealed to the people that God had not left them but that they had left Him, and they needed to return to Him and respond with wholehearted prayer.

As with the prayer in chapter 2 (see Feb. 11), you may be surprised by today’s prayer (vv. 42–47). Keep in mind that the people had just begun to repent and that their perspective was still influenced by past sinful thinking. For one thing, they expected an immediate feeling of forgiveness and restoration the moment they confessed (v. 42). Although the fact of forgiveness is true as soon as we confess our sins (1 John 1:9), the consequences of years of sinful living cannot be erased immediately. Restoration entails complete confession and patient acceptance of divine judgment.

Secondly, although they had begun to return to God, true intimacy with Him would take time. The staggering effects of God’s resounding judgment had deeply shaken the people, but they were not yet fully broken. And until the sin that had caused the Holy One to turn away had been fully confessed and renounced, the Lord God would continue to seem distant (v. 43) and silent (v. 44). Pending full acceptance of God’s righteous judgment, the people would continue to lament their debased state (vv. 45–47).
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Twice this month (Feb. 5 and 7), we have encouraged confession of sin. We hope that these times have yielded much fruit.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:48-54
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows. - Isaiah 53:4a
TODAY IN THE WORD
Imagine reading the following classified ad in a Christian magazine: Preacher wanted. Must have unquestioned integrity and exceptional personal strength. Required to proclaim God’s word unwaveringly to a rebellious, ungrateful congregation. Personal harm and imprisonment guaranteed. Success extremely unlikely. Deepened relationship with God only payment.

It’s hard to envision crowds rushing to respond to such an offer! Yet this “ad” only covers a small part of Jeremiah’s “job description.” Of all the Old Testament prophets, only Jeremiah lived his entire life without ever seeing any success in his ministry. To the very end, the people refused to listen to him. But to the very end, Jeremiah loved his people. Today’s passage reveals how deeply he identified with them and bore their pain.

Their prayer of lament (vv. 42–47) released torrents of grief in the prophet (v. 48). Although Jeremiah knew that relief was in the sovereign Lord’s hands (vv. 49–50), the prophet could not help but be overwhelmed by the desperate plight of his people and wept deeply. (The “women” in verse 51 most likely refers to people in general.)

It’s hard not to think of our Lord Jesus Christ when we read this passage. Today’s verse is taken from an extended passage in Isaiah predicting the suffering and pain that our Lord would take upon Himself in His incarnation. Perhaps more than any other prophet, Jeremiah’s experience paralleled that of Christ.

Like Jesus, Jeremiah was badly mistreated by the very ones he loved so dearly. Just as hunted animals were driven into pits and stoned to death (vv. 52–53), so too Jeremiah’s enemies had tried to kill him by throwing him into a mud-filled cistern during the height of the city’s famine (see Jeremiah 38). Sadly, tradition tells us that Jeremiah was eventually stoned to death while exiled in Egypt.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
Although Jeremiah did not commit the heinous sins for which his people were being punished, he completely identified himself with them. Few of us are called to such a national level of ministry, but each of us can seek a deepened burden for our community.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 3:55-66
The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. - Psalm 145:18
TODAY IN THE WORD
Bill Carr served the Lord in Bulgaria while the Iron Curtain was still entrenched across Eastern Europe. He knew that this was enemy territory--most of the people had never heard the gospel and were very superstitious. One night he woke suddenly, gasping for breath. It was as if someone were standing on him. A sickening sense of evil filled the room. At last he was able to call out, “Jesus!”, and the evil presence fled. He spent the rest of the night praising Jesus for delivering him and anticipating the good work that He was launching and would finish.

Jeremiah also mourned the terrible suffering of his people and memories of his own life-threatening mistreatment. Like Bill Carr, he must have felt suffocated. But Jeremiah also called upon the Lord (vv. 55–57).

You may have noticed that these verses are all in the past tense. This suggests an important principle: confidence in prayer grows as we consider God’s previous faithfulness. As Jeremiah recalled times the Lord had mercifully rescued him, his faith was bolstered and he cried out once again to his Heavenly Father.

Not only is our Lord our Protector, He is also our Advocate (vv. 58–60). Sometimes it’s hard to resist that strong desire to help the Lord avenge the wrongs done to us! But this passage is clear that our Redeemer is well aware of our hurts and the vindictiveness of those who do us harm (v. 60). He is the only One who can take up our case (v. 58); only He is our redemption.

Christ is also the One to whom we can completely unload our burdens (vv. 61–63). As stinging taunts ring in our ears, Christ is the tenderhearted One who patiently listens. That’s because He has heard all this jeering and mockery before--when He hung on the cross. And it was there that He paid the price for all sin, including nasty jabs and hissing taunts.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
God’s care for us is such that He declares, “Before they call I will answer; while they are still speaking I will hear” (Isa. 65:24).

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 4:1-10
. . . Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve . . . - Joshua 24:15
TODAY IN THE WORD
In the 1940s a young man set out with a burning desire to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Nearly six decades later, Billy Graham has become a household name. His worldwide ministry has ushered millions into the kingdom of God. Billy Graham is a wonderful example of a commitment to integrity that has been powerfully used by God.

How different were the inhabitants of Jerusalem! Years of sinful indulgence eroded their effectiveness to the point where they were like gold that had lost its luster, an expression to stress the depths to which Jerusalem had fallen. The precious people of Zion, once highly valued, had become like ordinary clay pots (v. 2). Sin diminishes esteem!

Oscar Wilde once said, “To suffer for one’s own faults--ah!--there is the sting of life!” Jerusalem was suffering for its many faults, including its steadfast refusal to surrender to Babylon as God had urged through Jere-miah. Persistent sin had rendered the people utterly heartless (v. 3). Nature’s worst nurturers--jackals and ostriches--were more caring than God’s people! Callused to God’s word and cruel to their offspring, they brought the horrendous eighteen-month siege on themselves.

With the siege came severe food and water shortages. Starving children begged vainly for food, but adults consumed whatever was available (v. 4). Although innocent children were the first to suffer, eventually everyone suffered--the wealthy were reduced to scavenging through garbage heaps (v. 5). Even Jerusalem’s leaders and rulers--whose appearance had been as fine as precious jewels (v. 7)--had the same gaunt appearance as everyone else (v. .

How sinful Jerusalem had become! Sodom, proverbial for wickedness, had been destroyed instantly (v. 6), but Jerusalem’s punishment was long and harsh. Jerusalem’s sin was not worse, but because Judah had forsaken its covenant responsibilities, its level of accountability was higher.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
People don’t just wake up one morning either shamefully embroiled in sin or tremendously effective in ministry. Moral direction in life is determined by thousands of seemingly insignificant choices made along the way.

[Soldier4Christ]

Read: Lamentations 4:11-16
Turn your ear to me, come quickly to my rescue; be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me. - Psalm 31:2
TODAY IN THE WORD
The tragic events of December 7, 1941, destroyed many Americans’ belief that the United States was geographically protected from enemy attack. The surprise Japanese attack sank eighteen U.S. ships and inflicted nearly 3,700 casualties. This exposure of vulnerability propelled the United States into World War II.

A similar perception of invulnerability explains Jerusalem’s utter shock over its fall. Both verses 11 and 16 underscore the sad truth that when Jerusalem became the object of God’s wrath no earthly force could prevent its destruction. Verse 12 reflects Jerusalem’s arrogance that her supposed impregnability was evident to all.

We have seen all along that sin brought on the city’s ruin, but the sins of its religious leaders (v. 13) were especially blameworthy. Chapter 2 (see Feb. 10) revealed the prophet’s passivity regarding the people’s sin; today’s passage shows that both the prophets and priests actively led the people into sin.

More than any other part of ancient Jewish society, these two groups were supposed to foster and preserve spiritual well-being. Prophets revealed insights into God’s word and interpreted His law. Priests offered sacrifices for sin. The high priest alone was allowed to enter the Holy of Holies on the annual Day of Atonement.

Yet deplorably the blood shed in the Temple was not for atonement but from murder--the murder of the righteous (v. 13)! This refers either to the actual murder of individuals who resisted the false prophets or to the spiritual death of idolatry. Either way, the blame for Jeru-salem’s ruin fell squarely on the religious leadership.
TODAY ALONG THE WAY
James 3:1 states, “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.” This verse is a recognition of the tremendous influence spiritual leaders have on people.