Reading from Monday, October 18

Hey folks. What's happening.

Reading for October 18
Jeremiah 31:27-32:44
Oh man. Yes. Yes yes yes. This is what I've been waiting for. In the same way that I felt like I had seen something beautiful for the first time when I wrote this post on Isaiah, the text from chapter 31 of Jeremiah is as magnificent as anything in the entire Bible.

God begins to shift from his rage against his people to the redemption which they will soon be part of.

²⁷ “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will greatly increase the human population and the number of animals here in Israel and Judah. ²⁸ In the past I deliberately uprooted and tore down this nation. I overthrew it, destroyed it, and brought disaster upon it. But in the future I will just as deliberately plant it and build it up. I, the Lord, have spoken!

So that's kind of broad, right? I mean, sure it's a noticeable change in mood from our great deity, but "deliberately plant it and build it up" could be slick God-speak for destroying them, but in a different way. One thing I will point out is that last line - "I, the LORD, have spoken!" This is a common refrain when God is speaking - and it usually concludes a statement of his fury or his impending destruction on a place or people. This time we see it attached to a positive statement. Which means - if you follow the logic - that his mercy and grace for his people will be just as serious as the anger and fury against them. But again, this could be a deceptive statement - let's see what else he says.

 ³¹ “The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. ³² This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the Lord.

OK, so a couple things in this one. First I want to point out the last line there - 'I loved them as a husband loves his wife'. This gives us an idea of the kind of love God had for his people. A partnership type of love that was designed to be mutual and forgiving and merciful. When you think about it that way...well you could see it as God being an abusive husband - but put that image aside for now. Picture the other gods that the Jews ended up worshiping over the generations. Now picture those gods being mistresses. If you keep with the analogy, the Jews were essentially cheating on God with these other gods. God's anger, as would be a husband's anger, was completely justified. I would argue that the punishment was not justified, just as beating or killing a spouse for cheating would be unjustified. But what is the common recourse for an unfaithful spouse? Divorce. When you think about it that way, God becomes the victim. A humble husband who tolerates his wife's continued unfaithfulness against him. And, again, while I can't accept the punishment against his people, I am nearly brought to my knees thinking that God didn't abandon his people. Not after the first case of infidelity, or the tenth, or the eighty-ninth, or the 4,282nd or the 18 billionth - as scary as God can be, he has one trait that can't be denied - he loves his people. He continued to root for them. He continued to shape them and mold them. He never gave up on the relationship. Jumping ahead a little bit, God says this about the relationship with his people:

 ³⁶ “I am as likely to reject my people Israel
      as I am to abolish the laws of nature!”
 ³⁷ This is what the Lord says:
   “Just as the heavens cannot be measured
      and the foundations of the earth cannot be explored,
   so I will not consider casting them away
      for the evil they have done.
      I, the Lord, have spoken!

The other, obvious thing about this verses above (31-32) is the idea of this new covenant.  The beginning of Jeremiah was all about how God's destruction is coming - and the main reason cited for his anger was that Israel had broken the covenant they had made with God. So following the rules of the covenant, God had every right to carry out the punishment on his people. But now we're hearing about a new covenant - a covenant that is unlike the old one. This sounds pretty hopeful, but what is this new covenant? What are the terms? Let's see what God says.

 ³³ “But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day,” says the Lord. “I will put my instructions deep within them, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. ³⁴ And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already,” says the Lord. “And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”

Woah. That is a pretty serious change in methods. This new covenant seems to be completely favored toward the people, while the original one was arguably pretty equal - follow the rules and enjoy God's grace. That sounds fair. The problem was that man was incapable of holding up their end of the bargain. So - once again - instead of taking legal action against them for breach of contract, or just abandoning them for breaking the rules of the agreement, he instead drew up a new contract - one that was completely in favor of the other party - man.

Also, look at that last line in bold there. "I will never again remember their sins." That is an unheard of change in direction for God. Every single thing we've read in the Old Testament about God has been this angry vengeance. But now we're seeing the reasoning behind it. This isn't even considering the act that occurs to make this happen...

These verses are the connection.

These verses connect the God of the Old Testament to the God of the New Testament to become the single, eternal God that loves his creation, and outright refuses to abandon them - refuses to abandon us - refuses to abandon you - and refuses to abandon me - forever. No matter how much we resist, screw up, blaspheme, cheat, curse, lie, steal, kill - he will never, never abandon us. 

1 Timothy 3:1-16

¹⁶ Without question, this is the great mystery of our faith^[f]:
   Christ^[g] was revealed in a human body
      and vindicated by the Spirit.^[h]
   He was seen by angels
      and announced to the nations.
   He was believed in throughout the world
      and taken to heaven in glory.

Certainly something to consider.

Psalm 88:1-18
While I talk about this grand picture of God's change in heart and how amazingly beautiful it is that he is drawing up this new covenant, you have to consider the other side of the equation - the human side. This is the other side of God's anger: human suffering.

¹⁵ I have been sick and close to death since my youth.
      I stand helpless and desperate before your terrors.
 ¹⁶ Your fierce anger has overwhelmed me.
      Your terrors have paralyzed me.
 ¹⁷ They swirl around me like floodwaters all day long.
      They have engulfed me completely.
 ¹⁸ You have taken away my companions and loved ones.
      Darkness is my closest friend.

It's extremely difficult to understand God's grand plan when you are in the midst of his punishment. I would compare it to a child being punished. The child likely does not see a spanking as as an act of love, but they are rather likely afraid, saddened or angered at their parents. The same way we react when we experience God's anger with us.


Proverbs 25:20-22
Good advice - when people are bummed, they don't want your cheery attitude.
 ²⁰ Singing cheerful songs to a person with a heavy heart
      is like taking someone’s coat in cold weather
      or pouring vinegar in a wound.