Jeremiah 13 (HCSB)
Linen Underwear
1 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy yourself a linen undergarment and put it on, but do not put it in water.” 2 So I bought underwear as the Lord instructed me and put it on.
3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time: 4 “Take the underwear that you bought and are wearing, and go at once to the Euphrates and hide it in a rocky crevice.” 5 So I went and hid it by the Euphrates, as the Lord commanded me.
6 A long time later the Lord said to me, “Go at once to the Euphrates and get the underwear that I commanded you to hide there.” 7 So I went to the Euphrates and dug up the underwear and got it from the place where I had hidden it, but it was ruined—of no use at all.
8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “This is what the Lord says: Just like this I will ruin the great pride of both Judah and Jerusalem. 10 These evil people, who refuse to listen to Me, who follow the stubbornness of their own hearts, and who have followed other gods to serve and worship—they will be like this underwear, of no use at all. 11 Just as underwear clings to one’s waist, so I fastened the whole house of Israel and of Judah to Me”—this is the Lord’s declaration—“so that they might be My people for My fame, praise, and glory, but they would not obey.
The Wine Jars
12 “Say this to them: This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Every jar should be filled with wine. Then they will respond to you, ‘Don’t we know that every jar should be filled with wine?’ 13 And you will say to them: This is what the Lord says: I am about to fill all who live in this land—the kings who reign for David on his throne, the priests, the prophets and all the residents of Jerusalem—with drunkenness. 14 I will smash them against each other, fathers and sons alike”—this is the Lord’s declaration. “I will allow no mercy, pity, or compassion to keep Me from destroying them.”
The Lord’s Warning
15 Listen and pay attention. Do not be proud, for the Lord has spoken.
16 Give glory to the Lord your God before He brings darkness, before your feet stumble on the mountains at dusk. You wait for light, but He brings darkest gloom and makes thick darkness.
17 But if you will not listen, my innermost being will weep in secret because of your pride. My eyes will overflow with tears, for the Lord’s flock has been taken captive.
18 Say to the king and the queen mother:
Take a humble seat, for your glorious crowns have fallen from your heads.
19 The cities of the Negev are under siege; no one can help them. All of Judah has been taken into exile, taken completely into exile.
20 Look up and see those coming from the north. Where is the flock entrusted to you, the sheep that were your pride?
The Destiny of Jerusalem
21 What will you say when He appoints close friends as leaders over you, ones you yourself trained? Won’t labor pains seize you, as they do a woman in labor?
22 And when you ask yourself, “Why have these things happened to me?” It is because of your great guilt that your skirts have been stripped off, your body exposed.
23 Can the Cushite change his skin, or a leopard his spots? If so, you might be able to do what is good, you who are instructed in evil.
24 I will scatter you like drifting chaff before the desert wind.
25 This is your lot, what I have decreed for you—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
because you have forgotten Me and trusted in Falsehood.
26 I will pull your skirts up over your face so that your shame might be seen.
27 Your adulteries and your lustful neighing, your heinous prostitution on the hills, in the fields—I have seen your detestable acts. Woe to you, Jerusalem! You are unclean—for how long yet?
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verses 15-17): Once again, Father, I find that You repeat Yourself to me to voice something You want me to change. Forgive me for my very prideful heart and mannerisms that I FAR too often default to. Forgive me for giving into the selfish pride of my flesh and the pride the world tells me I should embrace. Help me to no longer live in these prideful ways, so that I may bring glory to You in all that I am and all that I do. Help me to cleanse these prideful ways from my heart so that I no longer live in anger and defense when I allow my pride to take control of me. Help me to no longer have pride as my main stumbling block in this life, Father.
PROMISE (verse 27): Although I know this promise to be true, I often find myself hoping that You didn’t see the mistakes I make. You promise us that You have seen all of the detestable acts we’ve done, no matter the circumstances behind them. I know this to be true in my heart, yet for some reason like a child doing something wrong in front of their parents, I hope and pray You didn’t see things I did in the moment. Help me to remember this promise BEFORE I even consider doing anything against Your will, Father. Help me to remember that You know all things that I think and do. Help that to be a rock I can stand on in the future when I want to think, say, or do something that is not pleasing to You so I can correct it on the spot before it becomes a big issue.
ATTITUDE (verses 17-18): Help me to change my far to often prideful attitude to one of humbleness, Father. Help me to live humbly like Jesus did and not stuck in my prideful ways. Help me to embrace the attitudes that Jesus lived by in this life so that the attitudes I default to in this life align with Your will for me. Help me to no longer have an attitude of pride which leads me down the path of anger, resentment, irritability, retaliation, and sometimes even isolation. Thank You for always providing grace to me, even though my attitudes have rarely been properly aligned with the way You want me to live, Father.
COMMAND (verse 15): I feel this is a repeating pattern of commands, Father, so obviously I am still struggling with this one. You tell us to “listen and pay attention.” It’s such a simple command, yet I often find myself listening to the world or to my flesh instead of You. Forgive me for not being more respectful towards Your commands to me, Father. Help me to remember this command daily, so that my ears, mind, and heart always stay open and attentive to everything You have spoken be it through prayer, Your word, the Holy Spirit, or even through other faithful believers that give me advice.
EXAMPLE (verses 1-10): You give such a powerful example from such a simple task, Father. You took brand new underwear and used it as an example of how useful people are when they do not follow Your ways and Your will. You showed through something as simple as underwear how it becomes of “no use at all” when it is not properly cared for in the ways that You dictate. Help me to remember this example, so that I do not become of “no use at all” to You, Father. Help me to remember that all of the false gods, idols, and treasures of this world are completely useless in the presence of You, Father. Help me to keep my drive in this life and my focus on You through all things I may come across in this life, so that I may praise and bring You glory through all that I am and do in this life.
*DAILY NOTE: Just like a parent trying to provide good counsel, discipline, and proper instruction to their often-stubborn children, You are doing the same for me in this Scripture, Father. You repeat yourself to me so that through repetition I will hopefully embrace Your amazing counsel and instruction in my life. Your repetition is so much needed for me personally because of my stubbornness in my old, selfish ways. Thank You for being such a perfect Father to me, Lord. Thank You for always providing me Your ways to live this life, no matter how many times I’ve failed at living that out. Thank You for being faithful to me through repetition and good counsel, even when my stubbornness and selfishness has pushed me out of Your will for my life so many times.
*GENERAL NOTE: I always "sandwich" my quiet time with God in prayer and do it in a location that I will not have any distractions so that I can be focused on my quiet time with God. Do not worry about how short or long your journal entries are for that day's quiet time. Just focus on the actual quiet time and relational conversation with God through the Holy Spirit and His Word. The journaling is an enhancement to your quiet time conversation with God, but also to allow you to reflect on things later as you can look back on your journal entries later when you do the chapters again in the future to see how you have grown. See the FAQ for more detail on how I do my quiet time.
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