My People, Your God

Jeremiah 30:12-24

12 "For thus says the LORD:
Your affliction is incurable,
Your wound is severe.
13 There is no one to plead your cause,
That you may be bound up;
You have no healing medicines.

14 All your lovers have forgotten you;
They do not seek you;
For I have wounded you with the wound of an enemy,
With the chastisement of a cruel one,
For the multitude of your iniquities,
Because your sins have increased.

15 Why do you cry about your affliction?
Your sorrow is incurable.
Because of the multitude of your iniquities,
Because your sins have increased,
I have done these things to you.

16 'Therefore all those who devour you shall be devoured;
And all your adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity;
Those who plunder you shall become plunder,
And all who prey upon you I will make a prey.
17 For I will restore health to you
And heal you of your wounds,' says the LORD,
'Because they called you an outcast saying:
"This is Zion;
No one seeks her."'

18 "Thus says the LORD:
'Behold, I will bring back the captivity of Jacob's tents,
And have mercy on his dwelling places;
The city shall be built upon its own mound,
And the palace shall remain according to its own plan.

19 Then out of them shall proceed thanksgiving
And the voice of those who make merry;
I will multiply them, and they shall not diminish;
I will also glorify them, and they shall not be small.

20 Their children also shall be as before,
And their congregation shall be established before Me;
And I will punish all who oppress them.
21 Their nobles shall be from among them,
And their governor shall come from their midst;
Then I will cause him to draw near,
And he shall approach Me;
For who is this who pledged his heart to approach Me?' says the LORD.

22 'You shall be My people,
And I will be your God.'"

23 Behold, the whirlwind of the LORD
Goes forth with fury,
A continuing whirlwind;
It will fall violently on the head of the wicked.
24 The fierce anger of the LORD will not return until He has done it,
And until He has performed the intents of His heart.
In the latter days you will consider it.

The LORD brought the judgment of corrective spiritual discipline on His people to demon His glory for their good.  He declared that they are His people and He is their God (Hosea 2:23, Romans 9:24-26, 1 Peter 2:9-10) as He does for all in Christ, Jew and Gentile (Galatians 3:18).  Yes, just as sinful Israel had nobody to heal their affliction of sin, so is it with all born of Adam to this day; the only balm is the atoning grace in the death of Christ for us to heal and comfort (Isaiah 53:5-6, 11, 1 Peter 2:24-25).  Because of their sins Israel had lost their lovers and their afflictions piled up because of unrepentant sin and idolatry against Him.  Yet the promise was given to take their enemies into captivity (Isaiah 14:5, 11-12, Ephesians 4:8, Colossians 2:15) and restore the people He called out as His own, a picture of all in Christ being set free from the adversary’s grip of sin and death.  The LORD brought Israel out of captivity and has done for us as well because of His great mercy and grace for His eternal purpose (Ephesians 3:8-11) in calling each of us as His own.  He is our God and we are His people!  Therefore we are exceedingly glad and thankful as He multiplies us through the gospel in everlasting fruitfulness as Israel was as a nation for a time, yet ours is eternal in Christ in the heavens.  God will punish the wicked and most of all our enemy the devil, but He also draws His people to Himself in grace to call us His own.  May we often consider these things in our hearts.