2 Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, 2 “Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord,
“I remember concerning you the [a]devotion of your youth,
The love of your betrothals,
Your following after Me in the wilderness,
Through a land not sown.
3 “Israel was holy to the Lord,
The first of His harvest.
All who ate of it became guilty;
Evil came upon them,” declares the Lord.’”4 Hear the word of the Lord, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of Israel. 5 Thus says the Lord,
“What injustice did your fathers find in Me,
That they went far from Me
And walked after emptiness and became empty?
6 “They did not say, ‘Where is the Lord
Who brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
Who led us through the wilderness,
Through a land of deserts and of pits,
Through a land of drought and of [b]deep darkness,
Through a land that no one crossed
And where no man dwelt?’
7 “I brought you into the fruitful land
To eat its fruit and its good things.
But you came and defiled My land,
And My inheritance you made an abomination.
8 “The priests did not say, ‘Where is the Lord?’
And those who handle the law did not know Me;
The [c]rulers also transgressed against Me,
And the prophets prophesied by Baal
And walked after things that did not profit.9 “Therefore I will yet contend with you,” declares the Lord,
“And with your sons’ sons I will contend.
10 “For cross to the coastlands of [d]Kittim and see,
And send to Kedar and observe closely
And see if there has been such a thing as this!
11 “Has a nation changed gods
When they were not gods?
But My people have changed their glory
For that which does not profit.
12 “Be appalled, O heavens, at this,
And shudder, be very desolate,” declares the Lord.
13 “For My people have committed two evils:
They have forsaken Me,
The fountain of living waters,
To hew for themselves cisterns,
Broken cisterns
That can hold no water.
In this, the first message God delivered via Jeremiah, we see a familiar refrain. It’s a hundred years later (or more) than Isaiah, but “same song, second verse…” Though the people may not remember, God does. He remembers when they first followed Him in the wilderness (vv. 2-3). They saw the wonders of God, and thus were they guilty.
Had they never experienced such things, had they not followed God once, maybe they could be excused. I’m not sure it works that way, but regardless, Israel was without excuse. Josiah had even, or was about to, call them to repentance, rebuild the temple, demolish the pagan places of worship. The law of God would be read once more, before all the people.
And still, they would do something no other nation had done (v. 11-13). They would exchange God who called them by name, for the works, not of their own hands, but the works of other men, of foreign nations. It was never really about worshipping those other idols, it was the depravity that ensued, chasing their own lusts. Craven practices were part and parcel of idol worship, and Israel wanted to indulge.
They forsook God, a very “fountain of living waters” for the lust of the flesh, broken cisterns, with no water, no substance, nothing that would last. As Paul described it, “they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever.” Their God was not Baal, or Ashdod, it was themselves.
Before we are too hard on them, we need to take a long hard look at our own lives. How often do we, who have embraced the call of God, also exchange the truth for a lie. The lie that we are too busy, or that we’ll get around to it later. We would rather be entertained and soothed than dig into God’s word, or take more than a few seconds to listen for His voice.
We too should heed the words of Jeremiah, and “remember concerning the devotion of your youth,
the love of your betrothals.” Or as John wrote to the church at Ephesus, we need to “remember our first love.” He would rather we were hot or cold, useful for something, but we are lulled into a lukewarm state by the desires of our own flesh.
Shake off the cobwebs then, wipe the dust off God’s Word, cherish every bit for what it is, God’s love letter to you and to me. Talk to Him, often, always listening for His voice, whether at work or at play, ready and waiting for His guiding. He extends His hand even now, “come walk with me today.”