Growing with God: A daily devotional with Tonia Slimm.
Jeremiah 31:23 (NIV)
“This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: “When I bring them back from captivity, the people in the land of Judah and in its towns will once again use these words: ‘The Lord bless you, you prosperous city, you sacred mountain.’”
Jeremiah 31:23 (MSG)
“A Message from Israel’s God-of-the-Angel-Armies: “When I’ve turned everything around and brought my people back, the old expressions will be heard on the streets: ‘God bless you!’ . . . ‘O True Home!’ . . . ‘O Holy Mountain!’”
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“Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Once more they will speak these words in the land of Judah (the Southern Kingdom) and in her cities when I restore their fortunes and release them from exile, ‘The Lord bless you, O habitation of justice and righteousness, O holy mountain!’” -AMPLIFIED
“Jerusalem was cursed because of sin; but God declared that, in his great mercy, he would make it to be a place of blessing, and men should speak of it as the “habitation of justice, and mountain of holiness.” ~Charles Spurgeon
The Lord is speaking to Israel, His unfaithful daughter, encouraging her to turn away from her sin, and turn back to Him. He tells her that if she will repent, and do a 180, turning from her sin, then He can do something new in her:
“How long will you turn here and there, faithless daughter?
For the Lord creates something new in the land—a female will shelter a man.” -Jeremiah 31:22 (CSB)
Over and over again we are reminded that God’s intentions for Israel were for good, not evil. He wanted to give her hope and a future, and we see this fact stated once again in today’s text, as the Lord speaks about bringing His children home.
“This is what the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies and God of Israel, has to say: Eternal One: When I bring them back from exile, people throughout the land and villages of Judah will speak these familiar words: “May the Eternal bless you, home of righteousness, O sacred mountain!” -(VOICE)
Jeremiah reiterates that it is the Lord speaking, Adonai-Tzva’ot, the Lord of Hosts, the Commander of heavenly armies. So, what the Lord has to say has power and strength behind it.
The Lord says: “When I bring you back…” This is a reminder of the fact that the Lord will be the One who will bring them home. Everything that has happened to Israel was because of the Lord’s divine hand working. He sent them away in order to discipline them. He will bring them home in order to restore them. Nothing happened in their lives by accident or chance, God’s purpose and plan was always at work in their lives.
When the Lord brought them home and restored them, then the people would say once again: “‘The Lord bless you, O righteous home, O holy mountain!’” -(NLT)
“When the southern kingdom and her cities are restored, the old greeting of those visiting Jerusalem will be heard once more.” ~Feinberg
The point is, God would bring them home. The Lord would restore them and when He did so, the blessings would return.
“The Lord, the God of Israel, says: When I bring them back again, they shall say in Judah and her cities, “The Lord bless you, O center of righteousness, O holy hill!”” -(TLB)
“The Lord spoke of a coming day when this blessing would be said by the Jewish people as they returned to Zion and came to Jerusalem as pilgrims. This blessing indicates that the government of Israel is transformed and righteously governed by the Messiah, who makes Jerusalem a home of justice, and mountain of holiness.” ~David Guzik
God wants to prepare us to go home to be with Him as well. Scripture teaches us:
1.) God wants to turn us away from our sinful ways: “When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.” -Acts 3:26 (NIV)
2.) God wants to work in our hearts, in order to fulfill His purposes: “…for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.” -Philippians 2:13 (NIV)
3.) Jesus comforted His followers with this promise of home: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.” -John 14:1-4 (NIV)
4.) God is preparing us for our heavenly home: “For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands. Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, because when we are clothed, we will not be found naked. For while we are in this tent, we groan and are burdened, because we do not wish to be unclothed but to be clothed instead with our heavenly dwelling, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. Now the one who has fashioned us for this very purpose is God, who has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” – 2 Corinthians 5:1-5 (NIV)
5.) Remember, this world is not our home: “For this world is not our home; we are looking forward to our everlasting home in heaven.” -Hebrews 13:14 (TLB)
6.) In the end, God will bring His children home to be with Him: “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” -Revelation 21:3-4 (NIV)
“My home is in Heaven. I’m just traveling through this world.” ~Billy Graham
My friend, this world is not our home. We are just pilgrims traveling through, on our way to heaven. God is using this life to prepare us for what is yet to come. We need to keep that fact at the forefront of our minds and accept the discipline of the Father as He works in your life to prepare you for what lies ahead. Our eternal home, where we will dwell forever with our Lord and Savior, is what we need to keep our focus on, not on this world and its temporary pleasures. Please, keep your eyes on the goal.
“So, the great test of life is to see whether we will hearken to and obey God’s commands in the midst of the storms of life. It is not to endure storms, but to choose the right while they rage. And the tragedy of life is to fail in that test and so fail to qualify to return in glory to our heavenly home.” ~Henry B. Eyring
My Prayer:
Adonai Elohim, my Great Lord, home is such a sweet word. It fills my mind with peace and contentment. Heaven, home with you, is my goal. Once again, I am reminded that this world is not my home. And I am so thankful that is true, because all I see is chaos and unrest in this place. I have realized that all that glitters is not gold. I am looking forward to an eternity spent with you, and I am working at storing up for myself treasures in heaven that will never fade. Lord, help me not become distracted by the things of this world. Help me to remain submissive as you discipline me and work in me for your purposes, because I know that your intention is to prepare me to be with you forevermore. Thank you, Lord.
Growing with God 