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[Jeremiah said:] “O Lord, You know; remember me and visit me, and take vengeance for me on my persecutors. In Your forbearance take me not away; know that for Your sake I bear reproach. … Why is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Will You be to me like a deceitful brook, like waters that fail? Therefore thus says the Lord: “If you return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before Me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall be as My mouth. They shall turn to you, but you shall not turn to them. And I will make you to this people a fortified wall of bronze; they will fight against you, but they shall not prevail over you, for I am with you to save you and deliver you, declares the Lord. I will deliver you out of the hand of the wicked, and redeem you from the grasp of the ruthless.” (Jeremiah 15:15, 18-21)
Poor Jeremiah! He’s been through a lot. Because he speaks God’s messages, the people who hear him hate him. They consider Jeremiah a killjoy because he’s always talking about the terrible judgments that are going to come for all their wrongdoing. And so they arrest him, abuse him, even put his life in danger.
Of course Jeremiah complains—I would too, if I were living his life! He complains to God. That’s the right thing to do, isn’t it? I mean, God will absolutely understand. He won’t be surprised or upset at all. And God is very patient—right up to the moment when Jeremiah finally goes too far.
That would be the bit where Jeremiah turns on God Himself. He says to the Lord, “Will You be to me like a deceitful brook, like waters that fail?” Jeremiah is angry. And he expresses it by deliberately doubting God’s faithfulness to Him, even though he’s seen it day after day.
God won’t have it—not because of the insult, but because Jeremiah is putting his own faith at risk. It’s always dangerous to play around with ideas we already know are false. And so God pulls him up sharply, because He loves Jeremiah and doesn’t want to lose him. He says, “If you return, I will restore you, and you shall stand before Me. If you utter what is precious, and not what is worthless, you shall be as My mouth.”
That’s how God reacts to us, too, when we go too far and He can see that we’re putting our faith in danger. He works to pull us back from the brink—because He loves us and doesn’t want to lose us. He came to make us His own through the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. If He values us that highly, He isn’t going to let go of us easily now.
And so we can always turn to God our Father and say, “I’m sorry. Bring me back,” and He will. That’s the kind of God we have—slow to get angry, quick to forgive, always watching over us to protect us. He intends to have us forever, because He loves us. And there is no sin so terrible that He will refuse to take us back. Jesus’ death and resurrection cover all our sins, even the ones we did as Christians!
WE PRAY: Lord, when I need you to pull me out of danger, please do it—and bring me back safely to you. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
- Have you ever seen someone you love endangering themselves?
- What did you do about it? Why?
- What does that tell you about God’s feelings for you?
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