Praise the Lord Our Righteousness
Time is running out for Judah.
Already a growing sense of doom
grips the nation. Popular opinion
regarding the prophet of God
stands at an all-time low. But even
that cannot deter Jeremiah from
his appointed task: declaring
to leaders and lay persons alike
God’s displeasure with their conduct.
Moving from the nation in general
to the nation’s leaders in particular,
Jeremiah singles out three kings
for judgment before turning his
attention to the Messiah-King
who will restore righteousness
and justice on the earth. The nation
will lie desolate for 70 long years
when the wrath of God is finally
poured out upon His wayward flock.
Praise the Lord Our Righteousness:
Behold the days are coming,
says the Lord, That I will raise to
David a Branch of righteousness;
A King shall reign and execute
righteousness in the earth.
In His days, Judah will be saved;
And this is His name by which
He will be called, The Lord
our righteousness (Jehovah
Tsidkenu) – Jeremiah 23:5-6.
I have seen a horrible thing
in the prophets of Jerusalem:
They… walk in lies; they strengthen
the hands of evildoers, do that
no one turns from wickedness…
Do not listen to the words of the
prophets who… speak a vision
of their own heart, not from
the mouth of the LORD (v14-16).
Lord, we have no righteousness of
our own but the righteousness we
have come through faith in Christ.
It is the righteousness that depends
entirely on faith in You Lord,
who give us a clean slate of purity.
For our sake You made Him to
be sin who knew no sin so that
in Him we might become the
righteousness of God. Amen.
Lord Jehovah Tsidkenu, as You cover
us in Your righteousness, we pray
for the grace to be ever mindful
of the cost of this gift. We do not
want to treat it lightly or forget the
price You paid to offer this to us.
Make us useful Lord as we serve in
humility and worship in righteousness
before Your throne. In Jesus’ name.
Lord, I come to You with all
the sins I have ever committed,
seeking Your forgiveness & mercy.
Forgive me for every unkind
word I have thought or spoken.
Forgive me for every selfish act,
hardness of heart and lack of faith.
Forgive me of lies, evil doing,
and unwholesome words that
cause people to wickedness. Amen.