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The Scriptorium

That Good Thing

The best was yet to come. Jeremiah 33.10-18

Looking toward Restoration (5)

Pray Psalm 27.11-14.
Teach me Your way, O LORD,
And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.
Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries;
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the LORD
In the land of the living.
Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!

Sing Psalm 27.11-14.
(Joanna: Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise)
Lord, teach us; Lord, lead us because of our foes!
Hear, Lord, when we plead for release from their woes.
Had we not believed all Your goodness to see,
Our heart sorely grieved and in turmoil would be.

Wait, wait on the Lord; persevere in His grace.
Hold fast to His Word; seek His radiant face.
Be strong, set your heart to abide in His Word;
His grace He imparts; therefore, wait on the Lord.

Read and meditate on Jeremiah 33.10-18.

Prepare.
1. Review Jeremiah 23.5-8. How does today’s passage reinforce that?

2. What does God promise as the culmination of this time of restoration?

Meditate.
God continues to elaborate on the promise of restoration, which a prophet and faithful man like Jeremiah would have received with great joy, in spite of his miserable circumstances.

God paints a picture of the land, city, and people of Israel restored, and not just following their return from captivity, but for the long term and forever. Again, the prophet is given a glimpse at the short-term and the long-term restoration of God. The short-term features the return of the captives to Jerusalem and the land. The long-term features the promise of the coming Branch, King, and Priest of God Who will rule and offer an enduring sacrifice for God’s people. This is the second time we’ve seen this promise; God wanted to make sure we didn’t miss it the first time (Jer. 23.5-8).

It is for the praise of God that this short-term work of restoration will be done (vv. 10, 11), and for His everlasting praise and honor that the long-term will be accomplished (vv. 17, 18). The blessings God bestows on His people are true blessings, bringing peace and joy; but they are also the impetus for glorious worship and for bringing righteousness, judgment, and salvation to the world (vv. 10, 11, 15, 16). The short-term blessings of peace and joy and a restored nation and culture are good, but they’re not “that good thing” God has been holding out to His people (v. 14). That will come later. The good blessings of restoration from captivity are merely portents of a greater blessing to come, when David’s Branch assumes the throne of God’s Kingdom.

Faithful Israelites, returning from captivity in Babylon, would immediately have begun looking for the coming Branch and King Who is the Lord Himself, the righteous God. He will sit on the throne of David forever; and He will offer His finished sacrifice before the Lord, for He ever lives to make intercession for us by His shed blood.

Reflect.
1. The people in captivity would have had a clear and vivid picture of what God was promising. How clear is your picture of what God promises us today?

2. All the righteousness we need for peace with God is found in Jesus Christ, the Branch of David. Does this mean we don’t need to strive for righteousness? Explain.

3. The “offerings” mentioned in verse 18 are symbolic of Christ’s once-for-all offering of Himself. Why do we no longer make these offerings and sacrifices?

David’s Lord was made David’s Son, and sprang from the fruit of the promised branch—One without fault, the twofold nature coming together into one Person, that by one and the same conception and birth might spring our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom was present both true Godhead for the performance of mighty works and true humanity for the endurance of sufferings. Leo the Great (fl. 440-461), Sermon 28.3 

Rule in me for righteousness, Jesus, especially today as I…

Pray Psalm 27.1-10.

See Jesus in His righteousness and beauty; then call on the Lord to transform you into His likeness.

Sing Psalm 27.1-10.
Psalm 27.1-10 (Joanna: Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise)
Lord, You are our Light and our Savior most dear!
You guard us with might; therefore, whom shall we fear?
Though evil surround us, our enemies fall;
No harm shall confound us when on You we call.

One thing we request but to dwell with You, Lord.
Your beauty to test and to think on Your Word.
In trouble You hide us secure in Your grace;
No foe may o’erride us: We sing of Your praise!

Hear, Lord, when we cry and be gracious, we pray!
Lord, do not deny us Your favor this day!
Our help, our salvation, though others may fall,
Preserve our good station when on You we call.

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All quotations from Church Fathers from
Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006). All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (available by clicking here).

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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