But despite all this, her faithless sister Judah has never sincerely returned to Me. She has only pretended to be sorry. I, the LORD, have spoken!" Then the LORD said to me, "Even faithless Israel is less guilty than treacherous Judah! Therefore, go and give this message to Israel. This is what the LORD says: "O Israel, My faithless people, come home to Me again, for I am merciful. I will not be angry with you forever. Only acknowledge your guilt. Admit that you rebelled against the LORD your God and committed adultery against Him by worshiping idols under every green tree. Confess that you refused to listen to My voice. I, the LORD, have spoken!
Do we see the awful comparison between the pretended repentance of Judah and the call to a sincere plea for forgiveness on the part of Israel?
Judah is damned for her hypocrisy while Israel is given the opportunity to acknowledge their guilt, admit their rebelliousness and commitment of adultery. "Confess your sin I will not be angry forever."
The merciful LORD, God the Almighty. But He despises a pretense confession.
Today's readings in the Psalms:
Morning: Psalm 75
Mid-day: 119:17-24
Evening: Psalm 1
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Voices Together is available as an annual daily devotional and can be purchased at theFellowship Of Ailbe bookstore. A weekly edition, formatted as a bi-fold insert and suitable for distribution can be downloaded at https://www.ailbe.org/resources/item/7251-2016-voices-together-weekly-format. The next edition is available by Thursday of the prior week.
