The new shoot
14 September 2020
Key Verse: Jeremiah 23: 5 “The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.”
As we work our way through the book of Jeremiah this last section chapters 21 to 52 are at first sight confusing with many of the chapters following no clear chronological order. According to the commentators, the events of chapter 21 took place 20 years after the events listed in Chapter 20 and it better fits with chapters 32,34 and 37 to 39. It is important to keep in mind that Jeremiah is a collection of prophecies and not a diary of events.
We see a messianic prophesy as Jeremiah contrasts the corrupt Kings and Priests of his time with a message from God of the coming of the Messiah who is to be the perfect King and Priest. That the only real hope for Judah’s future is found in the Son of God, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. By God’s grace Jeremiah is given a glimpse into the future, that from the dynasty of David God will provide a shoot which will sprout from the fallen branch and Jeremiah is shown the true character of the future Saviour by the name he is given in v6 “the Lord Our Righteousness”. This message is again repeated in Ch 33:14-16 “The days are surely coming, says the LORD, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David; and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days, Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The LORD is our righteousness.” The shoot that will emerge – Jesus Christ – will impart to people a righteousness which is not earned by works or through the Law but is given through Grace. The Law commanded at Sinai through Moses which people found was beyond their ability to achieve will at last become realisable through a new covenant which is sealed in Christ’s Blood. Isaiah 53:11 “The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.”
How patient God is, with a people who consistently turned their back on Him. Moses said “for thou art a stiffnecked people. Remember, and forget not, how thou provoked the LORD thy God to wrath in the wilderness: from the day that thou didst depart out of the land of Egypt, until ye came unto this place, ye have been rebellious against the LORD.” Deuteronomy 9:6,7 Now we see Jeremiah prophesying to the people of Judah hundreds of years later and still they are stiffnecked and will not listen. The people of Judah should be afraid – they have an angry God above them, a guilty conscience within them and the prospect of hell beneath them unless they listen to the message and repent. Fast forward to today – I can replace the word Judah with humanity.
What a privilege Jeremiah was given to be shown a glimpse of God’s wonderful plan, but note even though it was God’s plan to provide the messiah in due time. He did not and has never given up on His people. Jesus was with God when Jeremiah was given this prophesy. John 17:5 “So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed.” How easy for God to say “I have a plan to bring all people to salvation, I might as well as sit back and leave them to their own devices until that time.” Thankfully we have a God who never goes back on His promises and will not rest until all His sheep are in the fold, Joshua 21:45 “Not one of all the good promises that the LORD had made to the house of Israel had failed; all came to pass.”, Matthew 28:20 “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
We know that this prophesy came true because of the birth of Jesus, His death and resurrection. We who have found Jesus as our Saviour and washed in His blood are the fulfilment of God’s promise to call all men unto Him. Let us look forward to the day when we shall see Him face to face “and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness” v5.