September 27 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Jeremiah 50:1-10:

¹The word that the LORD spake against Babylon and against the land of the Chaldeans by Jeremiah the prophet.
²Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel is confounded, Merodach is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces.
³For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land desolate, and none shall dwell therein: they shall remove, they shall depart, both man and beast.
⁴In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the children of Israel shall come, they and the children of Judah together, going and weeping: they shall go, and seek the LORD their God.
⁵They shall ask the way to Zion with their faces thitherward, saying, Come, and let us join ourselves to the LORD in a perpetual covenant that shall not be forgotten.
⁶My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace.
⁷All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice, even the LORD, the hope of their fathers.
⁸Remove out of the midst of Babylon, and go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as the he goats before the flocks.
⁹For, lo, I will raise and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the north country: and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken: their arrows shall be as of a mighty expert man; none shall return in vain.
¹⁰And Chaldea shall be a spoil: all that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the LORD.

Devotional

What a sad picture! Sheep, lost sheep, lost in the mountains and hills, led astray by their shepherds, devoured by the wolves. And they had been in that condition so long that they have for­gotten their restingplace. They know no place of safety. Such was the condition of the people of God in the time of Jeremiah, the prophet.

When Christ was on earth He beheld a similar picture. "When he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them," because they fainted and were scattered abroad, "as sheep having no shepherd." They, too, had been led astray by their shepherds. They had no peace nor rest.

And what is the picture today? Has there ever been a time when people were more upset and restless than they are today? Where is their peace and rest and security? The words of the prophet apply: "Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy coun­sels, " and "thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way." And the sad part is that people in the churches have been led astray by their shepherds, that they no longer know their restingplace. There is so much outward activity, but where is the peace and rest of soul. Oh, that men would realize that Jesus Christ alone can give rest to the weary and heavy laden. "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures." "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God."

Prayer

O Lord God, incline our hearts unto Thy truth. Where we have gone astray, bring us back to Thy Word. Take from us our anxieties and worries. Fill our hearts with Thy peace, and grant us rest for our souls. For Jesus' sake. Amen.

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Scripture in Devotional: Isa. 47:13; 57:10; Matt. 11:28; Ps. 23:2; Heb. 4:9.

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