THE LUXURY OF DESPAIR

Opening Prayer

Heavenly Father, I need your guidance as I make decisions, set priorities, and go about my daily activities.

Read JEREMIAH 15

15 Then the Lord said to me: “Even if Moses and Samuel were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people. Send them away from my presence! Let them go! ² And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘Those destined for death, to death;
those for the sword, to the sword;
those for starvation, to starvation;
those for captivity, to captivity.’

³ “I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,” declares the Lord, “the sword to kill and the dogs to drag away and the birds and the wild animals to devour and destroy. ⁴ I will make them abhorrent to all the kingdoms of the earth because of what Manasseh son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.

⁵ “Who will have pity on you, Jerusalem?
    Who will mourn for you?
    Who will stop to ask how you are?
⁶ You have rejected me,” declares the Lord.
    “You keep on backsliding.
So I will reach out and destroy you;
    I am tired of holding back.
⁷ I will winnow them with a winnowing fork
    at the city gates of the land.
I will bring bereavement and destruction on my people,
    for they have not changed their ways.
⁸ I will make their widows more numerous
    than the sand of the sea.
At midday I will bring a destroyer
    against the mothers of their young men;
suddenly I will bring down on them
    anguish and terror.
⁹ The mother of seven will grow faint
    and breathe her last.
Her sun will set while it is still day;
    she will be disgraced and humiliated.
I will put the survivors to the sword
    before their enemies,”
declares the Lord.

¹⁰ Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth,
    a man with whom the whole land strives and contends!
I have neither lent nor borrowed,
    yet everyone curses me.

¹¹ The Lord said,

“Surely I will deliver you for a good purpose;
    surely I will make your enemies plead with you
    in times of disaster and times of distress.

¹² “Can a man break iron—
    iron from the north—or bronze?

¹³ “Your wealth and your treasures
    I will give as plunder, without charge,
because of all your sins
    throughout your country.
¹⁴ I will enslave you to your enemies
    in^[a] a land you do not know,
for my anger will kindle a fire
    that will burn against you.”

¹⁵ Lord, you understand;
    remember me and care for me.
    Avenge me on my persecutors.
You are long-suffering—do not take me away;
    think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.
¹⁶ When your words came, I ate them;
    they were my joy and my heart’s delight,
for I bear your name,
    Lord God Almighty.
¹⁷ I never sat in the company of revelers,
    never made merry with them;
I sat alone because your hand was on me
    and you had filled me with indignation.
¹⁸ Why is my pain unending
    and my wound grievous and incurable?
You are to me like a deceptive brook,
    like a spring that fails.

¹⁹ Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“If you repent, I will restore you
    that you may serve me;
if you utter worthy, not worthless, words,
    you will be my spokesman.
Let this people turn to you,
    but you must not turn to them.
²⁰ I will make you a wall to this people,
    a fortified wall of bronze;
they will fight against you
    but will not overcome you,
for I am with you
    to rescue and save you,”
declares the Lord.
²¹ “I will save you from the hands of the wicked
    and deliver you from the grasp of the cruel.”

Footnotes

1. Jeremiah 15:14 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Syriac (see also 17:4); most Hebrew manuscripts I will cause your enemies to bring you / into

New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Meditate

Without wallowing, acknowledge before God the situations and issues that are getting you down.

Think Further

The singer Martyn Joseph tells of his visit to a Palestinian refugee camp, the horror and anger he felt at the injustice of the situation and the inspiration he received from Abed, a children’s theater organizer, who carried on straining for peace and justice for his children because he couldn’t afford ‘the luxury of despair’.1 Jeremiah would have echoed that sentiment.

In the face of a weary God, committed to subjecting Judah to endless punishments because he gave them every chance and they still spurned him, Jeremiah is on the verge of giving up. ‘I’ve tried. What more can I do?’ (see v 10). Then, in the midst of personal persecution and anguish, he tentatively reaches out to God: ‘remember me and care for me’ (v 15). Why? Because, like Judah at the start of the passage, he has to ask, ‘Where shall we go?’ (v 2). Judah goes to punishment. Jeremiah goes to the only one who can save and deliver (v 21) and he is not let down.

Peter gave a similar response to Jesus.2 There was grumbling in the camp at the severity of Jesus’ teaching. Many followers had left. When given that same option, Peter’s reply was stark. Since he had met the Holy One of God, what other options were there? It wasn’t a case of ‘any port in a storm’. There was only one port worth berthing at.

It would be easy sometimes to despair at the state of the world in which we live, at breakdowns within our family and friendship relationships, at the wreckage of our personal lives. However, by turning again and again to God, there is the promise of restoration, protection and deliverance. It’s the only way we have and the only one worth taking.

Apply

Physically turn yourself in a different direction. Use the new view as a stimulus for a period of praise and thankfulness to God for his faithfulness, especially in trying circumstances.

Closing prayer

Holy One, I tremble to think where I would be without you in my life. Your love enfolds me, your promises sustain me, and your patience humbles me.

Last Updated on May 5, 2023 by kingstar