Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 30.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+30&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, ² “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Write all the words which I have spoken to you in a book.  ³ For behold, days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah.’  The Lord says, ‘I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers and they shall possess it.’”

…

⁸ ‘It shall come about on that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘that I will break his yoke from off their neck and will tear off their bonds; and strangers will no longer make them their slaves.  ⁹ But they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

…

¹⁸ “Thus says the Lord,
‘Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob
And have compassion on his dwelling places;
And the city will be rebuilt on its ruin,
And the palace will stand on its rightful place.
¹⁹ ‘From them will proceed thanksgiving
And the voice of those who celebrate;
And I will multiply them and they will not be diminished;
I will also honor them and they will not be insignificant.
²⁰ ‘Their children also will be as formerly,
And their congregation shall be established before Me;
And I will punish all their oppressors.
²¹ ‘Their leader shall be one of them,
And their ruler shall come forth from their midst;
And I will bring him near and he shall approach Me;
For who would dare to risk his life to approach Me?’ declares the Lord.
²² ‘You shall be My people,
And I will be your God.’”

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 29.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+29&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“⁴ “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ⁵ ‘Build houses and live in them;  and plant gardens and eat their produce.  ⁶ Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters;  and multiply there and do not decrease.  ⁷ Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf;  for in its welfare you will have welfare.’  ⁸ For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream.  ⁹ For they prophesy falsely to you in My name;  I have not sent them,’ declares the Lord.

¹⁰ “For thus says the Lord, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.  ¹¹ For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.  ¹² Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  ¹³ You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.  ¹⁴ I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’”  Jeremiah 29:4-14.

————————–

“For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”  Verse 11.

We also notice that the LORD of hosts identified Himself as “the God of Israel”.  Verse 4.

In the midst of seventy years of captivity in Babylon, the exiles were given this wonderful promise by “the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel”, their God.  The exiles were commanded by God to build houses and families, to plant gardens and eat their produce, and seek the welfare of Babylon, for in its welfare they too would have welfare.  And, this wonderful promise of their God (that He has plans for welfare for the exiles to give them a future and a hope) gave them additional motivation to do all of these things.

We too may be in the midst of troubles and trials, even afflictions.  But, we too can be patient and prosper.  We too can rejoice that the LORD of hosts is our God and that this wonderful promise of our God is for us today.  

The righteous live by faith.  The righteous Abraham lived by faith.  The righteous exiles lived by faith.  And, the righteous today live by faith.

And so, we too live out our lives abundantly and joyfully, believing that God will bless us.

“For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, “I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you.”  Hebrews 6:13-14.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 28.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+28&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“The prophet who prophesies of peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, then that prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent.”

Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet and broke it.  Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Even so will I break within two full years the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all the nations.’”  Then the prophet Jeremiah went his way.

The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah after Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying, “Go and speak to Hananiah, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “You have broken the yokes of wood, but you have made instead of them yokes of iron.”  For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “I have put a yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they will serve him.  And I have also given him the beasts of the field.”’”  Then Jeremiah the prophet said to Hananiah the prophet, “Listen now, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, and you have made this people trust in a lie.  Therefore thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I am about to remove you from the face of the earth.  This year you are going to die, because you have counseled rebellion against the Lord.’”

So Hananiah the prophet died in the same year in the seventh month.”  Jeremiah 28:9-17.

——————————–

“The prophet who prophesies of peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, then that prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent.”  Verse 9.

“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.  You will know them by their fruits.  Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?  So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  So then, you will know them by their fruits.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.  Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’  And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you;  depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”  Matthew 7:15-23.

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.  By this you know the Spirit of God:  every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;  and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God;  this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.  You are from God, little children, and have overcome them;  because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.  They are from the world;  therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.  We are from God;  he who knows God listens to us;  he who is not from God does not listen to us.  By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.”  1 John 4:1-5.

“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God,” said “From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He.”  John 13:3 and 19.

“Q. 43. How doth Christ execute the office of a prophet?

A.  Christ executeth the office of a prophet, in his revealing to the church, in all ages, by his Spirit and Word, in divers ways of administration, the whole will of God, in all things concerning their edification and salvation.  Westminster Larger Confession.

“So when it comes to pass—as surely it will—then they will know that a prophet has been in their midst.”  Ezekiel 33:33.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 27.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+27&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“It will be, that the nation or the kingdom which will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine and with pestilence,” declares the Lord, “until I have destroyed it by his hand.  But as for you, do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers or your sorcerers who speak to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon.’  For they prophesy a lie to you in order to remove you far from your land;  and I will drive you out and you will perish.  But the nation which will bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let remain on its land,” declares the Lord, “and they will till it and dwell in it.”’”  Jeremiah 27:8-12.

—————————

“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.  For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.  Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.  Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.

Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable.  For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly.  For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience?  But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.”  1 Peter 2:13-20.

There comes a time when one should rebel. 

“All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson until the time of his own land comes;  then many nations and great kings will make him their servant.”  Verse 7.

“There is an appointed time for everything.  And there is a time for every event under heaven—

…
A time to love and a time to hate;
A time for war and a time for peace.”  Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 8.

“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.  This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”  1 Timothy 2:1-4.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 26.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+26&version=NASB

“In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Stand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah who have come to worship in the Lord’s house all the words that I have commanded you to speak to them.  Do not omit a word!  Perhaps they will listen and everyone will turn from his evil way, that I may repent of the calamity which I am planning to do to them because of the evil of their deeds.’  And you will say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord, “If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you, to listen to the words of My servants the prophets, whom I have been sending to you again and again, but you have not listened;  then I will make this house like Shiloh, and this city I will make a curse to all the nations of the earth.”’”

The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord.  When Jeremiah finished speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “You must die!  Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord saying, ‘This house will be like Shiloh and this city will be desolate, without inhabitant’?”  And all the people gathered about Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.

…

Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and to all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that you have heard.  Now therefore amend your ways and your deeds and obey the voice of the Lord your God;  and the Lord will change His mind about the misfortune which He has pronounced against you.  But as for me, behold, I am in your hands;  do with me as is good and right in your sight.  Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, and on this city and on its inhabitants;  for truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”  Jeremiah 26:1-9 and 12-15.
————————

In the beginning, chapter 1 of the book of Jeremiah, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah.

“I will pronounce My judgments on them (against all of the cities of Judah) concerning all their wickedness, whereby they have forsaken Me and have offered sacrifices to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands.  Now, gird up your loins and arise, and speak to them all which I command you.  Do not be dismayed before them, or I will dismay you before them.  Now behold, I have made you today as a fortified city and as a pillar of iron and as walls of bronze against the whole land, to the kings of Judah, to its princes, to its priests and to the people of the land.  They will fight against you, but they will not overcome you, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the Lord.”  Jeremiah 1:16-19.

When Jeremiah was seized by the priests and the prophets, and they said “You must die!”, I am not sure if Jeremiah remembered the words:  “They will fight against you, but they will not overcome you, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the Lord.”, because Jeremiah did say to them:  “But as for me, behold, I am in your hands;  do with me as is good and right in your sight.  Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, and on this city and on its inhabitants;  for truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”  Verses 14-15.

Jeremiah seemed to forget himself and the things that were his.  But, Jeremiah remembered and spoke every word of what the LORD commanded him to speak to the people. 

The following is one of the “slide show” quotes at the Home Page of the web site of the Protestant Reformed Churches.  Here is a link – http://www.prca.org/

“We are not our own;  therefore, let us not make it our end to seek what may be agreeable to our carnal nature.  We are not our own; therefore, as far as possible, let us forget ourselves and the things that are ours.” ~ John Calvin.

“Q. 1.  What is thy only comfort in life and death?

 A.  That I with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ;  who, with His precious blood, hath fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil;  and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head;  yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by His Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto Him.”  Heidelberg Catechism.

“for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord;  therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.”  Romans 14:8.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 25:12-38.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+25&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“For thus the Lord, the God of Israel, says to me, “Take this cup of the wine of wrath from My hand and cause all the nations to whom I send you to drink it.  They will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.”

Then I took the cup from the Lord’s hand and made all the nations to whom the Lord sent me drink it:  Jerusalem and the cities of Judah and its kings and its princes, to make them a ruin, a horror, a hissing and a curse, as it is this day;  Pharaoh king of Egypt, his servants, his princes and all his people;  and all the foreign people, all the kings of the land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the Philistines (even Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron and the remnant of Ashdod);  Edom, Moab and the sons of Ammon;  and all the kings of Tyre, all the kings of Sidon and the kings of the coastlands which are beyond the sea;  and Dedan, Tema, Buz and all who cut the corners of their hair;  and all the kings of Arabia and all the kings of the foreign people who dwell in the desert;  and all the kings of Zimri, all the kings of Elam and all the kings of Media;  and all the kings of the north, near and far, one with another;  and all the kingdoms of the earth which are upon the face of the ground, and the king of Sheshach shall drink after them.

“You shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Drink, be drunk, vomit, fall and rise no more because of the sword which I will send among you.”’  And it will be, if they refuse to take the cup from your hand to drink, then you will say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts:  “You shall surely drink!  For behold, I am beginning to work calamity in this city which is called by My name, and shall you be completely free from punishment?  You will not be free from punishment;  for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,” declares the Lord of hosts.’”  Jeremiah 25:15-29.

————————-

“For behold, I am beginning to work calamity in this city which is called by My name, and shall you be completely free from punishment?  You will not be free from punishment;  for I am summoning a sword against all the inhabitants of the earth,” declares the Lord of hosts.’”  Verse 29.

“For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God;  and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?  And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless man and the sinner?  Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.”  1 Peter 4:17-19.

“The end of all things is near;  therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.  Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.  Be hospitable to one another without complaint.  As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.  Whoever speaks, is to do so as one who is speaking the utterances of God;  whoever serves is to do so as one who is serving by the strength which God supplies; so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever.  Amen.”  1 Peter 4:7-11.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 25:1-11.

“The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah (that was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon), which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, “From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even to this day, these twenty-three years the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened.  And the Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets again and again, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear, saying, ‘Turn now everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds, and dwell on the land which the Lord has given to you and your forefathers forever and ever;  and do not go after other gods to serve them and to worship them, and do not provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands, and I will do you no harm.’  Yet you have not listened to Me,” declares the Lord, “in order that you might provoke Me to anger with the work of your hands to your own harm.

“Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Because you have not obeyed My words, behold, I will send and take all the families of the north,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will send to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants and against all these nations round about;  and I will utterly destroy them and make them a horror and a hissing, and an everlasting desolation.  Moreover, I will take from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones and the light of the lamp.  This whole land will be a desolation and a horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years.”  Jeremiah 25:1-11.

————————— 

“… even to this day, these twenty-three years the word of the Lord has come to me, and I have spoken to you again and again, but you have not listened.  And the Lord has sent to you all His servants the prophets again and again, but you have not listened nor inclined your ear to hear …”  Verses 3-4.

We all must agree.  This is very familiar Scripture.  It seems like we read in every chapter similar Scripture of the LORD’s warning, call to repentance, the failure of the people to listen, and prophecy.

Why did the LORD wait so long to punish?

The LORD wanted to show His patience, His lovingkindness, and His justice.

“‘The Lord is slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression;  but He will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generations.’”  Numbers 14:18. 

“What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?  And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.  As He says also in Hosea,

Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, “Though the number of the sons of Israel be like the sand of the sea, it is the remnant that will be saved;  for the Lord will execute His word on the earth, thoroughly and quickly.”  Romans 9:22-28.

“Thus says the Lord, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches;  but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth;  for I delight in these things,” declares the Lord.”  Jeremiah 9:23-24.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 24.

“After Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the officials of Judah with the craftsmen and smiths from Jerusalem and had brought them to Babylon, the Lord showed me:  behold, two baskets of figs set before the temple of the Lord!  One basket had very good figs, like first-ripe figs, and the other basket had very bad figs which could not be eaten due to rottenness.  Then the Lord said to me, “What do you see, Jeremiah?”  And I said, “Figs, the good figs, very good;  and the bad figs, very bad, which cannot be eaten due to rottenness.”

Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘Like these good figs, so I will regard as good the captives of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans.  For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land;  and I will build them up and not overthrow them, and I will plant them and not pluck them up.  I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord;  and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.

‘But like the bad figs which cannot be eaten due to rottenness—indeed, thus says the Lord—so I will abandon Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials, and the remnant of Jerusalem who remain in this land and the ones who dwell in the land of Egypt.  I will make them a terror and an evil for all the kingdoms of the earth, as a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse in all places where I will scatter them.  I will send the sword, the famine and the pestilence upon them until they are destroyed from the land which I gave to them and their forefathers.’”  Jeremiah chapter 24.

———————-

There is good fruit, and there is bad fruit.  This sharp distinction is an illustration of the sharp distinction between God’s elect and the non-elect.

For God’s elect, God does everything for them. 

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.  For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;  and these whom He predestined, He also called;  and these whom He called, He also justified;  and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”  Romans 8:28-30.

“For I will set My eyes on them for good, and I will bring them again to this land;  and I will build them up and not overthrow them, and I will plant them and not pluck them up.”  Verse 6.

And, even though God’s elect may experience trials and tribulations, like the “good figs” who went into captivity into Babylon, God preserves them through it.

God is the One Who makes good fruit.

“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad;  for the tree is known by its fruit.”  Matthew 12:33. 

“So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.”  Matthew 7:17-19.

“I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord;  and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.”  Verse 7.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.  In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.  In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.  …”  Ephesians 1:3-8.

“²³ “Am I a God who is near,” declares the Lord,
“And not a God far off?
²⁴ “Can a man hide himself in hiding places
So I do not see him?” declares the Lord.
“Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the Lord.

²⁵ “I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy falsely in My name, saying, ‘I had a dream, I had a dream!’  ²⁶ How long?  Is there anything in the hearts of the prophets who prophesy falsehood, even these prophets of the deception of their own heart, ²⁷ who intend to make My people forget My name by their dreams which they relate to one another, just as their fathers forgot My name because of Baal?  ²⁸ The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth.  What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the Lord.  ²⁹ “Is not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?  ³⁰ Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the Lord, “who steal My words from each other.  ³¹ Behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the Lord, “who use their tongues and declare, ‘The Lord declares.’  ³² Behold, I am against those who have prophesied false dreams,” declares the Lord, “and related them and led My people astray by their falsehoods and reckless boasting;  yet I did not send them or command them, nor do they furnish this people the slightest benefit,” declares the Lord.”  Jeremiah 23:23-32.

———————

“Is not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”  Verse 29.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  John 1:1. 

“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made,
And by the breath of His mouth all their host.”  Psalm 33:6.

“So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth;
It will not return to Me empty,
Without accomplishing what I desire,
And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”  Isaiah 55:11.

“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”  Hebrews 4:12.

“for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.  For,

And this is the word which was preached to you.”  1 Peter 1:23-25.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 23:9-22.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+23&version=NASB

I quote only the following Scriptures.

“¹³ “Moreover, among the prophets of Samaria I saw an offensive thing:
They prophesied by Baal and led My people Israel astray.
¹⁴ “Also among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing:
The committing of adultery and walking in falsehood;
And they strengthen the hands of evildoers,
So that no one has turned back from his wickedness.
All of them have become to Me like Sodom,
And her inhabitants like Gomorrah.

¹⁵ “Therefore thus says the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets,