These verses in Jeremiah 31:7-14 picture for us the joy of the restored people of God. Described in these verses are four promises of God. Firstly, there would be joyful worship. The first part of three verses ( 7, 12, and 13) gives a sense of the joy of worship. Verse 7a says, “Sing aloud with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations….” Verse 12a says “They will come and shout for joy on the height of Zion….” And verse 13a says, “Then the virgin will rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old together….” These essentially describe the activities involved in joyful worship.
We are created for worship, and it is a meaningful activity that
should be a believer’s top priority in life. worship of our great God meaningfully engaged
brings great joy. It’s a celebration of His goodness in our lives. We are made to worship God. And
every activity that seeks to glorify God is an act of worship. The Westminster Shorter
Catechism starts out by saying the says the chief end of man is to glorify God and
enjoy Him forever. We are made to
worship God and only in worshipping Him can we be fully at rest and satisfied.
The second promise in verse 7b was for God’s people to pray. He
said, “Proclaim, give praise, and say, ‘O Lord, save Your people, the remnant of Israel.” Following the
call to pray, God’s response in verse 8 says,
“Behold, I am bringing them from the north country, and I will gather
them from the remote parts of the earth, among them the blind and
the lame, the woman with child and she who is in labor with child,
together; a great company, they will return here.” In answer to their
prayer, God would return people to the
land. From the four corners of the earth, wherever they were scattered God would be
gathering them. Regardless of their afflictions or condition, they would return to the land. Verse 9 God promised that by supplication He would lead them.
Like them, homecoming to God for us begins when we pray the
sinner’s prayer. And that must not be the only prayer we pray. We must cultivate
the discipline of a prayerful life. God wants to collaborate with us in this spiritual journey.
Prayer is a human-divine collaboration. Without God we cannot but without us praying God
will not. Prayer helps us to bring our most challenging needs to God. He
promised that if we ask, we will receive, if we seek we will find, and if we knock
the door will be opened to us. So let’s keep asking, seeking, and knocking.
Thirdly, we see the promise of preservation. Verse 8 mentions the blind, the lame, and the pregnant. These
people were specially mentioned because without
God’s protection and preservation how could such people
survive the journey. God as their father would see them through. His promise made
to these afflicted people in verse 9 says, “I will make them walk
by streams of waters, on a straight path in which they will not
stumble.” It’s a reference to His preservation.
Fourthly, in verses 12-14, God made the promise of provision. Spiritually and physically God would provide
their needs. In much the same way, we who have been ransomed by the Lord will walk
with Him and will never fear a lack of provision. He is our shepherd, and we shall
never be in want. What a privilege to have such a loving Heavenly Father. Let
us not cease to worship and pray as we enjoy His preservation and provision
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