Daniel 4:35 "And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and He doeth according to His will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay His Hand, or say unto Him, What doest Thou?" God is the God of all nations and He does what He will do among the nations freely. None can stay His Hand or say to Him, "What doest Thou?" Nothing happens upon this earth but what comes from His Sovereign Hand. "Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus" (Romans 9:20)? "Our God is in the heavens: He hath done whatsoever He hath pleased" (Psalm 115:3). "Who raised the Righteous Man from the east, called Him to His foot, gave the nations before Him, and made Him rule over kings" (Isaiah 41:2)? Christ is that Righteous Man raised up from the east by God His Father. He is that One Who came and earned a righteousness, established it and upon completion of His work, God the Father imputed it to a people that He purposed to save from eternity. God has a particular people called Israel which means a "prince with God," not speaking of natural Israel, but of a Spiritual Israel that God has chosen to save: "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvelous light:" (1 Peter 2:9). "Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel; I will help thee, saith the LORD, and Thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel" (Isaiah 41:14). Regardless of what the world says or does, there are sinners throughout the world, in every tribe, nation, and tongue (Revelation 7:9) who are the apple of God's eye, chosen sinners for whom Christ came, lived, died, and rose again. He did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Nor did He come to try to save everybody (John 17:1-12) . If any are lifted in pride and think themselves something, to be one of God's chosen, He reminds us who we are, "thou worm." If we get our backs up against one another and our heads lifted in pride, remember it is nothing but one worm lifting up its head against another worm, crawling over another. Still worms regardless. Anything we are is only by God's Grace, the work of the LORD Jesus Christ, Who came and accomplished the salvation of His people. He came as the Conquering King, He came as the Deliverer of His people, the Captain of Salvation. "But God, Who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by Grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: that in the ages to come He might shew the exceeding riches of His Grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. For by Grace are ye saved through Faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:4-9).

Daniel 7:9 "I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of Days did sit, Whose garment was white as snow..." Some preach that the sinful flesh of men is made " white as snow " while we're here in this wilderness, getting better and better by sinning less and less, but any who are truly the LORD's know that's not true. Our flesh will never 'get better,' and although it doesn't get worse, it seems that way to the awakened sinner because we're made to see the God-Man Who made His " garment " " white as snow " by perfect obedience unto death. "...though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow..." (Isaiah 1:18). Christ is the Way our sins are changed from blood-shed red, the color of death, to pristine white, the color of Light and Life. His righteous flesh is the flesh God sees while we are here on this earth; we don't 'patch up' our sinful skin with our own works and some of His: "No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment..." (Matthew 9:16). We mourn over our sin but rejoice in Him. We don't see His work on the cross as a path to sin freely. Our mouths are shut to our own progress, because there is none. We pray for Him to keep us from the evil of sin and to keep us looking to Him at all times: "...the Ancient of Days {the God-Man} Whose garment was white as snow..."

Ezekiel 37:3 "And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O LORD God , thou knowest." Ezekiel 37 is part of the prophet’s visions given during the Babylonian exile (circa 593–571 B.C.) . Ezekiel ministered to the Jewish exiles in Babylon after Jerusalem was destroyed in 586 B.C. by King Nebuchadnezzar. The people of Judah had lost their homeland, their temple, and their national identity. They were spiritually desolate and without hope , much like the “very dry bones” Ezekiel sees in the vision. The valley of dry bones  symbolizes the utter hopelessness of Israel’s condition —politically scattered, spiritually dead, and cut off from God’s covenant blessings. When God asks, “Can these bones live?”  He confronts Ezekiel (and through him, Israel) with a question about divine power and faith. Humanly speaking, the situation was beyond recovery. Yet the question directs the prophet to affirm that God alone can restore life to what is dead. The LORD brings His servant into the valley — a place full of bones, very many, and very dry. There is no sign of movement, no trace of life, no sound but silence. This is the picture of man without God, a nation without the Spirit, a soul without Christ. Ezekiel looks upon the bones and sees death everywhere, yet he does not answer according to sight. He does not reason, nor does he presume. He lifts his eyes to the LORD and says, “ O LORD God, Thou knowest.” That confession is faith bowing before divine sovereignty. It is the acknowledgment that only God can make the dead live again. What Ezekiel cannot do, what no preacher, no nation, no power of man can accomplish, God alone can perform. We were the dry bones, scattered, lifeless, and without hope (Ephesians 2:1–5). Sin had stripped us bare, and death reigned over us (Romans 5:12). Yet God, Who commanded the light to shine out of darkness (2 Corinthians 4:6), still speaks life where there is none. The same LORD Who asked, “Can these bones live?” now says, “Live.” His Word is creative and powerful. When He speaks, the bones come together, bone to his bone; flesh covers them, breath enters them, and they stand upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Here we see Christ, the Word made flesh (John 1:14), the very breath of God come into the world. He is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25). In Him is the answer to the question. Can these bones live? Yes — through Christ Who died and rose again (Romans 6:9–10) . In His death He entered the valley for us; in His resurrection He filled it with life. He spoke to the tomb and said, “Lazarus, come forth” (John 11:43), and the dead man lived. He spoke peace to the thief on the cross, and a condemned sinner entered paradise (Luke 23:43). When the Son of God speaks, the dead hear His voice and live (John 5:24–25). The LORD asked the question not because He did not know the answer, but to bring Ezekiel to see that the hope of life does not rest in the bones, nor in the prophet, but in God Himself. “O Lord God, Thou knowest.” This is the language of trust. The LORD knows how to make the dead live. He knows how to revive His people. He knows those He has chosen in Christ, for whom Christ paid their sin debt and does, in time, give them life, by His Spirit to raise them from spiritual deadness into newness of life in Christ. This He did already when Christ died and rose again (Ephesians 2:6) , and now from glory He is calling out each one for whom He died. The Word and the Spirit always work together. The LORD said, “Prophesy unto these bones” (Ezekiel 37:4). The Word went forth, and then came the breath — the Spirit of God moving where He wills (John 3:8). So it is in the Gospel. The Word of Christ is preached, and the Spirit brings that Word to life in the hearts of the hearers. Flesh cannot create life, but the Spirit gives life through the Word (2 Corinthians 3:6). That is why Christ said, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). The question still echoes across every valley of despair and unbelief: “Can these bones live?” The answer is not found in man’s strength, in religion, or in resolve. It is found in CHRIST ALONE. When He breathes upon the slain, they live. When He speaks, the grave yields. When He commands, the heart of stone becomes a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26). “ Son of man, can these bones live? ” Yes — because the LORD Jesus ever lives to intercede for each one for whom He paid the debt (Revelation 1:18).

Ezekiel 20:6 "In the day that I lifted mine hand unto them, to bring them forth of the land of Egypt into a land that I had espied for them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands:" This verse is a powerful testimony to God's covenant faithfulness, both historically in Israel’s deliverance from Egypt and spiritually in the greater redemption found in Christ. Historically, it recalls God's sovereign grace in choosing Israel, delivering them from bondage, and leading them to a land of promise. Spiritually, it foreshadows the fulfillment of His covenant of grace through Jesus Christ, Who delivers His people from the slavery of sin and the bondage of the law into their eternal inheritance in His kingdom. This kingdom, which Christ came to establish, was consummated in His resurrection from the dead and His ascension into glory (Acts 2:32-36) . Therefore, this inspired Word of God not only recounts the history of Israel’s redemption but also magnifies its greater fulfillment in Jesus Christ, in Whom all the promises of God are "yea, and in him Amen" (2 Corinthians 1:20). It is through Him that believers are led out of darkness and into the glorious kingdom prepared for them before the foundation of the world (Colossians 1:13; Matthew 25:34) . The lifting of God's hand signifies His solemn oath and unchanging purpose. Just as He swore to bring Israel into Canaan, He has also established an everlasting covenant in Christ, securing the inheritance of the saints (Hebrews 6:17-18). The land "flowing with milk and honey" serves as a type of the spiritual blessings found in Christ, Who is Himself the true and living Way into the ultimate promised rest of God (Hebrews 4:9). This was the "city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God" to which Abraham looked by faith (Hebrews 11:10). Natural-minded readers of the Bible will typically interpret this passage in a literal, earthly sense, for only the Spirit of God can give eyes to see its fulfillment in Christ. Many still look for a physical, earthly kingdom, with natural Jerusalem as its capital, to which all nations will flow in some future millennial reign. Those with natural understanding believe this passage refers to the physical land of Israel, expecting an earthly restoration of that land to a privileged status among the nations before the end of time. But to believe this is to contradict the prophetic Word, which declares that when Christ came the first time, He established His kingdom on earth in His Person. He is now seated in heaven, ruling and reigning over His true Israel—the elect from every tribe, nation, and tongue, both Jew and Gentile—whom He redeemed with His blood (Revelation 1.5.6). The true Promised Land is Christ in glory! The land flowing with milk and honey is the grace of God that flows from Christ, the Savior and King, to His people (1 Peter 2:2). The Psalmist declared, "How sweet are thy words unto my taste! Yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" (Psalm 119:103). And again, "Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honeycomb: honey and milk are under thy tongue" (Song of Solomon 4:11). Christ, the living Word of God, is the true nourishment of His people. Ezekiel 20:6 speaks of God’s promise to bring His people into "a land flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands." This promise finds its ultimate fulfillment in Christ, who is the true Promised Land for believers. Just as Canaan was a place of rest, abundance, and divine blessing, so the Lord Jesus is the promised rest for His people (Matthew 11:28) , their spiritual nourishment (John 6:35) , and the fullness of God’s blessings (Ephesians 1:3) . Through Him, we inherit the riches of God’s grace, making Him the true and perfect fulfillment of the land flowing with milk and honey. Christ is the Promised Land, in whom all His chosen race dwells—now and forever—having entered into His rest through His finished work on the cross. "But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city" (Hebrews 11:16). He is the Glory of all lands, the true Bread of Life that feeds His people, and the pure milk that nourishes His lambs. "For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes" (Revelation 7:17).

Ezekiel 16:6,7 "And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou was in thy blood, Live. I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare." "And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood..." Although already fulfilled in the history of Israel in bringing them out of captivity from Egypt, nevertheless, it is a symbolic picture of how God finds and calls out His Spiritual Israel, the remnant of Grace, from deadness in sin (polluted in thine own blood). "I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live..." None can live but those whom God causes to live by His Spirit. That Life is in His Son, the LORD Jesus, and all who hear and believe on Him already have been given Everlasting Life by Him. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on Him that sent me, hath Everlasting Life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto Life" (John 5:24). That’s why they believe, and that Life is in God’s Son, "And this is Life Eternal, that they might know Thee the Only True God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent" (John 17:3). It is by God’s command, and not man’s will, "But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:12-13). "I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field" Here, the young nation of Israel, which originally went into Egypt as a small remnant of 70 (Deuteronomy 10:22) , is described as a young maiden whom God would take and espouse to Himself, through the mediator Moses. It is a figure of God’s true church (Jew and Gentile) for whom the LORD Jesus would come in the fullness of the time, pay her sin debt, and take to Himself for His Church, as a bridegroom takes His bride to Himself. The multiplying and blessing of those whom God the Father has given to His Son are described symbolically as a ‘bud’ of the field that is caused to grow and multiply. The bud (singular) of the field is the LORD Jesus. "Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ" (Gal. 3:16). As the Seed of God, the LORD Jesus came to be sown in the field of this world, suffer and die, and rise again to bring forth fruit—the children of God throughout the world—that He redeemed, reconciled, and justified before God. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit" (John 12:24). "And thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare." National Israel was but small in number when the LORD brought them out of Egypt and established them in the promised land. The people are described as a young virgin that the LORD clothed with excellent ornaments, whose breasts were firm and beautiful, with a full head of hair grown and attractive, but initially naked and bare, apart from the LORD being gracious having clothed her as a young maiden in a beautiful dress. Spiritually, as jewels and rich vestments set off a beautiful person, so the Church of the LORD Jesus is adorned with every Spiritual blessing in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). He was made unto His elect Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification, and Redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). The luster of her beauty (breasts and hair) is that of the LORD Jesus Christ, adorned with the choicest blessings of the riches of His grace (Ephesians 2:7). The Church (elect and redeemed sinners) was naked and bare, having nothing in themselves but poverty, stripped of any glory because of the fall. And yet it pleased God to choose her out of all the earth to make her His people for Christ's sake. The LORD Jesus, in coming to the earth in the flesh, redeemed and justified her unto God, and clothed her in His Righteousness—naked and bare no more, but resplendent in the garments of salvation with which He has clothed her and made her beautiful and accepted before God the Father, and as a bride adorned for her Husband (Christ). "I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels" (Isaiah 61:10).

Lamentations 3:1-23 "I Am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light. Surely against me is he turned; he turneth his hand against me all the day. My flesh and my skin hath he made old; he hath broken my bones. He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and travail. He hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old. He hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out: he hath made my chain heavy. Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer. He hath inclosed my ways with hewn stone, he hath made my paths crooked. He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places. He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me desolate. He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow. He hath caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins. I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day. He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood. He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes. And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgat prosperity. And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the LORD: Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me. This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." “I Am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of His wrath” ( v.1 ). In these opening words of Lamentations 3, the prophet speaks not only of himself but gives a shadow picture of Christ Jesus, the true Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with grief ( Isaiah 53:3 ) . Jeremiah, under the hand of Divine judgment, stands as a type of the LORD Jesus Who was sent to bear the wrath of His Father on behalf of His people ( Romans 8:32 ). Through his suffering, Jeremiah foreshadowed that greater affliction by which the salvation of the elect of God was accomplished. He was afflicted for the sins of Judah, the very tribe from which Christ should come ( Genesis 49:10 , Hebrews 7:14 ). So we behold in these verses a man afflicted of the LORD, and yet through him, the prefiguring of the Savior Who would bear all the grief, all the travail, and all the darkness that God's law and justice required for the sin of His people. “He hath led me and brought me into darkness, but not into light” ( v.2 ). How this pictures the hour of our LORD’s suffering—the darkness that covered the land ( Matthew 27:45 ) , the night of betrayal in the garden ( Luke 22:53 ) , the hour when they came to arrest Him. He endured the darkness that we might walk in His light ( John 8:12 ). Jeremiah says, “Surely against me is He turned” ( v.3 ). Even so, it was written, “He spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” ( Romans 8:32 ). It was not hatred, but justice. Wrath means justice. God never hated His Son, but His justice had to be satisfied ( Isaiah 53:10–11 ). The law stood against Christ as the Substitute, and therefore He endured the sword, the bow, and the arrows of God the Father's purpose, until all was fulfilled to His satisfaction. The prophet says, “He hath broken my bones” ( v.4 ) , and though no bone of our LORD was broken ( John 19:36 ), yet His soul was poured out unto death ( Isaiah 53:12 ). He speaks of “bitterness” and of being “filled with wormwood and gall ” ( Lamentations 3:5,15 ). Is that not what they gave our LORD to drink? ( Matthew 27:34 ) The travail of His soul is here pictured—the bitter cup of God’s wrath drunk down to the last drop ( Matthew 26:39 ) . “He hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out” ( v.7 ). Christ never sought to be removed from under that heavy hand, for He came to fulfill all righteousness ( John 18:11 , Matthew 3:15 ) . “He hath made my chain heavy.” The heaviest chain was the debt of sin He bore ( 2 Corinthians 5:21 ). Every step of affliction was by Divine purpose, and in that, Jeremiah’s suffering mirrors Christ’s willing submission. In verse ten, he says, “He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places” ( v.10 ). So it was with the sword of Divine justice that the LORD struck His Son ( Zechariah 13:7 ). “He hath bent His bow and set me as a mark for the arrow” ( v.12 ) . The arrows of His quiver entered into His reins ( v.13 ). Nothing missed its mark; every stroke was according to God’s perfect will ( Acts 2:23, 4.28 ) . He became “a derision to all my people, and their song all the day” ( v.14 ). They mocked Him, wagging their heads, saying, “ He saved others; Himself He cannot save” ( Mark 15:29–31 ). “He hath filled me with bitterness,” the prophet says, and we hear in that the echo of Calvary, where the Judge of all the earth condemned sin in the flesh of His own Son ( Romans 8:3 ). Then comes the turning: “Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall, my soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me” ( v.19,20 ) . Through the affliction, humility was wrought. Jeremiah bowed beneath the hand of God, acknowledging His justice and righteousness. Christ, though equal with God, humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross ( Philippians 2:6–8 ). Out of that humility rises hope. “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope” ( v.21 ). Here is the Gospel dawn: “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness” ( v.22,23 ) . Christ was consumed by the fire of God’s wrath as the burnt offering ( Leviticus 6:12–13 , Hebrews 10:10 ) , yet as the Altar—Divine and Eternal—He was not consumed ( Hebrews 7:24–25 ). Out of the darkness of judgment came the morning of resurrection ( Matthew 28:1–6 ). Every morning ends the night. Every morning declares that His mercies are new, that His compassions fail not. The dawn that broke over the empty tomb declares, “Great is Thy faithfulness” (Deuteronomy 7:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:24). Thankfully, what was a lament becomes a song of Hope. In the affliction of Jeremiah, we see the shadow; in Christ crucified and risen, the Substance ( Colossians 2:17 ). Through His sorrow, peace is established ( Isaiah 53:5 , Ephesians 2:14–16 ); through His death, life eternal ( John 11:25–26 ). We give praise and glory to the Father Who, through His faithful Son, has brought forth mercy that is new every morning. Great indeed is HIS faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:31,32 "For the Lord will not cast off forever: But though He cause grief, yet will He have compassion according to the multitude of His mercies." In the book of Lamentations, the prophet Jeremiah grapples with profound grief and sorrow. Jerusalem lies in ruins, and Judah, the lineage of the LORD Jesus Christ, has suffered devastation. The book is filled with lamentations, cries of pain, and anguish. Yet, in the midst of such darkness, the beautiful truth of grace and redemption shines forth, serving as the foundation of hope: God's love and compassion for sinners shine brightest against the backdrop of the darkness of sin and judgment. Lamentations 3:31-32  holds a powerful reminder of God's character. First, we are told, “For the Lord will not cast off forever.” This is a declaration of hope. It speaks to the fact that God’s hand, though heavy, does not culminate in judgment and condemnation for His chosen remnant. There is a time of sorrow and correction, but it is not permanent. God's purpose, even in the suffering of His children, is always accompanied by His grace and not His wrath. Hebrews 12:6-11 : "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore, we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." In our lives as God's children, we may feel as if He has abandoned us in our grief, affliction, and sorrow. Whether we are walking through personal loss, facing overwhelming challenges, or enduring feelings of isolation, it is easy to assume that God has forgotten us. But these verses remind us that God's love is steadfast, and His compassion never expires. His discipline may be painful, but His ultimate purpose is never destruction—it is always restoration. He will not cast us off forever. As the Great Shepherd of His sheep, He cares for His own more than they could ever care for themselves. The next verse deepens this truth: "But though He cause grief, yet will He have compassion according to the multitude of His mercies." Here, we are confronted with the paradox of God's sovereign love and that He causes grief. It is not that God delights in causing pain and grief in the lives of His children, or desires to harm us in any way. Rather, even while causing the suffering, He is compassionate, and His love is abundant. Much like a physician who must inflict pain to bring healing to the patient, so the LORD brings grief and sorrow into the lives of His children to wean them from any confidence in the flesh and cause them to look to Him alone for their spiritual health and well-being. Those whom God loves, He loves with an everlasting love for Christ's sake. "Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee" (Jeremiah 31:3). There is no limit to His love, nor any variableness in how He deals with His children. Those He set His love upon, He did so from eternity and gave them to His Son to pay their sin debt. It is the Son Who has borne all the wrath due His elect, so that in dealing with them in life and causing them grief, it is for their correction, because He loves them. There is not an ounce of wrath in His dealings with them because the LORD Jesus has already borne the wrath (justice) of God on their behalf. Even in the darkest hours, His love is directing His actions and brings good to His children through it all (Romans 8:28). Pause for a moment and consider—God’s mercies (literally: loving kindnesses ) are infinitely abundant. His mercy is so vast, so limitless, that it will overflow to meet us as His children in our greatest need. When we feel overwhelmed by grief, God’s compassion or mercies never run dry. When the pain of either body or soul seemingly becomes unbearable, and the LORD causes us to cry out to Him, He always hears and responds with tenderness. His love is steadfast and never failing. It is a love that pursues us, even when we are at our lowest. He will not leave us in our sorrow but graciously restores us with His mercy. This is not some general mercy that the LORD extends to everyone. Rather, His mercies flow to His children through the LORD Jesus Christ, God’s Mercy Seat. Just as in the Old Testament, the Mercy Seat was sprinkled with the blood of bulls and goats, Christ is the fulfillment in the New Testament, having shed His blood unto death to redeem and justify before God everyone for whom He paid the debt. Because He is the faithful High Priest who ever lives to intercede for every elected sinner, it is by Him and through Him that the Father continues to deal mercifully with them. "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:15-16). The message of Lamentations 3:31-32  is not just one of hope in the future; it’s a present reality. In our day-to-day struggles, we can rest in the knowledge that God is compassionate, loving, kind, and forgiving for Christ's sake. Not because we deserve it, but rather because we have been given to the LORD Jesus from eternity, and the LORD Jesus, having come to earn and establish the righteousness necessary for God to be just and justify us, completed that work at the cross. Therefore, God the Father continues to be loving and kind to each one of His blood-bought and Spirit-sought children. He does not, therefore, inflict suffering forever, since His chastening is designed to draw us ever closer to the LORD Jesus in our hearts and experience. There is light after the darkness and calm after the storm. The very same God Who causes the sorrow is the One Who will use it to lead us continually into the everlasting arms of the LORD Jesus. Therefore, in times of hardship, we remember this: God’s love is deeper, more steadfast, and more abundant than anything we could ever face. Even when it feels like we are drowning, because our salvation is Christ, we can never perish.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." In this pivotal passage of the Old Testament, a message of hope shines through amidst judgment. The prophet foretells a coming day when the LORD will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. Unlike the former covenant made when the LORD took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt—a covenant they broke—this new covenant is not a mere restoration of what was lost under the law. Rather, it is the Revelation of God’s eternal purpose fulfilled in His Son, the True Israel. In the old covenant, the law was written on tablets of stone. It demanded obedience, yet such obedience could never be achieved by fallen man. Even Adam, though created upright, fell. His fall was necessary, for Christ had already been appointed as the last Adam—the One Who would fulfill all Righteousness on behalf of His people (1 Corinthians 15:45-47). The law required perfect obedience; Christ alone rendered it perfectly. In Him, every demand of the law is fully satisfied (Galatians 4:4-5). Thus, the new covenant does not abolish or lessen the law, but brings it to completion in the Perfect obedience of the LORD Jesus Christ (Matthew 5:17). The LORD declares, “I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people” (v.33). This is the work of the Spirit in conversion. The Spirit takes and writes upon the heart that obedience which the law required. It is not the hand of man carving cold commandments upon stone, but the Hand of God engraving the Life and Love of Christ upon the heart. This is what it means to be born of God—to have Christ revealed in the inward parts. When the LORD says they shall no more teach every man his neighbor and every man his brother, saying, "Know the LORD," He is revealing the nature of this new covenant. It is personal, Spiritual, and inward. The knowledge of God is not learned through outward ordinances or enforced by human instruction. It is the Revelation of Christ through the Gospel, the work of the Spirit opening blind eyes to behold Him. That is what true preaching is—a declaration of Christ, not a preaching of rules, regulations, laws, and conditions. Many go back to the old law and try to mix grace and works, but “if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain” (Galatians 2:21). The new covenant leaves no room for human merit or boasting. It is all of Grace. It rests entirely upon the finished work of Christ. The LORD Himself declares, “I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more” (Jeremiah v.34). No law can do that. No mortal man’s obedience can accomplish it. This is the work of Christ the God/Man alone. At the cross, the debt was fully paid. There, in His death, Righteousness was established and sin was put away. From that moment, nothing remained but Righteousness for God to impute to His elect people. It was not accomplished when one believed it, nor when one saw it—it was accomplished at the cross. The new covenant is the covenant in His blood, shed for many (Matthew 26:28). It is the covenant of Grace, not of rules and regulations, not of do’s and don’ts, but of mercy obtained in Christ Jesus. Here is hope for the true Israel—those chosen in Christ, redeemed by His blood, and indwelt by His Spirit. The covenant made in Him cannot be broken, for it rests not on man’s will but on God’s Purpose. In the face of judgment and condemnation, this promise stands: “They shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them” (v.34). The LORD reveals Himself to elect sinners through the Gospel. He forgives their iniquity. He remembers their sins no more, because of Christ's work at the cross, (Hebrews 8:12). This is the heart of the Gospel—the new covenant sealed in His blood. It is not written on stone, but on the heart. It is not upheld by the law, but sustained by Grace. It is not accomplished by man, but by Christ, the True Israel, Who perfectly fulfilled the law, bore its curse, and obtained eternal redemption and forgiveness for His people (Hebrews 9:12). All glory be to the LORD Jesus Christ, the Righteousness of His people and the Everlasting Seal of the new covenant.

Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" When we think of wickedness, we often point to the dark deeds of the world—murder, adultery, deception, and corruption. Yet God’s Word declares that wickedness is not first what people do, but who people are . It is the very nature of man’s heart since the fall of Adam: “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). By nature, we are “children of wrath, even as others” (Ephesians 2:3). The greatest evidence of this depravity is not only in how man treats man but in how man approaches God. Outward religion abounds—many profess to worship God, many “make a show of religion,” but the Scripture reveals that the natural heart does not know, nor love, the God of the Bible. “There is none righteous, no, not one: there is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God” (Romans 3:10–11). People will gladly embrace a god of their imagination, but when confronted with the God Who is Holy, Just, and Sovereign—Who “doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?” (Daniel 4:35) —the carnal heart cries, “He is not my God.” Left to ourselves, we seek our own way. “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way” (Isaiah 53:6). Some pursue outward morality, some rely on religious duties, some rest in ceremonies and rituals. But the testimony of God’s Word is this: “To be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6). The heart is deceitful—it may appear good in man’s eyes, but it is separated from God. It may be zealous, but “not according to knowledge” (Romans 10:2) . It may honor Him with the lips, but the heart is far from Him (Matthew 15:8). Here is the wonder of God's Grace in Christ: though we are dead, though we are deceived. Still, we are lovers of self and haters of God. The LORD Jesus Christ did not come to make salvation possible, nor to wait on the will of man, but to accomplish the redemption of His people. “Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him” (John 17:2). The Son of God laid down His life for the sheep (John 10:11) —for those the Father gave Him before the foundation of the world. His blood was not shed in vain; it was poured out for “God’s elect” (Romans 8:33), that their sins might be forgiven, their condemnation removed, and their righteousness obtained upon completion of His death on the cross. The redeemed sinner's Hope is: “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us” (Romans 8:33,34). Do you see yourself in the deceitfulness of the heart? Do you see that left to yourself, you would never seek Him, never love Him, never bow to Him? Then see the glory of Christ’s sovereignty. Salvation is not in you opening your heart, but in God by His Spirit opening it: “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you” (Ezekiel 36:26). It is not you allowing Christ, but Christ giving you life: “Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ” (Ephesians 2:5). It is not you clothing yourself, but God clothing you “with the robe of righteousness” (Isaiah 61:10), in the precious blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God. Our hearts are deceitful, but Christ is Faithful. Our nature is wicked, but Christ is Righteous. Our will is bound, but Christ is Sovereign. And in His Mercy, He casts the sins of His redeemed ones “into the depths of the sea” (Micah 7:19). Look away from yourself to Christ alone. Rest in His sovereign grace.

Jeremiah 13:20-25 " Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock? What wilt thou say when he shall punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be captains, and as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail? And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare. Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. Therefore, will I scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness. This is thy lot, the portion of thy measures from me, saith the Lord; because thou hast forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood." "Lift up your eyes, and behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was given thee, thy beautiful flock?" No one likes to think of God judging sinners, but the reality is that history records many ways that God has brought judgment on one nation by another. Here is predicted God’s impending judgment of the nation of Israel by a nation from the north (Babylon), which was fulfilled in Jeremiah’s lifetime, and his burden is recorded in the inspired book of Lamentations. "What wilt thou say when he shall punish thee?"  God is just in His punishment of sin, and none can say that He has unjustly punished them for their sin. We ought rather to marvel that He would be gracious to any. " … for thou hast taught them to be captains, and as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail?"   The Lord often uses a people’s sin and compromise as a means of judgment against them. This was the case with the nation of Israel, which, early on, turned to the Babylonians for help against their enemies, forming idolatrous and ungodly alliances. In time, like a woman in labor, they gave birth to judgment, brought upon them by the very ones in whom they had sought refuge. There can be no compromise between works and grace, or between man’s will and God’s will, without resulting in condemnation. "And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare." The sad state of those who are dead in their sin is that they question God and justify themselves, rather than justify God in His just dealings with sin, and question themselves. Our Lord Jesus pronounced the same judgment on the religious generation of His day- “ You are they who justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God,” Luke 16:15. Regardless of what men may think or say, the Lord declares the sinfulness of our sin. When the Spirit of God begins His gracious work in the heart of one of His redeemed and justified children, it is the depth and greatness of their iniquity that they are brought to acknowledge before the LORD. They come to agree with God, taking His side against themselves, and confess—not merely individual sins—but the utter abomination of their entire wretched state before Him. They trust wholly in the righteousness of God, which the LORD Jesus came to fulfill, earn, and establish as the obedient Son of the Father. Upon the completion of His once-for-all sacrificial death, the Father declared every one of His elect to be justified, righteous in His sight. If anyone believes they can change their ways by their efforts, let them hear the Word of the LORD: "Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil." To those who think so, there awaits only God’s eternal condemnation.  "Therefore will I scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness. This is thy lot, the portion of thy measures from me, saith the Lord; because thou hast forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood.” This addresses any confidence in the flesh, rather than in the LORD Jesus Christ and His finished work alone (Philippians 3:3). Historically, it declares the righteous judgment of God on rebellious Israel, declaring their just portion for forsaking Him and trusting in lies. More specifically, this underscores the truth that apart from God's electing mercy and effectual grace, sinners will always turn to falsehoods and idols rather than to the living God. Man, left to himself, forgets God and perishes in unbelief. But for those redeemed and justified at the cross, it is God's sovereign intervention—His irresistible grace—that turns the heart from vanity to truth, from their sinful rebellion to Christ.

Jeremiah 6:10  " To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they may hear? behold, their ear is uncircumcised, and they cannot hearken: behold, the word of the Lord is unto them a reproach; they have no delight in it." The prophet Jeremiah, under God's sovereign commission, delivers God’s indictment against Judah for their persistent rebellion and spiritual deafness. Though outwardly religious, the people despised the Word of the LORD and trusted in false peace. This verse laments their hardened condition. It exposes the utter inability of man, in his natural state, to receive or respond to the truth of God. Spiritual deafness is not a mere weakness—it is a willful rejection rooted in a corrupt nature. Only by the Spirit of God's sovereign intervention can the heart be opened, the ear unstopped, and the soul made willing in the day of His power. The uncircumcised ear points to the need for a circumcised heart—a work that Christ alone accomplishes for His elect through the Spirit and by the power of His finished work on the cross. This passage magnifies the necessity of sovereign grace, for it is only in Christ that the Word of the LORD becomes precious, life-giving, and effectual to save. This sobering lament from the prophet Jeremiah reveals the spiritual condition of a people hardened in unbelief. It is not merely a historical indictment against ancient Judah—it declares the universal plight of fallen sinners by nature: deaf to God’s Word, dead in trespasses, and hostile to the truth of God's grace in Christ (Romans 3:23). Jeremiah’s cry is more than that of a frustrated preacher; it is a divine lament from the LORD Himself, speaking through His servant. “To whom shall I speak, and give warning, that they may hear?”  This is not a question of needing to inform God, because God knows all things in His sovereign omniscience. He does not ask the question for information but rather as an expression of grief. It is as though God is saying, “Where are those who will listen? Who has a heart prepared to receive My Word?” But the answer is devastating: “their ear is uncircumcised, and they cannot hearken.” To be uncircumcised in heart and ear means to remain in the flesh—unregenerate, unresponsive, and unmoved by the truth. As Paul echoes in Romans 8:7 , “the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”   There is no neutral ground. Man in his fallen state does not merely refuse God’s Word—he cannot  hear it. It is not a matter of volume, clarity, or intellect. The issue lies in the heart. Until God's Spirit changes the heart, there is no hearing the Voice of the Shepherd. But why such rejection of the Word? The text tells us: “ the word of the LORD is unto them a reproach.”  The Word that brings light and life to God’s elect is to the natural man offensive, foolish, and intolerable. Why? Because it strips him of self-righteousness. It exalts Christ alone. It declares salvation to be of the LORD—not of man, not of merit, not of effort—but by grace alone, through faith in Christ alone. And that, to the unconverted flesh, is unbearable. Yet here is the glory of God's sovereign grace in Christ. Even though man cannot and will not hear, God is not hindered. The same LORD Who speaks in Jeremiah is the same Who, through Christ, makes the deaf to hear and the dead to live. Jesus declared in John 10:27, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”  How? Not by their natural ability, but by sovereign power. He gives ears to hear and hearts to believe. This is all by the grace of God alone. When God the Holy Spirit circumcises the heart, the Word is no longer a reproach but a delight. What was once hated becomes precious (1 Peter 2:7). What once condemned now comforts. Christ crucified, risen, and reigning becomes the soul’s Joy and Righteousness. This verse, then, drives us to dependence, not on man’s response, but on God’s regenerating grace. It reminds the preacher to cast the seed, but look to God to give the increase (Ecclesiastes 11:1). It warns every hearer not to trust in fleshly efforts or empty profession but to seek that true hearing which comes only by the Spirit of God. May we pray with humility: “Lord, give us ears to hear Your Word. Let us not despise the voice of Christ, but receive it with joy and trembling. Make our heart receptive to Your truth and our soul hungry for Your grace. For it is only by Your sovereign grace in Christ that any sinner ever hears and lives. Amen.”

Jeremiah 23:5,6 "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." Amid great apostasy and political upheaval, Jeremiah received from the LORD a message of hope—rooted not in national reform or human effort, but in the sovereign grace and will of God to save a remnant by the work of a coming Redeemer-King. The kings of Judah had failed. The shepherds of Israel had scattered the flock. Judgment was sure. Yet, the promise of a coming King—a righteous Branch from David—shined like a beacon in the darkness. This King would not merely be a reformer; He would be righteous. He would not simply restore political order; He would reign and prosper, executing true judgment and justice. And He would be called by this Divine and saving name: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS . This prophecy looked far beyond the return from Babylonian captivity or the installation of a better Davidic ruler. Its ultimate fulfillment is in the Person of the LORD Jesus Christ, the true and eternal King of Israel. The LORD Jesus, “made of the seed of David according to the flesh” (Romans 1:3), is the righteous Branch foretold by Jeremiah. He came not to make men righteous by moral instruction, nor merely to demonstrate righteousness by example, but to earn and establish a righteousness equal to that of God Himself—for His people, whom the Father chose before the foundation of the world, according to His grace in Christ Jesus (Romans 11:6). This passage declares the truth that is at the very heart of the Gospel—the justification of sinners by the righteousness of the LORD Jesus. For sinners who have no righteousness of their own, who stand condemned by the law, Christ is given as THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS . This is not a righteousness infused or enabled, but imputed . It is the very RIghteousness of God revealed in the Gospel (Romans 1:17) —a perfect Righteousness, established by the obedience and death of Christ, reckoned to the account of all who are in Him by sovereign election and revealed by faith. This RIghteousness was accomplished at the cross. There, “the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6), and there He bore the full weight of God's justice in their stead. As it is written, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). This is substitutionary Righteousness—according to God’s eternal covenant of grace—not earned by the sinner but freely given for Christ’s sake. It is His righteous obedience unto death that justifies: “Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24). When Jeremiah says, “Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely”  (Jeremiah 23:6) , he is declaring more than national peace. He is foretelling the salvation of God’s elect in Christ—the spiritual Israel—who are saved from wrath and brought into the everlasting safety of union with Christ. These are they who call Him by faith, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS . They do not boast in their obedience, decisions, or supposed “free will,” but glory in the cross, where the LORD Himself became their righteousness. God has not left salvation in the hands of men, nor based it upon their worthiness or will. He has provided all in Christ. The righteousness we could never produce, God has provided through the life, death, and resurrection of His Son. And this RIghteousness is given—not to all indiscriminately—but to those whom the Father gave to the Son before the foundation of the world: a definite people, a chosen Israel, who are called and justified in time. So may we who are God's chosen, bought, and sought children rejoice in Him Who is all  our Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification, and Redemption (1 Corinthians 1:30). Our standing before God does not rise or fall with our feelings, failings, or frames of heart or mind. Feelings come and feelings go, and feelings are deceiving. It rests on the LORD Jesus Christ alone. He is THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS —not merely a helper of righteousness, but the very Foundation and Substance of it. This is the Gospel: that in Christ, the sinner is declared righteous before God, fully accepted, eternally saved, and completely loved forever— all of grace, all for His glory . We can then say with the prophet Isaiah, in faith and thanksgiving: “Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength” (Isaiah 45:24). The full verse reads: “Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength: even to him shall men come; and all that are incensed against him shall be ashamed. Righteousness and strength are found only “in the LORD,” which is a foreshadowing of the Gospel truth fulfilled in the LORD Jesus Christ at the cross. Christ established the only righteousness that satisfies God’s justice for sinners and fulfilled it at the cross. He bore the shame and wrath due to His elect, and in Him are the strength and grace to save to the uttermost all who come to God by Him, having already accomplished their redemption and justification at the cross (Hebrews 7:25). Therefore, the phrase “in the LORD have I righteousness and strength”  finds its fulfillment exclusively in the finished work of the LORD Jesus at the cross, where Christ the LORD our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6) —both justified and sanctified His people. All who are “incensed” against Him—those who reject His Person and work—are put to shame, for they seek righteousness elsewhere and find none: “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Romans 10:3–4).