Photo by burak kostak on Pexels.com

pain in his heart

Jeremiah 4:19-22 (JDV)

Jeremiah 4:19 My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in agony! Oh, the pain in my heart! My heart pounds; I cannot be silent, because you, my throat, have heard the sound of the ram’s horn – the shout of battle.

Jeremiah 4:20 Disaster after disaster is reported because the whole land is destroyed. Suddenly my tents are destroyed, my tent curtains, in a moment.

Jeremiah 4:21 How long must I see the signal flag and hear the sound of the ram’s horn?

Jeremiah 4:22 “You see, my people are fools; they do not know me. They are foolish children, without understanding. They are skilled in doing what is evil, but they do not know how to do what is good.”

pain in his heart

God speaks to the prophet and tells him how he sees things. He feels pain in his heart. He knows the disaster after disaster that is ripping apart his nation the way soldiers would rip apart a tent. He sees the destruction, and hears the sounds of battle.

But he has to send the battle. He has to send the disaster because his own people keep acting like fools, skilled in nothing but evil.

The Lord knows the evil that we do, and it breaks his heart. He knows the consequences we must face, and he longs for us to change, so that we can avert the coming disasters.

Lord, change our hearts, so that we can stop breaking yours.