- Good Fruit
They shall return to me with their whole heart. – Jeremiah 24:7
The Old Testament nation of Judah repeatedly struggled with obeying God. Eventually, the Lord brought judgment upon them for their disobedience by exiling them from their land to the country of Babylon around 586 B.C. Following their initial exile, God gave the prophet Jeremiah an interesting vision.
The Lord showed Jeremiah two baskets of figs – one with good, ripe figs and the other with figs so bad they were inedible. He told Jeremiah that the good figs were a representation of those in the nation of Judah who had remained faithful to Him. Although the entire nation faced the pain of judgment, this did not mean that God saw all of them exactly the same. He was fully aware of those who were faithful to Him. The Lord took care to send those people from the land first, with a plan in place to eventually bring them back home.
God clearly sees the difference between humans who are directly responsible for His judgment and those who are in circumstances caused by whoever is in charge. This fact is just as true today in the United States. Trust that, just as He took care of the faithful in Judah during some of their darkest hours, He will also care for you through whatever this nation faces. As you pray today, ask God to work through you to bring healing and restoration to those around you. Intercede for voters as they prepare for the midterm election in November, that the people of the United States would turn to the Lord with their whole heart.
Today’s Verse: Jeremiah 24:7
I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Recommended for further reading: Proverbs 2:1-15
My son, if you receive my words
and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom
and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight
and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver
and search for it as for hidden treasures,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
8 guarding the paths of justice
and watching over the way of his saints.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice
and equity, every good path;
10 for wisdom will come into your heart,
and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
11 discretion will watch over you,
understanding will guard you,
12 delivering you from the way of evil,
from men of perverted speech,
13 who forsake the paths of uprightness
to walk in the ways of darkness,
14 who rejoice in doing evil
and delight in the perverseness of evil,
15 men whose paths are crooked,
and who are devious in their ways.All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
