Jeremiah. Jeremiah. Chapter 9 of the passage that we have looked at before so that we return to now to consider the loving kindness, the mercy, the knowledge of the Lord as true riches, true wisdom and true strength. Jeremiah 9.

I'll begin reading in verse 11 and will read to verse 26. The passage that we'll be looking at specifically is verses 23 and 24. So this is Jeremiah 9 beginning at verse 11. The Word of God.

I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, a den of jackals. I will make the cities of Judah desolate without an inhabitant. Who is the wise man who may understand this? And who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord has spoken that he may declare it?

Why does the land perish and burn up like a wilderness so that no one can pass through? And the Lord said, Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice, nor walked according to it. But they have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts, and after the bales which their fathers taught them. Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, behold, I will feed them, this people, with wormwood and give them water of gall to drink.

I will scatter them also among the Gentiles, whom neither they nor their fathers have known. And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them. Thus says the Lord of hosts, consider and call, excuse me, consider and call for the mourning women, that they may come and send for skillful wailing women, that they may come. Let them make haste and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may run with tears and our eyelids gush with water. for a voice of wailing is heard from Zion.

How we are plundered! We are greatly ashamed because we have forsaken the land, because we have been cast out of our dwellings. Yet hear the word of the Lord, O women, and let your ear receive the word of his mouth. Teach your daughters wailing, and everyone her neighbor a lamentation.

For death has come through our windows, has entered our palaces, to kill off the children no longer to be outside, and the young men no longer on the streets. Speak thus says the Lord, even the carcasses of men shall fall as refuse on the open field, like cuttings after the harvester, and no one shall gather them. Thus says the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches, but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord, exercising loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight, says the Lord.

Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, that I will punish all who are circumcised with the uncircumcised, Egypt, Judah, Edom, the people of Ammon, Moab, and all who are in the farthest corners who dwell in the wilderness. For all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart. Amen. Well, let's go to God in prayer.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your truth. We thank you for your word declared to us here through the prophet Jeremiah. We do pray that you would help us in this act of worship, the preaching of your word.

Do be with us that we might pay attention to your word, to the proclamation of it. Do speak to us by virtue of the sense spirit that we would be illuminated according to your truth and that we would leave this place singing the praises of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And we pray in the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Amen.

Well,

Introduction

Jeremiah prophesied in about 627 BC, that's 627 years prior to the first advent of the Lord Jesus Christ, his incarnation. It's about 22 years before Daniel and his friends were taken off to Babylon. Jeremiah is delivering utterances, pronouncements, addresses to the old covenant people, to the house of Israel, And he's doing essentially five things. First, he's rightly accusing them of the many sins they had committed.

He's secondly urging them to turn back to God in repentance. Thirdly, he's warning them that their city and temple will be destroyed and that they themselves will be carried away captive to Babylon. Fourthly, he's comforting the faithful with the knowledge of a return from exile. and, fifthly, ultimately promising redemption through the coming Messiah, Jesus Christ. That is the finis ultimis, the ultimate end of the proclamations of Jeremiah, that the nations would look to, that the house of Israel would look to, the promised Messiah, Jesus Christ.

The context here is the inevitability of coming judgment. we see that in verse versus well we see that in the entirety of the passage but we see bookends here with regards to the judgment that is about to come upon them and so verse 22 and then verses 25 to 26 declare the inevitability that the certain the certainty that judgment is coming upon Israel notice verse 22 behold the noise of the report excuse me that's 22 of chapter 10 speak thus says the Lord 22 of chapter 9 even the carcasses of men shall fall as refuse on the open field like cuttings after the harvester and no one shall gather them and then of course verse 25 behold the days are coming says the Lord that I will punish all who are circumcised with the uncircumcised so our verses 23 and 24 come in the context of, again, the inevitability of coming judgment. And not a judgment that is somehow capricious, that comes arbitrarily from God upon Israel, but rather in accordance with the promised the promise of Deuteronomy 28, the curses of the covenant. If they disobey the Lord, God promised that he would deliver judgment upon them. And the reason for the judgment, before we move to the content of the sermon proper, notice in Jeremiah 2, what is the reason for the judgment?

It was captured a bit in the passage that we read, but notice back in Jeremiah 2, at verses 12 and 13. Be astonished, O heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid. Be very desolate, says the Lord, for my people have committed two evils. They have forsaken me, the fount of living waters, and hewn themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water.

Also, verse 17, have you not brought this on yourself? in that you have forsaken the Lord your God when He led you in the way." So it is a righteous judgment that is coming upon apostate Israel for their having forsaken the Lord their God. The structure of verses 23 and 24 bear sort of a threefold character. First, a warning is issued. Secondly, counsel is given.

And thirdly, certain truths are expressed. we could say it this way. First, they are told what not to do. Secondly, they are told what they are to do. And thirdly, they are given contemplations in right doing.

Doing what they are supposed to do, what are the contemplations concerning God that they are to have? So we're going to look at this passage then now under three simple considerations. First, the hollow complacency. Secondly, the holy confidence, and thirdly, the hallowed contemplation.

So what do we mean then by, firstly, the hollow complacency they have?

The Hollow Complacency

God indicts them for a carnal security, for assuming the sufficiency of empty things, of things that are vanity. Notice the language of the text. Thus says the Lord, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, nor let the rich man glory in his riches. The boast of these was not to be in those things, and as we'll see, the boast was to be in the Lord their God.

So there's this hollow complacency, a carnal security, assuming that these things, wisdom, might, and riches, will somehow avail for them in the day of judgment. And so the Prophet rightly speaks concerning the vanity or the emptiness of these things. Now,

Legitimacy of Wisdom, Might, and Riches

first a qualification under this point, we ought to note the acceptability of having wisdom, might, and riches. It's okay to have these things. It's not noble to be dumb, weak, and poor, necessarily. having wisdom, having might, and riches, the warning is not against having these things and expressing thankfulness for them. So having wisdom, might, and riches, legitimate, and being thankful for them, certainly legitimate.

Regarding wisdom, James 1.5 reads, if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. Proverbs 2.6, for the Lord gives wisdom, from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. So it's okay to have wisdom. With regards to might, Psalm 18.32 and 39, it is God who arms me with strength, he gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might, he increases strength.

So it's legitimate, it's okay, to have might. With regards to riches, Ecclesiastes 5.19, as for every man to whom God has given riches and wealth and given him power to eat of it, to receive his heritage and rejoice in his labor, this is the gift of God. So all of these things, wisdom, might, and riches, are legitimate, and it is certainly legitimate to express thankfulness to God for them. But the point here is perhaps twofold, the second of which is most notable given the context.

General Folly of Boasting in These Things

First, the general folly, the general madness, the foolishness of boasting in wisdom, might, and riches. Notice with regards to wisdom, you can turn with me to the prophet Isaiah, Isaiah chapter 5. If you're unable to turn there, you can just listen along as I read. But notice in the prophet Isaiah and chapter five, with regards to the general folly of boasting in or glorying in wisdom, Isaiah chapter five and verse 21, woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight.

So you see here the foolishness of boasting in wisdom. Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight. In the same prophet, you can turn to chapter 47. Chapter 47.

Notice what we have at this particular location. Chapter 47. And verse 10, for you have trusted in your wickedness and have said, no one sees me. Your wisdom and your knowledge have worked you.

And you have said in your heart, I am and there is no one else besides me. You see, the indictment of the prophet is not against having wisdom. It's against having a godless wisdom and a self-sufficiency in one's own so-called knowledge and understanding. I am, and there is none else besides me.

God, through the prophet, says, your wisdom and your knowledge have warped you. Notice with regards to the general folly of boasting then in might in Psalm 20. In Psalm 20, again, you can either turn there or listen as I read. We note in Psalm 20 in verse seven, passage that's perhaps familiar to you.

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will remember the name of the Lord our God. As we'll note in a minute, madness or the folly specifically is boasting in the might of chariots and horses against what God has already promised is a coming in certain judgment. The boast or the glory or the trust or the confidence wasn't to be in military might, it was to be in the Lord God Almighty, who gives wisdom, who gives strength, and who gives riches. Notice in Psalm 33 at verse 16, no king is saved by the multitude of an army, a mighty man is not delivered by great strength, A horse is a vain hope for safety, neither shall it deliver any by its great strength.

Again, the foolishness of boasting in these things rather than boasting in the God who gives them, in the God who does according to his will, his purpose, and his good pleasure. Lastly, with regards to riches, staying in the Psalms, we can turn to Psalm 52. In Psalm 52, we see the foolishness, that general folly of boasting here in riches. In Psalm 52, in verse 7, here is the man who did not make God his strength, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and strengthened himself in his wickedness." And then, of course, those Proverbs that you may know well.

In Proverbs 11, we read the following with regards to the folly of trust in riches. Proverbs 11. And verse 4, riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death. And then verse 28, he who trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like foliage.

So we have this general reality that it is folly, it is madness to trust in wisdom, might, and riches to have your boast in those things.

Case Study: Nebuchadnezzar

There is a case study that we have in the scriptures of this very thing. The folly of trusting in wisdom and might and riches. You can turn with me to the prophet Daniel. A case study in the general folly and madness, the foolishness of trusting in wisdom, might and riches, comes in the case of Nebuchadnezzar.

And so let's remind ourselves of this particular case study in Daniel 4, beginning at verse 28. All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar, that is, the promises with respect to the dream that Daniel explains. All this came upon King Nebuchadnezzar at the end of the 12 months. He was walking about the royal palace of Babylon.

The king spoke, saying, Is not this great Babylon that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty? While the word was still in the king's mouth, a voice fell from heaven. King Nebuchadnezzar, it is spoken to you, the kingdom has departed from you. And of course, we have the subsequent revelation with regards to what comes upon Nebuchadnezzar for this boast is not this great Babylon that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor of my majesty.

This is a case study in boasting in wisdom, might, and riches. That's what Babylon was marked by. Jeremiah's prophesying and preaching comes in the context of Babylon coming as the tool of divine justice and wrath. Babylon was emerging from their vassalhood under the Assyrian Empire, and they were emerging as the geopolitical power in the area.

And they were marked by wisdom, might, and riches. Jerusalem was not to be like Babylon, to have their boast in wisdom, might, and riches. Unlike Babylon, they were to have their boast in the living and the true God. In fact, when we get to that final judgment that comes upon Israel in AD 70, we see in the book of Revelation that Jerusalem is called Babylon.

Jerusalem is called that great city Babylon where our Lord was crucified they were they basically turned into Babylon who gloried in, who boasted in wisdom, might, and riches, and not in the Lord their God." Now

Specific Error: Boasting in the Day of Distress

let's look then, though, at the specific error of boasting in wisdom, might, and riches. We have the general foolishness of doing that, but then we have the specific error of boasting in that. What Henry says, what we may not depend upon in a day of distress. This is Jeremiah's point.

The day of distress is coming. Wisdom, might, and riches are not going to avail for you. These things will not help you in the face of irreversible calamity, the inescapability of judgment. First, the wise cannot, by political machinations, maneuver Israel out of harm's way.

The wise will not be able to, by their geopolitical cunningness and their sort of associations or negotiations with Babylon, avert coming judgment. It is coming. The death will come through their windows. It will enter their palaces.

It will kill off their children. It will kill off their young men. The strong cannot stand against the set-in-motion whirlwind of divine justice. The wisdom, the wise cannot maneuver out of it.

The strong cannot stand against the inevitability of coming divine justice. And the rich cannot buy themselves out of the coming day of trouble." In other words, the specific application here, when Jeremiah says, You cannot, by those things, escape the promised coming judgment. These things will not buy you out of the deliverance of divine justice and wrath. And these things are, as we'll see now, since we move to that now, set against the knowledge of God and heeding His Word.

So secondly, we come to the Holy Confidence. The Holy Confidence.

The Holy Confidence

There is a wonderful but transition here. Remember, we have many of these in the Holy Scriptures, where the negative thing, the warning, the sin, the violation, the bad thing is stated, The thing in this case not to do is stated, but then that which is to be done is delivered. Notice, but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me that I am the Lord exercising, loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth for in these I delight says the Lord. So what are they to do first off?

True Glorying Belongs to God Alone

true and proper glorying is exclusively God's do. And notice very interestingly, if you turn with me or listen to it read, 1 Chronicles 29. In 1 Chronicles 29, we have a very interesting statement that touches intimately upon the stuff of this passage. In 1 Chronicles 29, notice at verse 10, Therefore David blessed the Lord before all the assembly, and David said, Blessed are you, Lord God of Israel, our father, forever and ever.

Yours, O Lord, is the greatness, the power, and the glory, the victory, and the majesty. For all that is in heaven and in earth is yours. yours is the kingdom oh lord and you are exalted as head over all notice both riches and honor come from you and you reign over all in your hand is power and might in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all the Wisdom, might, and riches come from the Lord. It is He who has them, and it is He who dispenses them. And it's not in those things that our glory and boasts terminate, but rather it's in the triune God.

Blessed are you, Lord God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever. Notice if you turn with me to the New Testament and to the book of Revelation. this same sort of theme, this same sort of glorying in God, this same sort of antidote to boasting in wisdom, strength, and riches. We see first in Revelation 4, in Revelation 4, At verse 9, whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the 24 elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever. and cast their crowns before the throne saying you are worthy O Lord to receive glory and honor and power for you created all things and by your will they exist and were created and notice next in Revelation 5 at verse 11 Then I looked and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures and the elders, and the number of them was 10,000 times 10,000, and thousands of thousands saying with a loud voice, worthy is the lamb who was slain, notice, to receive those very three things, power and riches and wisdom and strength, honor and glory and blessing and so it is God that is to receive glory it is God it is God in whom we boast and not in the folly and madness of things in this case that will not avail in the day of judgment So we have true and proper glorying is exclusively God's do. And then we have

Necessity of the Knowledge of God

the general necessity of the knowledge of God back in our back in our text, Jeremiah nine, but let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me the the general necessity of the knowledge of God. Spurgeon, preached these words so many years ago with regards to the Christians knowledge of God. Nothing will so enlarge the intellect. Nothing so magnify the whole soul of man as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the deity.

Let's just pause there for a moment. Does that mark us, our Christian quest, our Christian walk? Are we marked by a devout, earnest, and continued investigation of the great subject of the deity? There are many lawful pursuits in this lower world to gain a knowledge of certain things, botany, biology, the thrust to weight ratio of an F-14 Tomcat.

There are a number of things that are lawful pursuits in this lower world, but are we putting time into and are we being marked by those who have a devout and earnest and continued investigation of the great subject of subjects that is the triune God and he goes on and whilst humbling and expanding this subject is eminently consolatory oh there is in contemplating Christ the son a balm for every wound In musing on the Father, there is a quietus for every grief, and in the influence of the Holy Ghost, there is a balsam for every sore. Would you lose your sorrows? Would you drown your cares? Then go plunge yourself in the Godhead's deepest sea, be lost in his immensity, and you shall come forth as from a couch of rest, refreshed and invigorated.

I know nothing. which can so comfort the soul, so calm the swelling billows of grief and sorrow, so speak peace to the winds of trial, as a devout musing upon the subject of the Godhead." And that's what Jeremiah's, if we could say, his point is. In the midst of coming judgment, in the midst of a righteous visitation of the wholesome wrath of God, let not your boast be in your wisdom, your might, or your riches, But let your boast and your glorying be in that one who is the balm for every sorrow, the balsam for every sore, the blessed cure for every remedy. Let him glory in this that he understands and knows me." Hosea 4.1 reads, Hear the word of the Lord, you children of Israel. For the Lord brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land.

There is no truth or mercy or knowledge of God in the land. The very land and the very people that is, that are, to have the knowledge of God, the blessed understanding of the triune God and to glory in it, that land and that people is absent of it. Notice, in fact, in our own prophet here, in Jeremiah chapter 2, we have this very thing in view. In Jeremiah 2, at verse 8, the priests did not say, where is the Lord?

And those who handle the law did not know me. The rulers also transgressed against me. The prophets prophesied by Baal and walked after things that do not profit. Also, in fact, in Jeremiah 9, the very chapter under consideration, verse 3, and like their bow, they have bent their tongues for lies.

They are not valiant for the truth on the earth, for they proceed from evil to evil, and they do not know me. says the Lord. And so pressed upon them, pressed upon their minds, pressed upon their souls, pressed upon their consciences, is that they are to glory in the Lord, and specifically in this, that they understand and know me, who I am and my mighty works. So we could note here

Knowledge of God in the Face of Calamity

the specific necessity of the knowledge of God in the face of inevitable calamity. The general knowledge of God, the general necessity of knowing this glorious One, knowing Him and therefore honoring Him, and then specifically the necessity of the knowledge of God in the face of this coming judgment. They were to have God as their boast, as their confidence, and understand that the only wisdom that avails is that which has God as its ground and God as its content. They were to understand that the only abiding strength comes from God, who is to be understood and known, and that the only eternal riches are found in the knowledge of God and of His Christ.

You can turn with me to the Gospel of Daniel, back to the Gospel of Daniel for a moment, because there we have something of this, the specific knowledge of God in the face of inevitable calamity. In Daniel chapter 9, we see At verse 13, as it is written in the law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand your truth. Therefore, the Lord has kept the disaster in mind and brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all his works, which he does, though we have not obeyed his voice. And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and made yourself a name as it is this day, we have sinned and we have done wickedly." They are to know God as their boast and their confidence, as the one who gives wisdom.

They're to understand that the only abiding strength comes from Him. and the only eternal riches are to be found in the knowledge of God and of His Christ. And the New Testament speaks with regards to this. You know, remember that Jeremiah's ultimate point, yes, Babylon is coming, in judgment. Yes, they are, of course, to repent and to turn back to God.

Yes, there is a coming physical restoration to their particular land, but ultimately they are to cast their eyes upon the triune God and the Christ who would be sent into this lower world, sinners to save. Notice in a number of passages, you can make a note of 2 Corinthians 8-9 with regards to riches as well Ephesians 1-7 but notice in 1st Peter the language of riches as they pertain to Christ. In 1st Peter 1 we have this wonderful language with regards to our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ and true riches. In 1st Peter 1 at verse 17 we read And if you call on the Father who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear, knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

He indeed was foreordained before the foundation, but was manifest in these last times for you." Notice the contrast between earthly riches, the silver and the gold, utilized in the building of the temple and utilized in the currency of the Old Covenant, the silver and gold of that is contrasted with the riches, the treasures, the blessed true silver and gold, if you will, of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Calvin notes, but as they arrogate to themselves, speaking of the people in Jeremiah's day, but as they arrogate to themselves more than what is right, and even inebriate themselves with delusions, wisdom, strength, riches, he strips them naked, that after having known all that they think they have, either from nature or from themselves or from other creatures, is a mere phantom, they may seek true glory. That's what God does in his judgment. He strips them of carnal confidences so that the faithful might look to God and might look through time to the coming Christ.

And so

The Hallowed Contemplation

we close now with the hallowed contemplation. In understanding and knowing God, what are the specific contemplations to fill our minds with? The prophet has already said, But let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me. And then there are some particular truths that the faithful are to roll around in their minds.

But let him who glories glory in this, that he understands and knows me. And then this, that, that I am the Lord, exercising loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth. For in these I delight, says the Lord. First, we have, of course, the apprehension of the only true God.

Apprehension of the Only True God

That I am the Lord is the first truth that the faithful are to roll around in their minds. This is the contemplation that they are to fill their minds with, that He is the Lord, that God, the God of Israel is the Lord. In fact, in Jeremiah 1, we see this particular reality brought forth in the opening verses of Jeremiah's prophesying. We read in Jeremiah 1 at verse 16, I will utter my judgments against them concerning all their wickedness, because they have forsaken me, burned incense to other gods, and worshiped the work of their own hands.

As well in Jeremiah 7, We see the following in Jeremiah 7 at verse 18, the children gather wood, the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough to make cakes for the queen of heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods that they may provoke me to anger. Jeremiah 9 and verse 14, which we already read, but they have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts and after the bales which their fathers have taught them. And lastly, Jeremiah 11 and verse 10, They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words, and they have gone after other gods to serve them.

For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant, which I made with their fathers. And so they are to understand and know God, that he is the Lord, not the Baals, not the gods, not the idols of the nations, but that God is the Lord. And not just God in a general sense, but the covenant Yahweh, the I Am of Israel, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the true and living God, over all that He made and all that He upholds. We are also to see here, and it's very interesting, the

Threefold Antidote to False Confidence

antidote, the corrective, or the counteraction to the three false confidences. Remember, let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, let not the mighty man glory in his might, and let not the rich man glory in his riches. What are they to do? They are to know the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.

There's a threefold antidote, excuse me, There's a threefold antidote to the boasting and the glorying that they were engaging in. And that they're warned not to do. First, we see here loving kindness or mercy. Ephesians 2.4, God who is rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us.

Romans 9.23, the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy. And so true riches are found not in those things of carnal confidence, but in God who exercises loving kindness. With regards to the judgment, Exodus 6, 6, I am the Lord. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.

Rather than the carnal security and the carnal confidence found in man's strength, It is to be found in the judgment of God. I am the Lord, I will redeem you with that strength, with that might, with an outstretched arm, and with great judgments. Revelation 18.8, which bears great resemblance to Jeremiah here and his prophesying against apostate Israel. Revelation 18.8 speaks of judgment coming upon apostate Israel in AD 70.

Therefore her plagues will come in one day, death and mourning and famine, and she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord God who judges her." So this judgment is set in as an antidote against the carnal security of human strength. And lastly, righteousness. This comprehends or contains, or is an antidote against, this wisdom so-called that they had there before Jeremiah. Deuteronomy 4, 5-6, regarding the statutes commanded by the Lord my God, that Moses says, he says, be careful to observe them, that is those statutes, for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the people who will hear all these statutes and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

So we see this loving kindness or mercy, this judgment and this righteousness, it's a threefold antidote to the carnal confidence that they were having in wisdom, riches, and might. And so

Application

in closing, what are we to gain an appreciation of from this particular passage? First, we are to see that this verse is not first about the vanity of wisdom, might, and riches, but first and foremost about the supremacy of the knowledge of God. The supremacy of the knowledge of our great God, the one who does exercise mercy, loving kindness, the one who does exercise judgment and righteousness. And the only thing that holds in the day of calamity and death is the knowledge of God.

We don't take our riches with us. It's not our wisdom and our strength that avails in the day of the Lord. It's the Lord who avails and the faithful avail with respect to their knowledge of the one who does exercise loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness. And lastly, because Jeremiah is ultimately setting forth the coming of the promised Christ, we see that Christ secures mercy, or this loving-kindness, He bears the judgment, and He secures the righteousness.

There is a Christward trajectory to Jeremiah 9, 23 and 24. Christ secures the loving-kindness of the Lord, he bears the judgment, and he secures the righteousness required that avails with God and before God. And so Jeremiah wants us to see Christ. He is the Lord who also exercises loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness, And having assumed our humanity and saved us, he is the provider of that loving kindness and mercy.

He is the bearer of judgment, and he is that one who has secured righteousness. I just repeated that three times, but it bears repeating. Christ is the blessed one who has done all that he was sent to do. He is the promised one of Jeremiah, who directs our eyes not to our wisdom, our might, and our riches, but who directs our eyes to the wisdom, might, and riches of a God and of his Christ, who saves mightily a multitude that are brought forth by grace, who lay hold of him by faith, and who rest upon him alone.

If you're here outside of Christ this morning, believe on Him. The promise of the Scriptures, this is the glorious, one of the glorious things of this passage. God is true to His promises. Judgment is coming.

He said He would judge for their violation of the law, and so He judges them. It's terrifying for those who are the recipients of the judgment, but what do we learn from this, those who are the faithful? We learn that God is sure to His promises, so that when He says, by Christ I will save a multitude, when He says, believe on Him and you will have everlasting life, He is true to that blessed promise as well. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, and you will know the Lord, and you will glory in His loving kindness, judgment, and righteousness.

Let's pray.

Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your truth. We rejoice in your goodness to us in disclosing to us your word of truth. Do help us, Lord, to know your truth, to know the Christ to whom it points, Strengthen us and nourish us by Your Spirit according to Your Word. May we grow in the grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ, our blessed Savior.

And might You cause everyone in this place, because it is possible with You alone, to leave singing the praises of so great a Savior. And it's in His name that we pray. Amen.

Scripture References

• Exodus 6:6
• Deuteronomy 4:5-6; 28
• 1 Chronicles 29:10
• Psalm 18:32; 20:7; 33:16; 52:7
• Proverbs 2:6; 11:4; 11:28
• Ecclesiastes 5:19
• Isaiah 5:21; 40:29; 47:10
• Jeremiah 1:16; 2:8; 2:12-13; 2:17; 7:18; 9:3; 9:11; 9:14; 9:22; 9:23-24; 9:25-26; 11:10
• Daniel 4:28; 9:13
• Hosea 4:1
• Romans 9:23
• 2 Corinthians 8-9
• Ephesians 1:7; 2:4
• 1 Peter 1:17
• Revelation 4:9; 5:11; 18:8