“And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of my people, to swear by my name, as The Lord lives; even as they taught my people to swear by Baal; then they shall be built up in the midst of my people.”
– Jeremiah 12:16
Basically, in Jeremiah 12:16, God is promising His people that even though they’ve sinned against Him, He will forgive them and restore them if they will turn back to Him. Even as they were taught to swear by Baal, a false god, that He will teach them what it means to swear by God, to know God, to worship God, to follow God, to be built up by God. What mercy, what grace.
God is gracious and merciful. Even when we sin against Him, He welcomes us to flee sin and return to Him.
Jeremiah 12:16 Reminds Us We Are Prone Towards Sin
I think about this cycle we see over and over again in the Old Testament and the cycle that, sadly, is so often true in my life, and our lives. How we are just constantly prone to turn toward sin, to learn to turn toward immorality and idolatry. That is the sinful nature in us and yet God whenever we sin forgive us.
I just was meditating on 1 John 1:9 last week, “If we confess our sins, he’s faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
God, all glory be to Your name for Your grace and Your mercy toward us that when we sin we can come to You, when we turn from You we can come back to You, that You restore us to Yourself. That Jesus You’ve made a way for all of our sin to be cleansed, totally removed. That You make us righteous.
Jeremiah 12:16 Leads Us to Thank God For His Grace
Oh God thank You for Your grace and Your mercies. Help us to live in that. God, help us not to hide sin. God, help us not to continue in sin. Lord, whenever we sin in some way help us to hate it. God, help us to turn from it, help us to return to You quickly. Convict us of sin oh God. Help us to turn from it, and to trust in You, and to follow You. Restore us, oh God, teach us, build us up in You, we pray.
This Verse Leads Us to Pray For Obedience
I pray for this in my own life. And I pray for this in the lives of those listening right now. God, help us to walk in obedience to You. And when we do sin to turn immediately from that sin in what we think, in what we desire, in what we do, how we speak. We pray to help us to turn from sin, return to You, be restored to You, and to walk in the grace You have made available to us. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
