Bringing the wandering home

Jeremiah 23:1-6

23 Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the Lord. 2 Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who shepherd my people: It is you who have scattered my flock, and have driven them away, and you have not attended to them. So I will attend to you for your evil doings, says the Lord. 3 Then I myself will gather the remnant of my flock out of all the lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their fold, and they shall be fruitful and multiply. 4 I will raise up shepherds over them who will shepherd them, and they shall not fear any longer, or be dismayed, nor shall any be missing, says the Lord.

5 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved and Israel will live in safety. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

Vs. 1-4 set up the context for understanding vs. 5,6. The shepherds of vs. 1,2 are human leaders (monarchs, government officials, community leaders) who have acted in ways that brought destruction on the people of Israel, on God’s people. The people have been driven from their land (no longer have a place to call home), have been scattered (have lost community) because of the leaders’ failures.

But a day is coming when God will bring back the scattered and the rootless and give them a place to call home (their fold, vs. 3). God will raise up new leaders and the people will not live in fear anymore.

Then vs. 5 and 6, point us to the one who will bring this change – a descendent of David who will be ruler and who will lead wisely and will enact justice and righteousness. This one is Jesus – for Jesus is Lord and alone can bring righteousness to the world.  

This promise was made to the people of Israel – but the followers of Jesus are heirs, inheritors of those promises as well. For we know of the failure of human leaders, leaders whose actions create destruction, leaders whose actions or inactions dislocate people, causing the loss of community. Leaders who have turned people into wanderers seeking for a place to find roots. Be those roots physical or spiritual or both.

In Jesus Christ we find there is a place to be rooted, in him we find a community that will be a place of support and companionship. Jesus is coming again and with his return justice and righteousness will rule the land, flowing from his reign. Looking forward to that day, we are invited to be people who live in that hope and that promise.

PRAYER:    

O Lord, we look forward with hope to the day when your Son Jesus Christ will bring home the wandering and the homeless; the day with the rootless and those without community will find belonging in Jesus and his reign. O come, Lord Jesus, come that we might find a home with you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.