Today’s  section of scripture finishes out Jeremiah’s Lamentations and begins the book of the prophet Ezekiel.  Ezekiel was a prophet who wrote this book in the mid 500’s while in exile by the Babylonians.  This may sound crazy (given the wealth of scripture in today’s reading), but the thing that stands out to me the most is the phrase, “Son of man.”  This phrase is used over 25 times in today’s portion of Ezekiel.  In fact, Wikipedia.com says that it’s used around 94 times in the Book of Ezekiel.  I had always thought this phase referred to Christ.  I’ve grown up with Matthew 18:11, “For the Son of man is come to save that which is lost. (Luke 19:10)  It’s said that the words, “Son of man” is referring to humans.  In fact the phase was sometimes used to refer to Jesus’ humanness.  In this book of the Bible it’s thought that, though Ezekiel’s name is only mentioned a couple of times, this phase is referring to to him.

This section of scripture is one of sadness and sorrow.  By the end of the Book of Jeremiah the city of Jerusalem falls to Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, and over 4000 people are carried off into exile.  The book of Lamentations is also said to be written by the prophet Jeremiah.  It is said that after the fall of Jerusalem he took refuge in a cavern outside the Damascus gate and he wrote this book of lament over all that had happened.  “How deserted lies the city, once so full of people!  How like a widow is she, who once was great among the nations! She who was queen among the provinces has now become a slave.”  (Lamentations 1:1)

Have you ever noticed how quickly we as followers of Christ can turn away from the Lord?  In one moment we offer Him our whole lives and in another we go about our lives as if His will doesn’t matter.  It happens in my life from time to time…it happens in many of my student’s lives a few weeks after a youth camp or mission trip.  I guess in some ways it is human nature – sin.

In today’s scripture reading we find Johanan son of Kareah and his officers saying these words in Jeremiah 42:5-6

⁵ Then they said to Jeremiah, “May the LORD be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act in accordance with everything the LORD your God sends you to tell us. ⁶ Whether it is favorable or unfavorable, we will obey the LORD our God, to whom we are sending you, so that it will go well with us, for we will obey the LORD our God.”

When Jeremiah told them that the Lord wanted them to stay in the land that they were trying to flee (Jer 42:10), they said no way.  In one breath, they said we will do whatever the Lord says…in the next they said…”no, we will go live in Egypt, where we will not see war…” (Jer 42:14)  Obedience to the Lord is never an assurance of prosperity, but it is the assurance of being in His will.  Lord, help me to always choose to be in your will and not my own.  Help me to truly mean the words that these men said, “whether it is favorable or unfavorable, I will obey the Lord…”