1“The sin of Judah is written with a pen of iron,
and with the point of a diamond.
It is engraved on the tablet of their heart,
and on the horns of your altars.
2Even their children remember their altars
and their Asherah poles by the green trees on the high hills.
3My mountain in the field,
I will give your substance and all your treasures for a plunder,
and your high places, because of sin, throughout all your borders.
4You, even of yourself, will discontinue from your heritage that I gave you.
I will cause you to serve your enemies in the land which you don’t know,
for you have kindled a fire in my anger which will burn forever.”
5Yahweh says:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man,
relies on strength of flesh,
and whose heart departs from Yahweh.
6For he will be like a bush in the desert,
and will not see when good comes,
but will inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,
an uninhabited salt land.
7“Blessed is the man who trusts in Yahweh,
and whose confidence is in Yahweh.
8For he will be as a tree planted by the waters,
who spreads out its roots by the river,
and will not fear when heat comes,
but its leaf will be green,
and will not be concerned in the year of drought.
It won’t cease from yielding fruit.
9The heart is deceitful above all things
and it is exceedingly corrupt.
Who can know it?
10“I, Yahweh, search the mind.
I try the heart,
even to give every man according to his ways,
according to the fruit of his doings.”
11As the partridge that sits on eggs which she has not laid,
so is he who gets riches, and not by right.
In the middle of his days, they will leave him.
At his end, he will be a fool.
12A glorious throne, set on high from the beginning,
is the place of our sanctuary.
13Yahweh, the hope of Israel,
all who forsake you will be disappointed.
Those who depart from me will be written in the earth,
because they have forsaken Yahweh,
the spring of living waters.
14Heal me, O Yahweh, and I will be healed.
Save me, and I will be saved;
for you are my praise.
15Behold, they ask me,
“Where is Yahweh’s word?
Let it be fulfilled now.”
16As for me, I have not hurried from being a shepherd after you.
I haven’t desired the woeful day. You know.
That which came out of my lips was before your face.
17Don’t be a terror to me.
You are my refuge in the day of evil.
18Let them be disappointed who persecute me,
but don’t let me be disappointed.
Let them be dismayed,
but don’t let me be dismayed.
Bring on them the day of evil,
and destroy them with double destruction.
19Yahweh said this to me: “Go and stand in the gate of the children of the people, through which the kings of Judah come in and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem. 20Tell them, ‘Hear Yahweh’s word, you kings of Judah, all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates: 21Yahweh says, “Be careful, and bear no burden on the Sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem. 22Don’t carry a burden out of your houses on the Sabbath day. Don’t do any work, but make the Sabbath day holy, as I commanded your fathers. 23But they didn’t listen. They didn’t turn their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, and might not receive instruction. 24It will happen, if you diligently listen to me,” says Yahweh, “to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but to make the Sabbath day holy, to do no work therein; 25then there will enter in by the gates of this city kings and princes sitting on David’s throne, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city will remain forever. 26They will come from the cities of Judah, and from the places around Jerusalem, from the land of Benjamin, from the lowland, from the hill country, and from the South, bringing burnt offerings, sacrifices, meal offerings, and frankincense, and bringing sacrifices of thanksgiving to Yahweh’s house. 27But if you will not listen to me to make the Sabbath day holy, and not to bear a burden and enter in at the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day, then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it will devour the palaces of Jerusalem. It will not be quenched.”’”
He Loves You too Much to Leave You How He Finds You
Jesus and the Woman Caught in Adultery
2 Now very early in the morning, he came again into the temple, and all the people came to him. He sat down and taught them. 3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman taken in adultery. Having set her in the middle, 4 they told him, “Teacher, we found this woman in adultery, in the very act. 5 Now in our law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. What then do you say about her?” 6 They said this testing him, that they might have something to accuse him of.
This account gives us fantastic insight into the heart of Jesus. Once again, the scribes and Pharisees were out to get him. In some instances, the law demanded that she be stoned, and they were presenting the case to Jesus to trap Him into making a bad call, a poor judgment. Like all good rabbis, Jesus began pointing out truths and asking questions. He doesn’t begin with the adulterous woman, but rather He stooped down and started writing in the dirt. There is much speculation about what He wrote. Some suggest He was writing down the names of onlookers who were themselves guilty of adultery. Others surmise that He was writing down part of Jeremiah 17:13 ( “Those who turn away from you shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living water” (ESV).) The truth is that we really don’t know what He was writing. They thought He was ignoring them as they continued to question Him while He was drawing whatever He was drawing. He merely looked up at them and said, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw the first stone at her.” Wow! That was a real zinger.
The inference of what Jesus had said was convicting and overwhelming. The text tells us that one by one, they all walked away. The oldest one left first, having lived long enough to know that he, too, was guilty of this sin and a whole lot of others. The zealous, self-righteous younger ones realized that something bigger was at work and followed their older leaders. Having been convicted of their own shortcomings, they all filed out, leaving the adulterous woman behind. Jesus’ attention then turned to the woman. He asked, “Where are your accusers? Did no one condemn you?” She said, “No one, Lord.” Jesus answers, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way. From now on, sin no more.”
Jesus told us in John 3:17 that His mission was not to condemn us, but to save us. “17 For God didn’t send his Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through him.” Reader, Jesus loves you just as you are, but He loves you enough not to leave you that way. He told the woman, and He tells us, “Go and sin no more.” If you’re mired in some destructive repetitive sin, ask Him to forgive you today. Ask Him to empower you by the Holy Spirit to crawl out from under that burden of sin that you are carrying. He is willing. He is waiting. He does not condemn you, but He longs to change you. Go your way, and from now on sin no more.