21 July 2022
Be appalled, O heavens, at this,
be shocked, be utterly desolate,
says the Lord,
for my people have committed two evils:
they have forsaken me,
the fountain of living water,
and dug out cisterns for themselves,
cracked cisterns
that can hold no water.
From Jeremiah 2:1-3,7-8,12-13, NRSV
This sternly worded message to the people of Israel follows on from a poignant reminder from the Lord of the close relationship that had existed between God and the people during the “honeymoon” period of the Covenant. The prophet then reminds the people of the gifts they had been given – of fertile and productive land and all the good things that came with it. They are the condemned for immediately forgetting the Lord, for rebelling and for worshipping idols. Not only have the abandoned the free gift of “living water” but they have tried to make substitutes of their own. The prophet graphically describes their substitutes as being as useless as “cracked cisterns”.
- How do you suppose the people reacted to these words of the prophet Jeremiah?
- What do you understand “the fountain of living water” to be and where is it to be found?
Pray today for the grace to remain faithful to God’s calling and for an appreciation of all that God has given to you.
