"Let Him Who Boasts Boast of This" (8/9)

Thought from today’s Bible reading from Jeremiah 7-9.

Thus says the Lord, ‘Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,’ declares the Lord” (Jeremiah 9:23-24).

Man often judges himself by his strength, his accomplishments, and his possessions. There is nothing inherently wrong with such things. In the passage above, the Lord does not condemn a man for having wisdom, might, or riches. Rather, He condemns a man for boasting in these things.

We should not attempt to elevate ourselves over others, which is what one does when he boasts. We are all of importance to the Lord, which is why He does not “show partiality” (Acts 10:34), and desires “for all to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). Our personal strength, accomplishments, or wisdom do not make us more important than others to God.

However, the Lord says we may boast on one point: the fact that we understand and know the Lord. The Scriptures teach that we can do both of these things – understand the Lord (Ephesians 5:17) and know the Lord (Hebrews 8:11). Therefore, we must be busy studying the Scriptures. Reading them leads to understanding (Ephesians 3:4). In them we see testimony about the Lord (John 5:39). The word of God leads to faith (Romans 10:17).

Our goal should not be to get people to focus on us, but on God. Therefore, we must teach others about Him and allow them to see His qualities through our godly examples.

Tomorrow’s reading: Jeremiah 10-13

[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]


Daily Notes & Observations contains all 365 articles from this series and is available in paperback from Gospel Armory.


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