The Friday after the Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity Sunday
Posted on October 2, 2026 by under
Scripture: Jeremiah 13:15-25 (NKJV)
13:15 Hear and give ear:
Do not be proud, for the Lord has spoken.
16 Give glory to the Lord your God before He causes darkness, and before your feet stumble on the dark mountains, and while you are looking for light, He turns it into the shadow of death and makes it dense darkness.
17 But if you will not hear it, my soul will weep in secret for your pride; My eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears, because the Lord’s flock has been taken captive.
18 Say to the king and to the queen mother, “Humble yourselves; Sit down, for your rule shall collapse, the crown of your glory.”
19 The cities of the South shall be shut up, and no one shall open them; Judah shall be carried away captive, all of it; It shall be wholly carried away captive.
20 Lift up your eyes and see those who come from the north. Where is the flock that was given to you, your beautiful sheep?
21 What will you say when He punishes you? For you have taught them to be chieftains, to be head over you. Will not pangs seize you, like a woman in labor?
22 And if you say in your heart, “Why have these things come upon me?” For the greatness of your iniquity your skirts have been uncovered, your heels made bare.
23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Then may you also do good who are accustomed to do evil.
24 “Therefore I will scatter them like stubble that passes away by the wind of the wilderness.
25 “This is your lot, the portion of your measures from Me,” says the Lord, “because you have forgotten Me and trusted in falsehood.”
Devotion
“Hear and give ear: Do not be proud, for the LORD has spoken.” Once again God’s people had been rebellious and self-serving. He gives holy warnings so that darkness, judgment, and bitter captivity may be avoided. Warnings and correction are part of God’s grace and mercy!
When we say, “Why have these things come upon me?”, the answer can often be a reminder that God’s Word warned us about our iniquity. None of us has the right to be proud. None of us has the right to think that he is a noble and profitable servant. Our Lord Jesus teaches us to be humble: “When you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do’ ” (Luke 17:10).
We are saved from the shame of just judgment by God’s grace. Only in Christ we are made able to “change our spots” and do that which is good and faithful, even though our hearts are accustomed to do evil. We are reconciled to God through faith in Jesus Christ. By Christ’s righteousness, by His holy death and resurrection, we are saved from the condemnation of our sin and made able to fulfill our duties to Him and to our neighbors. We are blessed to be His servants, not according to our own prideful will, but according to faithful humility and righteous love!
Collect: Lord, we beseech Thee, grant Thy people grace to withstand the temptations of the devil, and with pure hearts and minds to follow Thee, the only God; through Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, ever One God, world without end. Amen.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
