Jeremiah 3 reminds me that unfaithfulness in marriage is one of the most devastative things possible. The innocent spouse feels betrayed and belittled. This is magnified even more when the adultery is known to many. The offending partner also will suffer loss of reputation, loss of security and guilt. Once trust is broken, it is never fully restored. Jeremiah compares the heartache of marital infidelity with the spiritual bond we have with God. Listen to the hurt in the words of God. Speaking to the Israeli people, “You have lived as a prostitute with many lovers would you now return to Me?” Imagine the disgust of an innocent husband finding out his own home and his own bed were used, “Is there any place where you have not been ravished? You have defiled the land with your prostitution and wickedness“. Worse, his wife shows no regret, “you refuse to blush with shame“. He recalls the lies, “This is how you talk, but you do all the evil you can“. With this very personal pain, God reveals His heart to Jeremiah, on what “faithless Israel has done“. “She has gone up on every high hill and under every spreading tree and has committed adultery there. I thought that… she would return to Me but she did not.” After many nights alone, “I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away“.
If you feel estranged from God, listen to these words, “Return, faithless Israel, I will frown on you no longer, for I am faithful“. Listen to the one condition, “Only acknowledge your guilt“. Please understand, unlike man, God is faithful to forgive completely, but He forgives only when we ask Him. 1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness“. And listen to the promise of restoration, “Return… for I am your husband… Then I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will lead you with knowledge and understanding“. Return first.
God demands exclusivity. He will not tolerate one night stands, or one day-a-week believers. Confession is followed by forgiveness and the Spirit of God is poured out as confirmation. Restored first with God, and then with the people around us. This restoration always creates change, “No longer will they follow the stubbornness of their evil hearts“. We serve a God of second chances, “How gladly would I treat you like My children and give you… the most beautiful inheritance“. With the pain of disappointment, God adds, “I thought you would call Me ‘Father’ and not turn away from following Me… But… you… have been unfaithful to Me“. And the cycle repeats, “A cry is heard… weeping and pleading… because they have perverted their ways and have forgotten the Lord their God“. We read of Israel’s infidelity and think “how could they?” Are we so different? Please listen to God’s response to His people, “Return, faithless people; I will cure you of backsliding“. Jeremiah ends the chapter by identifying the single source of our problems, “We have sinned against the Lord our God“. God gave us marriage as a symbol of unity with God and permanence. “So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate” (Matthew 19:8). Jesus explained, “Moses permitted you to divorce… because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning“. Have you been hard-hearted? God has not left you. Will you ask Him to forgive and restore you? Friend, He is faithful!