Jer 17:7-8 | KingComments | STEP | In these verses Jeremiah compares the way of the wicked with the way of the God-fearing. He contrasts curse and blessing – and thus death and life. Judah turned to false gods and sought protection from foreign powers ( ). Here it is about putting their trust in alliances with Assyria, Babylon, and Egypt ( ), as the situation demands. Judah is “the man who trusts in mankind”, that is, the weak, perishable, mortal man ( ). He is also one who “makes flesh his strength”, that is, seeks his strength from the creature and not from the Maker (cf. ). This happens because their heart has turned away from the LORD. Their heart is not set on Him. If our heart is not set on the Lord, we too will fall into the trap of ‘human expectations’. This happens when we put our trust in people and not in the Lord when faced with problems. This can be, for example, with illness, financial worries, marriage problems, forms of addiction, unemployment. Jeremiah calls this trap a curse and a departure from the LORD. The bad feature of the trap of human expectations is that it shuts God out of our thinking. Whoever sets his expectation on men and not on the Lord will be blind to the good that is coming ( ). Nothing goes out from him and there is nothing that brings him to fruition. His condition is barren and hopeless. Because the heart is deceitful ( ), man chooses to dwell like a barren bush in the driest places, believing that it is good to be there. But it is impossible to produce fruit and see goodness apart from the source of living water. The deceitful heart takes the mirage of the world for reality. The man who trusts in the LORD ( ), yes, what is more, whose trust is the LORD Himself ( ), is in a totally different condition. He is at the Source and from Him receives his strength to grow ( ; ). He does not notice when evil comes, for it does not bother him. He continues to radiate freshness and bear fruit even if a period of drought comes, because the roots are still connected to the Source. There is a remarkable similarity in the use of words in and that is at the same time a sharp contrast. The expressions “will not see” ( ) and “will not fear” ( ) are the same word. In the context in which these words are used, we see that those who forsake the LORD are insensitive to good, and those who trust in the LORD are insensitive to heat and drought because they extend their roots by a stream.

‏ Jeremiah 17:7-8

The Way of Curse and Blessing

In these verses Jeremiah compares the way of the wicked with the way of the God-fearing. He contrasts curse and blessing – and thus death and life. Judah turned to false gods and sought protection from foreign powers (Jer 17:5). Here it is about putting their trust in alliances with Assyria, Babylon, and Egypt (Isa 31:1-3), as the situation demands. Judah is “the man who trusts in mankind”, that is, the weak, perishable, mortal man (Isa 40:6). He is also one who “makes flesh his strength”, that is, seeks his strength from the creature and not from the Maker (cf. Psa 56:4). This happens because their heart has turned away from the LORD. Their heart is not set on Him.

If our heart is not set on the Lord, we too will fall into the trap of ‘human expectations’. This happens when we put our trust in people and not in the Lord when faced with problems. This can be, for example, with illness, financial worries, marriage problems, forms of addiction, unemployment. Jeremiah calls this trap a curse and a departure from the LORD. The bad feature of the trap of human expectations is that it shuts God out of our thinking.

Whoever sets his expectation on men and not on the Lord will be blind to the good that is coming (Jer 17:6). Nothing goes out from him and there is nothing that brings him to fruition. His condition is barren and hopeless. Because the heart is deceitful (Jer 17:9), man chooses to dwell like a barren bush in the driest places, believing that it is good to be there. But it is impossible to produce fruit and see goodness apart from the source of living water. The deceitful heart takes the mirage of the world for reality.

The man who trusts in the LORD (Jer 17:7a), yes, what is more, whose trust is the LORD Himself (Jer 17:7b), is in a totally different condition. He is at the Source and from Him receives his strength to grow (Jer 17:8; Psa 1:3). He does not notice when evil comes, for it does not bother him. He continues to radiate freshness and bear fruit even if a period of drought comes, because the roots are still connected to the Source.

There is a remarkable similarity in the use of words in Jer 17:6 and Jer 17:8 that is at the same time a sharp contrast. The expressions “will not see” (Jer 17:6) and “will not fear” (Jer 17:8) are the same word. In the context in which these words are used, we see that those who forsake the LORD are insensitive to good, and those who trust in the LORD are insensitive to heat and drought because they extend their roots by a stream.