©John Yerkes
Chapter 17:5-11 (ESV) - Thus says the LORD:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man
and makes flesh his strength,
whose heart turns away from the LORD.
He is like a shrub in the desert,
and shall not see any good come.
He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,
in an uninhabited salt land.
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD,
whose trust is the LORD.
He is like a tree planted by water,
that sends out its roots by the stream,
and does not fear when heat comes,
for its leaves remain green,
and is not anxious in the year of drought,
for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately sick;
who can understand it?
“I the LORD search the heart
and test the mind,
to give every man according to his ways,
according to the fruit of his deeds.”
Like the partridge that gathers a brood that she did not hatch,
so is he who gets riches but not by justice;
in the midst of his days they will leave him,
and at his end he will be a fool.
Question to consider: What does it mean to trust in man and make flesh your strength?
The thing that separates scripture from the plethora of religious books throughout the ages is its accurate diagnosis of the human condition. The world wants to believe that people are basically good and can achieve true greatness and peace by following their heart. Because there is hardship and wrongs being done in the world, the popular reaction is to divide people up between good and evil. The good ones and evil ones are generally defined by their works, and works are classified by those who hold the most power and influence.
Scripture, however, is unchanging, and professes to speak for YHWH, the one true God who made and sustains the universe and all things. In today’s passage, the LORD declared that our hearts are the opposite of “basically good”. They are deceitful and desperately sick, rebelling against everything that the LORD has declared good and sacred.
The LORD didn’t ask them to provide great feats of strength to impress Him or to engage in unspeakable acts to arouse or appease Him. He merely asked that they trust Him— trust in Him and forsake the gods of the nations that only wanted to enslave and harm them. Jesus reiterated this idea by telling His disciples, “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.” (John 14:1)
Instead of doing this, the people of Judah trusted in their own strength— their own ability to produce wealth. They accepted the gods of the nations into the streets of Jerusalem because they trusted in the men of the surrounding nations to be peaceful business partners when in fact they saw the high places to Baal and Asherim as a sign that they should conquer and enslave Judah in order to steal their wealth and make them their slaves.
Judah did not produce anything of value to sell. They were the middle man between the coastal nations like Tyre and Sidon and the empire of the east— Babylon. Rather than paying Judah to keep the trade routes open for them, they simply took out the middleman to reduce their expenses. The only thing that had held them back from doing this was their God who famously had conquered the gods of Egypt and many of the gods throughout Canaan including an incident with the priests of Baal and their prophet Elijah.
Israel and Judah forgot that the LORD was their strength. It was not their armies who conquered the other nations. It was not their high walls that protected Jerusalem. It was not their wealth that sustained them. The LORD alone freed them, gave them a land flowing with milk and honey, and delivered their enemies into their hands. Without the LORD, they were like a lone bush in the desert instead of a tree planted by water, and it would be taken away as easily as it was gained.
Dear heavenly Father, help us to trust You— trust in You. May it be our desire to pursue eternal things that last and bring You glory. Search our hearts and remove any way that is foolish or deceitful. Amen.