A Driving Wind Swirling Down
Scripture Reading — Jeremiah 30:18-24
The storm of the Lord will burst out in wrath, a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked.
On nautical maps, an important feature is the “wind rose,” a graphic image used by meteorologists to show how wind speed and direction are typically distributed in a certain place. This tool can be very useful to mariners for avoiding trouble spots at sea.
In some ways, this passage in Jeremiah 30 is like a “wind rose.” It helps God’s people see how the Lord was going to act in order to restore them. You see, at this time in history, God’s people were in exile for rebelling against God. They had followed after other gods and had refused to honor the Lord, who had made them into a great nation. So God had disciplined them by sending them into exile.
Sadly, though, their conquerors had brutally enslaved them and carried them away after destroying their land. And when God’s people cried out in their distress, the Lord heard them.
So how would God act to restore his people? “The storm of the Lord” would burst out like “a driving wind swirling down on the heads of the wicked.” God is powerful enough to overwhelm evil. The people needed God to save them from this enemy that had exploited them.
Explaining all this, God promised to bring them honor again, saying, “So you will be my people, and I will be your God.”
Lord and God, your power is greater than any other. Thank you for being merciful and just. Help us to honor you above all and to serve you faithfully. Amen.
About the author — Jason Zuidema and David Rozeboom
Dr. Jason Zuidema is executive director of the North American Maritime Ministry Association (namma.org) and an elder in the Église réformée du Québec. David Rozeboom serves as chaplain at the Montreal Ministry to Seafarers of the Christian Reformed Church (ministrytoseafarers.org). The authors thank Kevin Walker, NAMMA director of programs, for editorial assistance.
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