Taming the Tongue 1Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. 4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things.
How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.
REFLECTION:
If you were to record everything you said last week to have it played back during church, what would you want to erase from the recording?
Meditate on 3:9-10. Have you been doing more praising or cursing? What are ways that you can praise and encourage others more?
Is there a family member, a friend or colleague, to whom you may say some encouraging words? During this week, pray that God will help you to speak words of kindness and grace, and pray for one particular person with whom you find it difficult to speak with love.
PRAYER:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.
14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food,16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! 20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.
REFLECTION:
Faith is something that we cannot see but faith is made real and visible in our works. James tells us that faith and works go hand-in-hand; our faith in the person and gospel of Jesus Christ changes the way that we see the world, ourselves, and God’s work. As we grow in our relationship with Christ, our changed perspective and value system will cause us to behave closer to God’s way. Thus, our actions reveal our faith in God.
How has your faith affected the way in which you view your life, relationships, work, the Church, how you spend your time, etc? How is God already at work around you? How can you join others to live out your faith in actions?
PRAYER:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.
James, one of the brothers of Jesus, became a leader of the church in Jerusalem after Jesus’ death and resurrection. He was respected for the advice he gave and for the wise decisions he helped the community of believers make (see Acts 15:13-21). At one point he decided to write down some of his best teachings and advice and send them to other Jewish believers in Jesus who were scattered throughout the Roman Empire. What he wrote to them has become known as the book of James.
This book begins like a letter because it’s being sent to people at a distance. But it is actually not very much like other letters of the time. It is a collection of short sayings and slightly longer discussions of practical topics. The conversational style, the short, pithy sayings and the interweaving of themes all make this book similar to the wisdom writing found in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.
Like those wisdom books, James concentrates on questions of daily living in God’s good creation. He considers such practical issues as concern for the poor, the responsible use of wealth, control of the tongue, purity of life, unity in the community of Christ-followers, and above all patience and endurance during times of trial. The godly wisdom here remains as valuable a guide to living fully human lives as when James first shared it centuries ago.
1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,
To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion:
Greetings.
Testing of Your Faith
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.
REFLECTION:
Life involves us in many kinds of testing; it is in God that the testing of our faith produces endurance and because of Him, we are able to grow mature. When we experience difficult times—financial or relationship—those times are when we are most able to focus and be dependent on God. These times can be filled with joy when we realize that He is strong when we are weak.
Recalling a trial you have experienced, what pressures did it bring on your faith? What “wisdom” did you gain through it?
In this wealth-chasing modern society, what do vv 9-11 mean to you? What might James say you should “take pride in”? Will you heed his teaching? Why?
PRAYER:
Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what He wants to tell you. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in your spiritual journal.
15 The joy of our hearts has ceased;
our dancing has been turned to mourning.
16 The crown has fallen from our head;
woe to us, for we have sinned!
17 For this our heart has become sick,
for these things our eyes have grown dim,
18 for Mount Zion which lies desolate;
jackals prowl over it.
19 But you, O Lord, reign forever;
your throne endures to all generations.
20 Why do you forget us forever,
why do you forsake us for so many days?
21 Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored!
Renew our days as of old—
22 unless you have utterly rejected us,
and you remain exceedingly angry with us.
REFLECTION:
When it is full of sorrow and there seems to be no way out, people who truly believe in God should pray and cry to the Lord with hope. Jeremiah prayed sincerely for his people towards the end of the lamentations. Although he mentioned that the righteous God “was angry with us,” God is also a God full of love and compassion, just as Micah 7:18 said: God “does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.” The Lamentations of Jeremiah show us a double picture: on the one hand, God’s warnings and admonitions have been repeatedly despised by the people of Jerusalem, so that they were finally punished by God and suffered a great disaster, all their life goals on earth were collapsed; on the other hand, although God stayed away from them, He did not give up on them. That was their greatest hope. Even though they had sinned deeply in the past, as long as they changed their minds, God would revive them. Their only hope was in God. Today, we also suffer from suffering and grief for various reasons. Jeremiah’s lament reminds us: Our suffering and grief should lead us to God, not to distance us from Him. We have suffering in the world, but we must not forget that our Lord Jesus has overcome the world, we must grasp the Lord’s promise, and He is our only hope in suffering!
PRAYER:
Pray for the sufferings of yourself and of those around you that you care about. Regardless of the cause of this suffering, which we understand or do not understand, ask God to enlighten us in our sufferings so that we will not be discouraged; ask God to give us peace and hope in our hearts, focusing only on God’s love and faithfulness, and relying on God wholeheartedly, and bravely continue on the heavenly path.
11 The Lord gave full vent to his wrath;
he poured out his hot anger,
and he kindled a fire in Zion
that consumed its foundations.
12 The kings of the earth did not believe,
nor any of the inhabitants of the world,
that foe or enemy could enter
the gates of Jerusalem.
13 This was for the sins of her prophets
and the iniquities of her priests,
who shed in the midst of her
the blood of the righteous.
14 They wandered, blind, through the streets;
they were so defiled with blood
that no one was able to touch
their garments.
15 “Away! Unclean!” people cried at them.
“Away! Away! Do not touch!”
So they became fugitives and wanderers;
people said among the nations,
“They shall stay with us no longer.”
16 The Lord himself has scattered them;
he will regard them no more;
no honor was shown to the priests,
no favor to the elders.
REFLECTION:
This chapter compares the situation of Jerusalem before and after the attack, and writes that because of the sins of the people, the prosperity and honour of Jerusalem have been destroyed. This chapter warns us that the “good life” that looks like gold will make us lose vigilance, lead to spiritual decline, and ultimately be severely judged by God for sinking into sins. Jeremiah specifically pointed out that the sins committed by the kings, prophets, and priests as leaders are greater. They are in a leadership position of the country, who should godly perform the duties entrusted by God, but rather they do evil and ungodly things, become bad examples for the people, and ultimately lead to the fall of Jerusalem and the demise of the country. Today, each of us has more or less the role of leader in the family, church, and society. In this role, we should set an example of fearing God, live out a beautiful testimony, and influence the people around us. So that they will not be bound and enslaved by the power of sin in the so-called good life of peace and prosperity, and lead them to God.
PRAYER:
Pray for God to make you understand your responsibilities in your family, church, and society, so that you can actively and bravely exert your influence, participate in the great commission of guiding people to God with all your heart, and strive to use your beautiful life to witness and preach the gospel of God .
19 Remember my affliction and my wanderings,
the wormwood and the gall!
20 My soul continually remembers it
and is bowed down within me.
21 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
23 they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
REFLECTION:
In the original Hebrew text, the first four chapters of Jeremiah’s Lamentations are acrostic poems, and the first letter of each poem is arranged in the order of the twenty-two letters of the Hebrew alphabet. There are sixty-six verses in this chapter, which is a three-level acrostic poem: the first three sentences of the poem start with the first letter of Hebrew alphabet, then the next three sentences start with the second letter, and so on. Examples of other acrostic poems are Psalm 37, 119, 145, etc. In his distress and sorrow, Jeremiah still saw a glimmer of hope: “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end.” (v22) When Jeremiah was in the darkest moment, he has hope because of this promise: God has always been faithful and will continue to be faithful. Jeremiah experienced God’s judgment and God’s love at the same time. At the time of judgment, Jeremiah still recognized God’s mercy, just as he would be wary of God’s judgment when things went well. God’s faithfulness has never changed. Today, as long as we look to God, God will also respond to us. God’s love and faithfulness can overcome any sin, and God will not despise a broken and contrite heart. As long as we sincerely repent, God will definitely forgive us.
PRAYER:
Come to God with a contrite heart, and ask God to illuminate the darkness and filth in your heart, so that you can see the hidden sins in your life that have been unwilling to confess for a long time; humble and confess your sins before God and ask for His forgiveness, and ask for God’s love and mercy to fill your life so that you can be comforted by Him.
11 My eyes are spent with weeping;
my stomach churns;
my bile is poured out to the ground
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people,
because infants and babies faint
in the streets of the city.
12 They cry to their mothers,
“Where is bread and wine?”
as they faint like a wounded man
in the streets of the city,
as their life is poured out
on their mothers’ bosom.
13 What can I say for you, to what compare you,
O daughter of Jerusalem?
What can I liken to you, that I may comfort you,
O virgin daughter of Zion?
For your ruin is vast as the sea;
who can heal you?
14 Your prophets have seen for you
false and deceptive visions;
they have not exposed your iniquity
to restore your fortunes,
but have seen for you oracles
that are false and misleading.
15 All who pass along the way
clap their hands at you;
they hiss and wag their heads
at the daughter of Jerusalem:
“Is this the city that was called
the perfection of beauty,
the joy of all the earth?”
16 All your enemies
rail against you;
they hiss, they gnash their teeth,
they cry: “We have swallowed her!
Ah, this is the day we longed for;
now we have it; we see it!”
17 The Lord has done what he purposed;
he has carried out his word,
which he commanded long ago;
he has thrown down without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you
and exalted the might of your foes.
18 Their heart cried to the Lord.
O wall of the daughter of Zion,
let tears stream down like a torrent
day and night!
Give yourself no rest,
your eyes no respite!
19 “Arise, cry out in the night,
at the beginning of the night watches!
Pour out your heart like water
before the presence of the Lord!
Lift your hands to him
for the lives of your children,
who faint for hunger
at the head of every street.”
REFLECTION:
Jeremiah was called the “weeping prophet” because he often wept and shed tears for the disobedience of the people of Judah throughout his life. Jeremiah’s tears were not an expression of weakness, but an expression of sincerity and compassion. In Jeremiah’s time, false prophets were everywhere, and they often announced false prophecies. When Jeremiah warned of the demise of Judah and the imminent exile of the people for a long time, the false prophets said that everything is safe and there is no need to be afraid. In fact, Jeremiah was the prophet sent by God, and his prophecy was true. He called on the people to forsake their sins and sincerely repent for what they did against the Lord. Wayward people betray God because of their stubbornness, and everyone suffers. Are these disasters God’s fault? No, this is the consequences of the people’s evil deeds, and they will also involve innocent people. Even children will be “faint for hunger” and their lives are worrying. We should take warning from Jeremiah’s appeal and understand that the consequences of sin are extremely serious! Today, in the face of serious social moral degradation and extreme individualism, how will we react? We should wake up from a state of insensitivity, not be shaken by all kinds of lies, firmly defend the truth of God, sincerely pray for our church with tears, so that the church will not be destroyed by the world, and the church will be a witness for God in the society.
PRAYER:
Pray for God to give you a strong, benevolent, and conscientious heart, so that you can stand firm in the face of the world’s various moral declines and liberal values; pray for God to give you more strength and make you willing to offer yourself as a living sacrifice, bravely live out holiness in the turbid current of the world, and bear a beautiful testimony to God.
When the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem and deported much of its population, some residents were left behind in terrible conditions in and around the shattered city. To express their deep shame and grief over the destruction of their home, they wrote songs about its desolation and about the sufferings they were witnessing and experiencing. The book of Lamentations does not tell us who wrote these songs, although tradition ascribes them to Jeremiah. Here we witness people of faith putting into words their struggle to understand how God could have allowed the city they loved to be so devastated.
Each of the five songs preserved in the book has 22 stanzas. The first four songs begin with the 22 letters of the Hebrew alphabet in consecutive order. In the third song the letters are repeated at the start of each of the three lines in the stanza. There are few expressions of hope, but they are placed in the center of the book to give them extra prominence in a situation where they are badly needed. Overall, this collection of laments reminds us that expressing anguish over a broken, fallen world is a legitimate part of the biblical drama.
1 How lonely sits the city
that was full of people!
How like a widow has she become,
she who was great among the nations!
She who was a princess among the provinces
has become a slave.
2 She weeps bitterly in the night,
with tears on her cheeks;
among all her lovers
she has none to comfort her;
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her;
they have become her enemies.
3 Judah has gone into exile because of affliction
and hard servitude;
she dwells now among the nations,
but finds no resting place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
in the midst of her distress.
4 The roads to Zion mourn,
for none come to the festival;
all her gates are desolate;
her priests groan;
her virgins have been afflicted,
and she herself suffers bitterly.
5 Her foes have become the head;
her enemies prosper,
because the Lord has afflicted her
for the multitude of her transgressions;
her children have gone away,
captives before the foe.
6 From the daughter of Zion
all her majesty has departed.
Her princes have become like deer
that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
before the pursuer.
7 Jerusalem remembers
in the days of her affliction and wandering
all the precious things
that were hers from days of old.
When her people fell into the hand of the foe,
and there was none to help her,
her foes gloated over her;
they mocked at her downfall.
8 Jerusalem sinned grievously;
therefore she became filthy;
all who honored her despise her,
for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself groans
and turns her face away.
9 Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
she took no thought of her future;
therefore her fall is terrible;
she has no comforter.
“O Lord, behold my affliction,
for the enemy has triumphed!”
10 The enemy has stretched out his hands
over all her precious things;
for she has seen the nations
enter her sanctuary,
those whom you forbade
to enter your congregation.
11 All her people groan
as they search for bread;
they trade their treasures for food
to revive their strength.
“Look, O Lord, and see,
for I am despised.”
REFLECTION:
This book is a lament written by Jeremiah for the destruction of Jerusalem. At that time, the entire kingdom of Judah was completely defeated, the temple was destroyed, and the people were taken captive by the Babylonians. Jeremiah wept for the suffering and humiliated people, and tears penetrated his heart. This lament is read aloud to all the Jews every year, reminding them that the destruction of Jerusalem that year was caused by people’s stubborn sins. “Lovers” in the second verse refers to some countries such as Egypt, because the kingdom of Judah has always hoped that they can help. When the Babylonian army approached Jerusalem, the kings of Judah not only did not pray for God’s protection, but turned away from God and asked for help from other nations. As a result, these so-called “friends” betrayed and even fell into trouble. The most important lesson of the subjugation of Judah is that she “took no thought of her future” (v9). They refuse to believe that an immoral life will lead to divine punishment, the ultimate price of which is playing with fire and self-immolation. Today, in a seemingly comfortable environment, we can choose to listen to God’s words vigilantly, or we can choose to turn a deaf ear to God’s teachings. The results may not be different for the time being, but just as the judgment will surely come to Jerusalem that year, it will also come to us today. May we learn from the history of the fall of Judah. Everyone will listen to God’s words vigilantly and be humble and obey God’s will.
PRAYER:
Come to God humbly, ask God to give you a heart that is always vigilant, and strive to live in God’s word every day; ask God to enlighten you so that you can confess your sins before God and be willing to repent completely; ask God to help you not to forget that His judgment has not yet come not because of slowness, but is patient toward us, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance (2 Peter 3:9).
28 This is the number of the people whom Nebuchadnezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year, 3,023 Judeans; 29 in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar he carried away captive from Jerusalem 832 persons; 30 in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Judeans 745 persons; all the persons were 4,600.
31 And in the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the twenty-fifth day of the month, Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, graciously freed Jehoiachin king of Judah and brought him out of prison. 32 And he spoke kindly to him and gave him a seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon. 33 So Jehoiachin put off his prison garments. And every day of his life he dined regularly at the king’s table, 34 and for his allowance, a regular allowance was given him by the king, according to his daily needs, until the day of his death, as long as he lived.
REFLECTION:
The king of Babylon treated Jehoiachin kindly, took him out of prison in 561 BC, and let him eat with the king of Babylon. Jehoiachin was treated kindly not by accidental luck, but by God’s unchanging promise. God continued to treat King David’s descendants with love, even on the day of their captivity. In the eyes of the world, Jeremiah’s life is not at all successful. He has neither money nor family and friends. Although he has repeatedly prophesied that his country will be perished, the capital will be sabotaged by the enemy, and the temple will be destroyed, but no political or religious leader listens to his advice, and people do not support or obey him. However, when we look back on history, we can clearly see that this weeping prophet successfully fulfilled the mission entrusted to him by God in his life. Success is not measured by popularity, reputation or wealth, because these things are fleeting. Take the King Zedekiah as an example. He only sought personal gain and achievement, and ended up with nothing. God measures success by obedience, loyalty, and righteousness. If we can fulfill God’s commission to us faithfully and unswervingly throughout our lives, we will be successful people in God’s eyes. Pray that every brother and sister will become such a person.
PRAYER:
Pray for God to lead you and make you understand His commission to your life; whether this commission is great or humble in the eyes of people, ask God to give you a loyal and courageous heart so that you can dedicate your time and strength in your whole life to accomplish the mission God ordained you.
59 The word that Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah king of Judah to Babylon, in the fourth year of his reign. Seraiah was the quartermaster. 60 Jeremiah wrote in a book all the disaster that should come upon Babylon, all these words that are written concerning Babylon. 61 And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, 62 and say, ‘O Lord, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be desolate forever.’ 63 When you finish reading this book, tie a stone to it and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, 64 and say, ‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, and they shall become exhausted.’”
Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.
REFLECTION:
Regardless of his situation, Jeremiah will bring God’s words to his fellow captives. Because he could not visit Babylon in person, Jeremiah entrusted Seraiah, the quartermaster, to bring his message to the place. Seraiah is probably Baruch’s brother. In Jeremiah’s last message, we once again see two major themes throughout the book: first, God has absolute sovereignty; second, God will impose a righteous judgment. Although God temporarily tolerated Babylon’s abuse of the people of Israel, He must judge its sins; God saves good people from their sins and must severely punish all evil ones. When we live in this generation, we will also face the oppression of various evil forces. Although the evil forces will triumph for a while, we must not give in because of its strength, nor should we be deceived by it, and go along with it, otherwise we will inevitably receive God’s judgment.
PRAYER:
Pray for God to enlighten you, so that you can know more clearly that He is your God, you are His people, He has absolute sovereignty over you, and absolute sovereignty over mankind; ask God to give you greater faith and strength, so that you will not succumb to the evil power in your life, and you will never go along with it, and hold on to your faith in all your encounters, good or bad.
