Psalm 78:67-68

Psalm 78:67-68

It is God who chooses

There is a devastating passage in Jeremiah that sums up today’s verses. Remember that the land of Israel was divided into two kingdoms after the reign of King Solomon. Judah and Benjamin and the capital city, Jerusalem, formed the southern kingdom and the remaining 10 tribes formed Israel, often called Ephraim. (Possibly because that particular tribe occupied the next and largest area of land going northwards.)  Ephraim was a son of Joseph, with his brother Manasseh, which is why v67 says that God rejected the tents of Joseph.

Jeremiah relives all of this as he describes, at a later date, the judgement that is about to come upon Judah when the Babylonians invade. 12”Go now to the place in Shiloh where I first made a dwelling for my Name, and see what I did to it because of the wickedness of my people Israel. 13 While you were doing all these things, declares the Lord, I spoke to you again and again, but you did not listen; I called you, but you did not answer.14 Therefore, what I did to Shiloh I will now do to the house that bears my Name, the temple you trust in, the place I gave to you and your ancestors. 15 I will thrust you from my presence, just as I did all your fellow Israelites, the people of Ephraim.” Jeremiah 7:12-15.

God rejected Shiloh. God rejected the northern tribes. God, in His wisdom, chose to honour Judah and His loving gaze had turned to Mount Zion and to Jerusalem, where the Temple came to be built and where the Ark of the Covenant eventually came to rest. But even Judah would suffer His wrath and rejection in years to come. 

Do you see that our inclusion in God’s family and His future plans is never according to our goodness or our ability to win His good favour. Ephraim was rejected and Judah was chosen. Shiloh was rejected and Zion was chosen. Both kingdoms failed miserably and chose to serve other gods and to rebel against their sovereign Lord, they should have both been cast away. But God chose Judah and so they remain with us today – the Jews. You and I are no better than our contemporaries, but God chose us and we are now part of His Kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven. In the end, it all comes down to His choice!

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