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Weep for Jerusalem! - Matthew 23:37-39"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets. You kill with rocks those men that God sent to you. Many, many times I wanted to help your people. I wanted to gather your people together like a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. But you did not let me. Now your house will be left completely empty. I tell you, you will not see me again until that time when you will say, 'Welcome! God bless the one that comes in the name of the Lord.'" (ERV) Full Text
Key ThoughtCities have always made a key impact on the heart of God. They are places of crime and evil, but they are also places of people with great need. They are places of power and government and they are places of family and friends. But Jerusalem was special. It was the place of God's dwelling, the Temple. It was the city of sojourn, where Israelites came from all over the world on pilgrimages. Jerusalem was also the city of rejection when it refused Jesus. Jesus knows this means Jerusalem is headed for destruction. Her people have not just rejected him, they have rejected hope, promise, and future. Jesus will die outside the city of Jerusalem, rejected by every level of religious and civil authority. Jerusalem will claim no other king but Caesar and seal her own fate. It is a time of great sorrow. The Old Testament rises up and haunts us with its great stories of deliverance for Jerusalem. It reminds us of God's love for the people of a city, even the great cities of Israel's enemies. So we know that Jesus' tears are God's tears for his people, their city, and their future. God longs for the cities to ring with the cry, "Jesus is Lord." But Jerusalem will have none of it. What else can you do but weep? Today's PrayerToday's Verses in Context"You are snakes! You are from a family of poisonous snakes! You will not escape God. You will all be judged guilty and go to hell! So I tell you this: I send to you prophets and wise men and teachers. You will kill some of these people. You will hang some of them on crosses. You will beat some of these people in your synagogues. You will chase them from town to town. So you will be guilty for the death of all the good people that have been killed on earth. You will be guilty for the killing of that good man Abel. And you will be guilty for the killing of Zechariah son of Berachiah. He was killed between the temple and the altar. You will be guilty for the killing of all the good people that lived between the time of Abel and the time of Zechariah. I tell you the truth. All of these things will happen to you people that are living now. "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets. You kill with rocks those men that God sent to you. Many, many times I wanted to help your people. I wanted to gather your people together like a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. But you did not let me. Now your house will be left completely empty. I tell you, you will not see me again until that time when you will say, 'Welcome! God bless the one that comes in the name of the Lord.' " — Matthew 23:33-39 (ERV)
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