Where is True Satisfaction Found?

Jeremiah 50:19-20 (ESV)

I will restore Israel to his pasture, and he shall feed on Carmel and in Bashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead. [20] In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, iniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none. And sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for I will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.

Israel had been deported to the land of Babylon and God had brought judgment on them because of their disobedience. We must not brush by too quickly at the reality of sin’s consequences for the testimony of Israel’s captivity stands as a reminder that God will not tolerate rebellion and disobedient hearts among his people. Holiness is always a mark of His grace, not a merit badge of our efforts. So, we must also always come back to grace. Israel was to be restored and find complete satisfaction on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead. The image is one of sheep that Jeremiah depicted as a flock without a shepherd and aimless in life. God will not leave his sheep left to despair in the wilderness of their sin or bewilderment. How many times do we seek other things to fill the heart and run from God, but our only satisfaction is on the hills of Ephraim, which is the life of Jesus Christ. “My God will supply all your needs- according to the riches of Christ Jesus” Phil.4:19. He is the fount of living water. He is the living Bread. In Jesus we have life and one that is abundant (John 10:10). The promise made to Israel for restoration was fulfilled in Jesus Christ and as Gentiles we are in-grafted into the people of promise. The sin in Judah is not found. Look upon your soul redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus Christ and there is no sin to be found. If you believe and trust in the words of our Savior then “there is no condemnation”. God’s pardon of those who have faith in Jesus Christ is complete and total. The prosecuting investigator will look in vain for any dirt, scandal, or a bad record on the Day of Judgment for the believer. He stands on the record of the pure and righteous Son of God. Hence, the fields of Christ are a sweet haven of a grace-filled life where we are sustained by his love. The law and the Old Testament continue to stand for us as a reminder of God’s perfection and displeasure at sin, but in Christ we no longer wear them as frontlets upon our heads. The Grace of forgiveness and the redemption of the Cross now mark us and direct our lives. We desire to walk in holiness not because the law stands over us, but because Grace has overwhelmed the harshness of the law into the sweetness of the honeycomb. Song 5:1 (ESV) I came to my garden, my sister, my bride, I gathered my myrrh with my spice, I ate my honeycomb with my honey, I drank my wine with my milk.