Week of Monday March 10 - March 16
Brother’s Weeper – Man as Battle Buddy
“The calamity of Moab is near at hand, and his affliction hastens swiftly. Grieve for him, all you who are around him, and all who know his name; say, ‘How the mighty scepter is broken, the glorious staff.” - Jeremiah 48:16-17 ESV
You’ve likely heard the old saying, “My brother’s keeper,” which has its origins in the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. However, in this passage, God talks about being our “brother’s weeper.”
Here’s the backstory: This prophecy of judgment against Moab is one of several prophesies directed at nations surrounding Judah after the Babylonian invasion that destroyed Jerusalem and took God’s people captive. The Babylonians fulfilled this prophecy by conquering Moab in 582 BC.
Moab was not just any nation deserving God’s punishment; they were related to the Israelites through Lot, Abraham’s nephew. Despite the impending judgment, verse 17 shows a glimmer of God’s compassion and grace. God instructs His people to grieve for Moab, which is unexpected, given that Moab had actually raided villages in Judah alongside the Babylonians in the years preceding the fall of Jerusalem (2 Kings 24:2).
This passage gives additional reasons why Moab was to be judged:
“For, because you trusted in your works and your treasures, you also shall be taken; and Chemosh [their national deity] shall go into exile with his priests and his officials. The destroyer shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape; the valley shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the Lord has spoken.” Jeremiah 48:7-8
Trusting in what we’ve done, what we have, and what we worship instead of God brings His judgment. However, God did not want His people to celebrate the Moabites’ downfall. Instead, He told them to mourn for Moab.
In fact, God modeled what He required: “Therefore I wail for Moab; I cry out for all Moab; for the men of Kir-hareseth I mourn” (verse 31). God doesn’t jump for joy when He judges people. On the contrary, it breaks His heart. As He would say later through the prophet Ezekiel: “As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11). Don’t miss this truth: God weeps over people broken by sin. The point of this passage? So should we.
The culture God has entrusted to us to reach for Christ is littered with broken lives that have fallen prey to the temptation of pride, arrogance, and idolatry. This has resulted in even more brokenness: broken relationships, broken children, and a broken nation. We have the opportunity to express the same compassionate grace toward a brother who has blown it and is broken by it that God shows us. We can obey the encouragement of Paul and “weep with those weep” (Romans 12:15).
That’s a part of what it means to be a Battle Buddy. When a guy friend is broken as a result of bad decisions, he needs someone to come alongside him in that brokenness. Specifically, he needs you. Paul puts it this way: “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:1-2). So, when a friend faces the consequences of his choices, instead of piling on with a word of condemnation, let’s show the kind of heartfelt compassion the Lord has shown us. Maybe we can even try being our “brother’s weeper.”
Brother’s Weeper – Man as Battle Buddy
“The calamity of Moab is near at hand, and his affliction hastens swiftly. Grieve for him, all you who are around him, and all who know his name; say, ‘How the mighty scepter is broken, the glorious staff.” - Jeremiah 48:16-17 ESV
You’ve likely heard the old saying, “My brother’s keeper,” which has its origins in the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis 4. However, in this passage, God talks about being our “brother’s weeper.”
Here’s the backstory: This prophecy of judgment against Moab is one of several prophesies directed at nations surrounding Judah after the Babylonian invasion that destroyed Jerusalem and took God’s people captive. The Babylonians fulfilled this prophecy by conquering Moab in 582 BC.
Moab was not just any nation deserving God’s punishment; they were related to the Israelites through Lot, Abraham’s nephew. Despite the impending judgment, verse 17 shows a glimmer of God’s compassion and grace. God instructs His people to grieve for Moab, which is unexpected, given that Moab had actually raided villages in Judah alongside the Babylonians in the years preceding the fall of Jerusalem (2 Kings 24:2).
This passage gives additional reasons why Moab was to be judged:
“For, because you trusted in your works and your treasures, you also shall be taken; and Chemosh [their national deity] shall go into exile with his priests and his officials. The destroyer shall come upon every city, and no city shall escape; the valley shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed, as the Lord has spoken.” Jeremiah 48:7-8
Trusting in what we’ve done, what we have, and what we worship instead of God brings His judgment. However, God did not want His people to celebrate the Moabites’ downfall. Instead, He told them to mourn for Moab.
In fact, God modeled what He required: “Therefore I wail for Moab; I cry out for all Moab; for the men of Kir-hareseth I mourn” (verse 31). God doesn’t jump for joy when He judges people. On the contrary, it breaks His heart. As He would say later through the prophet Ezekiel: “As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live” (Ezekiel 33:11). Don’t miss this truth: God weeps over people broken by sin. The point of this passage? So should we.
The culture God has entrusted to us to reach for Christ is littered with broken lives that have fallen prey to the temptation of pride, arrogance, and idolatry. This has resulted in even more brokenness: broken relationships, broken children, and a broken nation. We have the opportunity to express the same compassionate grace toward a brother who has blown it and is broken by it that God shows us. We can obey the encouragement of Paul and “weep with those weep” (Romans 12:15).
That’s a part of what it means to be a Battle Buddy. When a guy friend is broken as a result of bad decisions, he needs someone to come alongside him in that brokenness. Specifically, he needs you. Paul puts it this way: “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:1-2). So, when a friend faces the consequences of his choices, instead of piling on with a word of condemnation, let’s show the kind of heartfelt compassion the Lord has shown us. Maybe we can even try being our “brother’s weeper.”
- As you survey your relationships, is there a man whose life has been broken by bad decisions who needs your empathetic and encouraging presence?
- What would it look like for you to “bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” for a friend who is feeling the consequences of his sinful choices? Beyond weeping, what are some practical things you might do for a broken brother?
- Ask God to give you His tender heart that grieves over people who are broken because of their sin.