Thought for the day

11 House of Judah! This is what the Lord says:
12 House of David! The Lord proclaims:
Begin each morning by administering justice,
    rescue from their oppressor
        those who have been robbed,
    or else my anger will spread like a wildfire,
        with no one to put it out,
        because of your evil deeds.
13 I am against you,
    you who live in the valley,
        like a rock of the plain,
            declares the Lord,
    and who say, “Who will come down to attack us?
        Who will breach our fortresses?”
14 I will punish you based on what you have done,
    declares the Lord.
I will set your forests on fire;
    the flames will engulf
        everything around you. (Jer 21:11–14 CEB)

<idle musing>
I'm reading through Jeremiah right now, and it is truly amazing how many times he rebukes the Judeans for their conduct. Well, let me reword that. It is amazing how many times he rebukes them for their mistreatment of the most vulnerable: the immigrant, the orphan, the widow, the day-worker (the equivalent of our hourly wage employee). Sure, he takes a few side swipes at the loose sexual morals, but that is a minor theme. Repeatedly, it is the way the most vulnerable are treated that is the focus.

I think it might be time for me to break out Heschel's The Prophets again and reread for the nth time his first chapter. It's a classic and I need to be reminded of it every so often. Do yourself a favor and grab a copy from your local bookstore (under $20) or library (it's in 1819 libraries according to WorldCat).
</idle musing>