Thy mercy, my God, is the theme
of my song. During Solomon's reign, the nation
of Israel enjoyed a prolonged period of worldly peace and prosperity. Yet Solomon, like all men by
nature, departed from those things which the Lord had taught him,
and brought shame upon himself and his nation as he worshipped
other gods. Still, the Lord did not rend
the kingdom from him, in honor of his promise to Solomon's father,
David. In this we see illustrated the
glorious covenant of redemption, which he will ever uphold, which
is based solely upon his promise to our greater David. He shall
cry unto me, thou art my father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.
Also I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the
earth. My mercy will I keep for him forevermore, and my covenant
shall stand fast with him. His seed also will I make to
endure forever, and his throne as the days of heaven. How blessed
are the sons of God, because of that everlasting covenant
with Christ, wherein the Father bestowed all blessing on His
Son! Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion. I will
declare the decree. The Lord hath said unto me, Thou
art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall
give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost
parts of the earth for thy possession. Only for David's sake was Solomon
spared. Yet the Lord did promise to take
the kingdom from Solomon's son. Once Solomon was dead, it was
not long before Israel was divided into the northern and southern
kingdoms of Judah and Israel. And many kings, some good and
some bad, ruled over their kingdoms, constantly being besieged and
harassed by a vast array of enemies. Yet the Lord preserved to Himself
a remnant, even in those times, and spoke to them through many
prophets. Jeremiah was brought on the scene
in time to prophesy of the certain destruction of Jerusalem, but
no one believed him. When he spoke the truth, false
prophets arose to contradict him and to ultimately deliver
the nation up to its ordained end. The risings and fallings
of those identified as the children of Israel were ordained to occur
by him who would demonstrate that he will never forsake those
who are the people of his choice. Isaiah spoke of the type of righteousness
which is accepted with the Father, and the total lack thereof in
the sons of men, when he says, But we are all as an unclean
thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. And we all
do fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us
away. And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth
up himself to take hold on thee. For thou hast hid thy face from
us, and hast consumed us because of our iniquities. The Lord does
indeed have regard unto righteousness, and the man that doth wait upon
him. Isaiah inserts one of the biggest buts in all of the scripture,
as he sets forth the complete unacceptability of any righteousness
which a man might assume that he possesses, or could presume
to bring unto the Lord. Man's righteousnesses are as
vile and stinking cloth, that is, filthy rags, unto him who
will not look upon sin. The very best intention of man
is as rotting garbage before the Lord. The total impotence
of men by nature is seen in the wasting of Jerusalem and how
the Jews were powerless to defend their city against the forces
of the Chaldeans. It was necessary that they as
a nation be brought down to the dust, that they might discover
their own barrenness, as they had become a proud people, disregarding
the word of God, even as Jeremiah wept before them and warned them
of their impending doom. The only manner in which a man
may be found as righteous before the Lord is for him to supply
it for those who cannot provide it for themselves. Thus Jeremiah
goes on to say, come and let us declare in Zion the work of
the Lord our God. This is the place of the greatest
rejoicing for those who have been shown what true righteousness
actually is. Let us declare the work of the
Lord our God as he raises up the Chaldeans as a mighty people
and Nebuchadnezzar as a powerful potentate so that they might
be used as an ax to chop the tree of Israel to the ground.
Yet this was but a means to an end, and the power of Babylon
was soon brought down to greater ignominy than Israel. For Israel
was favored by God in a covenant sure and steadfast, while Babylon,
on the other hand, was merely a tool in his hand to work his
perfect work in that people that he loved. And he destroyed Babylon
for daring to bring harm to Israel. The carnal nation of Israel is
but a type and foreshadow of that true Zion which he chose
in Christ from the beginning. Let us declare the work of the
Lord our God, as he provides a perfect righteousness for them
through imputation. Christ is the righteousness of
his people, and they shall never perish because of the work of
the Lord our God. Is Christ your righteousness?
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