The King is Here

“‘The days are coming,’ declares the LORD, ‘when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land.’”
Jeremiah 23:5 NIV

Old Testament prophets tended to get in trouble. Not because they were bad people, but because they often spoke uncomfortable truths to people in power. Just look at the verse above. On the surface, it seems like a nice, simple promise—one day a righteous descendant of David will come and rule with wisdom and justice. Great message, right? Well, here’s the problem for Jeremiah:

The current king is a descendant of King David. Jeremiah doesn’t say there’s a righteous king in the present, but one coming in the future. In making this prophecy about the future ruler, he’s also critiquing the current one. 

Jeremiah had a lot to say about the kings of his day. He spoke about their failure to protect the innocent, how they ignored oppression, and how they allowed violence against cultural outsiders. In other words, they were poor representatives of God’s love, kindness, and forgiveness. 

Of course, it wasn’t just the kings of Jeremiah’s time who had issues. The Old Testament is full of kings making harmful choices that impacted their kingdom. Even the best of the best, King David, was deeply flawed. But Jeremiah still had hope he wanted to share with his people. 

Jeremiah knew that, despite a long line of troubled, flawed, and corrupt kings, God would one day bring a new kind of king. 

This king would be without the flaws and failures that plagued previous generations. This king would show God’s love, kindness, and forgiveness. He would create a kingdom where everyone could be right with God and live out His righteous ways. 

Jeremiah might not have known the name of this king, but we do. When Jesus came to earth, He announced that God’s kingdom had come. Not a kingdom based on strength, territory, or wealth, but a kingdom of kindness, service, and generosity. The kind of kingdom where everyone is invited. 

Jeremiah knew flawed kings, but we know the perfect, sinless King. It is King Jesus, who calls us to represent His kingdom through daily decisions of kindness, service, and generosity.