The prophet Jeremiah’s words are for the people to give them hope in a dark time. He wants to assure the people that God will give them “a future with hope.”
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It goes without saying that there are many reasons to feel anxious in our world today — for yourself, your loved ones, for our community, our nation, and our world. It’s easy to wonder in our times of anxiety how we are going to get through these times.
I will listen for the voice of my Shepherd amid the noise of the crowd.
In Exodus 17, The Israelites have been in the wilderness for several weeks, and the people don’t have enough water. They begin to be afraid that they and their cattle will all die of thirst in the wilderness.
Jesus, in the last days of his life, is in the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, sitting at the table. Mary takes a pound of “costly perfume made of pure nard,” which was a fragrant, imported oil.
There are controversial parts of the Bible, there are unclear parts of scripture, and there are passages that are difficult to understand. But this one is clear — as clear as Jesus’ words about how we treat the poor.