The man who trusts in mankind,
\nwho makes human flesh his strength
\nand turns his heart from the\u00a0Lord\u00a0is cursed.
\nHe will be like a juniper in the Arabah;
\nhe cannot see when good comes
\nbut dwells in the parched places in the wilderness,
\nin a salt land where no one lives.
\nThe man who trusts in the\u00a0Lord,
\nwhose confidence indeed is the\u00a0Lord, is blessed.
\nHe will be like a tree planted by water:<\/em><\/strong>
\nit sends its roots out toward a stream,<\/em><\/strong>
\nit doesn\u2019t fear when heat comes,<\/em><\/strong>
\nand its foliage remains green.<\/em><\/strong>
\nIt will not worry in a year of drought<\/em><\/strong>
\nor cease producing fruit.<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nThat sounds quite a bit like what the Psalmist says in Psalm 1, the introduction to the Psalms.<\/p>\n
How happy is the man
\nwho does not follow\u00a0the advice of the wicked
\nor take the path of sinners
\nor join a group of mockers!
\nInstead, his delight is in the\u00a0Lord\u2019s instruction,
\nand he meditates on it day and night.
\nHe is like a tree planted beside streams of water<\/em><\/strong>
\nthat bears its fruit in season<\/em><\/strong>
\nand whose leaf does not wither.<\/em><\/strong>
\nWhatever he does prospers<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\nThe wicked are not like this;
\ninstead, they are like chaff that the wind blows away.
\nTherefore the wicked will not survive the judgment,
\nand sinners will not be in the community of the righteous.<\/p>\n
For the\u00a0Lord\u00a0watches over the way of the righteous,
\nbut the way of the wicked leads to ruin<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
.<\/p>\n
I guess the big questions today are “where am I planted?” and “in whom is my trust, my delight?”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
In Jeremiah we read (17:5-8): This is what the\u00a0Lord\u00a0says: The man who trusts in mankind, who makes human flesh his strength and turns his heart from the\u00a0Lord\u00a0is cursed. He will be like a juniper in the Arabah; he cannot see when good comes but dwells in the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt… <\/p>\n
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