July 16, 2024

Jeremiah 22.16 (NIV)

“He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the Lord.

The right knowledge of God consists in doing our duty.*

Many years after the Lord spoke these words about King Josiah, James wrote, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress.” (James 1.27) 

There are lots of religions in the world and people are religious about a lot of things but “[k]nowing God . . . does not consist merely of having heard of him, or having read his word, or having been associated with God-fearing people.”* Even the world can tell the difference between someone who is “religious” and someone who really walks the talk.

 

We might say that King Josiah was proactive. Not only did he not use his power for evil, he actually used it for good. God held him up as an example of what pure religion looks like. “This is what it means to know me,” he said. Then he ends with, “. . . and so all went well.”

Yes, in this case it did go well. But we must understand that doing the right thing does not always lead to all going well. Sometimes doing good is the reward. Sometimes doing good results in ridicule, punishment - or worse. But Paul reminds us, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6.9) Now, there’s a promise for you!

In seeking the public welfare, we seek our own.*