Jeremiah 3:6-10: a reflection

6Moreover, the LORD said to me in the days of Josiah the king, “Have you seen that which backsliding Israel has done? She has gone up on every high mountain and under every green tree, and has played the prostitute there. 7I said after she had done all these things, ‘She will return to me;’ but she didn’t return, and her treacherous sister Judah saw it. 8I saw when, for this very cause, that backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a certificate of divorce, yet treacherous Judah, her sister, had no fear, but she also went and played the prostitute. 9Because she took her prostitution lightly, the land was polluted, and she committed adultery with stones and with wood. 10Yet for all this her treacherous sister, Judah, has not returned to me with her whole heart, but only in pretense,” says the LORD.

Through Jeremiah, God laments that his people returned to him only in pretense, not with their whole heart. Judah has not returned to me with her whole heart, God says, but only in pretense. There had been an outward show of returning, a pretense of turning back to God; but the heart was not in it. God saw through the outward pretense to the divided, unrepentant heart beneath. What God wanted was not a pretended, half-hearted return but a whole-hearted one, a real turning back with the whole heart. This confronts the danger of a merely outward, pretended repentance, and calls us to return to God with our whole heart. God wants a whole-hearted return, not a pretended one. A pretended return is not a real turning back. God sees through pretense to the heart. Return to God with the whole heart, not in pretense.

Notice the difference God draws: between returning in pretense and returning with the whole heart. Judah made some outward show of turning back to God, a pretense of repentance; but it was not with the whole heart, and God saw through it. He was not satisfied with the outward pretense, the half-hearted show; he wanted a real, whole-hearted return. This confronts a real danger in us. We can make an outward show of turning back to God, go through the motions of repentance, while our hearts are not truly in it, still holding onto what we should leave, still divided. But God sees the heart. A pretended, half-hearted return is not a real turning back, and God is not deceived by the outward show. What God wants, and what truly restores us, is a whole-hearted return, a real turning of the heart back to him, not a mere pretense. To return to God with the whole heart, not merely in outward pretense, is real repentance. God sees through half-hearted pretense to the divided heart. Real return is with the whole heart, not just outward show. God wants our whole heart, not a pretended turning.

That is worth taking to heart, for God wants a whole-hearted return, not a pretended, half-hearted one, and he sees through outward pretense to the heart. We can make an outward show of turning back to God, going through the motions of repentance while our hearts are not truly in it, still divided; but God saw that Judah returned only in pretense, not with her whole heart, and was not satisfied. God sees the heart. Do not offer God a pretended, half-hearted return; return to him with your whole heart, really turning back. Return to God with your whole heart rather than in mere outward pretense, for God lamented through Jeremiah that his people returned to him not with their whole heart but only in pretense, seeing through their outward show of repentance to the divided heart beneath; for we can make an outward show of turning back to God, going through the motions of repentance while our hearts are not truly in it, still holding onto what we should leave, but God sees the heart and is not deceived by a half-hearted pretense, and what he wants, and what truly restores us, is a real, whole-hearted return, a genuine turning of the heart back to him, so that we do well not to offer him a pretended repentance but to return to him with our whole heart.

Lord, through Jeremiah you lament that your people returned to you only in pretense, not with their whole heart. Judah has not returned to me with her whole heart, you say, but only in pretense. There had been an outward show of returning, a pretense of turning back to you; but the heart was not in it. You saw through the outward pretense to the divided, unrepentant heart beneath. What you wanted was not a pretended, half-hearted return but a whole-hearted one, a real turning back with the whole heart. This confronts the danger of a merely outward, pretended repentance, and calls me to return to you with my whole heart. Show me the difference you draw: between returning in pretense and returning with the whole heart. Judah made some outward show of turning back to you, a pretense of repentance; but it was not with the whole heart, and you saw through it. You were not satisfied with the outward pretense; you wanted a real, whole-hearted return. This confronts a real danger in me. I can make an outward show of turning back to you, go through the motions of repentance, while my heart is not truly in it, still holding onto what I should leave, still divided. But you see the heart. A pretended, half-hearted return is not a real turning back, and you are not deceived by the outward show. What you want, and what truly restores me, is a whole-hearted return. Take that to my heart, for you want a whole-hearted return, not a pretended one, and you see through outward pretense to the heart. Keep me from offering you a pretended, half-hearted return; help me return to you with my whole heart, Lord, really turning back, not deceiving myself with an outward show while my heart holds onto what it should leave, but giving you my whole heart.