1 Maccabees 13:49-53: a reflection

49But the people of the citadel in Jerusalem were hindered from going out and from going into the country, and from buying and selling. So they were very hungry, and a great number of them perished from famine. 50Then they cried out to Simon, that he should give them his right hand; and he gave it to them; but he expelled them from there, and he cleansed the citadel from its pollutions. 51He entered into it on the twenty-third day of the second month, in the one hundred seventy-first year, with praise and palm branches, with harps, with cymbals, and with stringed instruments, with hymns, and with songs, because a great enemy had been destroyed out of Israel. 52Simon ordained that they should keep that day every year with gladness. He made the hill of the temple that was by the citadel stronger than before, and he lived there with his men. 53Simon saw that his son John was a man, so he made him leader of all his forces; and he lived in Gazara.

When a long-standing enemy stronghold in Jerusalem is finally cleansed and the people delivered, Simon leads them in thanksgiving and appoints a yearly day to remember the deliverance with gladness. He entered it with praise and palm branches, with harps and cymbals and songs, because a great enemy had been destroyed out of Israel; and he ordained that they should keep that day every year with gladness. The deliverance was met not with quiet relief only, but with praise, thanksgiving, and celebration; and Simon set apart a day to be kept every year, so that the deliverance would be remembered and not forgotten, marked with gladness generation after generation. This shows marking and remembering God's deliverances with thanksgiving, lest they be forgotten. Mark and remember God's deliverances with thanksgiving. Set apart times to remember what God has done, lest it be forgotten. Meet deliverance with praise and celebration, not quiet relief only. Remembered deliverances feed lasting gratitude.

Notice how the deliverance was received and remembered. When the enemy stronghold was finally cleansed and the people freed from it, they did not merely feel quiet relief and move on. They celebrated: entering with praise and palm branches, with harps and cymbals and songs of thanksgiving, because a great enemy had been destroyed. And Simon did something more: he ordained that the day be kept every year with gladness, so that the deliverance would be remembered, marked, and celebrated generation after generation, not forgotten with the passing of time. This holds a lesson about how we treat God's deliverances. It is easy to receive a deliverance, a rescue, an answered prayer, a hard thing overcome, with a moment's relief, and then to move on and let it fade from memory, taking it for granted, forgetting what God did. But there is wisdom in marking and remembering God's deliverances, in meeting them with thanksgiving and celebration, and in setting apart times to remember them, so that they are not forgotten but feed our gratitude for years to come. We do well to mark and remember what God has done for us, meeting his deliverances with thanksgiving and returning to remember them, lest they fade and be forgotten. Mark and remember God's deliverances with thanksgiving, lest they be forgotten. Set apart times to remember what God has done for you. Meet deliverance with praise, not a moment's relief only. Remembered deliverances feed gratitude for years to come.

That is worth taking to heart, for it is wise to mark and remember God's deliverances with thanksgiving, lest they be forgotten, as Simon set apart a yearly day to remember the deliverance with gladness. We can receive a deliverance with a moment's relief and then let it fade from memory; but Simon met the deliverance with praise and appointed a day to remember it every year. Remember what God has done. Do not let God's deliverances fade from memory; mark them with thanksgiving and return to remember them, so that they feed your gratitude for years to come. Mark and remember God's deliverances with thanksgiving and set apart times to remember them, lest they be forgotten, as when a long-standing enemy stronghold in Jerusalem was finally cleansed and the people delivered, Simon led them in thanksgiving and appointed a yearly day to remember the deliverance with gladness, entering with praise and palm branches, harps, cymbals, and songs because a great enemy had been destroyed, and ordaining that they keep that day every year with gladness; for the deliverance was met not with quiet relief only but with praise, thanksgiving, and celebration, and Simon set apart a day to be kept every year so that the deliverance would be remembered and not forgotten, marked with gladness generation after generation, which holds a lesson about how we treat God's deliverances, since it is easy to receive a deliverance, a rescue, an answered prayer, or a hard thing overcome with a moment's relief and then move on and let it fade from memory, taking it for granted and forgetting what God did, but there is wisdom in marking and remembering God's deliverances, meeting them with thanksgiving and celebration, and setting apart times to remember them so that they are not forgotten but feed our gratitude for years to come, so that we do well to mark and remember what God has done for us.

Lord, when a long-standing enemy stronghold in Jerusalem is finally cleansed and the people delivered, Simon leads them in thanksgiving and appoints a yearly day to remember the deliverance with gladness. He entered it with praise and palm branches, with harps and cymbals and songs, because a great enemy had been destroyed out of Israel; and he ordained that they should keep that day every year with gladness. The deliverance was met not with quiet relief only, but with praise, thanksgiving, and celebration; and Simon set apart a day to be kept every year, so that the deliverance would be remembered and not forgotten, marked with gladness generation after generation. Show me how the deliverance was received and remembered. When the enemy stronghold was finally cleansed and the people freed, they did not merely feel quiet relief and move on. They celebrated, with praise and palm branches, harps and cymbals and songs of thanksgiving. And Simon did something more: he ordained that the day be kept every year with gladness, so that the deliverance would be remembered generation after generation, not forgotten with the passing of time. This holds a lesson about how I treat your deliverances. It is easy to receive a deliverance, a rescue, an answered prayer, a hard thing overcome, with a moment's relief, and then to move on and let it fade from memory, taking it for granted, forgetting what you did. But there is wisdom in marking and remembering your deliverances, in meeting them with thanksgiving, and in setting apart times to remember them, so that they are not forgotten but feed my gratitude for years to come. Take that to my heart. Keep me from letting your deliverances fade from memory; help me mark and remember what you have done for me, Lord, meeting your deliverances with thanksgiving and returning to remember them, so that they feed my gratitude for years to come rather than being forgotten.