JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU - THE LORD IS RIGHTEOUSNESS
Text: Jeremiah 23:5-6
5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
6 In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
1. The Backdrop and Occasion of Use
- At the time the name Jehovah Tsidkenu is revealed, Judah is on the brink of Babylonian
- Israel (the northern kingdom) had long since departed from God and been carried off into Assyrian captivity.
Now Judah, was about to go under the judgment of Babylonian captivity because they too had turned away from God.
Tony Evans – We learn a fundamental principle from this period in Israel’s history – the further you depart from God, the more you invite decline and devolution into your life. This is because the very essence of God is life, so when you put God on the periphery of life – when you remove Him from the core of who you are – you will deteriorate as a result.
Zedekiah was the last king to reign in Judah. Zedekiah was placed on the throne of Judah by his archenemy, Nebuchadnezzar. Zedekiah sent two priests to Jeremiah to inquire of the Lord on his behalf. (Jer. 21:2)
- Jeremiah’s response of impending judgment was not what Zedekiah wanted to hear.
- God is compassionate. He offers Judah an opportunity to repent. (Jer. 22:3-4)
Jeremiah tells Zedekiah to bring forth fruits of repentance and God would spare the nation. Zedekiah didn’t like what he heard and imprisoned Jeremiah.
The people of Judah must have wondered how all of God’s promises concerning Israel, Jerusalem, and the Temple would come true.
- Jeremiah gives then a wonderful prophecy in Jer. 23:5-6.
2. The Promise Revealed In This Name
God promises that He will
God is Jehovah-Jireh, the Provider, but under the siege of Babylon and the captivity of Babylon, where is the provision?
- God is Jehovah Rophe, the Healer who makes the bitter circumstances of life sweet, but here we see a people who are broken and in need of healing.
- As Jehovah Nissi, God promised to be Israel’s victorious Banner, but here they have been sorely and completely defeated. Refusing to sanctify themselves unto Jehovah M’kadesh, they had become corrupt and defiled. They had forsaken Jehovah Shalom and lost their peace.
- God was always faithful to the people, but they had turned their backs on God.
- But, God promises that once again the people could be redeemed, healed, cleansed, victorious, and at peace through the Righteous Branch.
3. The Implication of the Name
- The name Tsidkenu comes from the root word tsedek, meaning “
It is difficult to convey in English all this word means in the original language.
God is absolutely just and righteous. For God’s people to act unjustly would be an abomination to the Lord.
- The implication of this name is that God is the standard of righteousness among His people. God is the standard. He sets the bar. We don’t get to determine what is right or wrong. Righteousness is not a subjective standard that moves or changes to accommodate us.
- The whole spectrum of Israel’s life was to be conducted in righteousness as a reflection of Jehovah Tsidkenu. The problem for Israel was that they could not on their own, nor can we on our own, reflect the righteousness of God.
4. The Fulfillment
- The only way for us to live righteously is to allow God to
- Righteousness exposes areas where sin has infected our life so we can deal with the problem and return to a right relationship with God.
And God tells us how He brings righteousness into the lives of His own. “I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land.” (Jer. 23:5)
After the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, the Righteous Branch had fulfilled His intended purpose as Jehovah-Tsidkenu. We could never meet the standard of righteousness on our own. Praise God, Jesus meets the standard for us. (2 Cor. 5:21)
The sin of humanity – yours and mine – was credited to Jesus. Because our sin was placed to His account, the wrath of God was poured out on Him on the cross. Jesus paid the price of our sin. And just as our sin was placed on Jesus’ account, His righteousness is accounted to each person who trusts Him as Savior.
However, the righteousness of Jesus is also available to us in the here and now.
- The new life we have in Christ is likened by Peter to an imperishable
- As we surrender to God, the seed will grow, our minds begin to be transformed, and we find ourselves making choices that are in line with God’s standard of righteousness.