By Dennis Pollock
Jeremiah the prophet speaks about the ultimate “claim to fame,” but he starts by telling us what it should not be. He does not call it a claim to fame; instead, he uses the word “glory,” saying:
“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches…” (Jeremiah 9:23)
Many other translations do not use the word “glory;” they translate it as “boast.” Wise, powerful, and rich men should not boast because they are wise, powerful, or rich. Of course, God is referring here to personal assets that people may have. He starts with wisdom, which in this case, could also include intelligence. A sharp mind is a good thing. Smart, clever people tend to make more money than those who aren’t so sharp. They can often excel in areas of life where other, less intelligent people never could. They impress potential employers in interviews; they solve problems quickly and can normally see dangers far down the road and avoid the misery they represent. Simple people often do not see those perils until they are bearing down upon them, and there is little they can do about it. If a pregnant woman is asked whether she hopes her baby will be smart or dumb, you can guess what her answer would always be.
Mighty Men
Jeremiah goes on to tell the mighty not to be too proud. Physical strength was especially prized back in Bible days when warriors went out to battle with swords and spears, ready for hand-to-hand combat. Today, soldiers are given rifles that can kill the enemy several hundred yards away, so a big body and big muscles don’t quite matter so much. But God is telling strong and powerful men not to get too proud about their strength.
And then the rich men are warned: “Don’t boast in your wealth!” Possessing wealth, then as now, gave men tremendous advantages over poor men. They lived better, married prettier wives, and had the respect of their community. Everyone wanted to be the rich man’s friend; almost nobody would openly confront them about anything. And yet, just as with the wise and powerful men, these wealthy men are told not to boast about their greatest physical asset.
Jeremiah gives us three categories, but he could have mentioned many more in which people can be proud. He could have talked about beautiful women, for example. Beautiful women have tremendous advantages over plain women. They are likely to be hired for positions more quickly, to find husbands more frequently, be cast in movies (these days), have more friends, and are generally respected and favored far more than their common-looking sisters. And this is not something that they worked for. It has mostly to do with the size, shape, and position of their eyes, nose, and mouth, something that, unless they have had cosmetic surgery, they had nothing to do with. Good-looking men also have far greater opportunities than ugly men.
Personality
Personality is another trait that brings amazing rewards. Men and women with charismatic, outgoing, and engaging personalities have far more opportunities and success than those who are introverted, shy, and socially awkward. They can often turn their personality into gold by building relationships and business contacts that shy people could not possibly match.
And yet God tells us that whatever natural assets we may have, whatever positive traits there are about us of which we are tempted to be proud – hold on a minute! Everything I have been talking about is a gift from God: our wisdom, our strength, our looks, our personality are all given to us by our Creator. And even if we did make our money through hard work and years of sacrifice, who was it that gave us the ambition and ability to work hard and endure years of difficulties, and eventually see great success, if it was not God?
After telling us what we should not boast about and rejoice in, God tells us what we should boast about, saying:
But let him who glories, glory in this,
Jeremiah the prophet speaks about the ultimate “claim to fame,” but he starts by telling us what it should not be. He does not call it a claim to fame; instead, he uses the word “glory,” saying:
“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches…” (Jeremiah 9:23)
Many other translations do not use the word “glory;” they translate it as “boast.” Wise, powerful, and rich men should not boast because they are wise, powerful, or rich. Of course, God is referring here to personal assets that people may have. He starts with wisdom, which in this case, could also include intelligence. A sharp mind is a good thing. Smart, clever people tend to make more money than those who aren’t so sharp. They can often excel in areas of life where other, less intelligent people never could. They impress potential employers in interviews; they solve problems quickly and can normally see dangers far down the road and avoid the misery they represent. Simple people often do not see those perils until they are bearing down upon them, and there is little they can do about it. If a pregnant woman is asked whether she hopes her baby will be smart or dumb, you can guess what her answer would always be.
Mighty Men
Jeremiah goes on to tell the mighty not to be too proud. Physical strength was especially prized back in Bible days when warriors went out to battle with swords and spears, ready for hand-to-hand combat. Today, soldiers are given rifles that can kill the enemy several hundred yards away, so a big body and big muscles don’t quite matter so much. But God is telling strong and powerful men not to get too proud about their strength.
And then the rich men are warned: “Don’t boast in your wealth!” Possessing wealth, then as now, gave men tremendous advantages over poor men. They lived better, married prettier wives, and had the respect of their community. Everyone wanted to be the rich man’s friend; almost nobody would openly confront them about anything. And yet, just as with the wise and powerful men, these wealthy men are told not to boast about their greatest physical asset.
Jeremiah gives us three categories, but he could have mentioned many more in which people can be proud. He could have talked about beautiful women, for example. Beautiful women have tremendous advantages over plain women. They are likely to be hired for positions more quickly, to find husbands more frequently, be cast in movies (these days), have more friends, and are generally respected and favored far more than their common-looking sisters. And this is not something that they worked for. It has mostly to do with the size, shape, and position of their eyes, nose, and mouth, something that, unless they have had cosmetic surgery, they had nothing to do with. Good-looking men also have far greater opportunities than ugly men.
Personality
Personality is another trait that brings amazing rewards. Men and women with charismatic, outgoing, and engaging personalities have far more opportunities and success than those who are introverted, shy, and socially awkward. They can often turn their personality into gold by building relationships and business contacts that shy people could not possibly match.
And yet God tells us that whatever natural assets we may have, whatever positive traits there are about us of which we are tempted to be proud – hold on a minute! Everything I have been talking about is a gift from God: our wisdom, our strength, our looks, our personality are all given to us by our Creator. And even if we did make our money through hard work and years of sacrifice, who was it that gave us the ambition and ability to work hard and endure years of difficulties, and eventually see great success, if it was not God?
After telling us what we should not boast about and rejoice in, God tells us what we should boast about, saying:
But let him who glories, glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:24)
The Ultimate Advantage
A relationship with God is the ultimate advantage in life! If you’re pretty, enjoy your beauty and make use of whatever open doors it may bring you, but don’t get too excited – your looks have an expiration date. If you are intelligent or have a powerful personality, thank God for it, but recognize that these attributes may last, at the most for 70 – 100 years, but sooner or later your body will fail and your wisdom and intelligence will do you no good in the grave if you find yourself in the outer darkness, reserved for those who do not exit this life with the Holy Spirit on the inside of them.
The one thing in life we can have that lasts forever is a relationship with God. That is the essence of the statement: “He understands and knows Me.” This must be our only boast. And from our New Testament perspective today, we realize that this only happens when we are reconciled to God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
But this idea of understanding and knowing God can be a bit puzzling. After all, nobody truly understands God; I don’t, you don’t, none of us do. He is way too big to be understood by our puny and finite minds. Paul writes: “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33)
We can Know Enough!
Although nobody understands God completely, He has revealed enough of Himself for us to be reconciled to Him through Jesus; we can know God and relate to Him as our Father in Heaven. That much we can and must know. And knowing God through Christ, we will boast, we will glory, we will rejoice! There is a lot about God we don’t know, but we will rejoice in what we do know: God has sent His Son, Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for our sins and rose again the third day, and having believed, we shall live forever.
The simplest Christian, the poorest Christian, the ugliest disciple of Christ, the most socially awkward believer in Jesus who may seem to have very little going for him, is in an infinitely better place and has far more reason to rejoice than the sharpest, brightest, richest, most charismatic secular non-believer who ever lived. In Christ we are all, from the least to the greatest, more than conquerors.
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment,
and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the LORD. (Jeremiah 9:24)
The Ultimate Advantage
A relationship with God is the ultimate advantage in life! If you’re pretty, enjoy your beauty and make use of whatever open doors it may bring you, but don’t get too excited – your looks have an expiration date. If you are intelligent or have a powerful personality, thank God for it, but recognize that these attributes may last, at the most for 70 – 100 years, but sooner or later your body will fail and your wisdom and intelligence will do you no good in the grave if you find yourself in the outer darkness, reserved for those who do not exit this life with the Holy Spirit on the inside of them.
The one thing in life we can have that lasts forever is a relationship with God. That is the essence of the statement: “He understands and knows Me.” This must be our only boast. And from our New Testament perspective today, we realize that this only happens when we are reconciled to God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.
But this idea of understanding and knowing God can be a bit puzzling. After all, nobody truly understands God; I don’t, you don’t, none of us do. He is way too big to be understood by our puny and finite minds. Paul writes: “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33)
We can Know Enough!
Although nobody understands God completely, He has revealed enough of Himself for us to be reconciled to Him through Jesus; we can know God and relate to Him as our Father in Heaven. That much we can and must know. And knowing God through Christ, we will boast, we will glory, we will rejoice! There is a lot about God we don’t know, but we will rejoice in what we do know: God has sent His Son, Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for our sins and rose again the third day, and having believed, we shall live forever.
The simplest Christian, the poorest Christian, the ugliest disciple of Christ, the most socially awkward believer in Jesus who may seem to have very little going for him, is in an infinitely better place and has far more reason to rejoice than the sharpest, brightest, richest, most charismatic secular non-believer who ever lived. In Christ we are all, from the least to the greatest, more than conquerors.
