Your Word Was the Joy of My Heart
Your words were found, and I ate them, and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart; for I am called by Your name, O LORD God of hosts.
Jeremiah faced many difficult times of persecution, imprisonment and discouragement. At times he wished he had never been born.
But when he focused on God’s words, the recorded Scriptures as well as God’s messages to him, Jeremiah found strength and sustenance. In spite of outward trials, he found the inner joy and peace described by Paul and James (Philippians 4:4-7; James 1:2-3).
Jeremiah also focused on the privilege of being called by God’s name—belonging to Him. The apostle John shows the depth of this privilege in 1 John 3:1: “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!”
For more about the practical and priceless benefits of God’s Word, see our section on “Bible Study.” For more about the blessing of becoming God’s children, see our article “Children of God.”
