Scripture
Seek the peace and prosperity of the city into which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it for if it prospers you will prosper.

Observation
From Jerusalem, Jeremiah sends a letter to the leaders, priests and people of Israel in exile in Babylon.

The letter carries the word of the Lord for the people in exile. They are to settle down, build housed and plant gardens, marry and have children and arrange for their children to be married. They are to seek the prosperity of the city for as it prospers they too will prosper.

Application
Being in exile must have been hard on the people of God. Had God abandoned them? Would they ever return home?

Jeremiah encourages the people in exile to make the city their home and to continue to trust the Lord.

We are in a sense strangers in a strange land. This world is not our real home. Yet we are called to live here to the glory of God. We live out our daily lives, but always with the hope that one day we will be in a better place, our true home.

Prayer
Thank you Father for the assurance that you have a true home for me with you. Help me to honour you in my daily living. Amen.