14-15 “Return home, you wayward children,” says the Lord, “for I am your master. I will bring you back to the land of Israel - one from this town and two from that family - from wherever you are scattered. And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will guide you with knowledge and understanding.” 16 “And when your land is once more filled with people,” says the Lord, “you will no longer wish for ‘the good old days’ when you possessed the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant. You will not miss those days or even remember them, and there will be no need to rebuild the Ark. 17 In that day Jerusalem will be known as ‘The Throne of the Lord.’ All nations will come there to honour the Lord. They will no longer stubbornly follow their own evil desires. 18 In those days the people of Judah and Israel will return together from exile in the north. They will return to the land I gave your ancestors as an inheritance forever.”

19 “I thought to myself, ‘I would love to treat you as my own children!’ I wanted nothing more than to give you this beautiful land - the finest possession in the world. I looked forward to your calling me ‘Father,’ and I wanted you never to turn from me. 20 But you have been unfaithful to me, you people of Israel! You have been like a faithless wife who leaves her husband. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

21 Voices are heard high on the windswept mountains, the weeping and pleading of Israel’s people. For they have chosen crooked paths and have forgotten the Lord their God. 22 “My wayward children,” says the Lord, “come back to me, and I will heal your wayward hearts.” “Yes, we’re coming,” the people reply, “for you are the Lord our God. 23-24 Our worship of idols on the hills and our religious orgies on the mountains are a delusion. Only in the Lord our God will Israel ever find salvation. From childhood we have watched as everything our ancestors worked for - their flocks and herds, their sons and daughters -  was squandered on a delusion. 25  Let us now lie down in shame and cover ourselves with dishonour, for we and our ancestors have sinned against the Lord our God. From our childhood to this day we have never obeyed him.” New Living Translation (English Standard Version link)

What wonderful and amazing words we read in vs 22. God says to Israel  “My wayward children - come back to me, and I will heal your wayward hearts.” Wonderful because they speak of such tender forgiveness – and amazing because they are the words of our almighty Creator! How had God viewed their behaviour in vs 20, and how did they themselves admit they had behaved in vs 23-24?

In vs 14-15 God calls these wayward people to return to Him. What did He promise to give them if they did return?

Shepherds were people who led, fed and protected sheep. They tenderly took care of them. God promised ‘shepherds’ who would do that for their souls. The best shepherd of all would be the Messiah who God was sending. Jesus Christ is the supreme good shepherd after God's own heart.

Verses 16-18 describe how God was going to bring them back to their homeland and do even greater things than all He’d done through Moses. It would even lead to people from the nations giving Him honour. Verse 19 shows how it had always been God's desire to do good to His people, but sadly they had rejected His loving care. But vs 22-25 then describe a happy outcome as the people come to their senses and say they will return to God. What do those verses tell us of what’s involved if people truly turn to God?

We see that they confessed the empty delusion of the sinful life they had been living. They admitted that they had squandered God's kindness and blessings. They were ashamed of their sins and their behaviour towards God. But they also said, yes Lord, we are coming, we will return to you! This is what true repentance looks like and what it means to turn to God for salvation. It’s also what is involved for those who are Christians, but who’ve neglected and forgotten Him. Oh hear His words of grace: “Return home, you wayward children.” Wonderful and amazing words of our Creator.