Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the LORD, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water. Jeremiah 2:12-13 (ESV)
During the dry summer months in Palestine the people were forced to build cisterns to collect the rainwater or water from small streams. This was particularly necessary in places where there were no large streams or springs. Most of the cisterns were dug in the earth or cut out of soft limestone. They varied in size and shape. With proper care the water could be kept in good condition for a while, but often it became dirty. Sometimes the cisterns would break and the water would leak out.
In Jeremiah 2:13, God defines evil and describes the spiritual condition of Israel. Israel had exchanged God for the idols of other nations. God called these idols “broken cisterns that hold no water.” Israel sought to be satisfied by something other than God. They exchanged eternal satisfaction found only in relationship with God for a temporary satisfaction that in reality did not satisfy them at all. The psalmist penned this about the nation’s idols that Israel pursued: Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. (Psalm 115:4-8) He went on to say that those who trust in them are like them. It is true that we become like what we worship.
As Christians we must shy away from worshiping the idols of self-gratification such as prosperity, power, popularity and prestige. These are the broken cisterns of worldly lusts. Sadly, many church goers worship the institutional church. They have forsaken God, faithful obedience to his word and sound biblical teaching. Instead, they have hewed out broken cisterns and made idols of the traditions and doctrines of men. In many churches ritual has taken the place of repentance and righteousness; works have taken the place of true worship. Man pleasing has replaced God-pleasing.
Though we shrink back at the thought of this being evil, that is exactly God’s definition. He compares our worldly indulgences and religious toys to broken cisterns that hold no water. We can pamper our flesh thinking that these things will meet the needs of our heart. However, once we have indulged, we find it is not enough to satisfy neither our physical nor our spiritual desires.
Our hunger and thirst are only quenched by a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Believing on and clinging to Jesus purges our old cisterns from the muck that has wrought defilement. In turn, faith in Christ produces in us rivers of living water (John 7:38) that give eternal satisfaction. Jesus told the woman at the well in Samaria, Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty forever. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. (John 4:13-14)
God has promised to satisfy all who are thirsty. John wrote, And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment.” (Revelation 21:6)
Where do you turn for satisfaction? What are you looking toward to quench your spiritual thirst? Are you thirsty for God alone or have you traded God for a broken cistern?
Scriptures for meditation:
Psalm 36:7-9
Revelation 22:17