Individuals Had Jehovah as Their Share

8. Describe the trouble the Levite Asaph faced.

⁸ The Levites as a tribe were to have Jehovah as their share. It is noteworthy, though, that individual Levites used the phrase “Jehovah is my share” to express devotion to God and reliance on him. (Lam. 3:24)

11. What question did Jeremiah have, and how was it answered?

¹¹ The prophet Jeremiah was another Levite who recognized Jehovah as his share. Let us consider what he meant when using that expression. Jeremiah lived in Anathoth, a Levite city near Jerusalem. (Jer. 1:1) At one point, Jeremiah became perplexed: Why were the wicked prospering while the righteous suffered? (Jer. 12:1) After observing what was taking place in Jerusalem and Judah, he felt compelled to ‘complain’ about what he saw. Jeremiah knew that Jehovah is righteous. What Jehovah thereafter inspired Jeremiah to prophesy and how He fulfilled those prophetic words gave a solid answer to the prophet’s question. In harmony with divine prophecies, those who obeyed Jehovah’s direction ‘received their souls as spoil,’ whereas the prosperous wicked ones ignored the warning and perished.​—Jer. 21:9.

12, 13. (a) What moved Jeremiah to declare: “Jehovah is my share,” and what attitude did he have? (b) Why did all the tribes of Israel need to cultivate a waiting attitude?

¹² As Jeremiah later looked over his devastated homeland, he felt as though he were walking in darkness. It was as if Jehovah had made him “sit like men dead for a long time.” (Lam. 1:1, 16; 3:6) Jeremiah had told the wayward nation to return to their heavenly Father, but their badness had reached the point where God had to let Jerusalem and Judah be destroyed. That caused Jeremiah pain, though he was not at fault. Amid his afflictions, the prophet remembered God’s mercies. “We have not come to our finish,” he said. Indeed, Jehovah’s mercies are new each morning! It was then that Jeremiah declared: “Jehovah is my share.” He continued having the privilege of serving Jehovah as a prophet.​—Read Lamentations 3:22-24.

¹³ For 70 years, the Israelites would lack a homeland. It would lie desolate. (Jer. 25:11) But Jeremiah’s expression “Jehovah is my share” revealed his confidence in divine mercy, and it gave him reason for showing “a waiting attitude.” All the tribes of Israel had lost their inheritance, so they needed to cultivate the same attitude as the prophet. Jehovah was their only hope. After 70 years, God’s people were restored to their homeland and had the privilege of serving him there.​—2 Chron. 36:20-23.