Jehovah-Tsidkenu – “The Lord Our Righteousness” (Part 1)

by Chris Simmons

After condemning the leadership of Judah in verses one and two of Jeremiah chapter twenty three, God, through the mouth of Jeremiah, promises a time when He would “gather the remnant of My flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and shall bring them back to their pasture; and they will be fruitful and multiply” (Jeremiah 23:3). Jeremiah also prophesied of “a righteous Branch” who would “reign as King” and rule through “justice and righteousness” (verse 5). This Messianic prophecy included the promise of salvation in verse 6 and the promise that the “Branch” would be known as “The Lord our righteousness” or Jehovah-Tsidkenu.

The Hebrew word “tsidkenu” originally carried the idea of simply being “stiff or straight.” It came to signify “God's dealings with men under the ideas of righteousness, justification, and acquittal” (Names of God). It is used for both of the ideas of being right and making right. The Hebrew word is used hundreds of times in the Old Testament to convey the ideas of righteous and righteousness as well as the concepts of justifying and justification. It’s difficult for the languages of men to adequately convey both aspects of righteousness and justification contained in this one word. What we must do is look to God to understand what true righteousness really means.

There are 4 main points God’s word reveals about the righteousness of God:

1. God alone establishes righteousness. It is by His character, His revelation and His will alone that we can come to know the definition of righteousness in its fullest meaning. God is perfect righteousness (Psalms 129:4). There is none to be compared to His righteousness. We ought to meditate on the words recorded by Isaiah in Isaiah 45:21-25 in which God declares Himself to be the standard of righteousness and the provider of justification to man, “Declare and set forth your case; indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the Lord? And there is no other God besides Me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none except Me. Turn to Me, and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself, the word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness and will not turn back, that to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance. They will say of Me, ‘Only in the Lord are righteousness and strength.’ Men will come to Him, and all who were angry at Him shall be put to shame. In the Lord all the offspring of Israel will be justified, and will glory.” All of His works are perfect, right, true and just as Moses recorded in his song to the Israelites in Deuteronomy 32:3-4, “For I proclaim the name of the Lord; ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock! His work is perfect, for all His ways are just; a God of faithfulness and without injustice, righteous and upright is He.”
   
   Despite man’s desire to the contrary, God’s standard of righteousness is unchanging and eternal and it is not subject to the degrading influence of human conduct. David declared in Psalms 119:142-144, “Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Thy law is truth. Thy testimonies are righteous forever; give me understanding that I may live.” Righteousness is not subject to a democratic process to be decided by the whims of popular opinion. God has established a standard of righteousness that is truly “everlasting.”
   
   Righteousness and justice are the very foundations upon which God’s throne resides and the unchangeable attributes of His reign. We read in Psalms 89:14, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Thy throne; lovingkindness and truth go before Thee” (cf. Psalms 97:2). It is one of the core components of God’s unchangeable character. God can be no other way.
   
   There is no end to God’s unparalleled righteousness. Will we, like David, commit ourselves to speaking of God’s righteousness all the days of our lives? Psalms 71:15-19, “My mouth shall tell of Thy righteousness, and of Thy salvation all day long; for I do not know the sum of them. I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord God; I will make mention of Thy righteousness, Thine alone. O God, Thou hast taught me from my youth; and I still declare Thy wondrous deeds. And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Thy strength to this generation, Thy power to all who are to come. For Thy righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens, Thou who hast done great things; O God, who is like Thee?” The question is: are we willing to recognize God as the sole definition of what is right and just and true and submit to His will?
   
   
2. God’s righteousness stands in contrast to man’s sinful choices. We must see the righteousness of God in contrast to the sinful choices all men make. Psalms 14:2-3, “The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.” Paul quoted from this passage in Romans 3:10, “What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, ‘There is none righteous, not even one.’”
   
   When we compare God’s standard of what is righteous with our conduct, we ought to be ashamed. This is Daniel’s point in Daniel 9:7-9, “Righteousness belongs to Thee, O Lord, but to us open shame, as it is this day – to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and all Israel, those who are nearby and those who are far away in all the countries to which Thou hast driven them, because of their unfaithful deeds which they have committed against Thee. Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee.”
   
   Can we appreciate what the inspired apostle Paul is contemplating in Romans 3:19-20, “Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, that every mouth may be closed, and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.” When God executes judgment, rest assured His judgments have always been, and will always be, just and true (Psalms 9:8; 96:13; 98:9; Acts 17:31). Thanks be to God that Jesus came not to judge the world (John 12:47) but to provide the justification God’s righteousness demanded (this will be discussed in depth later). Psalms 143:1-2, “Hear my prayer, O Lord, give ear to my supplications! Answer me in Thy faithfulness, in Thy righteousness! And do not enter into judgment with Thy servant, for in Thy sight no man living is righteous.” Our righteous Father in heaven, God, cannot approve of man’s sinful conduct, and will not “leave the guilty unpunished” (Exodus 34:6-7). God’s righteousness demands that the “unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (I Corinthians 6:9).

(Look for points 3 and 4 in next week’s article)