“For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit.” (Jeremiah 17:8 KJV)
“…and shall not be careful in the year of drought” Why would someone be careful in the year of drought? Why would someone even think about holding back some of their fruit if drought is even a possibility? Then again, was that not how Pharaoh made his money under Joseph’s direction? A 1/5 tax during those prosperous years in preparation for a coming drought if Genesis 41:34 records this correctly. It is not only human nature to store up for coming hard times, but even the squirrels prepare for a coming winter. So, why would we not be especially careful if drought is even a reasonable possibility?
It is one thing to store up a supply of something that is about to be in short supply. It is quite another to create a short supply when there is a steady stream that is sure and present. It creates an artificial shortage. The previous verse gives the key away. “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.” (Jeremiah 17:7 KJV) When you trust in the Lord, your roots grow continually deeper. When you trust in the Lord, you increasingly become the supply house from which other people look for fruit. When you trust in the Lord, you become the gauge that others look at to see if your leaf will also wither and your fruit also fail. Remember, not because you are such a great tree, but because you have been transplanted near His waters.
“Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.” (Psalms 92:13 KJV)