Thursday, December 19, 2024
Wednesday, December 18, 2024
Tuesday, December 17, 2024
Monday, December 16, 2024
Sunday, December 15, 2024
Saturday, December 14, 2024
Friday, December 13, 2024
Psalm 88, comments
Psalm 88:1 ¶ «A Song or Psalm for the sons of Korah, to the chief Musician upon Mahalath Leannoth, Maschil of Heman the Ezrahite.» O LORD God of my salvation, I have cried day and night before thee: 2 Let my prayer come before thee: incline thine ear unto my cry; 3 For my soul is full of troubles: and my life draweth nigh unto the grave. 4 I am counted with them that go down into the pit: I am as a man that hath no strength: 5 Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, whom thou rememberest no more: and they are cut off from thy hand. 6 Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps. 7 Thy wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah. 8 Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me; thou hast made me an abomination unto them: I am shut up, and I cannot come forth. 9 Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
Here is a prayer of desperation. He speaks of
the God of his salvation.
Psalm 18:46
The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation
be exalted.
Psalm 24:5
He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the
God of his salvation.
He cried day and night.
Psalm 6:6
I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I
water my couch with my tears.
He pleads with God to let his prayer come
before him, to hear his cry.
Psalm 141:1 ¶
«A Psalm of David.» LORD, I cry unto thee: make haste unto me; give ear
unto my voice, when I cry unto thee. 2
Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of
my hands as the evening sacrifice.
Hebrews 4:16 Let us
therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and
find grace to help in time of need.
His soul is full of troubles and he feels like he is going to die.
See verse 5 again and then read verse 15 in the next passage. How many of us
have felt these things in our own troubles of divorce, disease or accident,
grief, or bankruptcy? He feels like one of those people going down into the
pit. He has no strength left in him. In his lamentation he feels like when he
is dead that God will remember him no more. But remember Job’s words.
Job 14:13 O that thou
wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy
wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!
14 If a man die, shall he live again?
all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. 15 Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou
wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands.
He feels as if God has laid him in the lowest pit, in the deeps.
Jonah 2:1 ¶ Then Jonah
prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish’s belly, 2 And said, I cried by reason of mine
affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I,
and thou heardest my voice. 3 For thou
hadst cast me into the deep, in the midst of the seas; and the floods compassed
me about: all thy billows and thy waves passed over me. 4 Then I said, I am cast out of thy sight; yet
I will look again toward thy holy temple. 5
The waters compassed me about, even to the soul: the depth closed me
round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. 6 I went down to the bottoms of the mountains;
the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life
from corruption, O LORD my God.
7 When my soul fainted
within me I remembered the LORD: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine
holy temple. 8 They that observe lying
vanities forsake their own mercy. 9 But
I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that
I have vowed. Salvation is of the LORD.
Notice the similarity here with Job, in that Job’s friends, as we
have discussed, regarded him as a secret sinner as that could be, to them, the
only explanation of why he was suffering, which was, of course, incorrect. The
Psalmist’s friends are far from him. He is an abomination to them.
There are types here with Christ as well, being alone and facing
execution for the sins of the world of men and women, crying out to the Father.
The Psalmist cries out daily, seeking the Lord’s mercy, pleading for help. Have
you done that when diagnosed with cancer, or having lost a child to death, or
seeing a loved one suffer and feeling helpless?
Psalm 88:10 ¶
Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead? shall the dead arise and
praise thee? Selah. 11 Shall thy
lovingkindness be declared in the grave? or thy faithfulness in
destruction? 12 Shall thy wonders be
known in the dark? and thy righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? 13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the
morning shall my prayer prevent thee. 14
LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from
me? 15 I am afflicted and ready
to die from my youth up: while I suffer thy terrors I am
distracted. 16 Thy fierce wrath goeth
over me; thy terrors have cut me off. 17
They came round about me daily like water; they compassed me about
together. 18 Lover and friend hast thou
put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darkness.
The Psalmist continues his thought with some
statements that we might make in our attempting to bargain with God when we are
in any great and grave distress. What good am I to you dead, God? What value do
I have to you in the grave. Will you be able to show me mercy there? Will I see
and marvel at your great works? Why are you turning your face from me? These
are legitimate questions that people might ask, having never been in that state
and only knowing and desiring to live.
Hebrews 2:15
And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime
subject to bondage.
But the Psalmist asking these questions doesn’t
negate the statements made by men like Job in the earliest written book of the Bible.
Job 19:25 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that
he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body,
yet in my flesh shall I see God: 27 Whom
I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my
reins be consumed within me.
Or in Isaiah, a thousand years later.
Isaiah 26:19
Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise.
Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and
the earth shall cast out the dead.
Or in Daniel, hundreds of years after that.
Daniel 12:2
And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some
to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.
Or the words of the Lord Jesus Christ.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
So take these words in this Psalm for what
they are, words of frustration and fear and not doctrine for us. Remember this
one in that regard as well;
Ecclesiastes 9:5 For the living know that they shall die: but
the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the
memory of them is forgotten.
For we must always remember that our souls do
not sleep with our bodies in the grave. They leave the body at death.
Genesis 35:18
And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that
she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin.
2Corinthians 5:8 We are confident, I say, and willing rather
to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
We will be in Heaven as will be the martyrs
in the Tribulation to come.
Revelation 6:9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under
the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the
testimony which they held:
In fact, we’re there already, in a manner of
speaking, represented by our angels or appearances of us (Isaiah 63:9a) while
we are on the earth living our lives.
Ephesians 2:6
And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places
in Christ Jesus:
Revelation 5:11 And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many
angels round about the throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of
them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands;
Hebrews 12:22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the
city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company
of angels, 23 To the general assembly
and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge
of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
But this Psalmist is suffering and in his
pain, knows only it. This is something for us all as we have been there. Just
remember your lowest point and your greatest fear coming on you in your
trouble. This is our comfort that we do not endure these things alone but we
share them with the people of the Bible and the people living on the earth now.
This is a very negative Psalm that shows us that we are not the first to feel
so desperate and fearful.
Thursday, December 12, 2024
2Timothy, chapter 3, comments
2Timothy 3:1 ¶ This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 6 For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 7 Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. 8 Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. 9 But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was.
Whereas Paul gives a summary of mankind’s
religious history in Romans, chapter 1…
Romans 1:16 ¶
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God
unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the
Greek. 17 For therein is the
righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just
shall live by faith. 18 For the wrath of
God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men,
who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
19
¶ Because that which may be known of God
is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. 20 For the invisible things of him from the
creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are
made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
21 Because that, when they knew God,
they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their
imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became
fools, 23 And changed the glory of the
uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and
fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 24
Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of
their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: 25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and
worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for
ever. Amen. 26 For this cause God gave
them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use
into that which is against nature: 27
And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned
in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly,
and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
28 And even as they did not like to
retain God in their knowledge, God
gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do
those things which are not convenient; 29
Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness,
covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity;
whisperers, 30 Backbiters, haters of
God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to
parents, 31 Without understanding,
covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: 32 Who knowing the
judgment of God, that they which commit such
things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them
that do them.
… he here outlines what will happen to the
Christian church in the last days. Is this the falling away spoken of in
2Thessalonians 2:3?
2Thessalonians 2:3 ¶ Let no man deceive you by any means: for that
day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin
be revealed, the son of perdition;
See my comments on Romans, chapter 1, to see
many of these issues underscored.
He warns Timothy about people who have a form
of godliness but deny the foundation on which it is based, the deity of Christ
and the truth of the Bible I would say and the simplicity of the Gospel of
Christ. They deceive the naïve.
Romans 16:18
For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own
belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
Paul has warned the Corinthian church about
this.
2Corinthians 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly
jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a
chaste virgin to Christ. 3 But I fear,
lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your
minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he that cometh preacheth another
Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye
have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well
bear with him.
Today, people are constantly seeking, reading
and studying Dead Sea Scrolls’, Oxyrhyncus papyri from a garbage dump, and
manuscripts being burnt as trash in St. Catherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai,
and gospels like Q, Cain’s, Peter’s, and Thomas’ along with “ancient” books
like the Book of Enoch, Jasher, and Jubilees, and other Apocrypha. They are
always asking when you read a text from the Bible, “yeah, but what about…?”
They never come to the truth or even a conclusion. They are simply looking for
excuses and credibility as some kind of “dime store” scholar.
Verse 8 mentions two of the Egyptian priests
who opposed Moses in Exodus 7:10-12 that are not mentioned by name elsewhere so
clearly this comes from tradition. Paul is confident that fakers and hypocrites
will be exposed at the end. Remember Christ’s parable of the tares, the phony
wheat.
Matthew 13:24 ¶ Another parable put he forth unto them,
saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in
his field: 25 But while men slept, his
enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. 26 But when the blade was sprung up, and brought
forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27
So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst
not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? 28 He said unto them, An enemy hath done this.
The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
29 But he said, Nay; lest while ye
gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 30 Let both grow together until the harvest: and
in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the
tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn…36 Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went
into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable
of the tares of the field. 37 He
answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
38 The field is the world; the good seed
are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are
the children of the wicked one; 39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the
harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40 As therefore the tares are gathered and
burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41 The Son of man shall send forth his angels,
and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which
do iniquity; 42 And shall cast them into
a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then shall the righteous shine forth as the
sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
2Timothy 3:10 ¶ But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, 11 Persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 13 But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. 14 But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; 15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.
Paul asserts that Timothy, his protégé, is
fully aware of what Paul is espousing, his doctrine that he received from Jesus
Christ and the faithful Christians who mentored him. Timothy knows what Paul
has suffered for the Gospel of Christ. We’ve talked about them before in the
comments on the letters to Timothy.
2Corinthians 11:24 Of the
Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. 25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I
stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
26 In journeyings often, in perils of
waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by
the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in
the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27
In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst,
in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. 28
Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily,
the care of all the churches.
If you read the Acts of the Apostles, which
we just call Acts, you can see how God used Paul to get the Christian movement
going and what he faced in those cities he mentions and elsewhere. Read Acts,
chapter 14, paying particular attention to these verses.
Acts 14:19 ¶ And there came
thither certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people, and,
having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead.
20 Howbeit, as the disciples stood round
about him, he rose up, and came into the city: and the next day he departed
with Barnabas to Derbe.
Paul then makes a statement that affects us
greatly as we look around the world. All who live godly in Christ will suffer persecution.
If you do God’s will and witness for the Gospel to other people you will be
vilified, marginalized, mocked, and denied your rights in certain cases. But in
other parts of the world today; in Vietnam, in Muslim countries, in communist
China, you can lose your freedom and your life. This is not about being told to
take down a scripture verse from your office cubicle because you wanted to
confront the homosexual in the office carrel next to you. This is serious
stuff, regarding your responsibility to do what the early Christians did so
selflessly as reported in Acts, to witness for our Lord.
Acts5:29
Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God
rather than men.
Timothy is told to continue in what he has
been taught and has known from his childhood, having been taught by his mother
and grandmother as noted earlier.
2Timothy 1:5
When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which
dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded
that in thee also.
Then Paul makes an important statement
regarding all scripture. He is referring to the Bible, which in typology,
is almost like saying we have Christ in print form that we can handle. Of
course, all types fall apart at some point in our argument but it is something
to consider.
God sanctifies His people through His word.
John 17:17
Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
God’s word seems to have a knowledge of what
is inside each of us.
Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any
twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and
of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the
heart.
It can keep us from sin.
Psalm 119:11
Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
God has preserved it for us by the Holy
Spirit through the His church throughout the ages, refining, and pruning as we
would a garden.
Psalm 12:6 The words of the LORD are pure words: as
silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. 7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt
preserve them from this generation for ever.
He has placed His word above even His name,
under which every knee will bow.
Isaiah 45:23
I have sworn by myself, the word is gone out of my mouth in
righteousness, and shall not return, That unto me every knee shall bow, every
tongue shall swear.
Romans 14:11
For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to
me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
Philippians 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
Psalm 138:2
I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy
lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy
name.
And God’s word will have its desired effect
through His timing.
Isaiah 55:11
So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not
return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall
prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
There is so much more to be said about the
scripture. In conclusion, it will equip us with all we need spiritually.
Wednesday, December 11, 2024
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Monday, December 9, 2024
Sunday, December 8, 2024
Saturday, December 7, 2024
Friday, December 6, 2024
2Samuel, chapter 18, comments
2Samuel 18:1 ¶ And David numbered the people that were
with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them.
2 And David sent forth a third part of
the people under the hand of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Abishai
the son of Zeruiah, Joab’s brother, and a third part under the hand of Ittai
the Gittite. And the king said unto the people, I will surely go forth with you
myself also. 3 But the people answered,
Thou shalt not go forth: for if we flee away, they will not care for us;
neither if half of us die, will they care for us: but now thou art worth
ten thousand of us: therefore now it is better that thou succour us out
of the city. 4 And the king said unto
them, What seemeth you best I will do. And the king stood by the gate side, and
all the people came out by hundreds and by thousands. 5 And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and
Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even
with Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains
charge concerning Absalom. 6 So the
people went out into the field against Israel: and the battle was in the wood
of Ephraim; 7 Where the people of Israel
were slain before the servants of David, and there was there a great slaughter
that day of twenty thousand men. 8
For the battle was there scattered over the face of all the country: and
the wood devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.
David divides his army into three parts to
receive the enemy. He is convinced by his stalwarts that he must not lead the
men in battle due to his importance as the king. The king represented God and
the people of Israel. He, they said, was worth more than all of them in
importance. He gives a charge to his commanders to spare Absalom for his own
sake.
This battle in the dense wood of Ephraim went
bad for Absalom and his forces and well for King David and his. This woods
could not have been in the territory of Ephraim as they had crossed over Jordan
so it may have been named such for the slaughter made by Jephthah in Judges
12:4-6.
2Samuel 18:9 ¶ And Absalom met the servants of David. And
Absalom rode upon a mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great
oak, and his head caught hold of the oak, and he was taken up between the
heaven and the earth; and the mule that was under him went away. 10 And a certain man saw it, and told
Joab, and said, Behold, I saw Absalom hanged in an oak. 11 And Joab said unto the man that told him,
And, behold, thou sawest him, and why didst thou not smite him there to
the ground? and I would have given thee ten shekels of silver, and a
girdle. 12 And the man said unto Joab,
Though I should receive a thousand shekels of silver in mine hand, yet
would I not put forth mine hand against the king’s son: for in our hearing the
king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Beware that none touch
the young man Absalom. 13 Otherwise I
should have wrought falsehood against mine own life: for there is no matter hid
from the king, and thou thyself wouldest have set thyself against me.
14 Then said Joab, I may not tarry thus
with thee. And he took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the
heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak.
15 And ten young men that bare Joab’s
armour compassed about and smote Absalom, and slew him. 16 And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people
returned from pursuing after Israel: for Joab held back the people. 17 And they took Absalom, and cast him into a
great pit in the wood, and laid a very great heap of stones upon him: and all
Israel fled every one to his tent. 18
Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself a
pillar, which is in the king’s dale: for he said, I have no son to keep
my name in remembrance: and he called the pillar after his own name: and it is
called unto this day, Absalom’s place.
The battle commences and Absalom’s death
takes the wind out of the Israelites’ attack and they flee. Notice how Joab
starts the killing after a man faithful to David refuses to do so as per
David’s instructions. Joab often works contrary to David but then some of
David’s behavior is to blame as I am sure you have considered as we read.
An interesting thing here is the statement
that Absalom had erected a pillar lamenting his lack of a male offspring.
2Samuel 14:27
And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose
name was Tamar: she was a woman of a fair countenance.
The likely explanation for this apparent
contradiction is that Absalom’s sons died in their youth, perhaps by disease,
although we are not told. No male offspring of Absalom are mentioned later
either. Several older commentators say they had died and one Aramaic
translation of this passage is supposed to say “no surviving sons.” It does
seem logical that they predeceased their father.
2Samuel 18:19 ¶ Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me
now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the LORD hath avenged him of his
enemies. 20 And Joab said unto him, Thou
shalt not bear tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another day: but
this day thou shalt bear no tidings, because the king’s son is dead. 21 Then said Joab to Cushi, Go tell the king
what thou hast seen. And Cushi bowed himself unto Joab, and ran. 22 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again
to Joab, But howsoever, let me, I pray thee, also run after Cushi. And Joab
said, Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou hast no tidings ready?
23 But howsoever, said he, let me
run. And he said unto him, Run. Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the plain, and
overran Cushi. 24 And David sat between
the two gates: and the watchman went up to the roof over the gate unto the
wall, and lifted up
his eyes, and looked, and behold a man
running alone. 25 And the watchman
cried, and told the king. And the king said, If he be alone, there is
tidings in his mouth. And he came apace, and drew near. 26 And the watchman saw another man running: and
the watchman called unto the porter, and said, Behold another man
running alone. And the king said, He also bringeth tidings. 27 And the watchman said, Me thinketh the
running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok. And
the king said, He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings. 28 And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king,
All is well. And he fell down to the earth upon his face before the king, and
said, Blessed be the LORD thy God, which hath delivered up the men that
lifted up their hand against my lord the king. 29 And the king said, Is the young man Absalom
safe? And Ahimaaz
answered, When Joab sent the king’s servant,
and me thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was.
30 And the king said unto him,
Turn aside, and stand here. And he turned aside, and stood still.
31 And, behold, Cushi came; and Cushi
said, Tidings, my lord the king: for the LORD hath avenged thee this day of all
them that rose up against thee. 32 And
the king said unto Cushi, Is the young man Absalom safe? And Cushi
answered, The enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise against thee to do
thee hurt, be as that young man is. 33 And the king was much moved, and went up to
the chamber over the gate, and wept: and as he went, thus he said, O my son
Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would God I had died for thee, O Absalom, my
son, my son!
Here is the detailed account of how King
David found out that his son, the rebellious Absalom, had died. This was a
great grief to the king in spite of all of the pain and trouble this son had
caused. From the time of Tamar’s rape this seemed like it was inevitable, this rebellion.
Now, David has suffered in his family for many reasons we have discussed. Many
a man and woman of God has seen a child go astray. I am reminded of my comments
on Proverbs 17:25.
Proverbs 17:25 ¶ A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness
to her that bare him.
Everything said in verse 21 applies here, as well.
Proverbs 17:21 ¶ He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and
the father of a fool hath no joy.
Literally, we are looking at the shame of
parents who have a child who acts like a fool. Terrible, ungodly relationships,
bad attitudes about money, and an inability to control their impulses make
children a sorrow to their parents.
Imagine raising a child with the Bible read in
the home every day and prayers made daily with the family and that child grows
up to be as much a reprobate as the kid down the street raised on a steady
stream of popular culture, rock music, and Marxist, evolutionary theory in
public school. What a heartbreak that would be. I know, some of you say that
can’t happen if it’s done right. Well, human behavior is much trickier than
you’d like to admit and people from Godly families can go astray.
Just look at the offspring of some of the great
men of God like Presbyterian Billy Sunday. We expect Charles Darwin’s children
to fall into alcoholism and drug addiction and madness, which they didn’t, but
Billy Sunday’s? Now this is what I’ve read so if you find different information
let me know. George dies from a questionable “fall” from a hotel window which
most believe was suicide and had some criminal charges in his background, Billy
Jr. in a drunken car crash after a night of partying, and while test pilot Paul
died in an airplane crash, and Helen from what seemed to be multiple sclerosis
or pneumonia, between four kids all drinking and partying you have nine
marriages, with some of the boy’s wives actually blackmailing the Sundays about
their boy’s unfaithfulness. Talk about grief and bitterness to mother and
father. Three grandchildren produced one great-grandchild who was murdered by
his homosexual lover in San Francisco in 1982 or thereabouts. Some other
foolish children of Protestant and Baptist preachers of different persuasions
that made their parents ashamed were David Hyles’, son of Jack, Vice President
Aaron Burr who shot Alexander Hamilton in a duel and committed acts of treason
against the US government, sick rock and roller, Alice Cooper, Gudrun Ensslin,
one of the founders of the Baader-Meinhoff terrorist gang in Germany, Camilla
Hall, one of the founders of the Symbionese Liberation Army of Patty Hearst’s
kidnapping fame, Kim Il Sung, the communist founder of North Korea, Friedrich
“God is Dead” Neitzche, the German philosopher, Vincent “I cut my ear off for a
prostitute” Van Gogh, famous painter, and Malcolm X, Black Muslim radical in
the 60’s. Now, do you believe a man of God can produce foolish offspring? Think
of the shame those preachers felt.
All parents, no matter what their own
relationship with the Lord is, need God’s mercy every single day. If you, young
person, ever think that you’re just doing a fine job and you’d like God to he’p
you and don’t constantly realize that even if you are doing everything
perfectly you need God’s hand of mercy on your child and your parenting and
your family every single day, you might be in for an unpleasant surprise.
Parents, humble yourselves before God and plead with Him for guidance. Don’t
ever expect your child to learn about Christ by osmosis, just being near you.
Thursday, December 5, 2024
Psalm 87 comments
Psalm 87:1 ¶
«A Psalm or Song for the sons of Korah.» His foundation is
in the holy mountains. 2 The LORD loveth
the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. 3 Glorious things are spoken of thee, O city of
God. Selah.
The Psalmist says here that God’s foundation,
His base of operations, is in the Holy mountains. As we discussed in my
comments on Revelation Jerusalem, like Rome, is also set upon seven hills or
mountains.[1]
This Psalm begins with glorifying Jerusalem,
where God chose to place the worship from His people, the Israelites. Jerusalem
is the city of God.
Prophetically, the New Jerusalem, which
descends from Heaven is the eternal city of God. And yes, glorious things are
spoken of it. I will now review comments I made on the New Jerusalem in my
study on Revelation.
Revelation
21:10 And he carried me away in the
spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy
Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
This
city, coming down from space, which may already be on its way, is physically
visible so this is not simply a spiritual event.
Revelation
21:11 Having the glory of God: and her
light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as
crystal; 12 And had a wall great and
high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written
thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:
13 On the east three gates; on the north
three gates; on the south three gates; and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve
foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
So
far, this is pretty obvious although one would presume that Paul was included
in the twelve and not Judas, of course.
Revelation
21:15 And he that talked with me had a
golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.
16 And the city lieth foursquare, and
the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed,
twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are
equal.
The
city is a cube with measurements of about 1500 miles on all sides. That is a
little on the high side but I wanted to make a point with an even number for
clarity. Note that its sides are not just 1500 miles but its height is 1500
miles so that consists of space inside of this cube is 1500x1500x1500 miles.
This is over 3 billion cubic miles of space available within this cube. That
seems like plenty of room for anything you can imagine. This is God the
Father’s house.
John
14:2 In my Father’s house are many
mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for
you.
Our
modern understanding of a mansion is a large manor house. An older definition
is a luxury apartment in a manor house. It is clear in the New Jerusalem there
is room for anything you can imagine.
Revelation
21:17 And he measured the wall thereof,
an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that
is, of the angel.
The
city has a wall and I don’t know how that works out with a cube so that may be
an argument against the cube or either way you see it the wall may be evident.
It is around 225 feet high depending on the length of a cubit, as there are
small variations in the measurement. Here is further evidence of what an angel
looks like as it is likened to a man. There are no angels with wings in the
Bible and the phrase, “angelic creatures,” does not exist either except in the
imagination of some. I defined angel from the Bible, early on.
Revelation
21:18 And the building of the wall of it
was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
The
wall is jasper. In antiquity jasper was usually considered to be green and
likened to an emerald while today it includes a stone of red, yellow, and brown
as well. Other mentions of jasper in Revelation are;
Revelation
4:3 And he that sat was to look upon
like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the
throne, in sight like unto an emerald.
Revelation
21:11 Having the glory of God: and her
light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as
crystal;
Revelation
21:19 And the foundations of the wall of
the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first
foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the
fourth, an emerald;
Pure
and clear are synonyms in this verse giving us the meaning of both. See again
that this is done later.
Revelation
22:1 And he shewed me a pure river of
water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the
Lamb.
The
city is pure gold, without imperfection. Here are other references to pure
gold.
2Chronicles
3:4 And the porch that was in the front
of the house, the length of it was according to the breadth of the house,
twenty cubits, and the height was an hundred and twenty: and he overlaid it
within with pure gold.
2Chronicles
9:17 Moreover the king made a great
throne of ivory, and overlaid it with pure gold.
A
glass that you can see through is also without imperfections.
Revelation 21:19 And the foundations of the wall of the city
were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was
jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
20 The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth,
sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the
tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.
Precious
stones like these cover the priest’s breastplate of judgment in Exodus 28 and
in Satan/Lucifer’s clothing in Ezekiel 28.
Exodus
28:17 And thou shalt set in it settings
of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a sardius, a topaz,
and a carbuncle: this shall be the first row.
Ezekiel
28:13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden
of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the
diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and
the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was
prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.
Be
careful, if studying what these individual stones might represent in reading
back modern definitions of them into the Bible, which would have defined them
by ancient definitions as I explained regarding jasper. Think of them as
precious stones like rubies and emeralds and remember that quibbling over
definitions today and reading them back into the Bible like reading Linnaeus’
taxonomic classifications of creatures back into the Bible, which are modern
definitions, will lead to a dead end. The great fish or whale, because of its
large size, was a specially prepared creature and in the Bible whale does not
refer to a marine mammal of the order, Cetacea, but to a large sea
creature. Read Jonah 1:17; Matthew
12:40; and Genesis 1:21. Keep that in mind when you try to read back modern
definitions into the Bible. God couldn’t care less about your labeling and
definitions created for your own benefit.
This
also brings to mind some of the problems with modern science. Such designations
and classifications are merely social constructions designed to place things in
categories in our own minds and do not have a necessary reality in the physical
universe. In the same regard philosophers of science have noted that for some
experimental scientists who deal in real, tangible evidence that some things
that cannot be seen with the naked eye like photons and electrons might not
even exist but are, “fictions, logical constructions, or parts of an
intellectual instrument for reasoning about the world.”[2]
My
point is when you are reading the words mammal or reptile, do not read them
back into the Bible, written before they came into use for science. Also, do
not read the modern definitions of a precious stone and presume that the Bible
must conform to what we have decided to use as a label or classification after
the Bible was penned and translated.
Revelation
21:21 And the twelve gates were twelve
pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was
pure gold, as it were transparent glass. 22
And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are
the temple of it. 23 And the city had no
need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did
lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.
In
the ancient world, starting with Cain’s son, Enoch, in Genesis 4:17 the city
was a religious entity, a type of church, started all at once with invited
families who would share in the same worship and the same gods, although the
individual family would have its own singular worship and gods which
represented their lars familiaris or familiar spirits, the guiding divinities
of ancestor’s dead.[3] The saints are the invited
ones here with earthly historical comparisons as in the Roman biographer and
historian Plutarch’s explanation of how Romulus founded Rome and Theseus
Athens.
Each
home in the ancient world was to have a sacred flame which was the religious
center of the home and must not be permitted to go out.[4]
This eternal flame like the lamp in the tabernacle in Exodus 27:20 must never
go out. In God’s city He is the light and the glory of it and there is no need
for any other. In this passage we can see the religious significance of the sun
and the stars as evidence of God’s sacred handiwork, placing in our temporal
tabernacle lights that reflect on earth that never go out.
Revelation
21:24 And the nations of them which are
saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of the earth do bring their
glory and honour into it. 25 And the
gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.
26 And they shall bring the glory and
honour of the nations into it. 27 And
there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither
whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in
the Lamb’s book of life.
Now,
clearly, here in eternity, there will be people inhabiting the earth. Some
commentators believe the Jews will inherit the earth and grow to a great number
as mankind was originally intended to populate the universe. Although we don’t
have enough evidence to declare this as being the case it is clear that there
will be people on earth and their leadership will have to bring glory and honor
to the New Jerusalem. Only those persons whose names are written in the Lamb’s
book of life will have a presence apart from the Lake of Fire.
Psalm 87:4 ¶
I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me: behold
Philistia, and Tyre, with Ethiopia; this man was born there. 5 And of Zion it shall be said, This and that
man was born in her: and the highest himself shall establish her. 6 The LORD shall count, when he writeth up the people,
that this man was born there. Selah. 7 As well the singers as the players on
instruments shall be there: all my springs are in thee.
This is not Rahab of Jericho. Rahab is a name
for a dragon and can be likened to Satan.
Psalm 89:9 Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the
waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
10 Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that
is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.
Isaiah 51:9 Awake, awake,
put on strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in the ancient days, in the
generations of old. Art thou not it that hath cut Rahab, and wounded the
dragon?
It is symbolic of Egypt according to Strong’s dictionary and John
Gill, among others.
Ezekiel 29:3
Speak, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee,
Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers,
which hath said, My river is mine own, and I have made it for myself.
Many from these countries mentioned will come
to Jerusalem, to Zion, and as a prophetic statement many from around the world
will come to the New Jerusalem, having been born again. They are acknowledged
by God to be born in a new place, the Jerusalem of God that descended from
Heaven. We are born physically as children of one place but born again as
children of another.
Galatians 4:26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which
is the mother of us all.
[1]
Ernest L. Martin, “The Seven Hills of Jerusalem,” on Associates for Scriptural
Knowledge, http://askelm.com/prophecy/p000201.htm.
(updated February 1, 2000).
[2]
Ian Hacking, Representing and
Intervening: Introductory Topics in the Philosophy of Natural Sciences (New
York: Cambridge University Press, 1983), 27.
[3]
Numa Denis Fustel De Coulanges, The
Ancient City: A Study of the Religion, Laws, and Institutions of Greece and
Rome (1864, repr. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2006), 134.
[4]
Ibid., 25.