June 5 - Evening
"Do you rulers indeed speak justly?
Do you judge people with equity?
No, in your heart you devise injustice, and your hands mete out violence on the earth...
...The righteous will be glad when they are avenged,
when they dip their feet in the blood of the wicked.
Then people will say,
'Surely the righteous still are rewarded;
surely there is a God who judges the earth.' "
- Psalms 58:1-2, 10-11
No, in your heart you devise injustice, and your hands mete out violence on the earth...
...The righteous will be glad when they are avenged,
when they dip their feet in the blood of the wicked.
Then people will say,
'Surely the righteous still are rewarded;
surely there is a God who judges the earth.' "
- Psalms 58:1-2, 10-11
Oppressive Leaders are Warned
Psalm 58 opens with David rebuking the leaders of the people who are referred to as the “Mighty Ones.” The Masoretic Text (the Hebrew text of the OT with manuscripts that date back to 900 AD and comes from much earlier manuscripts) has the Hebrew word for “silence” or “muteness” in 58:1. This word then makes this psalm open with a challenge to the leadership by asking them,
“Do you rulers indeed speak as a mute concerning righteousness?”
Likewise, in 58:4-5 these rulers have also stopped hearing pleas for justice. Psalm 58:4-5 compares them to a venomous snake (a cobra or an adder) that has blocked its ears and refuses to hear the flute of the snake charmer. The motive of the rulers is to mislead the society into a situation that allows the rulers to prosper in the violent, oppressive culture they have created.
But, in this psalm, which is sung to the tune of “Do Not Destroy,” David promises that there is a God in heaven who will fight injustice. God will move against evil and oppressive leadership in governments and in religion. David says that God will:
- Break their teeth (58:6)
- Tear out their fangs (58:6)
- Let them vanish like flowing water (58:7)
- Blunt their arrows (58:7)
- Melt them like a slug (58:8)
- Sweep them away (58:9)
The oppressed righteous will not only be delivered, but they will also be avenged when they bathe in the blood of these wicked leaders and say:
“Surely the righteous still are rewarded;
surely there is a God who judges the earth.”
David’s purpose is to warn leadership, including himself and his own administration, that there is a divine judge watching and willing to balance the scales of justice in history.
Sugkrino (Gr) – Compare (Eng) – a Greek word from the word krino which means “to separate, to select, to choose.” Krino is translated “judge” in a variety of ways in Matthew 7:1, John 16:11,
Acts 21:25, Romans 2:27 and 1 Thessalonians 2:12. The verb sugkrino itself means “to judge together.” In 1 Corinthians 2:12 sugkrino could mean “to bring together,” “to combine,” “to compare,” “to explain,” “to interpret.” Josephus uses sugrino to say “to measure oneself against.”
Today I will consider how I treat other people. Am I oppressive? Am I just?
Am I honest and trustworthy? Do my actions help people?
Do I empower them to make their life and their world better?
Bible Reading Descriptions Here
Personal
Ask Holy Spirit to move through you
Church
Maturity in understanding and life
Nation
Private property
World
Greece
Diagram displayed on-site at the city gate of Ashkelon that was discovered from 2000 BC.
(Photo of this gate to the left. Details)
Someone to Quote
"Church is the only society on earth that exists for the benefit of non-members."
- William Temple
- William Temple
Something to Ponder
Viewpoint of Prayer from
Matthew 6:9-15
As a child… “Our Father”
As a worshipper… “Hallowed be your name”
As a subject… “Your kingdom come”
As a servant… “Your will be done”
As a beggar… “Give us this day”
As a confessor… “Forgive us”
As a follower... "Lead us"
As a dependent… “Deliver us”
Matthew 6:9-15
As a child… “Our Father”
As a worshipper… “Hallowed be your name”
As a subject… “Your kingdom come”
As a servant… “Your will be done”
As a beggar… “Give us this day”
As a confessor… “Forgive us”
As a follower... "Lead us"
As a dependent… “Deliver us”
Here’s a Fact
Jeremiah’s book is again proven historically accurate when Jeremiah 39:3 mentions Nebuchadnezzar’s chief officer (or, rab-saris) in 586 BC was named SARSEKIM. The chief officer SARSEKIM saw Judah’s king Zedekiah flee Jerusalem towards the Arabah (Jordan Valley) in Jeremiah 39:4. We now have a cuneiform tablet from 595 BC that documents this same SARSEKIM giving 1.5 pounds of gold to the temple of Esagila, which was Marduk’s temple in Babylon. (SARSEKIM’s name is NABU-SHARRUSSU-UKIN on this tablet which is the NEBO-SARSEKIM in the NIV translation of Jer. 39:3).
(Details 1, 2, 3 Images 1, 2)
Proverb
"Should your springs overflow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares?"
- Proverbs 5:16
- Proverbs 5:16
Coach’s Corner
Live your life and follow the God who created you. Do not live somebody else’s life. And, do not follow a spirit posing as the Creator.
Isaiah 6
New International Version (NIV)
Isaiah’s Commission
6 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
9 He said, “Go and tell this people:
“‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
10
Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”
11 Then I said, “For how long, Lord?”
And he answered:
“Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged,
12
until the Lord has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken.
13
And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land.”
New International Version (NIV)
Isaiah’s Commission
6 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
9 He said, “Go and tell this people:
“‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
10
Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.”
11 Then I said, “For how long, Lord?”
And he answered:
“Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged,
12
until the Lord has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken.
13
And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land.”
Proverbs 9
New International Version (NIV)
Invitations of Wisdom and Folly
9
Wisdom has built her house; she has set up its seven pillars.
2
She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine; she has also set her table.
3
She has sent out her servants, and she calls from the highest point of the city,
4
“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says,
5
“Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed.
6
Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of insight.”
7
Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse.
8
Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.
9
Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning.
10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11
For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.
12
If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer.
13
Folly is an unruly woman; she is simple and knows nothing.
14
She sits at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city,
15
calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way,
16
“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says,
17
“Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!”
18
But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.
New International Version (NIV)
Invitations of Wisdom and Folly
9
Wisdom has built her house; she has set up its seven pillars.
2
She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine; she has also set her table.
3
She has sent out her servants, and she calls from the highest point of the city,
4
“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says,
5
“Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed.
6
Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of insight.”
7
Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse.
8
Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you; rebuke the wise and they will love you.
9
Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning.
10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11
For through wisdom your days will be many, and years will be added to your life.
12
If you are wise, your wisdom will reward you; if you are a mocker, you alone will suffer.
13
Folly is an unruly woman; she is simple and knows nothing.
14
She sits at the door of her house, on a seat at the highest point of the city,
15
calling out to those who pass by, who go straight on their way,
16
“Let all who are simple come to my house!” To those who have no sense she says,
17
“Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!”
18
But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.