|
|
|
 A Bible Teaching Ministry of Galyn Wiemers
|
|
|
|
| |
|
May 25 - Morning
"Help, Lord, for no one is faithful anymore;
those who are loyal have vanished
from the human race.
Everyone lies to their neighbor;
they flatter with their lips
but harbor deception in their hearts.
May the Lord silence all flattering lips
and every boastful tongue—
those who say,
'By our tongues we will prevail;
our own lips will defend us—who is lord over us?'
'Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise,' says the Lord.
'I will protect them from those who malign them.'
And the words of the Lord are flawless,
like silver purified in a crucible,
like gold refined seven times.
You, Lord, will keep the needy safe
and will protect us forever from the wicked,
who freely strut about when what is vile is honored by the human race."
- Psalms 12:1-8 |
 |
|
| Words of Men vs. Words of the Lord |
|
|
The psalmist laments the corrupt state of people in his society. They have no integrity and do not speak honest words. Instead of speaking the truth and seeking the benefit of other men, these people use words to lie and flatter each other in order to conceal the deception in their own hearts. The depraved state of culture causes the psalmist to cry out to the Lord for help since the faithful members of the covenant community have vanished (or, they have been “plundered” or gone into hiding).
The cry for help is in response to corrupt words, not wicked actions. The words come from the “deception in their hearts” and are boastful words described as lies and flattery. These wicked men manipulate situations and people with words, even false words. They have prevailed and in their hubris they believe this trend will continue. They say:
“By our tongues we will prevail; our own lips will defend us – who is lord over us?”
But, as is the nature of human hubris, this extreme arrogance has separated these men from reality and their confidence will not be experienced much longer. The Lord, the God of Truth and Reality, himself speaks. The Lord confirms his plan to intervene when he says:
“Because the poor are plundered and the needy groan, I will now arise. I will protect them from those who malign them.”
We now have two quotes from two different sources – men and God. When the words of the arrogant wicked are compared to the words of the righteous God of eternity this Psalm reveals that the Lord’s words are flawless and pure. The Lord’s words are Reality and they will occur exactly as they were spoken. But, the wicked words of arrogance are merely a wish that will be thwarted by the Lord and his Word.
This is a psalm that contrasts two worldviews: 1) Naturalism; 2) Theism. At a time when mankind respects what is "vile", the psalmist regains his confidence and reestablishes his hope when he considers the words of natural man in light of the words of the eternal God. The psalmist closes his reflection with these words:
“You, Lord, will keep the needy safe and will protect us forever from the wicked, who freely strut about when what is vile is honored by the human race.”
|
|
 |
"The purpose of Christianity is not to avoid difficulty, but to produce a character adequate to meet it when it comes. It does not make life easy; rather it tries to make us great enough for life."
- James L. Christensen |
 |
| Possibly the greatest invention of all time was Johann Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press in 1456. The first thing that was produced on this press in Mainz, Germany was Jerome’s Latin Vulgate Bible. This first printed Bible became known as the Gutenberg Bible. 200 copies were printed (30 of the Bibles were printed on velum). Within 50 years the printers who copied Gutenberg’s invention out produced the previous 1,500 years of handwritten copies of Scripture made by monks and scribes. This printing press helped educate the masses and fueled the Reformation led by Luther, Zwingli and others. Today 22 copies of this first Bible still exist. 7 of them are from the 30 velum copies. (Details here, here and photo here.) |
|
| |
 |
|
 |
| Calach (Hb) - Forgive (Eng) - the Hebrew word calach means "to forgive." In the Old Testament this is the only word used for "forgive" and God is always the subject. This word is frequent in Leviticus and Numbers. There are other Hebrew words used for "forgiveness" |
|
Hebrews 7:3 says Melchizedek, the king and priest of Jerusalem, was “without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life.” It is interesting that tablet 286 of the Amarna Letters captures a very similar statement by ‘Abdi-Heba, the ruler of Urusalima (Jerusalem) around 1330 BC, to describe himself: “It was not my father and not my mother but the arm of the mighty king that placed me in the house of my father.” The office of king/priest of Jerusalem (Salem, Urusalima) was not inherited from parents, but was received through appointment. The kings of Judah ascended the throne because of their lineage to the tribe of David. Likewise, the priests, Levites and the High Priests received their position because of their family ancestory. But, in Canaanite Canaan the king of Jerusalem was appointed by a greater king according to:
|
| |
|
|
 |
|
 |
Do I respond to the darkness of the world and deception of people with more darkness and deception? Instead, I will respond to the evil state of the world with righteousness, and offer hope and life. |
|
"Like a snow-cooled drink
at harvest time
is a trustworthy messenger to the one who sends him;
he refreshes the spirit
of his master."
- Proverbs 25:13 |
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
Finances |
God’s will be done |
Environment |
France |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
| |
| |
| Reps & Sets is a daily Bible devotional for Christians from Generation Word Bible Teaching used each morning and evening. |
| |
|
|
