Psalms, Proverbs

Here we have 150 psalms which are songs, prayers, etc. which is much like our church hymnals. In these psalms we see a wide range of human emotions. Here you will find expressions of anger, fear, doubt, joy, anguish, etc. Do these emotions sound familiar to you? Mankind has always had to deal with strong emotions which run the full spectrum, from love to hate, joy to sadness, etc. Some of these Psalms sound as if they could have been written by Job or Habakkuk as both puzzlement as to why bad things were happening and apparently tolerated by God. 

Here are a few:

Ps 1:1 “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked.” The word “blessed” can be translated to mean “happy.” 

Ps 6:6 “I am worn out from groaning all night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears.”

Does this sound like you at times? Are you a worrier? Have you every stayed up most of the night worrying about what might happen tomorrow? Mark Twain once said, “I have known many troubles in my life. Most of which never occurred.” I wish there was a switch that I could flip to turn off worry.

Ps 8:3 “Then I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?”

David had time to sit and look up at the stars and think. Today, there is so much light pollution; you can hardly see the stars anymore. When I am in Tanzania you can go outside late at night and see the stars as you have never seen them before. He also had time to think without all of the noise that surrounds us. Sometimes I think we have to have the TV, radio, etc. on just to distract ourselves from having to be alone with our thoughts.

Ps. 10 This passage reminds me of Habakkuk where he asked God, “Why do you allow the evil to continue? Why don’t you answer our prayers? I think we can all relate to this passage and the concerns of Habakkuk.

Ps 12 reminds me of the time Elijah fled Queen Jezebel in I Kings 19 and became despondent, thinking that he was the only one left who really worshipped God and wished that he was dead. Fatigue will do that to us. He was suffering from what we called Battle Fatigue in the military. A little R & R helped Elijah and helps our soldiers today.

Ps 13:1 “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide our face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart?”

Ps 14:1 “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” Atheists do have a holiday . . . April Fool’s Day.

Ps 19:7 “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.”

Ps 22:14 “I am poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint.” The Apostle Paul used a similar expression in II Tim 4:6.

Ps 28:2 “Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place.” Lifting one’s hands in prayer is also mentioned in I Tim 2:8. But keep in mind; this is a description, not a prescription.

Ps 30:4 “Sing to the Lord, you saints of his.” The term “sing” refers more to a chant than singing. This is good, since it chanting requires less musical talent.

Ps 34:8 “Taste and see that the Lord is good.”

Ps 37:1 “Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither.”

Ps 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Ps 37:16 “Better the little that the righteous have than the wealth of many wicked.”

Ps 51:16-17 “You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

Ps 60:8 “Moab is my washbasin, upon Edom I toss my sandal; over Philistia I shout in triumph.” In the middle-east, to toss a shoe at someone is to insult them. 

Ps 71:20 “Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up.”

Ps 101:7 “No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.” Paul says something very similar in I Cor 6:9.

Ps 105:15 “Do not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm.” I heard a prosperity preacher misuse this verse to teach that no one should even question his teachings. We are to examine Scripture and question what is being taught (Acts 17:11).

Ps 139:16 “All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

Ps145:18 “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them.”

PROVERBS

WISDOM OF SOLOMON ON HOW TO LIVE SUCCESSFULLY IN THE FEAR OF THE LORD

These proverbs are general principles of living, not laws of nature. If you follow them, you are more likely to succeed in life, but there are no guarantees. Most were written by Solomon. They are easy to understand and need little comment.

Prov 1:1-2, 7 “The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel: for attaining wisdom and discipline; for understanding words of insight . . . The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge but fools despise wisdom and discipline.”

If you do not have “fear” or respect for God, you will not heed His teachings. It starts with your attitude.

Prov 3:1 “My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.”

Prov 3:5-6 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight.”

10:12 “Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.” Prov 17:9 says much the same.

Prov 11:1 “The Lord abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are his delight.”

Prov 11:14 “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but many advisers make victory sure.”

Prov 12:10 “A righteous man cares for the needs of his animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel.” Jews teach that one should feed their animals before they themselves eat. The reason is the animals don’t understand the concept of waiting and it is cruel to not feed them first.

Prov 12:16 “A fool shows his annoyance at once, but a prudent man overlooks an insult.”

Prov 13:20 “He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.”

We always told our kids to be careful who they choose for friends, because they become like them.

Prov 13:24 “He who spares the rod hates his son.” Some commentators suggest that the term “rod” refers to setting standards of behavior, rather than a stick with which to administer physical punishment. See Prov 29:15.

Prov 15:22 “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” We just read this in Prov 11. I guess He wants us to really understand this point.

Prov 21:3 “To do what is right is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.”

Prov 22:6 “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”

Prov 24:10 “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.”

Proverbs 31:10-31 describes the wife of noble character. There is one verse that stands out for me. Notice verse 16. “She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.” This sounds like a rather modern woman who can buy and sell real estate with her own money.