The reading for day 45 was Psalm 136 - Proverbs 6:35 Psalm 136 uses the refrain "His love endures forever" (NIV) in every verse. This is very interesting to me because the refrain seems to sometimes contradict what the line before it says. For example: 136:10 To him that smote Egypt in their firstborn: for his mercy [endureth] for ever: This seems backwards to our view of God's love/mercy. So what should we learn from this? Psalm 137 is another interesting Psalm, not for the lyrical beauty, but for the raw emotion it contains coupled with the brutal honesty of someone who has suffered greatly. 137:8 O daughter of Babylon, who art to be destroyed; happy [shall he be], that rewardeth thee as thou hast served us. 137:9 Happy [shall he be], that taketh and dasheth thy little ones against the stones. Psalm 139 is a beautiful picture of God's sovereignty over all. Shane and Shane have done a great rendition of Psalm 145 on their Psalms cd. Find a copy and listen to it...the whole thing. Psalm 146 says 146:5 Happy [is he] that [hath] the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope [is] in the LORD his God: 146:6 Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein [is]: which keepeth truth for ever: 146:7 Which executeth judgment for the oppressed: which giveth food to the hungry. The LORD looseth the prisoners: 146:8 The LORD openeth [the eyes of] the blind: the LORD raiseth them that are bowed down: the LORD loveth the righteous: 146:9 The LORD preserveth the strangers; he relieveth the fatherless and widow: but the way of the wicked he turneth upside down. 146:10 The LORD shall reign for ever, [even] thy God, O Zion, unto all generations. Praise ye the LORD. Wow...its good to know that I'm in that list somewhere : ) as long as its not the end of verse 9. 149:6 [Let] the high [praises] of God [be] in their mouth, and a twoedged sword in their hand; 149:7 To execute vengeance upon the heathen, [and] punishments upon the people; 149:8 To bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron; 149:9 To execute upon them the judgment written: this honour have all his saints. Praise ye the LORD. Whoa...does anyone else feel a crusade coming...just kidding 150:1 Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. 150:2 Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. 150:3 Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. 150:4 Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. 150:5 Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. 150:6 Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD. Amen! Proverbs begins with a prescription for reading it almost like you would find on a pill bottle. Its good for 1:2 To know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; 1:3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; 1:4 To give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. 1:5 A wise [man] will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: 1:6 To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. Its a very useful book. The benifits for gaining wisdom are amazing and I definitely need to read Proverbs more often. Chapters 1-4 are all about how great it is to have wisdom and how stupid you must be if you don't have it or don't want it. Chapters 5-6 are chapters that all men need to commit to their memory and gain wisdom...don't be stupid. |
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