I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
Ezekiel condemns the people of the kingdom of Judah for not learning from watching the disaster which struck the Northern Kingdom. Ezekiel compares idolatry to adultery. As I read this passage it struck me that Ezekiel was implying that sexual immorality is a form of idolatry and that idolatry leads to sexual immorality. Ezekiel condemned Judah for sacrificing their children to the idols they worshiped, much as our society today sacrifices children on the altar of convenience.
Our sins have been forgiven, there is no need for any more sacrifices. As a result of Jesus’ death we can enter into God’s presence without fear. Our spirit’s have been made clean by Christ’s blood and our bodies washed by the water of baptism. Let us seek ways to encourage one another to act out our love, the love instilled in us by God’s Spirit, and to do good works. In order to do this, we must gather together with our fellow believers on a regular basis. There are those who believe that they can live a life faithful to God in isolation from their fellow believers. They are mistaken. We need to meet with fellow believers on a regular basis in order to encourage others and to be encouraged.
The psalmist calls on God to protect him because his enemies are telling lies about him. Despite the fact that he has done good for them they are attempting to destroy him. They tell lies about him claiming that he is deserving of misfortune because he has refused kindness to others and persecuted the poor and needy. They claim that he hounded the brokenhearted to death. They condemn him for acts which he never committed and deny the good things he has done.
As I read this psalm, it occurred to me that this is something that those who refuse to accept God often speak of those who strive to serve God. When we hear someone who calls for righteous behavior condemned for being uncaring and/or evil we should carefully look at those who are making the accusations. Are those doing the accusing guilty of the things which they accuse others of doing? When you hear bad things about someone, consider the source. It is amazing how often I have heard someone tell me bad things about someone, only to realize that the source does not consider those things bad when practiced by those with whom they agree…which leads me to wonder if the person being talked about has actually done that which they are being accused of (all too often I discover that while the person has done what they are being accused of, it only becomes a source of opprobrium when it is taken out of context. In context is is actually a reason for approbation).
I just realized that this proverb does not condemn guaranteeing a stranger’s debt. Rather it merely warns to be wary of loaning money to someone who has offered surety on someone else’s debt, since it is likely that they will have to pay off that debt as well as their own.