I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.
After Absalom occupies Jerusalem and has sex with the concubines which David, his father, had left behind, Ahithophel urges him to immediately send troops out after David and his men under the command of Ahithophel. However, Hushai, whom David had encouraged to stay behind and give Absalom bad advice, convinces Absalom to delay until he had gathered more troops and for Absalom to lead them himself. Hushai uses two time honored techniques to get Absalom to follow his advice. He plays on Absalom’s fears of David and his men and he plays to his vanity of being seen as a great war leader. Absalom decides to follow Hushai’s advice. This allows Hushai time to warn David and allows David and his men time to get to a defensive location among supporters. Interestingly, David chooses as his base the same city that Abner had chosen to base the kingship of Saul’s son Ishbosheth. Ahithophel recognizes how disastrous following Hushai’s advice will be for Absalom, and thus for himself, and goes home,sets his affairs in order and kills himself.
In this crucifixion account John references Psalm 22:18 when he says that the soldiers that crucified Jesus divided His clothes and diced over His robe. Matthew and Mark reference Psalm 22:1 when they write that Jesus last words were “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” In both cases the writers are applying the whole of Psalm 22 to this situation. In Psalm 22 the psalmist is crying out in despair, yet nevertheless praising God and declaring His righteousness. Later in this account John references Psalm 34:20 when he says that the soldiers did not break Jesus’ legs to fulfill the scripture that “Not one of His bones will be broken.” The verse before that in the psalm says, “The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.” That is very similar to the theme of Psalm 22. I think it is significant that three of the four Gospel writers reference this. I believe that they are each saying that despite appearances God was with Jesus to the very end and came to His rescue. In a way they are foreshadowing the resurrection and they are saying that Jesus knew that the resurrection was coming to follow passing through this time of torment. Even in the despair and torment of His crucifixion and death Jesus continued to praise God. We should do the same in whatever hardships and troubles we face.
Throughout this psalm the psalmist has expressed his joy in following God’s commands and the judgement that will fall on those who do not do so. In today’s reading, he expresses his sadness for those who do not follow God’s commands:
because people disobey your instructions.”
This should be our feeling as well for those who do not choose to serve God, deep sadness. This passage emphasizes the burden on my heart to pray for my friends who have not yet come to know the Lord. As has been true since I started reading Psalm 119, today this psalm truly touches me.
No wonder I obey them!”
I definitely see this as true. The more I obey God’s will for my life, the more joy I have and the more I want to find more of His will to follow.
help me to understand them so I may live.”
There are those who wish to throw away those of God’s laws that they do not like, thinking that they understand how humans work better than our Maker. I once thought there was something to their arguments, until I experienced the pain (and inflicted pain on others) of not following those rules. I learned that biblical instructions are not just for those who lived many years ago. God’s laws are always right.
that your laws will last forever.”
I have no excuse for the mistakes I made, my parents taught me this from a young age. I wanted it to be true, so I allowed those I should not have trusted to convince me that it was. I have learned that what I learned as a child is more reliable than the “more mature” perspective I came to later.
When those with political authority follow these proverbs a country will be blessed. The further those with political authority are from the standard of these proverbs, the more oppression and suffering will be found in the country. In addition the further those with political authority are from the standard of these proverbs the less stable will be their authority.