January 30 ▪ Day 30

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 10:4
Isaiah 9–10
Romans 3–4
Psalms 30

Verse Focus (Proverbs 10:4)

Lazy hands make for poverty,
     but diligent hands bring wealth.

Meditation

Good morning! Or, good afternoon or evening. 🙂 I hope the day finds you well in body and spirit.

Today’s proverb says, in the NRSV, “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.” We’ve talked about laziness before as the sluggard is one type of fool that the book of Proverbs warns us about. Here, we have the contrast between poverty and wealth. Obviously, if we have a choice about it, we’ll choose wealth over poverty every time. But the Bible is telling us that we do have a choice about it. Poverty and wealth are both possible outcomes of our work ethic.

Merriam Webster says that diligence is “characterized by steady, earnest, and energetic effort.” It is “painstaking.” Another definition speaks of the “devoted and persevering effort to accomplish what is undertaken.” Steadiness and perseverance seem to be half the battle with diligence.

As I consider this proverb, though, I realize that this applies to more than our career and our professional lives. In a business environment, the one who is slack may end up getting fired. The diligent person, on the other hand, will often be picked for promotion. It’s easy to see how this proverb applies in a work setting. But it applies in just about every other arena, too. Fixing dinner. If I’m lazy, I may end up with something that’s not terribly appetizing and that may not be particularly nutritious. On the other hand, if I take time and care to prepare that meal, it will likely be healthier and more satisfying, bringing “wealth” to my body and to those with whom I share that meal. Even today, as I write this devotional, this proverb encourages me to persevere. I have a bit of a cold and am a bit under the weather: the temptation to be “lazy” calls. But what would be the result? Poverty. No devotional written. But if I’m diligent, there is wealth for me and for whomever may read what I eventually write.

Father God, enable us to be diligent in whatever tasks may be before us. Keep us from being lazy or slothful. Give us strength and energy to do our work with excellence, through Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Our first chapter in Isaiah today, chapter 9, is certainly a very familiar passage. You likely heard the first seven verses quoted in church some time this past December, during Advent and Christmas. The Messianic prophecy: by way of the sea, Galilee of the Gentiles… the people walking in darkness have seen a great light… a son is given to us… and he shall be called “Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Gives you the shivers, doesn’t it? I especially like how this first section ends, with the last phrase of verse 7: “The zeal of the LORD of hosts will do this.”

As the chapter continues, though, it’s a lot less familiar. The prophet speaks of a word from the LORD that is “against Jacob” that “falls” on Israel. Verse 9 says “all the people knew it.” But they respond to the destruction with “pride and arrogance of heart,” simply making alternate plans. And this response provokes further judgment. In a repeat of the verse that haunted me in Isaiah 5, three times in chapter 9 the Scripture says, “For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”

The phrase repeats yet a fourth time in Isaiah chapter 10, verse 4: “For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”

As Isaiah 10 continues, though, there is a change of topic from the Israelites to the Assyrians. In verse 12, it states that after the LORD has finished his work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, then He will punish the Assyrians for their “arrogant boasting” and “haughty pride.” Verse 15 is particularly telling: “Shall the ax vaunt itself over the one who wields it, or the saw magnify itself against the one who handles it?” Assyria is but a tool in the hand of the LORD. But part of the reason this verse strikes me is because this is what we all are — clay in the hands of the Potter, tools in the hands of the LORD. None of us should be harboring pride or arrogance in our hearts.

As the chapter concludes, the prophet speaks of a remnant who will turn to the LORD (v. 20). God tells the Israelites not to be afraid of the Assyrians, “For in a very little while my indignation will come to an end, and my anger will be directed to their destruction (v. 25).”

Isaiah is both striking and disturbing, comforting and challenging. Such anger, such terrible destruction: clash of nations, death and desolation. How are we to understand God’s wrath? How do we reconcile the beautiful promises of the Messiah being side by side with stories of terrible judgment? I love the poetry and the beauty in this book, but I still struggle to understand all that the prophet would teach us.

In Romans 3, Paul raises the question as to whether there is any advantage to being a Jew. His answer is a little difficult to understand because he says, yes, of course, there is “much” advantage. After all, Jews were entrusted with the “oracles of God” (i.e., with Scripture — the Law, Poetry, and Prophets). But then Paul goes on to say that we are all alike under the power of sin (v. 9). He quotes many passages of Scripture to illustrate this truth. In verse 20, Paul says that “through the law comes the knowledge of sin.”

As the chapter continues, Paul speaks of the new revelation of the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ, a gospel that is “apart from the law.” We are freely justified by God’s grace, by a “law of faith” that is apart from deeds. However, through this faith we establish and uphold the law.

Romans 4 elaborates on the idea of God’s free gift of grace through faith. Paul points out that when one works, the wages received are seen only as what is owed. But when we trust God “without works” to justify the ungodly, that faith is seen as righteousness. Paul gives the example of Abraham, father of many nations, pointing out that Abraham was circumcised as a result of and seal for the righteous faith he had before circumcision. The promises to Abraham and his descendants did not come through the law, but through faith in God’s ability to “do what He had promised” (v. 21).

There is always a lot packed into what Paul writes. But these chapters and the rest of the book of Romans will help us to understand the role of the law in our life of faith. Our salvation does not come from keeping the law — in fact, as Paul writes in Romans 4:15, the law brings wrath. The law is what teaches us about who God is: about His ways and His holiness. But in learning about holiness, our own ungodliness is revealed (“through the law comes the knowledge of sin”). In faith in Jesus Christ, however, we receive a righteousness apart from the law, and this righteousness — this faith — expresses itself by upholding the law. This is the process of sanctification, as we are transformed into the image of Christ.

Psalm 30 is, of course, yet another beautiful song. NRSV categorizes it as “Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness,” while the editors of the NKJV have captioned it as the “Blessedness of Answered Prayer.” Verse 5b is one my earliest Scripture treasures: “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (I had to memorize it in the King James Version. 🙂 )

The text of the psalm does talk of healing, of coming up from the grave. God has kept the psalmist alive, and this psalm is praise for that mercy. This makes me especially curious about the inscription for the psalm. We are told that David wrote this song and that it is meant to be a song “at the dedication of the temple.” (At least, that’s how most translations put it. The King James and New King James versions say that the psalm is “at the dedication of the house of David.”) Considering the topic of the psalm, one wonders why it was meant to be sung at the dedication of the temple. It’s even more peculiar when you remember that the temple was built by David’s son. It is, in many ways, an entirely personal psalm — only one verse calls on the congregation at large to praise the LORD. And it is this very personal aspect to the psalm that gives me a hint as to why it might be appropriate for the dedication of the temple. What is more important than life and death? What is more all-encompassing than joy and grief? And what is more intimate than God restoring you to health?

I love the benediction of the closing verses: “You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have taken off my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, so that my soul may praise you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever.”

Father God, I do thank you that you are a personal and intimate God. You care when we suffer illness or loss. You care when we are in trouble or danger. And you care about our life of faith — growing closer to Christ and conforming to his image. Thank you that you freely justify us by your grace, giving us faith through Jesus Christ. Help us to continue to grow in righteousness, by your love and mercy. Amen.