February 11 ▪ Day 42

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 10:31
Isaiah 33–34
Mark 3
Psalms 42

Verse Focus (Proverbs 10:31)

From the mouth of the righteous comes the fruit of wisdom,
     but a perverse tongue will be silenced.

Meditation

Today’s verse focus is Proverbs 10:31. In the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), the verse reads, “The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but the perverse tongue will be cut off.” This seems straight-forward enough, and it agrees with many of the other proverbs we’ve looked at this year. But just to be thorough, I decided to look up the definition of “perverse.”

Most of us are aware that perverse is often used in terms of sexual depravity to describe one who is twisted, degenerate, or wicked. But there are other meanings of perverse, too. It can mean contrary, obstructive, unreasonable, irrational, or inappropriate. Merriam Webster defines the word as “turned away from what is right or good: corrupt.” Other dictionaries point out the “willful” and “purposeful” nature of the response: someone who is perverse is “showing a deliberate and obstinate desire to behave in a way that is unreasonable or unacceptable, often in spite of the consequences.” I hadn’t realized until I looked up the definition today that my understanding of this word had gotten very narrow. And I’m sure the Bible means “perverse” in all of its many nuances.

It’s interesting, too, that the proverb tells us that the perverse tongue “will be silenced” or “will be cut off.” (I wonder how many times in history the latter was literally true??) My point is simply that whoever or whatever silences that person, it comes from outside him or her. Ultimately, of course, it comes from God in whatever means He may use to stop someone from speaking. And I take a lot of comfort in this verse. I’m sure you can easily think of one or two politicians that you are glad have been silenced, or that you hope will be silenced soon. Not that only public speakers are guilty of having a “perverse tongue.” (I just find them particularly aggravating and that’s why it came to my mind as an example).

Father God, I’m so glad that you silence wicked tongues. Thank you for this promise that the perverse tongue will be cut off. Thank you also, that we receive wisdom when the righteous speak. Help us to remember that wisdom is what should be coming out of our mouths. Curb our speech and do not let us say anything unhelpful or unwholesome. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Isaiah 33 is more of a song of hope than a specific prophecy. The destroyer and traitor will find himself betrayed and destroyed. Verse 2 — a prayer that I’ve highlighted many times over the years — seems to come straight out of the Psalms: “O LORD, be gracious to us; we wait for you. Be our arm every morning, our salvation in the time of trouble.” Some translations avoid using the literal word “arm” and go straight for the metaphorical meaning of the word: “strength.” But I kind of like “arm.” It conveys the meaning of not just strength, but of getting things done.

As I read the chapter today, I was particularly struck by the first part of verse 6. “He [the LORD] will be the stability of your times.” No matter what century it is or what circumstances we live in, this verse is for all the ages. God is our stability. It was as true in Isaiah’s time as it was for our great-great-grandparents and as it is for us. Not just that God is our stability, but the LORD will be our stability. The rest of the verse 6 is pretty good, too. 🙂 “…abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure.”

Verse 14 also struck me, partly from its description of the LORD: “Who among us can live with the devouring fire? Who among us can live with everlasting flames?” There are other places in the Bible where God is described as a flame or fire, but it’s not my typical understanding of Him. A few days ago, someone asked me what I thought “hell” was. Is it a physical place? The lake of fire described in Revelation? My answer has always been that I believe hell is separation from God. By this I mean there is no intimacy, no communion, no relationship. Without God and His goodness, without the grace that permeates all of life, our existence would be hell. It occurs to me today, however, that the “fire” of judgment may be intrinsic to God Himself and His presence. Without Jesus as mediator, being in the presence of God would be like being in the lake of burning fire.

The answer to Isaiah’s question about who can live in the devouring fire is the righteous. Isaiah gives a number of examples to describe what the righteous are like. They don’t take bribes, they don’t oppress people, they walk and talk “uprightly.”

In verse 15, Isaiah describes some other attributes of the righteous. He says that they “stop their ears from hearing of bloodshed and shut their eyes from looking on evil.” I felt a twinge from the Holy Spirit when I read this. Clearly, I need to consider this more in depth. The first thing I actually thought of was the news. But how to stay informed without dwelling on evil will require further thought. I know that traditionally believers who have tried to avoid hearing and seeing bloodshed and evil have looked to restrict the content of their entertainment (books, movies, plays, and television). And although I love crime drama as a genre (we all want good to triumph!), perhaps the Holy Spirit would have me be more discriminating about what I read or watch on TV.

Verse 22 is another of those “psalm-like” verses: “For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our ruler, the LORD is our king; he will save us.” As the chapter concludes its description of living in the presence of the LORD, verse 24 particularly resonated: “And no inhabitant will say, ‛I am sick.’ ” Joy, indeed!

Isaiah 34 is a prophecy of judgment against all nations, although Edom is singled out later in the chapter. I was particularly struck by verse 4: “All the host of heaven shall rot away, and the skies roll up like a scroll.” You may remember the lyrics “the clouds be rolled up as a scroll” from the well-known hymn, It is Well with My Soul. It’s an image that other songs and sermons have used. But even though I’ve read this chapter many times before, I had no memory of “all the host of heaven shall rot away.” What an image! There is judgment against celestial enemies too, I gather.

As the prophecy continues, it speaks of the devastation against Edom. It will become the “haunt of jackals (v. 13).” The land will be so deserted of people that it will become a permanent sanctuary for all the animals. In fact, the prophecy about the animals is almost reminiscent of Noah’s ark:

Seek and read from the book of the LORD: Not one of these shall be missing; none shall be without its mate. For the mouth of the Lord has commanded, and his spirit has gathered them.

He has cast the lot for them, his hand has portioned it out to them with the line; they shall possess it forever, from generation to generation they shall live in it.

In Mark chapter 3, we again see Jesus “sternly” ordering the demons (or “unclean spirits”) not to reveal his identity. In chapter 1, Mark simply told us that the demons knew who Jesus was. Now, however, they are shouting out Jesus’ identity as the “Son of God” as soon as they see him. To some extent, I see this change as a function of how many people are now following Jesus. When it was just a few people, Jesus could silence the demons before they even had opportunity to speak. Now, a multitude has gathered. In fact, there are so many people crowding around Jesus for healing that Jesus makes preparations to start teaching from a boat.

In the parable of the man with the withered hand that Jesus heals on the Sabbath, I noticed some details that I didn’t notice when we read this story in Matthew. When Jesus entered the synagogue where the man with the withered hand was, the Pharisees and others in the synagogue watched Jesus closely “so that they might accuse him (v. 2).” These people had already judged Jesus in their hearts, and now they looked for an excuse to do so publicly. But Jesus preempted them by asking whether it was lawful to do good or harm on the Sabbath, to save life or to kill. Their silence grieved Jesus, and he healed the man with the withered hand. By asking them this question, they could no longer speak against Jesus for this healing — but as soon as they left the synagogue they “conspired with the Herodians” and started making plans against Jesus.

After Jesus appoints 12 disciples to be apostles, it tells us in verse 19 that he “went home.” And the crowds followed — so many people that Jesus’ family went to intervene. The scribes from Jerusalem started saying that it was because Jesus had a demon that he was able to throw demons out of other people. From this incident we get two important teachings: the first is this, as Jesus says in verse 24: “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.” This resonated as I read it today because our country has been so divided in the past year. Even believers have allowed themselves to take sides, and have contributed to this disunity. But there is a grim future for us unless we can see that our unity in Christ is more important than political affiliations and our hopes for government.

The second teaching is one I talked about a bit when we covered the parallel passage in Matthew: the teaching that “whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin (v. 29).” As a young believer this frightened me until I came to understand that the “blasphemy against the Holy Spirit” was denying the Spirit’s testimony about the identity of Jesus. I see the proof of this in today’s chapter. Verse 30 continues the teaching about blasphemy against the Holy Spirit with an aside that tells us, “for they had said, ‛He has an unclean spirit.’ ”

The chapter closes with the important declaration from Jesus: “Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother (v. 35).”

Psalm 42 must be one of my favorite psalms. This psalm was not written by David, but was written by the Korahites (or Sons of Korah). The Korahites were a clan of Levites that had duties in the sanctuary. When the temple was built, David appointed the Korahites to handle temple music and gatekeeping. There are a number of psalms that are attributed to the Sons of Korah. The clan got their name because they were descended from Korah, a cousin of Moses who was notable for being the leader of a rebellion against Moses (detailed in Numbers 16). Although Korah and “all who belonged to him” were destroyed in the rebellion, there were apparently independent sons and their families that survived to write these beautiful psalms.

Psalm 42 is a psalm for anyone, but especially for one who has suffered from serious depression. There is a verse refrain that repeats twice in Psalm 42 and once in the companion piece, Psalm 43:

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God.

Although there can be reasons for distress, depression and despair often make no sense at all. Sometimes, there is no answer to the question of why one’s soul is down. But the psalmist twice exhorts himself to “remember” God — first, to remember the joy of worship in community, and secondly, to remember God Himself.

Verse 7 resonates with my spirit. As the verse reads in the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), “Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your billows have swept over me.” The “breakers and billows” completely express that sense of drowning and of being overwhelmed. (Interestingly, the only other place where “billows” are mentioned in the Bible are when Jonah prays from the belly of the whale. Most of Jonah’s prayer is citing various Scriptural sources, so likely he also was remembering this particular psalm when he was inside the whale.)

According to the psalmist, the prescription to treat this depression and panic is to “hope in God.” The psalmist clings to the conviction that God is his help; he knows that there will come a time of future praise.

God is always our hope and our help. Sometimes, however, God sends that help through other people and through medical professionals. Although this psalm may resonate with you even when life is going well, if things are not going well — if you feel like you are drowning in the billows and your heart is too heavy for words, please reach out to get help from someone near.

Father God, I’m so glad that you are our salvation and our help. When we are in the midst of depression or despair, when life overwhelms us, when it seems like all hope is lost — this is when we must remember you and place our hope in you. This may also be when we most need family, friends, and the community of other believers. For myself, or for anyone in this situation — work through us to get us the help we need.

Thank you, Father, that you are preparing a kingdom for us where no one will say, “I am sick.” We long for your healing and your grace — now and forevermore. In the name of Jesus, Son of God, Amen.