March 14 ▪ Day 73

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 13:10
Exodus 15–16
Luke 2
Psalms 73

Verse Focus (Proverbs 13:10)

Where there is strife, there is pride,
     but wisdom is found in those who take advice.

Meditation

According to the New International Version (NIV), Proverbs 13:10 says, “Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.” That seems quite straightforward — until you read it in a different translation. When I read the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), it said, “By insolence the heedless make strife, but wisdom is with those who take advice.” What? Okay, the second half is nearly the same. But insolence? So then I looked at a few other translations. The Christian Standard Bible (CSB) says, “Arrogance leads to nothing but strife, but wisdom is gained by those who take advice.” I really like how the World Messianic Bible (WMB) translates this verse. The WMB is nearly identical to the NIV of 1978, saying, “Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is with people who take advice.”

As I looked into this proverb, I discovered that the word being translated as pride, arrogance, or insolence is the Hebrew word zadon (Strong’s Hebrew concordance #2087) — and the word means pride, insolence, presumptuousness, and arrogance. I understand the connection between arrogance and pride, but I hadn’t really thought of insolence and presumptuousness as being a kind of pride. Hmmmm.

In English, insolence is defined as “rude and disrespectful behavior.” Presumptuousness is overstepping in bounds and authority; to say or do something without right or permission. When I review what presumptuousness means, I can easily understand the connection to pride. When I think of insolence in terms of what causes the rude and disrespectful behavior, I can also see the connection to pride. But it’s harder to think about insolence in this way: in our English concept of insolence we’ve divorced the behavior from its motivations.

We know that pride is bad, for a number of reasons. It is, after all, one of the “seven deadly sins.” But I usually think of it in terms of that focus on yourself — the desire to usurp God’s role and place in your life. I hadn’t been thinking about what pride does to our human relationships. Here, we learn that it is the source of quarreling. Pride causes strife. When you say it, it seems so obviously true. Of course it does! I’m sure you can easily think of an argument that you had with someone that was rooted in pride — theirs, or your own. So why wasn’t this part of my understanding of what pride is and what pride does? At least I’ve definitely gained some new insights today by taking a deeper look at this proverb.

Father God, we’ve studied previously about how those who are wise accept advice. But I appreciate this look at how our pride can impact our relationships. Please help to curb this kind of sinfulness in us; make us into people who are humble and wise. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Exodus 15 contains some beautiful poetry — the Song of Moses, and the Song of Miriam. And, yes, I do know a few songs that have been set to some of these verses. 🙂 The Israelites celebrate the victory of the LORD against the Egyptians. I imagine them, thinking they were trapped, and then having a miracle — walking through the Red Sea on dry land. But, oh no! The Egyptians are following. And then the waters start to come back. The Egyptians try to flee, but they are all drowned. How powerful that must have been — to actually see their oppressors dead. Not just that the Hebrews had escaped Egypt, but to see their enemies actually dead before their eyes. To know that there was not going to be any further attempts to get them to come back. To know that their slavery was really and truly, finally ended.

But it didn’t take long before the Hebrews started complaining. God displays His might with miracle after miracle, and conquers their enemies with an awesome display of power. And only three days later — three days in the wilderness without finding any fresh water — and they begin to grumble. Again, with the three days — a significant and symbolic time frame. And just like Jonah in the belly of the whale, the three days is a period of trial.

The second half of verse 25 tells us that God “put them to the test” there at Marah. God allowed these difficulties, and then he miraculously enables Moses to change bitter water into sweet, drinkable water — a test to see how they would react, if they would be able to apply this situation to future events, and a test to see if they would obey the commandment He gives to them there. It is a test for us, too. Will we let difficult circumstances cause us to lose hope and faith in God? Will we start to grumble and complain at our lot? Will we forget how God rescues His people?

Interestingly enough, after this test at Marah, God brings them to Elim with its 12 springs and 70 date palms. Doesn’t it sound a little bit like Paradise? Even the numbers of the springs and palms seem symbolic. Twelve tribes, twelve water springs — one for each of them. 70 date palms; 70 of Jacob’s house who had gone down to Egypt 430 years earlier (Genesis 46:27).

Exodus 16 picks up the story only a month after the Great Deliverance. Now they are in the wilderness of Sin (a nicely coincidental place name for those of us who read the Bible in English!), and, once again, the Israelites begin to complain. This time they complain of hunger, of not having full bellies like they did in Egypt. And so we have the miracle of the manna. God tells Moses that He is going to “rain bread from heaven (v. 4).” (How crazy must that have sounded to them?) Even as God gives them manna, however, he also institutes the Sabbath Day and creates a rule of life: six days to work, one day to rest. The LORD tells Moses that in giving the manna, He will also be testing the Israelites to see whether or not they will obey Him and keep His law.

I think it’s interesting that although the Israelites directed their complaints against Moses and Aaron, they are told that they are really grumbling against the LORD. We know that any grumbling and complaining displeases God; it’s not just the selfishness and the pessimism and the focus on what’s wrong with your life — it’s also that lack of gratitude: forgetting all the blessings that God bestows on us. But this strikes me because of the parallel to our modern politics. We find it easy to criticize our leaders, especially if the ones in charge are not the ones we had wanted to win the elections. And we manage to forget that God is the one who is sovereign. In complaining about our leaders, we are also complaining about how God runs things. As an individual, I have frequently been convicted about my grumbling nature when I read passages like this in Exodus; however, I didn’t expect to find myself guilty on a corporate level. But as I see the parallels between our nation and the nation of Israel, I recognize my guilt and our nation’s guilt in how we treat our leaders. We have failed the test, and we must repent.

Luke 2 tells us of the birth of Christ and how he grew to adulthood. It is a familiar story because of how frequently this is read in church at Christmastime. Only Luke tells us why a family from Nazareth ended up in Bethlehem so that Jesus would be born there. Only Luke tells us of the angels appearing to the shepherds. Luke does not tell us about the wise men, or how the Holy Family needed to flee to Egypt for a time. But he does tell us about the circumcision, the presentation at the temple, and the prophecies of Simeon and Anna. And he briefly covers Jesus’ childhood.

There is more poetry in this chapter that has become part of church liturgical traditions. The Gloria in Excelsis comes from Luke 2:14; the Nunc Dimittis is based on Simeon’s prophecy in Luke 2:29-32.

Verse 19 is a favorite verse: “But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.” We all want to meditate on Scripture. But I also think this is one of the reasons why Mary was the mother of Jesus. Anyone could have become very big-headed after hearing about angels’ announcing Jesus’ birth, and remembering Gabriel’s prophecies about him. But instead of bragging about her son, Mary kept these things in her heart and did not speak of them.

I also love the part of Simeon’s prophecy where he says that Jesus will be “a light for revelation to the Gentiles (v. 32).” And the prophetess Anna — depending on the translation you read, she was either 84 years old, or 84 years plus the age she was when she became widowed, probably in her early 20s. Either way, it’s a long time to be widowed! But surely this personal tragedy is what enabled her to become a prophetess, worshiping day and night in the temple.

We have the story about what happened when Jesus was 12. The age is significant only because this is the last year that Jesus would have been considered a child. (The age of majority in Judaism has always been 13 years old; however, the custom of celebrating the coming of age with a Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah party is a more modern invention.) So the family goes to Jerusalem for Passover. When it is time to leave, they assume Jesus is somewhere within the traveling party — it was likely a fairly large expedition of observant Jewish families from Nazareth. When they discover he is missing, they return to Jerusalem. After three days (drum roll) — yes, again with the three days! Three days of trial, three days of worry and fear. And after three days they discover Jesus in the temple, discussing things with the rabbis. When confronted about this inexplicable and apparent disobedience, Jesus merely replies, “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

Recently someone suggested that it would be a good study to look at every time Jesus says, “I must” — this will give us a true picture of his priorities and convictions, about what he considers important. So here, right here, we have the first “must.” I must be in my Father’s house. Or, as some translations put it, I must be about my Father’s business (or my Father’s interests).

I also like the way this story of Jesus on the cusp of adulthood mirrors what will happen at the end of the gospel. It is Passover. And for three days Jesus is missing, only to be discovered in the temple, about his Father’s business. Twenty or twenty-one years later, and Jesus will be in Jerusalem again for the Passover. He will be betrayed, condemned and crucified. And on the third day, he will rise again having accomplished his Father’s business. It’s a nice symmetry.

Psalm 73 is another favorite of mine. It was written by Asaph. As you may recall from when we read Psalm 50, Asaph was one of the song leaders that David specifically commissioned for temple service. The next nine psalms we will read are also authored by Asaph, so we’ve got a bit of a treat in store for the next few days.

In this psalm, Asaph speaks of what it is like to be discouraged and to wonder if your efforts at righteousness have any meaning. He starts out by telling us that his “feet had almost stumbled (v. 2).” Why? Because he became envious of the wicked. As he looked at the wicked, Asaph didn’t seem them suffering — on the contrary, they seemed prosperous, strong, and at ease even though they are arrogant scoffers. Asaph, on the other hand, felt like he had been “plagued (v. 14).”

Asaph began to doubt that it even matters to strive for what is right. “Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure,” he says in verse 13. He struggled to understand, but found himself further troubled, further oppressed. Until.

“Until I went into the sanctuary of God,” says Asaph in verse 17, “then I perceived their end.” Once Asaph shifted his focus from looking at the wicked, and instead looked to God, then he could see that the wicked are actually on a slippery slope. They will be destroyed very suddenly, and will vanish like a dream. Asaph could also recognize how when he had become envious, his heart had become “embittered (v. 21)” and this made him “stupid and ignorant… like a brute beast (v. 22).”

Verse 26 is my favorite in this psalm, highlighted year after year:

My flesh and my heart may fail,
     but God is the strength of my heart
     and my portion forever.

Father God, thank you that you are my portion. Thank you that you give me strength. When my heart becomes envious and embittered, draw me back into your sanctuary. Help me to see things from your perspective.

Help me to treasure your words in my heart. Make it my priority to be about your business. Forgive me for my lack of gratitude. Forgive me for complaining about small distresses (muscle aches and pains, low energy) and ignoring today’s blessings (sunshine, fellowship, prayer, grace). Forgive me also for criticizing you by condemning what appear to be foolish leaders. Even if the leaders are unwise, you have reasons for them being in authority. Help us to see what you are truly doing, despite or perhaps because of corrupt and foolish governments. Please transform my heart, and let me always remember your glory — the horse and rider thrown into the sea. I pray in the name of your Son, Jesus the Messiah, Amen.