March 30 ▪ Day 89

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 14:16
Jeremiah 7–8
Luke 18
Psalms 89

Verse Focus (Proverbs 14:16)

The wise fear the LORD and shun evil,
     but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure.

Meditation

Proverbs 14:16 says, in the NIV, “The wise fear the LORD and shun evil, but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure.” When I read it earlier today in the NRSV, however, the verse said, “The wise are cautious and turn away from evil, but the fool throws off restraint and is careless.” The first thought that popped into my head on reading this proverb had to do with wearing face masks.

As you well know, during this pandemic it is recommended that we wear face masks to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus. As the vaccines against this virus are finally being rolled out, people are getting a bit restive — not that anyone likes to be told what to do. And so we see people refusing to wear masks, taking it as a matter of personal liberty rather than as a public safety precaution. I understand the arguments on both sides of the issue. It seems ridiculous to believe that our face masks can actually prevent infection; science tells us that the virus particles are much smaller than our masks can safely filter out. And yet, despite the size problem, masks have been proven to limit the spread of the virus (whether that has to do with a mask’s effectiveness in preventing the virus getting into your system or whether it actually relates to changes in social interaction that mask-wearing encourages is unknown). And I see the foolish throwing off restraint — not wearing a mask — and being careless of possible infection. The wise, on the other hand, are cautious — and so they wear masks, turning away from evil (both in terms of possible infection and in terms of the evil of considering your own needs to be more important than the needs of people around you).

I’m sure there are many more applications to this proverb than the one that popped into my mind this morning. I think about the way the NIV translated the proverb: “a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure.” It reminds me of teenagers that do foolish things because they feel invincible. The idea of danger and death feels far removed from how full of possibilities their lives are. And so teens drive irresponsibly and commit reckless stunts.

The fact the the wise turn away from evil implies a recognition that the foolish seem to lack. Both the wise and the foolish may see danger; however, the wise recognize the possibility of evil and turn back, whereas the foolish don’t see evil at all and they forge ahead.

Father God, please help us to fear you as we should. Enable us to recognize evil and be cautious in our actions; may we turn back from evil and shun wrongdoing. We pray that you would protect the foolish from themselves and teach them caution. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

In Jeremiah chapter 7, God tells Jeremiah to “stand in the gate of the LORD’s house” and to prophesy to all those who enter. That’s a little peculiar, when you stop to think about it. You’d assume that those who are entering the temple are the faithful ones, those who still revere the LORD and those who call on His name. Wouldn’t it make more sense for Jeremiah to stand in the market place to preach to all those folks who were breaking the Sabbath? And yet God’s word was for the “religious” people.

Verse 3 shocked me. God had Jeremiah direct the people to amend their ways in order that God might dwell with them in the temple. Later, I see that the verse can be translated two different ways — either “let me dwell with you” or “I will let you dwell.” Still, to think that God no longer resided in the temple — that, in fact, He could not reside there because of the people’s wickedness — is a very sobering concept. Indeed, in verse 4 God says that the words, “the temple of the LORD,” are “deceptive words.”

When Jesus threw the money changers out of the temple, telling them they had made it into a “den of robbers,” I didn’t realize that he was quoting from Jeremiah 7:11. But that is the charge that Jeremiah brings against those worshiping in the temple. They “steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods (v. 9)” and then stand in the temple as if they had not done these things and as if they did not intend to go on doing these things. Doesn’t that remind you of how today we talk about Christians who go to church on Sunday, but then they live the rest of the week as if they were other people entirely?

The LORD warns them that if they do not repent, what happened at Shiloh will happen here. So, you may ask, what exactly did happen at Shiloh? Shiloh was the city in Ephraim where the Tabernacle resided for several hundred years. Eli and his sons were at Shiloh, as was Samuel. And the ark of the covenant was at Shiloh when it got captured by the Philistines. Even though the Biblical accounts do not tell us what happened at Shiloh, the assumption is that the sanctuary at Shiloh got destroyed during the war. When the ark was recovered from the Philistines, it did not go back to Shiloh. The ark went, instead, to Gibeon (not to be confused with Gibeah, known for its Sodom-like depravity), and stayed there during the reigns of David and Solomon until it was eventually moved to the new temple in Jerusalem.

God tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people, because He will not hear that prayer (v. 16). As God speaks of the idolatry of the people of Judah, twice the Scripture tells us that the people are going after other gods to their own hurt (v. 6, v. 19). God speaks of His wrath against the people of Judah and mentions the detestable practice of child sacrifice that happened at Topheth by those who worshiped Molech (v. 31). And He promises to “bring to an end the sound of mirth and gladness, the voice of the bride and bridegroom in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for the land shall become a waste (v. 34).”

Jeremiah 8 continues to describe the devastation that will come. Graves will be desecrated and the bones of kings, priests, prophets, and others in Jerusalem will be brought out of their tombs to be discarded like excrement. The LORD speaks of Judah’s “perpetual backsliding (v. 5), telling them not to take refuge in the law of the LORD because “the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie (v. 8).”

The words of verse 11 haunt me, as do the final words of the chapter in verse 22: “Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there?”

As we read in Jeremiah about Judah in the time before the Babylonian captivity, I see parallels to the Pharisees in Jesus’ time and I see parallels to our own time. The people of Judah trusted in the fact that they had the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem; the Pharisees also trusted in their understanding of the law. We also have a Biblical heritage going back thousands of years; we have the Bible and freedom of worship. But I think we are in as much danger of self-deception as were the Pharisees and Jeremiah’s contemporaries.

Jesus talked about this problem in Luke chapter 18. As he tells the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, his purpose is to warn those who “trusted in themselves that they were righteous (v. 9).” I was struck by the wording of this verse as I read the chapter today. The Pharisees trusted in themselves. They didn’t trust in God for His righteousness; they trusted in their own efforts at righteousness. We have the advantage of living on this side of the cross; we also have Paul’s letters that make the difference between grace and works righteousness very clear. Yet in spite of having these advantages, it is easy for us to slip away from reliance upon God’s grace and to start leaning instead on our own efforts at righteous living. As Jesus sums up the parable, he uses the punchline again that “all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted (v. 14).”

Before, when Jesus talked about those who exalt themselves in Luke chapter 14, he used the illustration of someone choosing an honored seat at the banquet. But here it is a kind of litmus test to see whether we are trusting in God or ourselves. Are we exalting ourselves in God’s presence, or do we humble ourselves, recognizing both our lack of merit and our desperate need?

Luke 18 tells other parables and stories. We read of the widow and the unjust judge to learn of our “need to pray always and not to lose heart (v. 1).” We see Jesus blessing the little children. He speaks with a rich ruler about salvation and comments on how difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God. He warns the disciples yet again about the events to come once they arrive in Jerusalem. And, finally, in the last story, we read of the blind beggar who asks to have his sight restored.

As I was reading this last story, I was struck by verse 39. When the beggar started shouting for help, others tried to quiet him. But in verse 39, Scripture tells us that “he shouted even more loudly.” And it is this kind of persistence that we need to obtain favor from God. Ask and keep on asking, and it shall be given to you. We tend to be very quick to give up whenever we face obstacles of any kind. The beggar was blind. He couldn’t follow Jesus or see how close he was. All he had was his voice. And he used that voice to get Jesus’ attention and to present his request. Most of us fear making a disturbance, or being seen to stand out in some way. But this is precisely what the beggar had to do in order to be seen by Jesus.

In practical terms, I don’t really know what this kind of persistence looks like for you and me. I just know that the Holy Spirit highlighted this to me today. Perhaps it’s a message for me to be a bit louder and a bit less polite as I look for work. Or maybe it’s encouragement — don’t take “no” for an answer as I explore what kind of publishing future there might be for these devotionals. Or maybe it’s even simpler than that: consider what I really want to ask of Jesus and then keep on praying.

As mentioned yesterday, Psalm 89 was written by Ethan the Ezrahite. 1 Kings 4:31 speaks of King Solomon and his wisdom and tells us that Solomon was “wiser than all other men, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol, and his fame was in all the surrounding nations.” 1 Chronicles 2:6 also mentions Ethan and Heman, along with their father Zerah.

So this psalm was written by a man who was famous for his wisdom. We also know that in the Bible, a person’s name is significant because names have meanings that usually apply to a person’s character. The name “Ethan” means “strong and optimistic, solid and enduring, permanent.” Quite a name to live up to!

Psalm 89 begins by celebrating God’s steadfast love. Ethan speaks of how God made a covenant with David, and he praises God for his power and might. More than half of this 52-verse psalm is spent in praise. (I also like how the number of verses echoes the number of weeks in a year). In verses 32 and 33, the psalmist records God’s intention to punish those of David’s descendants who forsake His law, as well as God’s solemn promise that He “will not remove from him my steadfast love, or be false to my faithfulness.”

And yet, in verse 38, the tenor of the psalm changes. Here, the psalmist says that God has rejected David’s anointed line and has renounced the covenant. The scepter has been removed from David and his line is covered in shame (v. 44-45). The psalmist asks how long God will hide. How long will his wrath burn? “Remember how short my time is,” Ethan cries in verse 47.

Verse 48 asks, “Who can live and never see death? Who can escape the power of Sheol?” The psalmist asks God where is the steadfast love of old that He had sworn to David. He reminds God that the people are being held up to scorn. Then the psalm ends, simply, with the words, “Blessed be the LORD forever. Amen and Amen.”

God’s people are suffering. The kingdom has been torn away from David’s descendants. (Presumably this psalm was written after the split between the kingdoms of Israel and Judah in 931 BC.) Yet in some ways, Ethan the Ezrahite reminds me of Job. He does not charge God with wrongdoing, as Job did not charge God with doing wrong when Job’s family was killed. The psalmist does remind God of His covenant promises, but Ethan continues to praise and he ends the psalm with praise.

As I read this psalm, I see it as the ultimate Messianic psalm. When Ethan asks who can escape the power of Sheol, we know that Jesus did that. Jesus lives! In fact, Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of this covenant promise to David. Even the rejection that Ethan felt so bitterly after the kingdom was divided is a rejection that Christ also experienced. But, Blessed be the LORD forever. Amen and Amen.

Father God, I am so grateful that you remembered your covenant promise to David and sent us Jesus. Thank you for the grace that you freely offer us. Help me to trust in you and your righteousness, and not lean on my own filthy rags. I pray that you will bring revival, and that you will heal our world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.