April 2 ▪ Day 92

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 14:25
Jeremiah 13–14
Luke 21
Psalms 92

Verse Focus (Proverbs 14:25)

A truthful witness saves lives,
     but a false witness is deceitful.

Meditation

Proverbs 14:25 says, in the NIV, “A truthful witness saves lives, but a false witness is deceitful.” I like how the NRSV translates the second half of this proverb: “but one who utters lies is a betrayer.” I find it interesting that the halves of the proverb are not exactly parallel. The truthful witness saves lives, but the false witness does not destroy lives or kill people. Rather, the false witness is deceitful and a betrayer. The proverb tells us not what the liar does but what he becomes.

Yes, by lying, they are attempting to deceive. But it’s as if the liar actually becomes deceit. They become the very thing that they are doing. So, essentially, they are destroying themselves rather than other people.

I also see that truth is more powerful than lies. Truth has the ability to save other people. The liar may damage and betray, but his power is not equivalent to the power of telling the truth.

Thank you, Father God, for the wisdom in proverbs. May we save lives by telling the truth.

In Jeremiah 13, the prophet is directed to take a linen loincloth that he has worn and then hide it in the cleft of a rock by the river. When he returns later to collect it, it is naturally ruined and unusable. The LORD says in verse 9, “Just so I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem.” This seems like one of those performance art kinds of prophecy, and other than a bit of disgust at the whole idea of it, I haven’t given it much thought. To my surprise, I find that most commentators have found rich and fruitful symbolism in this incident. The intimacy of the loincloth echoes the intimacy God shared with Israel and Judah. The fact that it was made of linen suggests that this was a priestly garment. That the loincloth was not to be washed in water suggests moral filth to one commentator, while another sees it as symbolizing how the people were rough, unwashed, and without merit when they first cleaved to the LORD.

Next the LORD has Jeremiah prophesy of drunkenness for all the inhabitants of the land. He continues to prophesy of coming exile and of how the people will be scattered.

Verse 16 is a little challenging. “Give glory to the LORD your God before he brings darkness, and before your feet stumble on the mountains at twilight; while you look for light, he turns it into gloom and makes it deep darkness.” Part of my being hears the call to repentance from the Holy Spirit and sings; however, another part of me is querulous and sees God as being capricious and needing us to praise Him or else.

That argumentative part of me stems from the original sin of wanting to be gods and not wanting to praise the One who rightly deserves praise. It’s also challenging for us to understand that when we praise God we are benefiting ourselves; God does not need our praise. We, on the other hand, do need to praise God because when we praise Him it puts us in a position to be able to receive the things that we truly need from God.

In Jeremiah 14, we learn of how Judah is experiencing a great and terrible drought. Yet because there is no rain, the people are finally turning back to the LORD and recognizing that they have sinned against Him. The people call to God and say in verse 9, “Do not forsake us!” Yet God’s response is that this people love to wander and therefore God is punishing them for this iniquity. Again, God instructs Jeremiah not to pray for the people’s welfare (v. 11).

Jeremiah prays to God about prophets who are telling the people that there will be no exile — no sword, no famine, only peace. The LORD tells Jeremiah that these people are prophesying lies in His name; He did not send them and they will perish by the very sword and famine they claim will not come. “For I will pour out their wickedness upon them,” says verse 16. The LORD gives Jeremiah a prophecy to tell the people — a vision of those killed by sword and famine.

The prophecy continues to describe how the people will be confused. They do not understand why God has struck them down. They acknowledge their wickedness and the sins of their ancestors as they plead for rain — the idols cannot bring rain, only God can do that.

In Jeremiah 14 we see what happens when God allows the people to be afflicted. Because there is no rain, the people remember the LORD and start asking why God is doing what He is doing. They want God to remember the covenant, even though they had not. However, when they acknowledge their guilt, it still is as a means to an end — they want the rain. And we see a microcosm of the cycle of sin, punishment, and repentance. Will it be enough to turn the people fully back to the LORD? Of course history says no, it was not enough. But I think we could have deduced that from their desire for rain. God is still but a means to an end for the people of Judah.

In Luke chapter 21, as the gospel focuses on Jesus’ final week in Jerusalem, there is naturally a fair amount of teaching about what will come after. Jesus warns of false prophets, telling us in verse 8, “Beware that you are not led astray.” He speaks of wars and insurrections in verse 9, but tells us that “the end will not follow immediately.” He speaks of clashes between nations, dreadful natural disasters, and other signs and portents. He foretells persecution: disciples being brought before councils, governments, and rulers. But this will bring about a good thing — as Jesus tells us in verse 16, “This will give you an opportunity to testify.”

Jesus even talks about betrayal by one’s nearest and dearest and how some will be put to death. But he says in verse 19, “By your endurance you will gain your souls.” Finally, Jesus speaks of worldwide distress because of how the “powers of the heavens will be shaken (v. 26)” — and then the Son of Man will return in glory. Jesus advises us in verse 28, “When these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

Jesus’ final comment on end times is to beware that our hearts are “not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life (v. 34).” I understand how the worries of this life might weigh one down. However, it seems odd that Jesus is counseling his disciples against dissipation and drunkenness. When people drink to excess, it is either occasional — a celebration — or habitual, from disease or despair. Certainly believers and non-believers alike struggle with alcoholism, but this is a problem at an individual level, not a problem for the entire group. So why does Jesus warn all believers against dissipation and drunkenness? I can only think that it has to do with the context of the end times — when the earth is in such distress, when nations are in confusion, when the very heavens are falling apart — people will be more apt to drink and drink to excess as a means of coping with all the chaos. As Jesus describes these end times, it seems that hope will be in very short supply. And believers need to guard against the loss of hope, and against the fear and confusion of these times — clearly, the end times will drive many to drink (or drugs or other intoxicants). And that is why Jesus warns us all to beware of dissipation and drunkenness.

The inscription for Psalm 92 tells us that it is “A Song for the Sabbath Day.” And so this song is one of thanksgiving and praise. Verse 4 is interesting. On the very day that mankind rests from work, the psalmist uses it as an opportunity to praise God for the work that He has done: for God’s creation and God’s plans are the source of joy.

I love how the psalm ends by meditating on how the righteous flourish when planted in God’s garden. Verse 14 declares, “In old age they still produce fruit; they are always green and full of sap.” This verse becomes more encouraging the older I get! But the point of this fruitfulness is to display God’s glory: “showing that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.”

Father God, I’m so grateful that you are my rock. You are righteous and just, even when you refine us and allow us to go through difficult times. Thank you that we can count on you to be fruitful even in old age. Help us to be watchful and ready for when Christ returns. May we not be dismayed or discouraged or have our hearts weighed down with drunkenness or the worries of life on earth. May we always sing your praises and may we be a witness to your glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen.