April 19 ▪ Day 109

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 15:28
Jeremiah 47–48
Acts 6
Psalms 109

Verse Focus (Proverbs 15:28)

The heart of the righteous weighs its answers,
     but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.

Meditation

Proverbs 15:28 says, in the NIV, “The heart of the righteous weighs its answers, but the mouth of the wicked gushes evil.” In the NRSV, the verse says, “The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil.” As we have seen before, the Hebrew word being translated as “heart” or “mind” is leb. It can mean the heart, the mind, the inner person, or the will (or all of those combined).

I love the images we get in this proverb — balance and weights compared to an open spigot. But it’s more than an open-wide faucet. The Scripture says the mouth of the wicked is “gushing” or “pouring out” evil — it’s a torrent. A flooding river. You get the sense that there’s no stopping the outflow of wickedness.

We have a similar saying in English, although our saying doesn’t convey that same sense of overwhelming force. In common parlance, we might say that the wicked person “has no filters” on his mouth. We recognize the need to weigh and filter what we say, but some people have no self-control.

I also like the whole contrast between the thoughtfulness of the righteous and the unthinking responses of the wicked. The righteous pause, think before speaking, and consider their words. The unrighteous do none of that — they just blurt out whatever comes into their head.

Father God, please give us the grace to control our speech. May we not blurt out whatever we first think, but may we be thoughtful and considerate in our replies. May the words we use be uplifting and encouraging, and not words that tear others down. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Today’s reading in Jeremiah contains prophecies of judgment on two of Judah’s neighboring countries. We are not told when Jeremiah received these prophecies, so it could have been at almost any point in his nearly 40-year career.

Jeremiah 47 gives a judgment against Philistia. The prophet mentions in the first verse that he received this prophecy “before Pharaoh attacked Gaza.” However, in the prophecy, the threat comes from the north — not from the south, where Egypt is in relation to Philistia. This leads to a couple of different interpretations. As some understand it, Pharaoh attacks Gaza — but Jeremiah is telling them that the real threat will come from Babylon in the north. Others, however, interpret it that Egypt attacks Philistia during its conflicts with Assyria and Babylonia — they attack Gaza on their way home. Some think “before Pharaoh attacked Gaza” refers to Pharaoh Neco in 609 BC; others propose Pharaoh Hophra attacks Gaza after the Babylonians thwart their attempt to help Zedekiah in about 588 BC (although this second theory has no proof). Since the Babylonians did eventually invade and subdue the entire region, I believe that this is a warning from Jeremiah that — regardless of any recent threats from Egypt — it is the Babylonians who will decimate their nation.

Verses 6 and 7 are particularly haunting:

⁶Ah, sword of the Lord!
     How long until you are quiet?
Put yourself into your scabbard,
     rest and be still!
⁷How can it be quiet,
     when the Lord has given it an order?

In these verses we see the inevitability of the destruction decreed against the Philistines. But we also have a secondary meaning from the New Testament, where Scripture is likened to the sword of the LORD. In terms of Jeremiah’s prophecy, the Babylonians are God’s sword to execute judgment on the nation. But we will see another fulfillment of verses 6 and 7 as the sword of the LORD — the Word of God — will not be stopped until it accomplishes all that God desires.

Jeremiah 48 pronounces judgment on Moab “as the LORD has spoken (v. 8).” Because Moab ridiculed Israel when they went into captivity in 722 BC, Moab will also go into captivity and become a laughingstock to other nations (v. 26-27). Jeremiah speaks of Moab’s pride (v. 29). But Moab will be destroyed and the land will become desolate. The LORD declares in verse 38, “I have broken Moab like a vessel that no one wants.”

Verse 10 is particularly striking. “Accursed is the one who is slack in doing the work of the LORD; and accursed is the one who keeps back the sword from bloodshed.” While the second half of this verse refers particularly to the Babylonian invaders, the first half is a warning for all of us today. Accursed is the one who is slack in doing the work of the LORD.

As the chapter ends, the prophet cries woe to Moab — the people have perished, their sons and daughter are taken into captivity. And yet the judgment ends with God’s promise that He will “restore the fortunes of Moab in the latter days.”

In Acts 6, we see the early church establish its first deacons with prayer and the laying on of hands. It begins with a complaint — the Hellenistic Jews feel like their widows are being overlooked by the Hebraic Jews in the daily distribution of food to the needy. The apostles feel they must continue to devote themselves to prayer and to the preaching and teaching the Word; they propose that another group of disciples should be commissioned to oversee the food distribution. So seven men of good reputation who are “full of the Spirit and wisdom (v. 3)” are chosen. Stephen is one of the new deacons.

Now Stephen was “full of grace and power (v. 8)” and so he ended up performing a number of miracles. This brought some attention to him, as well as opposition from a group known as the Synagogue of the Freedmen (or Synagogue of the Libertines, as the KJV puts it). This group has not been fully identified and there are a few theories as to who they were. Most see them as former slaves of the Roman Empire, although the theories differ as to whether they are Jews or Jewish converts. Another possibility is that these “Libertines” were Jews from Libertum, a Jewish community in Africa. Even though we don’t know much about this particular group, we do know that they came in serious conflict with Stephen. They spread rumors about Stephen and stirred up the people in Jerusalem so that he ended up being brought before the Sanhedrin to answer charges of blasphemy.

As the chapter ends, we are told that as he stands before the council Stephen’s face appeared “like the face of an angel (v. 15).” From this statement we interpret that Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit and that his face shone with divine luminosity — much like how Moses’ face shone when he came down from the mountain after meeting with God or like how Jesus’ face “shone like the sun (Matthew 17:2)” during the Transfiguration.

In Psalm 109, David prays for vindication from his accusers. Just as the Libertines accused Stephen of wrongdoing, people are also speaking against David with “lying tongues (v. 2).” These people repay David’s good with evil.

Verses 6 through 15 compile one of the most comprehensive lists of curses I have ever read! In the Septuagint, these verses are being spoken by David’s accusers; however, in the Hebrew it is less clear — it very well could be David speaking these curses on the people who are falsely accusing him. In the next section, in verses 16 to 20, David prays that the man who loves cursing will become the subject of his own curses — as he says in verse 20, “May that be the reward of my accusers from the LORD, of those who speak evil against my life.”

There are a number of phrases that catch my eye today as I read this psalm. First, in verse 1, David calls the LORD, “O God of my praise.” In verse 22, as David describes his anguish, he says, “My heart is pierced within me.” In verse 27, David prays that his accusers would know that it is the LORD who has rescued him. David is confident that even though they curse him, God will bless him because He takes care of the needy (v. 28, v. 31).

Father God, thank you that you are able to rescue us from unjust attacks. Thank you that you do bless us. Even when we wander in the wilderness, it is a blessing as we eventually learn to cling more tightly to you. May your favor rest upon us, and may we extend that favor to the world around us. Help us to walk in your ways, and to do all the things that you have prepared for us to do. In Jesus’ name, Amen.