April 22 ▪ Day 112

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 16:1
Joel 1–3
Acts 9
Psalms 112

Verse Focus (Proverbs 16:1)

To humans belong the plans of the heart,
     but from the LORD comes the proper answer of the tongue.

Meditation

Happy Earth Day! 🙂

Today’s proverb seems a little more opaque to me. I wasn’t entirely sure I understood what it was saying, so I looked it up in a variety of translations. For Proverbs 16:1, the NIV says, “To humans belong the plans of the heart, but from the LORD comes the proper answer of the tongue.” The NRSV says, “The plans of the mind belong to mortals, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD.” Most translations were variations of these two examples, but I had to laugh at The Message’s paraphrase: “Mortals make elaborate plans, but GOD has the last word.” I also liked the perspective of the Complete Jewish Bible (CJB): “A person is responsible to prepare his heart, but how the tongue speaks is from ADONAI.”

The way the CJB translates the Hebrew here is closest to what most commentators have to say on this verse. Barnes’ Notes on the Bible says, “Thoughts come and go, as it were, spontaneously; but true, well ordered speech is the gift of God.” The Pulpit Commentary agrees, saying, “Men make plans, arrange speeches, muster arguments, in the mind; but to put these into proper, persuasive words is a gift of God.” Yet another commentary agrees with this, saying that the “satisfying reply” is from God — an experience to which every preacher, public speaker, and author can attest.

Several commentators also mentioned instances where God overruled the speaker so that His words would come out. They cite Balaam in the Old Testament, who was hired to curse the Israelites; instead, Balaam blessed the Israelites three times (Numbers 23). Another mentions the high priest Caiaphas, who unwittingly prophesies concerning Christ’s death that it is better for one man to die for the people (John 11:49-51). The Pulpit Commentary adds a twist on this with the reminder that “Christ enjoined his disciples to trust to momentary inspiration in their apologies or defences before unbelievers (Matthew 10:19).”

Although most seem to interpret that the “reply of the tongue” is coming from the mouth of the same person who is devising the thoughts, it is equally true that this reply from God may be coming to you from another person’s speech. College applications, job applications — or any number of hopes and possibilities for our lives — we plan, but the door opens or closes at God’s command.

Father God, thank you for the gift of the tongue and the ability you give us to give an apt reply. Thank you also for the power of language — continue to teach us to use it wisely. Most of all, Father, I’m grateful that you order events to give us the replies we need to end up where we should go. Thank you for your sovereignty and your wisdom. I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Today we read the book of Joel. Joel is a minor prophet with some major influences — it is from this book we get the promise that one day the Holy Spirit will be given to all people. However, since the prophet does not reference any particular king, no one really knows exactly when Joel lived or when this book was written. The prevailing theory is that Joel wrote circa 835 BC, during the early years of King Joash of Judah. Because of warring factions, Joash became king as a child of only seven years; he had been raised by the high priest Jehoiada, and was heavily influenced by the priests in the first couple of decades of his reign. Since Joel doesn’t mention a king, scholars think that this time when the king wasn’t really predominant is most likely when Joel prophesied. There are other theories about the dating of this book, of course — but since there is also no mention of the Assyrians or Babylonians, this again (along with various linguistic features) also points to an earlier rather than a later time period.

Even though we don’t know exactly when this book was written, its message is timeless. Joel speaks of a plague of locusts that devastates the entire country — something not seen or heard about in generations. They strip the land bare; famine ensues. Even the daily offerings in the temple have been stopped for lack of grain (v. 13). The prophet calls the people to repent. In one of the more famous passages of this book, Joel cries out in chapter 2, verse 13:

Rend your heart
     and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God,
     for he is gracious and compassionate,
     slow to anger and abounding in love,
     and he relents from sending calamity.

The prophet calls for a solemn fast, exhorting the people to gather together to mourn and pray. And the LORD is gracious to them. In the second half of the book, the LORD promises to send them provisions and to “remove the northern army (v. 20).” The people rejoice at God’s faithfulness — the land revives and becomes fruitful; the LORD refreshes the people with grain, new wine, and oil. In another iconic verse, the LORD promises in chapter 2, verse 25, “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten.”

Towards the end of chapter 2 comes the well-known promise of the Holy Spirit:

²⁸And it shall come to pass afterward,
     that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh;
     and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
     your old men shall dream dreams,
     your young men shall see visions:
²⁹and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids
     in those days will I pour out my Spirit.

As the verses continue, it begins to sound more and more apocalyptic. There will be signs and wonders, the sun will darken and the moon will turn to blood — the day of the LORD comes. Chapter 3 speaks of God’s judgment against the nations, particularly those nations that have injured Israel. The offending nations become desolate, but Judah and Jerusalem shall prevail — for the LORD dwells in Zion.

Although the book of Joel references a specific calamity in the history of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah (an unusual plague of locusts that came from the north, rather than from the south, where locusts usually came from), it is also holds end-times prophecy. There are several mentions of the day of the LORD — “a day of darkness and gloom (1:2).” As verse 2:11 says, “Truly the day of the LORD is great; terrible indeed — who can endure it?” The day of the LORD brings judgment on Israel and Judah as well as on the other nations. Every calamity that Israel has endured — the fall of the kingdom of Israel in 722 BC, the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC — has been one rendition of the day of the LORD. In these later examples of the day of the LORD, surely the faithful would read God’s promise to “remove the northern army” as judgment against the Assyrians and later the Babylonians.

Indeed, there may be future days of the LORD to come, possibly even before Christ returns. But there is, of course, the final day of the LORD coming at the end of time. This book speaks to those future events.

Joel also speaks to any need to repent and return to God, whether your calamity is personal or whether it is on a national or international scale. For those who do “rend their hearts,” God is gracious and compassionate. Surely every believer who has undergone trial and suffering has also clung to God’s promise to restore the years the locust has eaten! It is a promise dear to my heart as well.

Acts chapter 9 gives us the conversion of Saul — the dramatic encounter on the road to Damascus followed by days of blindness, being healed by Ananias, and then Saul’s remarkable change into one who now persuades others of the truth of Jesus Christ. We also read of some of Peter’s more miraculous healings — of Aeneas, the paralyzed man, and of Tabitha (also known as Dorcas), raised from the dead.

Little things strike me in today’s reading. When Jesus speaks to Saul on the road, he identifies himself by saying, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting (v. 5).” It’s interesting that Jesus claims the persecution for himself. He doesn’t say, “You are persecuting my church.” Nor does he say, “You persecute my followers.” No, the persecution is of Christ himself. There is no distinction between the body of Christ and Christ himself — injuring one is injuring the other.

I note that Saul was blind for three days. Such an important length of time! Three days that Jonah was in the belly of the whale. Three days that Christ was in the belly of the earth. Three days of blindness. When Ananias is told to go heal Saul, he is understandably reluctant — this is a man who has been the cause of “much evil (v. 13).” Of course, God’s reply is powerful: Saul is His chosen instrument. “I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name,” the LORD tells Ananias in verse 16.

When Ananias does heal Saul’s vision, it tells us in verse 17 that Ananias was also sent to ensure that Saul would be “filled with the Holy Spirit.” So his spiritual blindness is also healed. Saul now has access to special wisdom and revelation through the Holy Spirit. And the change is astonishing, as he is now able to start “proving (v. 22),” from the Scriptures, that Jesus is the Messiah.

I was also startled by something in verse 25. Saul has been preaching Christ in Damascus, but some of the Jews plot to kill him. Verse 25 tells us that “his disciples” lower him in a basket through a hole in the city wall. What? His disciples? Saul had disciples? Well, yes, apparently so. He had grown in power and influence and had started teaching and mentoring other believers in Damascus.

The fact that Saul had disciples seems significant to me. There is no gap between Saul’s conversion and his obedience to the great commission to go make disciples. For us, there is often a gap — and quite a large one. Perhaps we think that new believers need a certain amount of time to be taught, to learn the truth of the Scriptures, to learn what it means to be a disciple before they go out and make disciples. And Saul certainly already had a tremendous advantage in that he know the Scriptures well — although, of course, he needed the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit in order to fully understand the Scriptures. But regardless of the training Paul had already received, today’s story makes me wonder if we haven’t got it all wrong. Discipleship and evangelism are not for “advanced” Christians; they are integral to conversion itself.

Like Psalm 111, Psalm 112 is an acrostic poem. Except for the opening cry of Hallelujah, each line of the poem starts with a consecutive letter in the Hebrew alphabet. This kind of mnemonic device makes the poem easier to memorize. As a teaching aid, it helps codify information on a particular topic — in this case, the poem teaches the traits of the righteous person.

As with yesterday’s poem, I find that different verses stand out to me on different readings of the poem. Verse 5 tells us, “Good will come to the one who lends generously and conducts his business fairly.” Verse 9 agrees with this sentiment, telling us that the righteous person “distributes freely to the poor.” Twice, however, verse 7 has made an impact. “He will not fear bad news,” says verse 7, “his heart is confident, trusting in the LORD.”

Father God, thank you that when we trust in you we do not need to fear bad news. You bless us and guide us always. Thank you for the promise in Joel to pour out your Holy Spirit on all peoples. I pray for your Holy Spirit to fill us, to teach us what we need to know, and to open our eyes to truth. In Jesus’ name, Amen.