June 7 ▪ Day 158

Scripture Readings

Psalms 16:5–6
Job 11–12
John 21
Proverbs 8

Verse Focus (Psalms 16:5–6)

⁵ LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
     you make my lot secure.
⁶The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
     surely I have a delightful inheritance.

Meditation

We are used to thinking of things like the Bible and dictionaries as unchanging. But dictionaries add words over time. And as language expands, and scholarship develops, Bible translations also alter to express the new understanding. Psalms 16:5-6 have long been favorite verses of mine. In the NIV of 1984, the verses read, “LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.” Today, verse 5 is translated a bit differently. In 2021, the NIV for verse 5 reads, “LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure.” Before, God assigned my portion; now, He is my portion. According to how the NIV translates the verse, God is my only inheritance. But I like how the ESV puts the verse: “The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup.” In other words, I have chosen God as my inheritance.

When I was younger I had a more black-and-white view of truth. I thought that one version must be accurate, and other versions must be incorrect. But now I understand that having multiple, slightly varying meanings is part of how the Scripture is living and active. It’s not that one is true and the rest are wrong, but all are true. Sometimes the variations come because Hebrew and English are different languages; words may not have exactly the same range of meaning from one language to another. But sometimes the variations come because God’s Spirit moves someone to understand the verse in a slightly different way, which affects how the verse get translated. I believe God blesses and uses all the different variations; however, He may speak to you more clearly and consistently through one particular translation (although which translation that is will likely vary from person to person).

My heart still loves the 1984 version of the NIV for Psalms 16:5. “LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup; you have made my lot secure.” I like the assurance that God has directed what is happening in my life; He controls what will happen. He gives me security. And, as verse 6 says, “The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.” But there is something compelling, too, in the 2021 version of verse 5: God is my portion and my cup, my only inheritance. The inheritance I have chosen, as the ESV understands the Hebrew. That’s pretty amazing, too. Hallelujah!

Father God, I thank you that you are our portion through Jesus Christ. I thank you for such a delightful inheritance. Thank you for saving me; thank you for enabling me to choose you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

In Job chapter 11, Job’s third friend, Zophar the Naamathite, speaks. Job has just finished giving an impassioned plea for God to look away from him so that he might have some peace before he dies. But Zophar has no sympathy for Job; indeed, he calls Job a babbler and a mocker. Zophar understands that Job is saying he is clean and pure in God’s sight, so Zophar wishes that God would speak just to set Job straight! He tells Job that God has actually treated him better than he deserves (v. 6).

Zophar goes on to speak of God’s depths — He is unmeasurable, vastly superior. God knows when people are worthless deceivers; He takes note of iniquity. But Zophar assures Job that if he were to set aside iniquity and let no injustice dwell in his tents, then he could lift his face to God without fear. Only the wicked have no hope.

Zophar has a very narrow view of good and evil. Those who suffer do so because God is punishing their iniquity; but God is merciful still. He punishes humans less than their iniquity deserves. No one should fear God if their heart is pure. God blesses those who seek righteousness; He only lets bad things happen to evildoers. Zophar cannot conceive of the possibility that Job might actually be innocent of wrongdoing.

Despite the narrowness of Zophar’s vision, his words hold a lot of truth. But he is only speaking truth for the majority of the world — it’s not truth in Job’s case.

In chapter 12, Job starts to get a bit snippy as he responds to Zophar. He mocks Zophar’s wisdom. “Who does not know all these things?” Job asks in verse 3.

Job recognizes that he is a laughingstock to his friends. He diagnoses his friends’ problem in verse 5, saying, “The one who is at ease holds calamity in contempt and thinks it is prepared for those whose feet are slipping.” But Job goes on to say that God is the one who authors calamity. “In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind,” Job says in verse 10. What God tears down; none can rebuild. He raises nations up and then he destroys them. He leads the wise away as captives; he pours contempt on nobles. As Job says in verse 16, “The deceived and the deceiver are his.” God is the one who has strength and wisdom and power. Job implies that when God destroys, the reason may have nothing to do with that person’s morality.

John 21, the last chapter of the gospel of John, records “the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead (v. 14).” Even without delving into Jewish mysticism about numbers, we know that “three” is significant. This is a critical appearance — and one we should pay attention to.

As the chapter begins, the disciples are in Galilee. Simon Peter decides that he is going to go fishing. Thomas, Nathanael, James, John, and two other disciples decide to go with him. Now this is a familiar story to us. We know how Jesus meets them at daybreak and fixes breakfast for them; how Jesus holds an important conversation with Peter afterward. But did you ever stop to wonder why they were fishing in the first place? After all, this is happening after the resurrection.

We assume that the first century believers knew exactly what they were supposed to do. They had the advantage of living and working with Jesus. They followed him for three years. And now, they learn that the grave did not hold Jesus. He is alive! He lives. And in Jesus’ first appearance in John 20:21 he told them, “As the Father has sent me, I also send you.” So they had already been commissioned. So why are they fishing?

The obvious answer is because they didn’t know what they were supposed to do. Jesus was alive, but he seemed to come and go at will. They couldn’t follow him like they had previously. And in their confusion, they regressed to what was familiar. Peter had been a fisherman; he decided to go fishing again.

But, of course, God arranged it so that they fished all night without catching anything. If anyone was looking for signs, that was one right there! But then Jesus calls from the shore and tells them to cast the net on the other side of the boat. They do, and they get a miraculously large catch of fish. When John recognizes that it is Jesus on the shore, Peter jumps into the water to swim to shore in advance of the boating party.

Jesus has already started the breakfast, but he asks for them to bring “some” of the fish they had caught. Of course, Peter, in his zeal, jumps up to haul all 153 fish in the net ashore. It amuses me, because it is so typical for Peter to overdo things like this.

After breakfast comes the pivotal conversation between Jesus and Peter. Three times, Jesus asks Peter if Peter loves him. Asking him this three times mirrors the three times that Peter denied knowing Jesus. Significantly, Jesus does not call him Peter — the Rock — in this conversation. He uses his birth name, Simon.

“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Jesus asks the first time in verse 15. Greek has several different verbs for love. Jesus asks if Simon loves him using the agape verb — ἀγάπη (agápē) — a selfless, unconditional type of love, such as love for God, nature, or strangers. Simon replies to Jesus, that, yes, he loves him — but Simon uses the philia verb — φιλία (philía) — which refers to brotherly love, friendship, and affection. “Feed my sheep,” Jesus tells Simon.

Jesus asks Simon a second time, again using the agape verb. “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” Simon replies again, again using the philia verb. “Tend my sheep,” Jesus tells him in verse 16.

Finally, the third time Jesus asks, he uses the philia verb himself. “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter is grieved at being asked three times. He replies, “Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you.” Simon continues to use the philia verb. And Jesus tells him again to feed his sheep. Of course, from our recent reading of Ezekiel, we know that “feed my sheep” means so much more than simply feeding them. It means to shepherd them, to protect them, to find the lost, to bind up those who are injured, and to heal the sick. It is to be a true leader.

Peter’s restoration ends in verse 19 when Jesus commands him for the second time, saying, “Follow me.” Simon had been a fisherman. He followed Jesus and became a fisher of men. But then Jesus died. He didn’t know quite what to do, so Peter tried to be a fisherman again. Jesus calls him a second time. Now Peter finally understands his commission: to be a fisher of men and to tend Jesus’ flock.

In Proverbs 8, we again meet the personification of Wisdom. The chapter begins by saying, “Does not wisdom call out? Does not understanding raise her voice?” By making this a question, we are invited to hear wisdom’s call for ourselves. The invitation to gain wisdom is offered to all. She sets herself way up high, at a crossroads, at the entrance, at the gate — public, visible places — where you cannot possibly miss her.

The Scripture tells us that “wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her (v. 11).” Even though we are told to choose wisdom above silver and gold, wisdom also promises that those who love her will obtain riches and prosperity, as well as fruit better than silver and gold.

We see Wisdom — Jesus — established “ages ago… before the beginning of the earth (v. 23).” Wisdom was God’s constant companion throughout creation, rejoicing in His works, and delighting in mankind.

The chapter ends with a promise and a warning: those who find wisdom find “life and… favor from the LORD (v. 35),” but those who fail to find wisdom will hurt themselves. “All who hate me love death,” says Wisdom in verse 36.

Father God, please help us to hear Wisdom’s call. Let us seek you and seek your paths. Help us to understand the things you want us to do. Like Peter, we too, can get confused and regress. Thank you that you seek us out and restore us by your grace. May we always follow Jesus. In his name, Amen.