July 26 ▪ Day 207

Scripture Readings

Proverbs 20:4
Deuteronomy 1–2
Matthew 26
Psalms 23

Verse Focus (Proverbs 20:4)

Sluggards do not plow in season;
     so at harvest time they look but find nothing.

Meditation

Proverbs 20:4 says, in the NIV, “Sluggards do not plow in season; so at harvest time they look but find nothing.” I like this translation, even though it is not a strictly literal translation of the Hebrew. The ESV, which follows the Hebrew more closely, says, “The sluggard does not plow in the autumn; he will seek at harvest and have nothing.” Being an urban dweller, I found the reference to plowing in the autumn confusing. So I did a little investigating. Apparently, plowing can be done at any time between harvesting and planting, but the best time is immediately after the harvest. So “autumn” plowing would be after the autumn harvest, and that would be the optimal time to plow. “In season” may not be literal to what the Hebrew says, but it’s very good at expressing to those of us who do not have an agricultural background that the sluggard has not plowed at the best or proper time.

Just doing this little bit of research, however, gives me more perspective on the proverb. Harvest has already come and gone. So the sluggard got the harvest this year just fine, but apparently he doesn’t want to do any more work. He has crops that he can live off for the present, and he isn’t thinking about the future at all. Also, as it gets further into the autumn, the cold makes the sluggard not want to do the work that he should. So he puts off plowing, and this is apparently the pattern of his farming. He delays doing difficult things — so much so, that in the next season, he no longer has a harvest to look forward to.

Doing your work “in season” — there’s a lot of wisdom in that idea. And while I’m not a farmer, this is still something I struggle with every day. If I delay chores or put off doing things, it never works out well. But if I make the extra effort to ensure that I’m doing things “in season,” then I’m much happier overall.

Father God, help us not to be lazy, but let us do our work at the proper time. In today’s proverb, the sluggard apparently did some work, but not all that he was supposed to do. And that’s a dangerous point for us, as well. Help us to continue on, to do all the work that we should, day by day. By your grace, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Today we start reading Deuteronomy, the fifth and final book of the Torah, or Pentateuch. The book records Moses’ final address to the Israelites before his death and before they enter the Promised Land. It is the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month since they left Egypt. Moses is speaking to the new generation that grew up in the wilderness. Moses gives them a brief reminder of their history, he repeats the Ten Commandments, and he gives them the law. As the book ends, Moses will call on the Israelites to ratify this covenant with God. He will name Joshua as his successor, and then — after climbing a mountain to look out over the Promised Land — Moses will die.

The first two chapters of Deuteronomy give a brief history of their time in the wilderness. A generation earlier, when they had been at Mount Horeb (also known as Mount Sinai), God had told them it was time to enter the Promised Land. Deuteronomy gives us a slightly different version of the story about the spies they sent to explore the Promised Land. In Numbers 13, God told Moses to send 12 men to spy out the land. Here, in Deuteronomy 1, we learn that the people had suggested that they should send spies. Moses also thought it was a good idea, so he selected the 12 men to go. They brought back a report that it was a good land.

However, the people were reluctant to obey God’s command to enter the land. They started grumbling against God, saying that He wanted to destroy them. Admittedly, the spies had made their hearts fear with the reports of fortified cities and giant men (v. 28). But even when Moses encouraged them, reminding them of how God would fight for them and how He had carried them through the wilderness, they “did not believe the LORD your God (v. 32).”

The Israelites’ lack of faith and disobedience angered God, and He swore that none of that generation — except for Caleb and Joshua — would enter the Promised Land. He told them to turn back and journey in the direction of the Red Sea. But the Israelites attempted to go into the Promised Land anyway — they strapped on their weapons, and thought it would be “easy to go up into the hill country (v. 31).” God made it clear He would not be with them in this. And, of course, the Israelites were soundly defeated.

As Moses gives this brief history, it is clear that the fault lay with the people themselves. He doesn’t confuse things by discussing the role the spies played in stirring up the people; he merely speaks of the people grumbling against God, and of their lack of belief.

Deuteronomy 2 discusses their wandering in the wilderness for 38 years. But what strikes me about this chapter is how many times God tells them not to fight because He has promised this particular land to someone else. In verse 5, God says, “Do not contend with them… because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.” In verse 9, the LORD says, “Do not harass Moab or contend with them in battle, for I will not give you any of their land for a possession.” In verse 19, He says, “When you approach the territory of the people of Ammon, do not harass them or contend with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Ammon.”

This is a strikingly different view of God and military success than for other peoples. Others believe that their god will give them success — but there are no limits on where they must go or what they must do. Whatever they desire, their god will give them success. But the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is different. He rules all the nations, and He sets limits. He tells the Israelites not to fight Esau, Moab, and Ammon. But He also tells them to fight the Amorites — and then He delivers King Sihon into their hands.

Verse 24 is when God tells the Israelites to fight against Sihon. “Behold, I have given into your hand Sihon the Amorite, king of Heshbon, and his land. Begin to take possession, and contend with him in battle.” What strikes me about this command is that it is very similar to what God says about fighting the people in the Promised Land. And yet the land that Sihon occupied was on the east side of the Jordan river. So it clearly was part of God’s plan that the Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh would stay on the east side of the Jordan. The LORD gave them the land for their possession even before they fought against the Amorites and defeated them.

Matthew 26 is a sobering picture of Jesus’ final days in Jerusalem. Jesus sends a message to the man in whose home they will celebrate the Passover meal. He says in verse 18, “My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.” The words My time is at hand keep echoing through my mind. Jesus was fully aware that this would be his last meal with the disciples. He knew what lay ahead. Crucifixion. Death. Resurrection. This was the time for which he had been born. This would be the culmination of his ministry and his life on earth.

My time is at hand. Perhaps you recall all the times in the gospel of John when it was not Jesus’ time (John 7:6, 7:8, 7:30, and 8:20); and the times when it was Jesus’ hour (John 13:1 and 17:1). But I’m puzzled why this is part of Jesus’ message to the owner of the house. Perhaps the words recall a conversation Jesus had had with the owner of the house. If it were someone like Nicodemus, it would make sense that Jesus would want him to know that his time was at hand. But regardless of what this message communicated to the owner of the house, it tells us that Jesus knew the significance of this particular Passover meal.

During that meal, Jesus took the bread and said, “Take, eat; this is my body (v. 26).” He also gave them the wine, and said in verses 27 and 28, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” It is somewhat curious that Jesus didn’t say that the lamb meat was his body. They were eating the Passover meal, which would include a lamb sacrificed at the temple. In the very first Passover, the blood had been put on their doorposts and lintels so that the angel of death would pass over their homes — but lambs sacrificed in the temple for later Passover celebrations would have had their blood poured on the altar. But Jesus uses the bread as a symbol for his body — and bread, of course, symbolizes so many different things. Fellowship. Hospitality. Sustenance. Manna. Since they were drinking wine, nobody seems to have blinked at the idea of the wine being Jesus’ blood — even though, of course, it was forbidden for Jews to eat or drink blood. If you consider that the Passover blood went onto the altar, it makes our bodies even more the temple of God when we drink communion.

Jesus’ blood is poured out for the forgiveness of sins. We call him our Passover Lamb, but, of course, in many ways he is the sin offering for us. His blood makes atonement for our sins. This is the new covenant God makes with us.

Reading of Jesus’ suffering in Matthew 26 saddens me. But I am so very grateful that Jesus was willing to suffer betrayal, desertion, humiliation, and death on the cross in order to save me.

Psalm 23 begins by telling us that the LORD shepherds us. He watches over us, He cares for us. He guides us. He takes care of all our needs. He is not just the Good Shepherd, though — He is my shepherd. God’s relationship with us is intimate and personal.

Those who have killed in battle or who have experienced atrocities in war will speak of losing parts of their souls. Indeed, whenever we go through difficult or harrowing experiences, we speak of losing a part of our selves, a part of our humanity — a part of our very souls. Yet this psalm says that God restores my soul. God gave us souls to begin with. And He is able to restore those parts of us that seem lost or destroyed. He re-creates us. He renews us. He refreshes us.

Verse 4 speaks of God’s rod and staff. For shepherds, these are tools both of guidance and discipline. And we should expect both guidance and discipline from God. Verse 5 says that God sets a table for us “in the presence of my enemies.” God is with us even in the midst of our trials. He does not make us wait until victory comes — He is there in the trenches with us. Protecting us, guiding us, helping us. Feeding us.

Goodness and mercy are both part of God’s very character. So it’s not surprising to learn that goodness and mercy will follow us all our lives. God will be with us always. We can count on Him. Hallelujah!

Thank you, Father God, for how you shepherd us. Thank you for your love. Thank you for restoring our souls. Thank you for healing us from terrible hurts. Thank you for refreshing us when we are weary. Thank you that you loved us so much you sent Jesus to die for us. Thank you for your compassion. And thank you for the plans you have made and carried out through history and the plans that have yet to unfold. We trust in you. In Jesus’ name, Amen.