My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our next set of names (#4 through #22) are considered His compound names, which typically uses His primary name and attaches a specific descriptor to it. These are the names that originally got me chasing this topic, and now it has developed into a much bigger study than the original intent, but I digress, for I have already mentioned this!
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
7
EL OLAM (THE EVERLASTING GOD)
Genesis 21:33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the LORD, the Everlasting God.
Isaiah 40:28 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.
This name also uses the primary name El in conjunction with Olam, which, as translated speaks of God’s eternality, or His self existence, without beginning and without end.
As Isaiah speaks to the people of God, he asks rhetorical questions to those who have been under the tutelage of the law. Have you not known? Have you not heard?
My goodness, during the days of Isaiah, if any of creation knows of the God of Abraham, and the God of Moses, it must be the nation of Israel, for they have received the written word, describing the God they are in covenant with, the God who has no beginning and has no end.
It is so easy to condemn those in the past as having dropped the ball when it comes to understanding who God truly is, but I will confess that much of my day is sometimes consumed with the here and now and not the inevitable future where God resides.
I understand I can change nothing about the past, other than to seek forgiveness from those whom I may have hurt, but while in the present, after considering the eternality of God, I can change my future.
Let us reflect on the everlasting nature of our Living God, that He will ever be with us, will never “not be” and has provided His Son, separated from Him for a time, so we may continually abide with the everlasting One.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As we have been venturing through the Psalms, getting lost in the volume of the book, and the many nuggets of truth laid out for believers, I have come to realize (again and again) the beauty of the book, the depth of the book, the expanse of the human experience the book describes and allows us to join into.
We started with a quick dip into one of the most amazing chapters in the Word, one that has impacted my life in various stages of my Christian faith. It is a psalm that spoke to my wife and I as we were reading that night, but it began a journey through the psalms that has continued for over a year, and I suspect may continue to hold me.
With that said, I would like to offer those who read my bumbling efforts to understand one of the great books of the greatest book ever delivered to the human race, an ongoing summary of the findings and blessings I have enjoyed discovering.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ADAM
LORD OF CREATION
Genesis 1 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Colossians 1 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities–all things were created through him and for him.
Adam was provided the right to have dominion over all of creation. He was the master or lord over the creation provided to him from God.
Jesus is the Lord of lords, and as such is seen in Adam in the early pages of the Old Testament. He is the One who has dominion over all dominions, thrones, rulers and authorities!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our next set of names (#4 through #22) are considered His compound names, which typically uses His primary name and attaches a specific descriptor to it. These are the names that originally got me chasing this topic, and now it has developed into a much bigger study than the original intent, but I digress, for I have already mentioned this!
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
6
EL ELYON (THE MOST HIGH GOD)
Psalm 78:35 They remembered that God was their rock, the Most High God their redeemer.
This name of God speaks of His loftiness, His elevated status over all of creation. As the creator of all, He is above all of creation by the fact He is outside of the creation, eternal and everlasting. The term also is used in comparison to false idols and gods, in that they can not compete with the Most High.
The term speaks of one elevated, lofty or supreme. There is no other like the Most High God.
It may be that the Canaanites referred to their local gods as el (god), but for the Israeli’s as they understood the truths that had been delivered to them through the revelation of God, would refer to the true God as the most High God, in comparison with the idols in the land.
Our God is King of Kings and Lord of Lords and is the Most High God, reigning over all other gods, high above all other beings. He is the only One worthy of this name, and we are privileged to know Him through His death on the cross.
And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
We are visiting Psalm 53, which upon even a cursory review, sounds very familiar. So it should, for it is almost identical to Psalm 14, and with that similarity, I would like to consider the similarities and differences each Psalm is communicating.
The first item to review is the topic of a fool. Both psalms speak of the “fool” and in our modern way of understanding, to call someone a fool implies one who is deficient in understanding, judgemnt or sense. One who is easily tricked, or made to look foolish/stupid. This is not the primary meaning of when the Hebrew mind read this word.
The term found in both psalms is nāḇāl, and if you think back in David’s life, you will recognize this noun as a proper name of one of David’s enemies.
1 Samuel 25:3 Now the name of the man was Nabal, and the name of his wife Abigail. The woman was discerning and beautiful, but the man was harsh and badly behaved; he was a Calebite.
Note that the Scripture gives us a character description of the man named “fool” as being harsh and badly behaved. Nothing to do with intelligence directly, but a commentary on his lifestyle and behavior. To be a fool (nāḇāl) in the Hebrew mind was to reject God’s authority and influence, being controlled by the baser elements of the earthly life.
David is not making a commentary on the intelligence of the one rejecting God, but on the moral standing of that one. With that short introduction, lets consider our first verse.
Psalm 14
Psalm 53
1 – To the choirmaster. Of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good.
1 – To the choirmaster according to Mahalath. A Maskil of David. The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, doing abominable iniquity; there is none who does good.
Note that Psalm 53 has the additional instruction of “according to Mahalath. A Maskil of David”. Mahalath, from what I have found, refers to an instrument, possible a harp, along with the description of David the psalm as a maskil. This is another mysterious word, but many scholars lean to the idea that this word describes a contemplation or an instructive message.
For Psalm 53 to include this addition may emphasize the seriousness of the message, since Mahalath also may have a sense of mournfulness, sadness or entreaty.
The fool contemplates the existence of God in his heart. During this contemplation, he concludes that there is either no God, (as the translation records – “There is no God”) or that the fool rejects God’s authority over him, by saying “No God”. For you see, the Old Testament text does not include specific words that may be translated as “There is” – see snippet from the Blue Letter Bible to the right.
Either an athiest or a rebel – Which my friend do you consider to be the worst fate?
This is the beginning of becoming the fool, for without God, there are no lasting standards defining right from wrong, and therefore all things are relativistic, according to multiple authorities, with inevitable conflicts. Truly a foolish way to live!
Corrupt
David continues in the first verse of both Psalm 14 and 53 to describe the outcome of this contemplation. Both Psalms speaks of corruption, of a spoiling or rotting, even of a perverting of their very nature. Their very nature or character is being destroyed by this thinking, falling to baser and baser levels of existence. They are literally rotting on the inside. After David’s description of the fool’s character, he goes on to to describe the works produced by this fool.
Abominable Deeds/Iniquity
This is where we find a difference in the Psalms we are looking at. You see, Psalm 14 speaks of deeds, whereas Psalm 53 brings the darker concept of iniquity into the equation.
Psalm 14
Psalm 53
they do abominable deeds
doing abominable iniquity
Psalm 53 raises the stakes in speaking of abominable iniquity. Both describe the activities as abominable, that which is abhorrent, but with the added concept of iniquity, Psalm 53 becomes an even darker description of the fools works. Iniquity speaks of injustice, including violence, which if considered, will always become the end result of a life with no standards. This is the end result of saying “No God”
Uniform in not Doing Good
A final description within both Psalms speaks of this group of fool as being homogeneous, pure and without any deviation in their work of doing good. That is, no-one that contemplates the non existence of God, or that refuses to bow before Him, performs any good. To say that no one does good, for some, implies that the fool cannot even understand goodness or righteousness. Yet, let’s remember that David is speaking of actions when he speaks on no one doing good, based on the contemplation of the heart.
Yes, the heart, if hardened beyond reach, this condition sets the fools actions into inevitable evil and injustice. Yet, I am not convinced the contemplation of the heart is necessarily complete in any fool, for I too (as you may be) lived a fools life and contemplated a life of the rebel, saying no to God. In His mercy, He invited me into a living relationship with Him, and by His grace, He is pulling me out of a life of injustice and violence.
Are you contemplating saying no to God? My friend, consider you ways, for a life of rejecting God will lead to a life of injustice. A life of walking with Him will produce love and peace, both internally and as an outworking of the heart into the lives of others.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our next set of names (#4 through #22) are considered His compound names, which typically uses His primary name and attaches a specific descriptor to it. These are the names that originally got me chasing this topic, and now it has developed into a much bigger study than the original intent, but I digress, for I have already mentioned this!
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
5
EL SHADDAI (ALMIGHTY GOD)
Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,
We have considered Elohim in post #1 of this series, and I would like to consider the secondary term in this compound name, for I have discovered an aspect of “Shaddai” that I had never understood before.
The Hebrew transliteration of the term for Shaddai is šaday, and as I was “rootin’ about”, I clicked on the root word etymology of this term. Blue Letter Bible took me to H7703 – šāḏaḏ.
To be a root word means that all derivatives of the root finds some truth in the root word. Shaddai, as we are considering today, is rooted in the šāḏaḏ.
This is where I became somewhat shocked at what I found, for until this finding, I had always assumed Shaddai was simply referring to God (El) as being powerful, most powerful, all powerful or almighty. And I have no doubt of this fantastic truth.
When we explore the root word šāḏaḏ, it refers to one who spoils, wastes, assaults or deals violently. The term describes the apparent outcome of the power. An example of šāḏaḏ found in the Word, in relation to God’s power being exercised is Jeremiah 25:36
A voice–the cry of the shepherds, and the wail of the lords of the flock! For the LORD is laying waste šāḏaḏ their pasture.
Now before anyone starts calling me a heretic, I am not claiming that the blessed God, who is the Almighty, has evil intent or uses His great abilities simply for destruction! There is no way I believe that. Yet His power may bring about violent happenings, as Jeremiah notes in the verse above, and that which when the shepherds witnessed, brought about crying and wailing. For we must remember that the same God who is described as Almighty, is also described as all knowing, and full of wisdom. He exercises His power in perfect righteousness, without staining His character, though we often struggle with that!
We all will admit we want things to always be peachy keen and for every day to be full of sunshine. We know this is a pipe dream. Bad things happen, and yet our God is the Almighty. Though some of His acts may bring about destruction (from our point of view) faith rises above that and recognizes the God of the Bible as the One hanging on the cross, bearing the suffering we deserved, accepting the shame resulting from our sinful decisions.
He is the Almighty, yet He voluntarily hung on that instrument of death, “powerless” to free himself but for one reason. The power of love, greater than all His suffering and shame, shone forth on that ol’ rugged cross, when the Almighty became weak for our sake.
He is the Almighty God (El Shaddai), mighty in power and love to His creation. Praise His name today!
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ADAM
HIS WIFE
Genesis 2 22 And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23 Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”
Revelation 19 7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;
Revelation 21 2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
In placing Adam into a deep sleep, God took from Adam a rib to make his wife. Adam received a wife out of the experience of death, out of His very body.
How so much more did the Lord create a wife for the Son out of the death He experienced?
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our next set of names (#4 through #22) are considered Hs compound names, which typically use His primary name and attach a specific descriptor to it. These are the names that originally got me chasing this topic, and now it has developed into a much bigger study than the original intent, but I digress, for I have already mentioned this!
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
4
ADONAI JEHOVAH (LORD GOD)
Genesis 15:2 ESV – But Abram said, “O Lord GOD, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?”
Our first compound name is the combination of two primary names. As an aside, I am thankful that when Jehovah (or Jahweh) is found in the text, the translators provide a clue and capitalize all letters in the English translation. Such is the case in this instance.
He is the Lord (Adonai), One who has authority and power, in the ultimate sense, and GOD (Jehovah), the self existent One, dependent on no one.
In our text, Abraham has been provided a promise by God, but it hadn’t been realized yet. He had been promised a son but had remained childless, and time was running out! Yet in addressing God, Abraham combined two of His personal primary names to emphasize his trust in the Living One.
Abraham had used both these names in addressing the Father before, but not in the same manner as here. In this passage he combined them into one name, specifically emphasizing the power and independence of the Lord. In God’s independent power, He was able to provide “results” based only on His own good will and the requests of those who had his ear.
Abraham had entered into this understanding, and was speaking to God freely, concerning His promise of an heir. He is listening today.
Do you have a sense of his independence and power, that He is free (beholding to no one) and able (powerful) to perform that which is within His will for those who have His ear?
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
Psalm 52:8 But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. Psalm 52:9 I will thank you forever, because you have done it. I will wait for your name, for it is good, in the presence of the godly.
David has just described the doom of the mighty man, along with the reaction of the humble man to the “breaking” of the mighty man. We considered what it meant to be broken and what seeking refuge in his own destruction may be describing. (Who in their right mind would seek refuge in their own destruction).
David, in our portion this time, describes his own experience in relation to God. He is like a green olive tree, and when I hear the term olive tree I think of God’s covenant relationship with His people. See Jeremiah 11:16 for an example.
Jeremiah 11:16 – The LORD once called you ‘a green olive tree, beautiful with good fruit.’ But with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed.
Not only does the green olive tree remind me of the relationship God had with His nation Israel, it also reminds me of the new covenant we enjoy under the Lord’s authority today.
But beyond all that, I think of the wonderful oil that is produced from the fruit of this tree. The olive oil that is produced by the crushing of the olive fruit. A crushing of the fruit that hearkens to the crushing of the Savior, the crushing of His body to bring about the spiritual oil that anoints those who seek the Master. But we must not forget that it was a crushing that was required to produce this blessing, and as he hung on the cross, taking the punishment we – I – deserved, He was also undergoing a crushing that would produce the fruit of life to those who sought Him.
How often Jesus may have recounted the second portion of verse 8 while suffering.
I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever.
No one in the history of all of creation has experienced the depth of the truth of that verse but for him. At the very time of His suffering, He only had His trust in the steadfast love of God, in the faithfulness of His Father, even as He was abandoned for the first (and only) time of His existence.
Upon His resurrection, may I suggest that Jesus entered the truth of verse 9.
I will thank you forever, because you have done it.
Consider how Jesus is thanking His Father. God the Father rescued Him from death, for He could not behold it. Is it any less incumbent for us who know nothing of His depth of suffering to be any less thankful for His tremendous grace towards us?
Let us have a thankful spirit and give thanks unto the Lord for His mighty acts of rescue!
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our first three names are considered His primary names!
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
3
ADONAI (LORD)
Deut. 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.
In our last post, we spoke of the Tetragrammaton, in other word the 4 letters that we understand represents the name Jehovah, or Jahweh.
In this post we are going to consider the Hebrew word Adonai, as the third and last primary name of our God. Adonai is the Hebrew word for Lord, referring to someone who has power and authority.
As discussed in our first post, Adonai is also used to refer to earthly rulers frequently in the Word, but of course not in the absolute sense as when referring the our God. The Creator and Sustainer of all things is by His very nature the Lord (Adonai) and Master (Adonai) of all things.
We may fight this truth, deny this truth, ignore this truth, but until we submit to this truth, we will never find peace. And the truth of His lordship is not dependent on our opinion of this claim He makes. He is Lord whether we like it or not.
My advice you ask? Submit to the truth, as far as you understand it, that Jesus is Lord (Adonai) and that you want to be a disciple, a learner of what that means in every area of your life.
Peace will find you when you submit. And it is a glorious peace, for you see, He is Lord and He is good, all the time!
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As we have been venturing through the Psalms, getting lost in the volume of the book, and the many nuggets of truth laid out for believers, I have come to realize (again and again) the beauty of the book, the depth of the book, the expanse of the human experience the book describes and allows us to join into.
We started with a quick dip into one of the most amazing chapters in the Word, one that has impacted my life in various stages of my Christian faith. It is a psalm that spoke to my wife and I as we were reading that night, but it began a journey through the psalms that has continued for over a year, and I suspect may continue to hold me.
With that said, I would like to offer those who read my bumbling efforts to understand one of the great books of the greatest book ever delivered to the human race, an ongoing summary of the findings and blessings I have enjoyed discovering.
As you can tell from the expanding list of posts, the Psalms have got a hold on me!
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ADAM
DEEP SLEEP
Genesis 2 21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
Matthew 27 50 And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.
Adam’s “deep sleep” speaks of the Messiah’s death, of a death that was purposed for the creation of a partner, a new life out of the death.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our first three names are considered His primary names!
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
2
JEHOVAH (LORD)
Genesis 4:1 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the LORD.”
Exodus 3:14God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: r‘I am has sent me to you.’ ”
This name of God, from the Old Testament is of even greater mystery than our first name, Elohim which introduced the concept of multiple persons in the godhead. Jehovah, or as some scholars prefer Yahweh, is our feeble attempt to understand YHWH, the tetragrammatron, (meaning four letters). No vowels. Four consanants.
The problem with knowing the correct pronunciation of YHWH is that out of respect for the God of Israel, the Jews would not pronouce his name for fear of saying it wrong.
The “four letters” were God’s self revelatory illumination to Moses in Exodus 3:14, as to who was speaking to him. He is the self existant One, the only One who depends on no one else for anything. We are created, He is uncreated. We exist in Him, He is self existant. We are empty shells always needing needing needing. He is the self sufficient One.
Up until Genesis 4:1, Moses referred to God as “LORD God”, or the compound name Jehovah Elohim. Until this verse, all activities were describing Gods actions (creation, commanding, taking, causing, banishment, etc) as first person.
Genesis 4 begins referring to the Lord as Jehovah as the primary name, not a compound name. This verse speaks of Eve’s description of God, due to her giving birth to Cain.
For today, it may well be a good reminder that our God is the One who depends on no one out of necessity, He has no one to answer to, and He is the only One who is not created, but the One who is self existant. I expect that to dwell on this truth today will be a stabilizing influence in our lives, and will honor the One to whom honor is due.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
Psalm 52:5 But God will break you down forever; he will snatch and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah Psalm 52:6 The righteous shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying, Psalm 52:7 “See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and sought refuge in his own destruction!”
David just completed the introductory verses of Ps 52, describing the boasting of the mighty man, referring to Doeg the Edomite, as he ratted on David to Saul.
We noticed in our last study that Doeg and David had some similarities, in that they were both men associated with a deceitful tongue. Remember that David was lying to Ahimelech when he spoke of his circumstances. Granted we may readily admit that Doeg was a man who sought to deceive, destroy and devour, whereas David fell into deception at a weak point in his life. All that may be true, but as we spoke last time, David will speak of the outcome of a deceitful, destructive devouring tongue, even though David fell into that very condition for a short time. Yet, David did not shy away from the holiness and righteousness of God, even if it condemned him. That, in my mind, is a wonderful testimony of the truth and inspiration of the Word. Sin isn’t covered up, even by the author who performed a sin.
Nevertheless, our passage today speaks of God’s judgement on the mighty man who devours, destroys and deceives, and the reaction of the righteous when the mighty man is broken.
Verse 5 begins with the statement that God will break the mighty man down forever. Reading it for the first time, I assumed David was speaking of Doeg’s destruction, his death and eternal judgement. Even as I say that, I am not sure that is what David intended me to understand, for as we read the following verse, David speaks of the mighty man torn from his home (tent) and uprooted from the land of the living. Yes, seeing land of the living may refer to the death of the mighty man. That may be the intent of David’s message.
But, consider what it means to be broken. God will break the mighty man down forever. May this expression be synonymous to a humbling of the mighty man? God is able to humble the mighty man, we know that. And I think you may agree with me that being taken into captivity (or at least from his home and land) is a most humbling event.
Still though Carl, when David refers to the land of the living, he must be speaking of Doegs death. Well might that be, but consider that the land of the living may also reference a land full of vibrant life, much vegetation, wildlife, plenty of water and resources for a population. The land of the living may be our present condition, pre-death.
Consider Psalm 27:13
I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living!
This makes some sense to this feeble mind, even as David continues in verse 6, stating that the righteous will see and fear the outcome of the mighty man. And laugh at him!
If David is describing what we consider to be eternal conscious torment, how would laughing be appropriate for the righteous man? I am not convinced that David, or any OT prophet had the understanding of the afterlife – especially for the unrighteous – that we say we have today!
David finished this three verse middle portion of Psalm 52 with a statement from the righteous man’s lips, speaking of the mighty man’s own destruction, how the life of the mighty man showed that he was in reality seeking refuge in his own destruction!
What a difficult truth to grapple with! To seek refuge in our own destruction. What is it for us to seek our own hurt, our own pain, to avoid life and turn from it? I believe if my reader has walked with the Lord for any period of time, they will admit to the pull of the old man, dragging us away from life, away from real blessing, away from the fountainhead of all goodness.
He rescues us from the guilt of sin in our initial salvation, but our walk with Him is our rescue from a life of sin, a life of rebellion, a life of seeking death. Sanctification during our time on earth is the battle to say no to seeking our own hurt, and to pursue the blessing of knowing the One True God.
Let us admit that our daily lives are not simply a time for us to wait for the end to be delivered to heaven, but that even today, He is actively working in us to do His good will, to conform us to His dear Son, to imitate God, walking in the way of love.
My friends, this condition is somewhat common amongst both the mighty and the humble. The difference is that only the humble understand how treacherous and strong the old man is, for the mighty man never challenges the old man, but simply follows his whims.
Follow after Him and say no to your old man. It is the path He walked.
My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
Our first three names are considered His primary names.
The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
May the Name of the Lord be praised, and by thinking on His name, may you have a blessed day.
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ELOHIM (GOD)
Genesis 2:3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.
The root word “El” of Elohim denotes strength, and reflects on the creative power of our God.
Elohim occurs over 2,500 times in the Old Testament, and is the Hebrew word meaning “mighty ones” or “gods” Yes – multiple gods! You see, when the Hebrews wanted to indicate a plural form of a word, they would add “him” to the end of the root word. So Elohim basicically means – “god who is more than one”.
Even in the earliest revelation of the Word, God introduced the seed thought of the trinity, at least introducing the multiplicity of persons in the God-head. Much revelation was to come, but God did not shy away from providing a mysterious truth from the start.
It may also surprise some of my readers to realize that elohim sometimes refers to false gods, sometimes to angels, and sometimes to human beings. This should not become a point of confusion, for the name is generic enough to be applied somewhat liberally, and our God will refine our understanding of His person through later and greater revelation.
The root term “El” is also used in what we will describe as compound names later in our study.
For today, let us consider that our God is a mighty God, a God who is mysterious and will not shy away from the truth. He seeks to bring us to higher and higher understandings of His person and character, and this first of His primary names certainly challenges us.
He is the mighty One, the One who created all things “ex nihilo”, out of nothing.
I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ADAM
HIS IMPACT
Genesis 3 17 And to Adam he said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”
Romans 5 12 Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned–
Adam’s decision to eat of the fruit brought about an escalating impact upon every descendant of his. The impact of his decision to eat of the fruit is still with us, evident in every child born, every death in nature, every argument and fight we witness or take part in! Jesus’ impact is also with us every day, evident in the new life He provides to those who seek Him, the peacemakers and humble servants He has raised up, those believers who are walking with Him. His impact will be of greater impact than Adam’s for He is the Lord of All.
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
As we come to a close of “Old Testament Messianic Prophecies”, I would like to offer my readers a series of posts focused on how the Bible describes the True and Living God. My hope is that this series will offer my readers a chance to consider the names, characteristics and descriptions of our God in the Word.
I do not claim to have found every possible name, combination of names, description, or characteristic of the Lord in this series. Having said this, I have found many more than I initially thought possible. The Word is truly rich with descriptions of the Living God, and this effort of searching in the Word was quite illuminating. He truly is the ultimate subject of the Word, and His revelation of self-descriptions, or the accolades offered Him by His priests, prophets, kings apostles and faithful truly was a blessing.
I will present the names in a very similar fashion as the Old Testament Prophecies series, one name/description/characteristic per post, for an opportunity for my readers to meditate on during the day.
Of course I would love to hear of your favorite name, characteristic or description of the Living God. Please leave me a comment, and I will include it in the list!
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Name/Description/Characteristic
Bible Verse(s)
Commentary
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day. Psalm 52:2 Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit. Psalm 52:3 You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right. Selah Psalm 52:4 You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.
The background to this story is found in1 Samuel 21:1-2, where David is fleeing Saul. Jonathon had just challenged his father regarding David and realized Saul’s desire to kill David. Jonathon, a faithful friend, informed David and he took to running. His suspicions of Saul’s murderous intent had been verified, and now David, who once was celebrated in Israel, is now an enemy of the state!
Ahimilech
Twelve miles from Jerusalem was the priestly city of Nob, where many priests lived. One of those priests was Ahimelech, a descendant of Eli the High Priest. It appears the news feed of Saul’s intent hadn’t been updated when David approaches Ahimelech, and surely the priest assumed David was in good graces with the King. After all, David was the son in law to the King!
First thing out of Ahimelech’s mouth was David’s condition – that is, What da heck are you alone for? His general demeanor was that of fear, for the passage speaks of Ahimelech trembling. Something wasn’t right!
David used this situation to spin a yarn (tell a lie). The secrecy of the throne was a useful tool to take advantage of, and David used it to settle Ahimelech’s concern. I’m on a secret mission, with men that I need to meet up with. Don’t say anything Ahimelech. Very top secret. By the way, do you have any food?
Ahimelech eventually provides David (and his non-existent men) bread to eat. Notice that David has misled Ahimelech as to his reason for being alone, and the reason was his need of bread. There were no men that he was joining with – He was on the run all alone! David then requests a weapon, and eventually receives the sword of Goliath.
Doeg
All of this discussion happens in front of Doeg the Edomite. The name Doeg actually is the Hebrew term for “fearful”, and may give us a look into his inner demons. He was an anxious man, that was controlled by suspicions and fear. We shall see it was the wrong type of fear to be controlled by.
Doeg was a man in charge of Saul’s herdsmen, a chief of the herdsmen, and he happened to be at Nob “detained before the Lord”. An Edomite detained before the Lord? He wasn’t of the chosen people, and as we will see in the Psalm, he was not a man seeking after God’s heart. Many think he was simply at the tabernacle to fulfil some ceremonial requirement to keep his position under Saul. No matter why he was there, he heard David and Ahimelech, saw the food and weapon transfer and couldn’t wait to get back to Saul. What great information to share with the King. How advantageous to be at the right place and at the right time! How providential!
David
With that background, let’s consider Davids opening to this psalm
Psalm 52:1 To the choirmaster. A Maskil of David, when Doeg, the Edomite, came and told Saul, “David has come to the house of Ahimelech.”
Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day.
David is referring to Doeg when he speaks of the “mighty man” in this opening verse and describes him as one who boast’s of evil. He sets the tone of Doegs character by associating him with evil.
Let’s stand back here for a moment.
Given that David is on the run, and Doeg is an employee of Saul, is it not Doeg’s responsibility to report back to the King? Is this not the right thing for Doeg to do? King Saul is the God appointed leader of the nation of Israel. Although this will provide an opportunity for Doeg to advance in Saul’s eyes, it is also an opportunity provided to Doeg, seemingly providentially. Surely this is the will of God for Doeg to provide security to the King in informing him of his enemies whereabouts.
Is this not a plausible argument for Doeg? I suggest that many in our culture would side with Doeg, in finding an opportunity to “rat” on someone to gain favor of a government official. Of course, in Doeg’s case, this information led to the slaughter of 85 priests in the city of Nob. Sometimes an advantageous situation simply leads to death and destruction, and we need to recognize that. Such is the nature of the kingdom of this world.
Doeg’s decision is typical for those who side against the kingdom of God, in that they seek power over others, to gain self advantage in any way possible, and to find opportunities of self advancement, even as being provided by God Himself. God provides opportunities for each of us in our daily lives, but we are to be wise in determining the use of the opportunity. Consider David a bit later in his life. He was providentially provided an opportunity to kill King Saul, his enemy, yet did not for He was not seeking self advantage, but God’s honor.
Doeg was seeking his own self advantage, and David calls him out on this. This psalm contrasts the man of destruction against the man who takes refuge in God, and in our first portion of this psalm, David describes this man of destruction.
Psalm 52:2 Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit. Psalm 52:3 You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right. Selah Psalm 52:4 You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.
He boasts of evil
His tongue plots destruction, as a razor cuts
He loves evil more than good
He loves lying more than speaking truth
His words devour
He is a liar
David doesn’t mince words here. And yet I can’t help but think David, during his time of flight from Saul, also entered into this life of deceit and lies when he spoke to Elimelech.
This Psalm doesn’t protect David from some personal incrementation, and the fact that David is bold in proclaiming God’s truth even in an instance where it condemns himself – I find that to be refreshing. How often do we see some believers padding the truth to protect their own image, decisions or habits. To honor God means that we are not honored. He is the only One who is honorable, when it comes to being a truthful witness. We have that pull in us to defend ourselves, to blame someone else, to claim it wasn’t my fault, or it was an accident. May I suggest to my gentle reader that we must admit we have that pull in us, that self desire that seeks to take advantage, to pursue our own agenda.
To realize this weakness, to agree with this truth, to live in this fact, is a much needed characteristic in the modern church nowadays. We are so often taught that we deserve God’s love, deserve God’s blessing, deserve God’s attention, because we do some act of charity or attend church once a week. Yet we turn away from the mirror when we see a bit of Doeg in us, and decide that we would rather have the affirmation of the world.
My friends, consider your base nature, as how active it is in your life. Do you find yourself speaking lies to avoid uncomfortable times, boasting of your accomplishments out of insecurity, cutting others down with your tongue in gossip and slander? Jesus spoke of taking up his cross daily. We know the cross is an instrument of death, and the death we have to face is not pleasant, affirming or enjoyable. We are to decide against ourselves, and seek to honor God, even to our own detriment. Jesus is the ultimate model of self sacrifice to honor God, and He is truly the One to follow after.
1 Peter 2:21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.
Doeg was a man committed to evil and it led to the murder of 85 of God’s priests, and the continued persecution of God’s newly chosen king.
David was a man after God’s heart, and yet had periods in his life where he was dominated by that pull of self, the desire to trust in his own thoughts, to succumb to his fears. I identify with David in these times where his humanity sneaks out and reveals itself. A man that sought God’s honor beyond his own self interests.
As we have been venturing through the Psalms, getting lost in the volume of the book, and the many nuggets of truth laid out for believers, I have come to realize (again and again) the beauty of the book, the depth of the book, the expanse of the human experience the book describes and allows us to join into.
We started with a quick dip into one of the most amazing chapters in the Word, one that has impacted my life in various stages of my Christian faith. It is a psalm that spoke to my wife and I as we were reading that night, but it began a journey through the psalms that has continued for over a year, and I suspect may continue to hold me.
With that said, I would like to offer those who read my bumbling efforts to understand one of the great books of the greatest book ever delivered to the human race, an ongoing summary of the findings and blessings I have enjoyed discovering.
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ADAM
TOOK HIS WIFE’S SIN UPON HIMSELF
Genesis 3 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
1 Peter 2 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Adam took the fruit from his wife, from his wife who had already fallen into death. I often wonder if Adam recognized death in Eve as he took the fruit, and joined her in her sin. We know that the Messiah recognized sin in His bride, and not only joined us in death, but was delivered, resurrected out of death and is bringing His wife out of the death we wallow in!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
Psalm 51
18 Do good to Zion in your good pleasure; build up the walls of Jerusalem; 19 then will you delight in right sacrifices, in burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings; then bulls will be offered on your altar.
David is closing his prayer of contrition with these final verses, and expanding his prayers beyond his own life.
His first desire is that God will do good to Zion. This is God’s heart for His people and David is expressing his own heart in connection with God. He is seeking the prosperity of Jerusalem, and this must mean the spiritual prosperity of Jerusalem, for he immediately refers to God delighting in right sacrifices.
After this entire psalm, if there is one thing that stands out, it is that the sacrifices God prescribed in the Old Testament were not only to be physically performed, but that the practice of sacrifice had a much greater meaning than a simple offering of an animal.
The greatest message of sacrifice is of the Lord Jesus Himself, and of His full and complete provision of our salvation through his sacrifice on the cross. This is the focus of the Word and we (at least I) need to be remined of it daily.
Yet David speaks to the believer also in this psalm, describing the sacrificial system in the believers life, not only of physical sacrifice, but of the sacrifice of our will to God’s will, of the acceptance of a verdict of death in our own lives.
As he closes he speaks of “then bulls will be offered..” Bulls and goats, sheep and doves were being offered in sacrifice even as he wrote this psalm, yet David speaks of the sacrifices of a humble and contrite (broken) spirit in the believer, that is to accompany acts of worship and remembrance. When the believer humbles himself, accepts the truth of his rebellion and obstinacy, openly confesses his dark heart, and seeks renewal and restoration after a period of sin, this is when the sacrifices become pleasing in the sight of the Lord.
May God open our eyes to our own condition before Him so that we may gladly offer up sacrifices to Him in spirit and in truth!
Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
ADAM
STOOPED TO EVE’S CONDITION
Genesis 3 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.
Philippians 2 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
Adam, in joining Eve in her decision to eat of the forbidden fruit, and knowing the word of God in relation to this tree, joined Eve in her condition of death. Jesus also stooped to our condition of death, yet His stooping to our condition was temporary and for the lifting of our lives out of the pit of death. Praise His name!
Thanks again for coming to visit. I hope you found something of interest in this post and would appreciate a comment, to begin a discussion. If you know someone this blog may bless (or challenge), send them a link, so they may join us in our discussion.
My wife and I are reading through the Psalms in our evening reading and occasionally a nugget of the Psalms jumps out of the page. Don’t you love it when, after years of reading the “Old Book” passages become alive, reinforcing old teachings or simply warming your heart.
This is the book of Psalms, and it is rich.
I pray I can communicate a portion of the blessing we receive from this wonderful book.
Psalm 51
16 For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. 17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
In our last post I needed to stop on the last thought, that of praising God, and just settle in that mindset for a short period, for it is a good thing to do. He really is good, you know.
This next couple of verses, they also are super famous, with songs a plenty being written based on them. Yet David continues to amaze me, for he is describing concepts that go beyond what was available for the common Jewish man of his day.
During David’s time, to approach God involved sacrifice. Sacrifice of animals was the primary (only) way to approach a holy God. God established a sacrificial order to deal with personal sins, iniquities, transgressions and rebellion. Beyond the sacrificial system, which is a picture of the Christ, the Jewish man had no way to enter into God’s presence. God had provided a way for the covering of sin, but it was highly specific, detailed and required multiple steps, even an intermediary, as in the Levitical priests that would provide this service.
But read the verse above once more.
For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
Sacrifice was the prescribed method of approach to God, given by God in that time. Yet David says God does not delight in sacrifice, nor is He pleased with a burnt offering. What type of heresy is David teasing us with? Or is David a New Testamental believer that is far beyond some of our own understandings of God and His ways?
I would suggest the latter, for David understands the relationship connection with the Almighty, and the secondary religious priority of sacrificial offerings. This is not to say David no longer went to the temple to offer up sacrifices of bulls, lambs and goats, but that his thinking had shifted. Maybe he had always understood this prioritization of relationship over religion. Maybe those days in the fields with his sheep had been times of understanding God’s ways.
God is looking for sacrifices, that is true, but we understand in the church that the vicarious death of animals was a picture of the Lord Jesus, and always has been. David takes the concept of sacrifice and internalizes it, speaking of his brokenness and regret. And expresses his realization of the nature of God in that He will not despise one who comes to Him broken, humble and open to Him.
God will not despise this heart attitude. As we approach Him in humility and brokenness, we can have confidence that the Lord of Glory will receive us, minister to us, heal us and save us. One of my favorite set of verses in this vein of thinking may be found in Matthew 12:18-20, where the Lord Jesus is describing Himself, God’s Chosen Servant, and the character the Servant would display.
Matthew 12:18 “Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles. Matthew 12:19 He will not quarrel or cry aloud, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets; Matthew 12:20 a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory; Matthew 12:21 and in his name the Gentiles will hope.”
Did you catch it. A bruised reed has no strength. A smoldering wick has no life. He will not quarrel or shout, but understands the condition we are in. He is approachable in our very weakness and contrition. His character is to heal, not to destroy or to take advantage of any weakness we come to Him with.
As we walk the way, following after Him, we may stumble, even rebel against the good life. Do not hesitate to return to Him, admitting to and confessing your sin, for He is a great Father, One who delights in truth in the inward being.
As we have been venturing through the Psalms, getting lost in the volume of the book, and the many nuggets of truth laid out for believers, I have come to realize (again and again) the beauty of the book, the depth of the book, the expanse of the human experience the book describes and allows us to join into.
We started with a quick dip into one of the most amazing chapters in the Word, one that has impacted my life in various stages of my Christian faith. It is a psalm that spoke to my wife and I as we were reading that night, but it began a journey through the psalms that has continued for over a year, and I suspect may continue to hold me.
With that said, I would like to offer those who read my bumbling efforts to understand one of the great books of the greatest book ever delivered to the human race, an ongoing summary of the findings and blessings I have enjoyed discovering.
Considering the Bible 