Psalm 105

How I love this Psalm!  It is one of the grandest illustrations of the principle of Hermeneutics (how to interpret the Bible) that says the best interpreter of Scripture is Scripture.  When studying Genesis 12-50 I found this Psalm to be of inestimable value.  Consider this as you read and study this historical Hymn.

·         105:1-6: Call to the people of Abraham to praise God for His works/deeds.

·         105:7-8: The theme: God remembers His covenant forever.

·         105:9-15: The covenant in mind is the one God made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  It is the Abrahamic Covenant, and especially the promise of the land of Canaan to Abraham’s descendants. To emphasize God’s faithfulness we are reminded this covenant was made when they were few in number and were strangers in the land (Gen. 12:1-3; 13:14-18; 15:7-21; 17:1-8).  But even at that time God was protecting His anointed ones. You may remember God called Abraham a prophet (Gen. 20:7).

·         105:16-25: God’s covenant faithfulness was on-going in the days of Joseph, including His allowing Jacob to take the family to Egypt. Notice that God called for a famine in the land (v16).  That amazing story of Joseph was part of what God was doing in forming His people Israel.

·         105:26-41: God’s faithfulness was certainly evident in the time of Moses, in the plagues and in the major provisions in the wilderness.  It was God’s promise that the Israelites, without an army, would nevertheless plunder Egypt.

·         105:42-45:  All this was done as God faithfully kept His covenant with Abraham.  They eventually made it to the land and joy and gladness, inheriting the labor of the nations that had occupied Canaan.

For us there is tremendous application.  The New Testament says, For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Psalm 105 is about Israel.  But it declares the faithfulness of God, who is our God as well, and who has established His covenant with believers. 

This is how we use the Old Testament.  We interpret it properly; in this case it is about God's work in Israel.  But we also apply it energetically!  It was written for us that we might have hope.  And this is an amazing message of hope.  We are reminded that as with Israel, so God is using the events of our lives to bring us into the likeness of Christ.  We are reminded that God never fails to keep His word.  Even if we are small or few in number we can trust God! 

Let us also give thanks to the Lord!  Let us call upon His name!

2 Ki. 21:1-12, What is an abomination to the LORD? (3)

·       Job 15:16: Eliphaz called sinful men an abomination.  Maybe, maybe not.  I am always careful when Job’s “friends” speak.  God did not call all men “abominations” or all sins “abominations.”  Having said that, we now come to the Psalms and Proverbs where our understanding might be different.

·       Ps. 5:6: The LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.  v5 says: You hate all workers of iniquity.  That makes sense.  God hates those who encourage others to sin.  Jesus said those who “cause one of these little ones to stumble” were more egregious in sinning.  “Offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes” (Mt. 18:6-7).  In Psalms the “workers of iniquity” fit that category.

·       Ps. 14:1: Paul applies this to all humanity (Rom. 3).  But note: every human has done “abominable” (abhorrent) works.  This is not saying all humans are abhorred.

·       Ps. 119:163: The Psalmist abhors lying.

·       Prov. 3:32 (11:20): The “perverse person” is an abomination.  1 Ki. 14:24 might be a good cross-reference for this. There were “perverted persons” in the land.  In other words, it’s a particular evil person, not every sinner.

·       Prov. 6:16-19: Here are 7 things that are an abomination to the LORD: a proud look, lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness and one who sows discord among brethren.  That gets to the heart of things, doesn’t it!

·       Prov. 15:8-9: We began the first post with these but now we call attention to them.  The “sacrifice of the wicked” (i.e. the offering he brings with an evil heart) and the “way of the wicked” (the general lifestyle) are an abomination to the LORD.

·       Prov. 15:26: And also, “the thoughts of the wicked” are an abomination.

·       Prov. 16:12: The king who commits wickedness is an abomination because that makes him a “worker of iniquity,” his sins justify the sins of his citizens.

·       Prov. 17:15: He who justifies the wicked or condemns the just is an abomination. (Mic. 3:9.)

·       Prov. 28:9: The prayer of the one who turns away his ear from hearing the law.

·       Jer. 6:15; 8:12: Involvement in things that are an abomination to the LORD should make us ashamed, make us blush.  This was not the case among God’s OT people.

·       Ezek. 6:11: The prophet of the LORD needs to be adamant and clear about the “evil abominations” committed by the people.  Pound your fist! Stamp your feet!

·       Ezek. 8-11 has the word “abominations” 13X as God justifies the departure of His Glory from Israel and the temple.  Again, 8X in Ezek. 16 in the explanation for God’s judgment.  It begins in 16:2, Son of Man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations.  In total, Ezekiel refers to abominations in 43 passages.  He does not tell what they are necessarily; that was done in the Law.  But Ezekiel ties Israel’s judgment to the abominations.  Abominations have consequences!

Deut. 18:9-14, What is an abomination to the LORD? (2)

·       Deut. 18:9-14: Again, copying the forms of worship of the nations that were in the land before Israel is abominable.  This passage has a more developed list that includes sacrificing your children in the fire, witchcraft, soothsaying, interpreting omens, sorcery, conjuring up spells, being a medium or spiritist or in any other way trying to call up the dead.  My Sirius radio has been advertising “California Psychics” a lot.  Interesting.  They turn down like 90% of those who apply.  They promise to help you with your love life or your money back.  ABOMINABLE!  I should not laugh; I should abhor!! (Cf. Isa. 1:13 on abominable forms of worship.)

·       Deut. 20:17-18: If you wonder who was in the land before Israel, v17 has a list.

·       Deut. 22:5: What we call “cross-dressing” is an abomination to the LORD.

·       Deut. 23:7: By the way: an Edomite and an Egyptian are not to be abhorred.  Perhaps we can say, a Democrat nor a Republican or even the Green Party are not to be abhorred.  Maybe. 

·       Deut. 23:18: Giving to the LORD from the earnings of a harlot or the price of selling your dog is an abomination.  Some have tried to argue that this is just Mosaic Law and not relevant to Christians.  I remember “back in the day” when there was a big turmoil when some guy who made his money off dog-racing in Florida, made a major contribution to the Oral Roberts organization.  It was part of Roberts’ campaign to raise $8 million or God would call him home.  It’s possible there were a lot of abominations involved in that story.  These days, I’m not sure any church does due diligence on this matter.  We are too quick to put out the offering baskets for all who want to give or pay or whatever.

·       Deut. 24:4: For a man, who divorced his wife, for her to marry another, then have a second divorce, for the first husband to take her back as his wife.  This brings sin on the land, i.e. creates a bad situation for the society.  Interesting that divorce by itself was not an abomination.  The LORD knows our hard hearts, as Jesus said.

·       Deut. 25:16: You need to consider how far back in the passage this applies.  It is another statement about a variety of things that are abominations.  The immediate preceding issue is having differing weights in your bag, cheating people by putting your finger on the scales, etc (Prov. 11:1).  Before that is a wife who comes to the aid of her husband in a fight by grabbing the testicles of the other man in the fight.  Before that is refusing to carry out the marital duties of the older brother who dies.

·       2 Kings 23:13: On the issue of idolatry, this passage is strong.  They are not called “gods,” but are called “abominations.”

·       Ezra 9:1,11,14: Intermarriage with the heathen nations was an abomination in the time of Ezra.  Interesting this term was not applied to Solomon, although clearly it led to his connection with idolatry.  Ezra, after 70 years in Babylon, was willing to “call a spade a spade,” or better, to “call an abomination an abomination.”

Lev. 18:19-30, What is an abomination to the LORD? (1)

The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD,
But the prayer of the upright is His delight.

The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD,
But He loves him who follows righteousness. (Prov. 15:8-9)

This is a study I should have done many years ago, in the process of developing a healthy “fear of the LORD.”  What is an abomination to Him?  This will not be an exhaustive word study because the Hebrew terms involved are too many.  The noun in these passages from Proverbs is used 118x in 112 verses (17x in Deut. and 22x in Proverbs).  The root word, a verb, occurs 22x in 20 verses.  Let’s first consider the first use of the verb because the verse includes both terms:

Nor shall you bring an abomination into your house, lest you be doomed to destruction like it. You shall utterly detest it and utterly abhor it, for it is an accursed thing. (Deut. 7:26).

The abomination in this passage is an “idol,” which we know from v25:

You shall burn the carved images of their gods with fire; you shall not covet the silver or gold that is on them, nor take it for yourselves, lest you be snared by it; for it is an abomination to the LORD your God.

We won’t quote all the verses, but this one helps us see the extent of “abhorring” necessary when something is an “abomination.”  “Don’t even coven the silver or gold that was put on these wooden carved images, lest you be snared by it.”  It’s not the metal but the possibility of being ensnared in the sin connected with it.

So now, for the most part, let’s just consider/meditate on the question: “What is an abomination to the LORD?”  And along the way, what is not an abomination?

·       Gen. 43:32: “Shepherds” were an abomination to the Egyptians, but not to God!  I.e. everything the world abhors is not necessarily to be abhorred by God’s people.

·       Lev. 18:22 (20:13): To “lie with a male as with a woman” is an abomination.  This is from today’s passage which deals with abominations that were part of the cultures of those who lived in the land before Israel.

·       Deut. 12:29-32: The way worshiped God is the issue here.  The previous nations in the land did abominable things, two of which are mentioned: inquiring of (dumb) idols and sacrificing your children to idols.  Israel’s approach to the “how” of worship was not to be: how did/does the world do it?

·       Deut. 14:3: Just so you know, Israel’s dietary laws involved “detestable” (i.e. abominable, same word) things.  I’m not spending time on this as Jesus dealt with the dietary laws in my view.

·       Deut. 17:1-4: Bringing an offering that was blemished to the LORD.  This was an issue in Malachi 1.  This dishonors God, of course.  Also, it denigrates the Lamb of God who would come to take away the sin of the world!!!

Matt. 4:18-22, You Need To Have Your Nets Mended

Let’s do a study of katartizō (verb, to perfect, mend, make perfect), a special term related to the maturing of believers.  The key to unlock the study is in Matt. 4:21: James and John were “mending” their nets.  They didn’t need new nets.  They only needed to mend the nets they had.  And why did they need mending?  Because they had been used in fishing.  The pressure of an amazing catch of fish might create larger spaces in the net whereby fish would fall out and never make it to the boat.  It means the nets were restored so that they could accomplish the purpose they were intended to fulfill.  Keep that in mind as you meditate on the other uses of this term.

·       Matt. 21:16: God has perfected (prepared) praise out of the mouths of babes.  An infant might not know exactly how best to praise the Savior, but God could fix their words, so to speak, to praise Him perfectly.

·       Lk. 6:40: Everyone who is perfect (prepared, fully trained) shall be as his teacher.

·       Rom. 9:22: God endured the vessels of wrath that were fitted for destruction.

·       1 Cor. 1:10: We need to be made complete in the same mind, judgment.

·       2 Cor. 13:11: In his farewell Paul says to be perfected.

·       Gal. 6:1: We are called to restore the fallen brother, in meekness.

·       1 Th. 3:10: Paul wanted to perfect what was lacking in their faith.

·       Heb. 10:5: Christ’s body was prepared as a sacrifice for sin. 

·       Heb. 11:3: By faith we understand worlds were framed by the word of God.

·       Heb. 13:21: Prayer: “May the God of peace make you perfect in all good works.”

·       1 Pt. 5:10: Prayer: “May the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, settle (you).”  It appears that the last 3 terms tell us what is involved in the “mending:” make you stand, give you strength, give you a solid foundation.

·       katartisis (fem noun) 2 Cor. 13:9: Prayer: for their perfection.

·       katartismos (masc. noun) Eph. 4:12: Christ’s gifts to the church (apostles, prophets, etc.) given for the equipping of the saints.

Vincent: to adjust, “put it right.”  Vine: to make fit, equip, prepare.  Bruce: to equip, adjust.  Jesus called fishermen to become fishers of men.  As with their fishing for fish, so in fishing for men, we must give Him access to mend our nets.

Rev. 17:7-18, Telos, The End of the Word of God

There is a family of words in the NT for “fulfill.”  The NKJV in Rev. 17:17 translates, until the words of God are fulfilled.  That’s fine: all God has said and planned concerning the arrangement of the nations and governments and armies and economy will be fulfilled.  But if you are wondering, this word is not “fulfilled” but is one of the family of NT words meaning “to complete, finish” (Greek: telos).  Literally, until the words of God are finished.  Maybe no big deal, but I thought you might like to know.  And it led me to consider a few other significant passages with “telos.”  Here they are for your meditation.

·       Mt. 26:1: When Jesus finished all these words, of the Olivet Discourse, prophetic words, He then turned His attention to Passover and His upcoming crucifixion.

·       Lk. 18:31: One of Jesus’ announcements that they are going to Jerusalem, and at that time all things prophesied concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished.

·       Lk. 22:37: Telos is twice here.  First, quoting Isa. 53:12 about being numbered with the transgressors, Jesus says this must be accomplished (NKJV has a note suggesting fulfilled).  But then Jesus said, For the things concerning Me have an end.  That’s the second use.  What a simple, powerful statement!  There’s a point to it all.  Be patient; it will come!

·       Jn. 19:28,30: Jesus, after the darkness and the fullness of suffering, knew all things were not accomplished (noun), that the Scriptures might be fulfilled (finished, verb), said, ‘I thirst.’  Earlier He refused the wine with myrrh; but now He can satisfy thirst, and then says: It is finished (verb; perfect: an action which is viewed as having been completed in the past, once and for all, not needing to be repeated;  passive, done to Him, i.e. the Father’s work done via the cross, or in the next passage, it was the work of evil men; indicative: a statement of fact).  Hallelujah!

·       Ac. 13:29: Paul at Pisidian Antioch, when they had fulfilled all that was written concerning Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. 

·       Rev. 10:7 (mystery of God finished); 11:7 (testimony of two witnesses finished); 15:1 (the wrath of God is complete); 15:8 (no one could enter heaven until the seven plagues completed); 17:17 (see above); 20:3,5,7 (Satan bound, dead not raised again, and then Satan released, all when the thousand years were finished or were expired).

And now, here are a couple for application:

·       Gal. 5:16: Walk in the Spirit and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

·       2 Tim. 4:7: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

 God has an end goal in mind, with various sub-goals along the way.  He has revealed this in His word.  The "end" of God's word will come.  Let us also have a fitting "end" to our lives, one that glorifies God. 

Psalm 85; 32:1-5, More on the Flood and Atonement

In my recent reading I discovered a couple of things in this Psalm relative to God’s plan of salvation.  First, in 85:2, having been brought back from captivity, the Psalmist notes that the LORD had forgiven and covered the sin of the people.  These same two truths are found in Ps. 32:1 where David extols the blessedness of the one whose sins are forgiven and covered. 

There is apparently a “play on words” in that the two Hebrew words are nasa and kasa.  To forgive is to carry the sins away.  To cover is to hide them from God’s sight.  And in Ps. 32:5 David declares that he, David, has not hidden (kasa) his sins, because that does not hide them from God.  Rather he has confessed or acknowledged them, so it is left for God to cover them.

We have mentioned before the idea of “atonement” in the Bible, that it has this idea of “covering” them.  The word often translated “atonement” in the OT is kephar.  This word has its roots in Noah’s ark where Noah was told by God to cover the outside of the ark with pitch, kephar.  In other words, for Noah to be safe from God’s judgment there would need to be something that would guarantee that the ark would not allow water to seep in from the outside.  Thus, as Peter said, a few, that is, eight souls, were saved through water (1 Pt. 3:20).  The water carried the ark and kept them all afloat no matter how violent were the things happening outside.

But here is another interesting fact.  The roots of kasa (to hide something by covering it) are also in the flood.  In Gen. 7:18,20 (the first uses of this term) we see that the water covered all the high hills and mountains.  So, inside the ark was salvation; outside the ark was judgment for sin.  Through His judgment the LORD covered all the sinful earth/earthlings.  The LORD had seen that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and the LORD was sorry that He had made man on the earth (Gen. 6:5-6).  I’m sorry if you have soothed your view of God by proposing a flood that was not over all the earth.  It just doesn’t fit.

And if you wonder about this kasa word, the next use of the term is in Gen. 9:23 where Shem and Japheth walked backwards with a blanket to cover their father’s nakedness.  Again, there is a covering for sin and shame.  We should not be surprised that the flood provides the backdrop for such powerful and blessed and gracious understandings of our salvation.  Not only do we have a secure salvation in Christ; we have one that has totally dealt with our sin that separated us from God.  Praise His holy name!