May 25 - Evening
"The fool says in his heart,
'There is no God.'
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.
The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.
All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. Do all these evildoers know nothing? They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on the Lord. But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous. You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.
Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!"
- Psalms 14:1-7
They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.
The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.
All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. Do all these evildoers know nothing? They devour my people as though eating bread; they never call on the Lord. But there they are, overwhelmed with dread, for God is present in the company of the righteous. You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.
Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores his people, let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!"
- Psalms 14:1-7
The Foolishness of Living As If "There is no God!"
The fool who says “There is no God,” is not merely an atheist spewing out his vain philosophy, but is a reference to the man whose moral compass makes no recognition of God’s presence, involvement or jurisdiction in the affairs of men. This man lives as though there is no God who will ultimately hold him accountable for his thoughts, words and actions (or, inactions).
The psalmist describes the godless as “corrupt” men whose “deeds are vile” and do no good. The reason they live this way is that they do not believe God will hold them accountable. Yet, in reality God’s view of them is described in three steps that get increasingly closer moving from the transcendent to the immanent:
1. “from heaven”
2. “looks down”
3. “on all mankind”
So, even from his lofty, immanent position the Lord is closely observing all mankind. The Lord looks to see:
“if there are any who understand, any who seek God.”
This Psalm 14 is the same as Psalm 53 with one slight change. In Psalm 14 God is identified with the Hebrew word Elohim in four places (Ps. 14:2, 4, 6, 7) and translated as “God” in the NIV, but in Psalm 53 those same four references use the Hebrew name YHWH, or Yahweh, which is translated “LORD” in the NIV.
A contrast is built between the self-serving wicked and the deity-indwelt righteous. The godless reveal their lack of knowledge and their absence of understanding as they devour “people as though eating bread,” not knowing that the very God they ignore is the one who overwhelms them with dread.
While at the same time, the righteous have in their presence the manifestation of the Lord himself serving as their refuge the whole time the evildoers are trying to devour them and frustrate their plans.
This psalm that began with a meditation on some basic truths has taken on a prophetic element and in the final verse has become a prayer that can be prayed and a promise that can be held on to throughout all generations waiting for the completion of salvation and the manifestation of the glorious Lord in his kingdom. The Lord’s presence with us today is a two-sided guarantee. First, to us the Lord’s presence is a sign of a future day that will have fullness of salvation and joy for us who understand and seek him today. But, the Lord’s presence with the righteous is also a sign to those who live as though “there is no God.” Today the Lord calls from among the righteous to the evildoers and asks the fools to change their heart and seek the one they now deny.
Parepidamos (Gr) – Strangers (Eng) – a Greek word which refers to those who live alongside of others; a foreigner temporarily living in a place. Parepidamos is someone staying for a while in a foreign place. Parepidamos is used in 1 Peter 1:1.
When the Lord looks for a righteous man to do his work in the world would he consider me as a faithful, obedient candidate for his service? I will live in a way that makes me a viable choice for the Lord when he looks for a man on earth to do his will.
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A Sidonian Tomb at Beit Guvrin from 150 BC for the governor Apollophanes and his family.
Details on a map of Nehemiah 11 showing the villages of the people of Benjamin after the return from exile.
Hosea 2
New International Version (NIV)
2 [a]“Say of your brothers, ‘My people,’ and of your sisters, ‘My loved one.’
Israel Punished and Restored
2
“Rebuke your mother, rebuke her, for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her remove the adulterous look from her face and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.
3
Otherwise I will strip her naked and make her as bare as on the day she was born; I will make her like a desert, turn her into a parched land, and slay her with thirst.
4
I will not show my love to her children, because they are the children of adultery.
5
Their mother has been unfaithful and has conceived them in disgrace. She said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my food and my water, my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’
6
Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.
7
She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go back to my husband as at first, for then I was better off than now.’
8
She has not acknowledged that I was the one who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil, who lavished on her the silver and gold— which they used for Baal.
9
“Therefore I will take away my grain when it ripens, and my new wine when it is ready. I will take back my wool and my linen, intended to cover her naked body.
10
So now I will expose her lewdness before the eyes of her lovers; no one will take her out of my hands.
11
I will stop all her celebrations: her yearly festivals, her New Moons, her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.
12
I will ruin her vines and her fig trees, which she said were her pay from her lovers; I will make them a thicket, and wild animals will devour them.
13
I will punish her for the days she burned incense to the Baals; she decked herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot,” declares the Lord.
14
“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her.
15
There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor[b] a door of hope. There she will respond[c] as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
16
“In that day,” declares the Lord, “you will call me ‘my husband’; you will no longer call me ‘my master.[d]’
17
I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips; no longer will their names be invoked.
18
In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the creatures that move along the ground. Bow and sword and battle I will abolish from the land, so that all may lie down in safety.
19
I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in[e] righteousness and justice, in[f] love and compassion.
20
I will betroth you in[g] faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the Lord.
21
“In that day I will respond,” declares the Lord— “I will respond to the skies, and they will respond to the earth;
22
and the earth will respond to the grain, the new wine and the olive oil, and they will respond to Jezreel.[h]
23
I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.[i]’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,[j]’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”
Footnotes:
New International Version (NIV)
2 [a]“Say of your brothers, ‘My people,’ and of your sisters, ‘My loved one.’
Israel Punished and Restored
2
“Rebuke your mother, rebuke her, for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her remove the adulterous look from her face and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts.
3
Otherwise I will strip her naked and make her as bare as on the day she was born; I will make her like a desert, turn her into a parched land, and slay her with thirst.
4
I will not show my love to her children, because they are the children of adultery.
5
Their mother has been unfaithful and has conceived them in disgrace. She said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my food and my water, my wool and my linen, my olive oil and my drink.’
6
Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way.
7
She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them. Then she will say, ‘I will go back to my husband as at first, for then I was better off than now.’
8
She has not acknowledged that I was the one who gave her the grain, the new wine and oil, who lavished on her the silver and gold— which they used for Baal.
9
“Therefore I will take away my grain when it ripens, and my new wine when it is ready. I will take back my wool and my linen, intended to cover her naked body.
10
So now I will expose her lewdness before the eyes of her lovers; no one will take her out of my hands.
11
I will stop all her celebrations: her yearly festivals, her New Moons, her Sabbath days—all her appointed festivals.
12
I will ruin her vines and her fig trees, which she said were her pay from her lovers; I will make them a thicket, and wild animals will devour them.
13
I will punish her for the days she burned incense to the Baals; she decked herself with rings and jewelry, and went after her lovers, but me she forgot,” declares the Lord.
14
“Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her.
15
There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor[b] a door of hope. There she will respond[c] as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt.
16
“In that day,” declares the Lord, “you will call me ‘my husband’; you will no longer call me ‘my master.[d]’
17
I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips; no longer will their names be invoked.
18
In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, the birds in the sky and the creatures that move along the ground. Bow and sword and battle I will abolish from the land, so that all may lie down in safety.
19
I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in[e] righteousness and justice, in[f] love and compassion.
20
I will betroth you in[g] faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the Lord.
21
“In that day I will respond,” declares the Lord— “I will respond to the skies, and they will respond to the earth;
22
and the earth will respond to the grain, the new wine and the olive oil, and they will respond to Jezreel.[h]
23
I will plant her for myself in the land; I will show my love to the one I called ‘Not my loved one.[i]’ I will say to those called ‘Not my people,[j]’ ‘You are my people’; and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”
Footnotes:
- Hosea 2:1 In Hebrew texts 2:1-23 is numbered 2:3-25.
- Hosea 2:15 Achor means trouble.
- Hosea 2:15 Or sing
- Hosea 2:16 Hebrew baal
- Hosea 2:19 Or with
- Hosea 2:19 Or with
- Hosea 2:20 Or with
- Hosea 2:22 Jezreel means God plants.
- Hosea 2:23 Hebrew Lo-Ruhamah (see 1:6)
- Hosea 2:23 Hebrew Lo-Ammi (see 1:9)
1 Chronicles 25
New International Version (NIV)
The Musicians
25 David, together with the commanders of the army, set apart some of the sons of Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun for the ministry of prophesying, accompanied by harps, lyres and cymbals. Here is the list of the men who performed this service:
2 From the sons of Asaph:
Zakkur, Joseph, Nethaniah and Asarelah. The sons of Asaph were under the supervision of Asaph, who prophesied under the king’s supervision.
3 As for Jeduthun, from his sons:
Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei,[a] Hashabiah and Mattithiah, six in all, under the supervision of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied, using the harp in thanking and praising the Lord.
4 As for Heman, from his sons:
Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shubael and Jerimoth; Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti and Romamti-Ezer; Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir and Mahazioth. 5 (All these were sons of Heman the king’s seer. They were given him through the promises of God to exalt him. God gave Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.)
6 All these men were under the supervision of their father for the music of the temple of the Lord, with cymbals, lyres and harps, for the ministry at the house of God.
Asaph, Jeduthun and Heman were under the supervision of the king. 7 Along with their relatives—all of them trained and skilled in music for the Lord—they numbered 288. 8 Young and old alike, teacher as well as student, cast lots for their duties.
[b]
[c]
New International Version (NIV)
The Musicians
25 David, together with the commanders of the army, set apart some of the sons of Asaph, Heman and Jeduthun for the ministry of prophesying, accompanied by harps, lyres and cymbals. Here is the list of the men who performed this service:
2 From the sons of Asaph:
Zakkur, Joseph, Nethaniah and Asarelah. The sons of Asaph were under the supervision of Asaph, who prophesied under the king’s supervision.
3 As for Jeduthun, from his sons:
Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei,[a] Hashabiah and Mattithiah, six in all, under the supervision of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied, using the harp in thanking and praising the Lord.
4 As for Heman, from his sons:
Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shubael and Jerimoth; Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti and Romamti-Ezer; Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir and Mahazioth. 5 (All these were sons of Heman the king’s seer. They were given him through the promises of God to exalt him. God gave Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.)
6 All these men were under the supervision of their father for the music of the temple of the Lord, with cymbals, lyres and harps, for the ministry at the house of God.
Asaph, Jeduthun and Heman were under the supervision of the king. 7 Along with their relatives—all of them trained and skilled in music for the Lord—they numbered 288. 8 Young and old alike, teacher as well as student, cast lots for their duties.
[b]
[c]
| 9 The first lot, which was for Asaph, fell to Joseph, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
the second to Gedaliah, | him and his relatives and sons | 12 | |
10 the third to Zakkur, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
11 the fourth to Izri,[d] | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
12 the fifth to Nethaniah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
13 the sixth to Bukkiah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
14 the seventh to Jesarelah,[e] | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
15 the eighth to Jeshaiah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
16 the ninth to Mattaniah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
17 the tenth to Shimei, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
18 the eleventh to Azarel,[f] | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
19 the twelfth to Hashabiah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
20 the thirteenth to Shubael, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
21 the fourteenth to Mattithiah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
22 the fifteenth to Jerimoth, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
23 the sixteenth to Hananiah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
24 the seventeenth to Joshbekashah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
25 the eighteenth to Hanani, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
26 the nineteenth to Mallothi, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
27 the twentieth to Eliathah, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
28 the twenty-first to Hothir, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
29 the twenty-second to Giddalti, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
30 the twenty-third to Mahazioth, | his sons and relatives | 12 | |
31 the twenty-fourth to Romamti-Ezer, | his sons and relatives | 12. | |
Footnotes:
- 1 Chronicles 25:3 One Hebrew manuscript and some Septuagint manuscripts (see also verse 17); most Hebrew manuscripts do not have Shimei.
- 1 Chronicles 25:9 See Septuagint; Hebrew does not have his sons and relatives.
- 1 Chronicles 25:9 See the total in verse 7; Hebrew does not have twelve.
- 1 Chronicles 25:11 A variant of Zeri
- 1 Chronicles 25:14 A variant of Asarelah
- 1 Chronicles 25:18 A variant of Uzziel