The Psalmist continues in 23:2 saying “…He leads me beside the still waters”, in some translations it is peaceful water. Still waters, stands in contrast to the torrent of rushing mighty water of which the sheep are fearful, probably because of the swift movement and noise, and from which the sheep we are told […]
“He makes me to lie down in green pastures” Psalm 23:4. This speaks to us of rest; the shepherd had led the flock to tender green pastures where they had eaten to full satisfaction and now lay resting, chewing their cud. Having been born and raised a country boy I do not recall ever looking […]
In Luke 15:11-32 Jesus tells a story of a father with two sons. Since we do not have space in this meditation to talk about both sons we are focusing on the younger, who approached the father asking to receive his inheritance early. According to Jewish law at the father’s death the younger son would […]
In Exodus 3:13-14 when God commissioned Moses, at the “burning bush”, to stand before Pharaoh, and to lead His people out of Egyptian bondage, Moses said, “when I…say to them The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they say to me, What is His name? what shall I say to them? […]
“There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His” Hebrews 4:9-10. God’s work of creation followed by rest in Genesis 1-2 forms a perfect picture of His new creation in us “through the redemption that […]
As we travel through life we often find it filled with sorrows, pain, hurt, and heavy burdens. The Bible recognizes this in Job 5:7 saying, “man is born to trouble, As the sparks fly upward.” The same sentiment is expressed in 14:1. There are two different Hebrew words used in these verses, respectively meaning trial, […]
Perhaps Psalm 23 is the best known chapter in the Bible. It compares the loving care and provision of Father God to His children with that of a shepherd caring and providing for his sheep. He leads the sheep to places where every need they may have is supplied. The phrase ”He restores my soul” […]
Eliphaz may have been erroneous in his assessment that Job’s trouble was because of error in his lifestyle, but he had it right when he said, “…man is born to trouble…” (Job 5:7). Sorrow, labor, toil, grief, pain, trouble, misery, fatigue, and exhaustion, could all explain the original Hebrew word used here. If you have […]
The final name or title given to Jesus in Isaiah 9:6 is Prince of Peace, which, in Isaiah’s language, meant that as Prince He would be the head person, such as a chief or captain, of Shalom which includes safety (and figuratively) well, happy, friendly (and abstractly) welfare, i.e. health, prosperity, and peace. As His […]
Hebrews 4:9 states “There remains therefore a rest for the people of God”. This verse from the Bible uses as a backdrop the unbelieving Israelites who failed to enter the “promised land” rest in Numbers 14, and it also brings us to view God’s rest following His creation in Genesis 2:1-3. The historical event of […]