Baffling Bible Verses!

 

If you’ve read the blog posts on “A Life Worthy,” you know Michael Burns loves the Lord, the Bible, and levity – all of which we, too, greatly need. In this morning's post, however, he asked a seriously big question:

 

“So many believers trust God, fear God, serve God, and yet are destitute. Why?”

 

Since Psalm 25:12-13 had evoked that question, I re-read the words Michael had quoted at the beginning of his post:

 

“Who, then, is the man who fears the Lord? God will instruct him in the way chosen for him. He will spend his days in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land.”

 

Even though we’ll never fully understand baffling Bible verses this side of heaven, I went looking for light in study Bible notes, which generally avoided the subject. Then I looked up the verses in various translations on Bible Gateway – a practice I highly recommend, especially when a passage of scripture boggles the mind or spirit. Here’s some of what I found:

 

Psalm 25:12-13

 

Common English Bible

¹² Where are the ones who honor the Lord?
    God will teach them which path to take.
¹³ They will live a good life,
    and their descendants will possess the land.

 

New American Bible (Revised Edition)

¹² Who is the one who fears the Lord?
    God shows him the way he should choose.
¹³ He will abide in prosperity,
    and his descendants will inherit the land.

 

New International Version

¹² Who, then, are those who fear the Lord?
    He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.
¹³ They will spend their days in prosperity,
    and their descendants will inherit the land.

 

Amplified Bible

¹² Who is the man who fears the Lord [with awe-inspired reverence and worships Him with submissive wonder]?
He will teach him [through His word] in the way he should choose.
¹³ His soul will dwell in prosperity and goodness,
And his descendants will inherit the land.

 

English Standard Version

¹² Who is the man who fears the Lord?
    Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
¹³ His soul shall abide in well-being,
    and his offspring shall inherit the land.

 

King James Version

¹² What man is he that feareth the Lord? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose.

¹³ His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth.

 

We could go on and on to other choices, but these seem to cover various options in translating the Hebrew language into English. And each version adds light.

 

In the first line, for instance, we’re shown “fear” as awe, reverence, honor, and worship. So that mindset is the first clue in how we’re to be assured of God’s leading. The question is:

 

Do we have the right attitude toward God?

 

If so, we can count on the Lord to teach us which path to take, show us the way to choose, and instruct us through His Word. Then, the question is:

 

Do we know what the Bible says about our situation and where to go from there?

and/or

Can we sense the urging of the Holy Spirit in a particular direction that’s in line with scripture?

 

If so, we will live a good life, period. But that does not mean we’ll be problem-free or needed to find enough places to stash all our cash! Even though we “abide in prosperity,” side trips, detours, or distractions can take us into the slums! 

 

I’ve felt that. Despite my family’s faith in God, we got too close to poverty for comfort when a job transfer didn’t turn out as promised by the people in charge. At one point, I had $10 for groceries for a family of five, and yet we never went hungry. More important, because of that move, our souls were fed in ways we’d never known as the Lord provided one amazing spiritual teacher after another.

 

Regardless of our individual circumstances, every believer can proclaim my “soul will dwell in prosperity and goodness,” my “soul shall abide in well-being,” and “my soul shall dwell at ease.” How? By being in awe of God and at peace with Him and His Word.

 

That’s what King David did. He wrote Psalm 25 as a lament during a tough time, but, as often happens with psalms of woe or complaint, this one ends with the poet’s reminder to himself that God had always been with him and still was and would be. It’s like he was giving himself a pep talk – not based on will-power or emotion but on truth and the conviction that God’s abiding presence…

 

Was, is, and will be.

 

As we continue in an ever-deepening relationship with God, our values, biblical beliefs, and faith will surely influence our children for a thousand generations as promised in Exodus 20:6. And each new believer among our descendants will then add another thousand generations from their life span!

 

Maybe we’ll amass properties and land, but the true inheritance we pass on to others is the good news of our restored union with God through the forgiving sacrifice of His Son. Then, as Jesus promised in Matthew 5:5, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

 

©2021, Mary Sayler

 

For more light on this complex subject, find your favorite translation of the Bible and read it, cover to cover, then keep on reading (it or another version) a little at a time. Hopefully, this previous post can also help, “Settling Down with Jesus.”

 

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