Month: March 2014

20140320
I personalize and summarize the following two verses in the Wycliffe version of Deuteronomy like this:

Forsooth, in truth, indeed, if I hear and obey the Lord, then He shall…grant me more and more favour and will show me and my descendants things that will enable us to do all the words of His Law.

Rejoice that we have translations of the Bible which we can understand more easily than the first English translation of the Scripture. We must pray for those who do not have any of the Bible translated into their language.
We must also pray for and do what we can to assist the efforts of those who are working to translate the Bible into almost a thousand more languages.

One historian summarized John Wycliffe’s view of the impact of the Bible on our lives as, “Without knowledge of the Bible there can be no peace in the life of the Church or of society, and outside of it there is no real and abiding good; it is the one authority for the faith.” (http://www.greatsite.com/timeline-english-bible-history/john-wycliffe.html).

A link to a very brief summary of “The “Early Version” of the “Wycliffe Bible”, hand-printed about 1382….”
is at http://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Wycliffe-Bible-WYC/.

Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
28 Forsooth if thou hearest the voice of thy Lord God, that thou do and keep all his commandments, which I command to thee today, thy Lord God shall make thee higher than all folks that live in earth. (But if thou hearest the voice of the Lord thy God, and do and obey all of his commandments, which I command to thee today, the Lord thy God shall raise thee up higher, that is, shall grant thee more favour, than all the other nations who live on the earth.)
Deuteronomy 20:29
29 Diverse things be hid, or privy, of our Lord God, that is, in his before-knowing, which things be showed to us, and to our sons (into) without end, that we do all the words of this law. (Some things be hid, or known only, by the Lord our God, that is, in his foreknowing, but other things be shown to us, and to our descendants into without end, so that we can do all the words of this law.)

Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
Psalm 98:1
Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
98 A psalm. Sing ye a new song to the Lord; for he hath done marvels. His right hand and his holy arm; hath made health to him. (A song. Sing ye a new song to the Lord; for he hath done marvellous deeds. His right hand, or his power, and his holy arm, have won him the victory.)

Proverbs 20:22
Wycliffe Bible (WYC)
22 Say thou not, I shall yield evil for evil; abide thou the Lord, and he shall deliver thee. (Say thou not, I shall give back evil for evil; wait thou for the Lord, and he shall save thee/and he shall rescue thee.)

[The Scriptures were copied and posted through the Wycliffe Bible at BibleGateway.com, Wycliffe Bible (WYC), 2001 by Terence P. Noble]

“Forsooth…Thy Lord God”

2014031
The wages of sexual sin are not to be laundered by bringing them to God.
I compare the wages of sexual sin, or any other sin,
to the results of God’s work in our lives in the love and power of the Holy Spirit.

The difference I see is the difference of eternal separation from God and
the fear and respect of God which yields a full and serene life now and beauty and holiness forever with God.

Deuteronomy 23:17-18
The Message (MSG)
17-18 No daughter of Israel is to become a sacred prostitute; and no son of Israel is to become a sacred prostitute. And don’t bring the fee of a sacred whore or the earnings of a priest-pimp to the house of God, your God, to pay for any vow—they are both an abomination to God, your God.

Psalm 93:5
The Message (MSG)
5 What you say goes—it always has.
“Beauty” and “Holy” mark your palace rule,
God, to the very end of time.

Proverbs 19:23
The Message (MSG)
23 Fear-of-God is life itself,
a full life, and serene—no nasty surprises.

The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

(Scriptures were copied and posted through BibleGateway.com.)

20140318
Can you imagine what difference would be made if a new groom spent one year off, “simply to be at home making his wife happy”?

Deuteronomy 24:5
The Message (MSG)
5 When a man takes a new wife, he is not to go out with the army or be given any business or work duties. He gets one year off simply to be at home making his wife happy.

Psalm 119:105
The Message (MSG)
105-112 By your words I can see where I’m going;
they throw a beam of light on my dark path.

Practicing God’s Word pays tremendous dividends,
especially with my good wife and even with my grown children.
I need to get better at that practice.

3 John 1:4
The Message (MSG)
Nothing could make me happier than getting reports that my children continue diligently in the way of Truth!

Psalm 90:16-17
The Message (MSG)
Let your servants see what you’re best at—
the ways you rule and bless your children.
And let the loveliness of our Lord, our God, rest on us,
confirming the work that we do.
Oh, yes. Affirm the work that we do!

Proverbs 18:1,22
The Message (MSG)
Words Kill, Words Give Life

18 Loners who care only for themselves
spit on the common good.
22 Find a good spouse, you find a good life—
and even more: the favor of God!

The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

(Scriptures were copied and pasted through BibleGateway.com)

20140211
The Israelites were told not to make covenants with the Canaanites. They were not even to let the Canaanites continue dwelling in their land. They were to drive them out and/or annihilate many of them, even including children, and keep absolutely none of the spoil for themselves in some instances (cf. Joshua 5-17-20). This was to keep them from worshiping “their gods.” Who were “their gods”? Any thing or any being that was given precedence over the one true and living God qualified as one of “their gods”, and aptly describes my sins against God also.

Praise God for His offer and covenant of mercy and grace through Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior. Praise God for the Holy Spirit, Who indwells me as a believer and gives me the strength to put God first, even though I often fail. Hallelujah! Amen!

Amplified Bible (AMP)
32 You shall make no covenant with them or with their gods.
33 They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.
Psalm 51:1-3

The Message (MSG)
A David Psalm, After He Was Confronted by Nathan About the Affair with Bathsheba

51 1-3 Generous in love—God, give grace!
Huge in mercy—wipe out my bad record.
Scrub away my guilt,
soak out my sins in your laundry.
I know how bad I’ve been;
my sins are staring me down.

Proverbs 7:7-8
Amplified Bible (AMP)
7 And among the simple (empty-headed and emptyhearted) ones, I perceived among the youths a young man void of good sense,
8 Sauntering through the street near the [loose woman’s] corner; and he went the way to her house.

(Scriptures were copied and posted through BibleGateway.com.)

20140210
God will pardon and forgive those who ask for His grace and mercy. He often lets us suffer the consequences of our sin. It is the “wonderful grace of Jesus” that sets us free from death, the eternal separation from God, the ultimate consequence of not trusting Him for forgiveness and salvation. Indeed, it is the

“Wonderful grace of Jesus, reaching the most defiled,
By its transforming power, making him God’s dear child.
Purchasing peace and pardon, setting my spirit free
For the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me.”

Look it up! Read it! Sing it! Share it! Wonderful grace of Jesus! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Exodus 32:32-34
The Message (MSG)
31-32 Moses went back to God and said, “This is terrible. This people has sinned—it’s an enormous sin! They made gods of gold for themselves. And now, if you will only forgive their sin. . . . But if not, erase me out of the book you’ve written.”

33-34 God said to Moses, “I’ll only erase from my book those who sin against me. For right now, you go and lead the people to where I told you. Look, my Angel is going ahead of you. On the day, though, when I settle accounts, their sins will certainly be part of the settlement.”Exodus 32:32-34

2 Corinthians 5:14-15
Amplified Bible (AMP)
14 For the love of Christ controls and urges and impels us, because we are of the opinion and conviction that [if] One died for all, then all died;
15 And He died for all, so that all those who live might live no longer to and for themselves, but to and for Him Who died and was raised again for their sake.

Psalm 50:14-15
Amplified Bible (AMP)
14 Offer to God the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High,
15 And call on Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall honor and glorify Me.
Psalm 50:23
Amplified Bible (AMP)
23 He who brings an offering of praise and thanksgiving honors and glorifies Me; and he who orders his way aright [who prepares the way that I may show him], to him I will demonstrate the salvation of God.

Proverbs 10:29
Amplified Bible (AMP)
29 The way of the Lord is strength and a stronghold to the upright, but it is destruction to the workers of iniquity.

(Scriptures were copied and posted through BibleGateway.com.)

20140209

What more could I say? God is the God of the Israelites, whether or not they trust Him or not.
He is my God and He is your God, whether or not we trust Him. Our trust is shown by our obedience from love. As the words of the old hymn, “only trust Him…He will save you.”

Exodus 29:45-46
The Message (MSG)
42-46 “This is to be your regular, daily Whole-Burnt-Offering before God, generation after generation, sacrificed at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. That’s where I’ll meet you; that’s where I’ll speak with you; that’s where I’ll meet the Israelites, at the place made holy by my Glory. I’ll make the Tent of Meeting and the Altar holy. I’ll make Aaron and his sons holy in order to serve me as priests. I’ll move in and live with the Israelites. I’ll be their God. They’ll realize that I am their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt so that I could live with them. I am God, your God.”Exodus 29:45-46

Psalm 41:3
The Message (MSG)
A David Psalm

41 1-3 Dignify those who are down on their luck;
you’ll feel good—that’s what God does.
God looks after us all,
makes us robust with life—
Lucky to be in the land,
we’re free from enemy worries.
Whenever we’re sick and in bed,
God becomes our nurse,
nurses us back to health.Psalm 43:3-4

Proverbs 9:9-10
Amplified Bible (AMP)
9 Give instruction to a wise man and he will be yet wiser; teach a righteous man (one upright and in right standing with God) and he will increase in learning.
10 The reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord is the beginning (the chief and choice part) of Wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight and understanding.Proverbs 9:9-10 (cf. Proverbs 8:13)

(Scriptures were copied and pasted through BibleGateway.com.)

20140208
The arc of the covenant was small. It carried the stone tablets with God’s commandments and Aaron’s rod which had grown and blossomed. To me, the items represent God’s covenant of unlimited mercy for all who will trust Him. Mercy, love, the fear of God, and wisdom or skilled living are some of the fruits of God’s infinite mercy in our lives.

Exodus 25:17
The Message (MSG)
10 “First let them make a Chest using acacia wood: make it three and three-quarters feet long and two and one-quarter feet wide and deep…..17 “Now make a lid of pure gold for the Chest, an Atonement-Cover, three and three-quarters feet long and two and one-quarter feet wide.
Psalm 36:5
The Message (MSG)
5-6 God’s love is meteoric,
his loyalty astronomic,
His purpose titanic,
his verdicts oceanic.
Yet in his largeness
nothing gets lost;
Not a man, not a mouse,
slips through the cracks.
Proverbs 8:13
The Message (MSG)
12-13 “I am Lady Wisdom, and I live next to Sanity;
Knowledge and Discretion live just down the street.
The Fear-of-GOD means hating Evil,
whose ways I hate with a passion—
pride and arrogance and crooked talk.
Proverbs 9:10
The Message (MSG)
Skilled living gets its start in the Fear-of-GOD,
insight into life from knowing a Holy God.

(Scriptures were copied and posted from BibleGateway.com.)

20140206
If I AM, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is not the only living, all-powerful, all-knowing, completely just and all-loving God, then I could see a relationship of allegiance, obedience, worship and love of another God as reasonable. God, I AM, is the only true God, but He desires a relationship from love, not law. God, the Father, sent His only Son to make reconciliation possible with Him through the working of the Holy Spirit. He deserves all of my love, worship, obedience, and allegiance–and He has given us the Holy Spirit to make that possible. We have an awesome God who loves and forgives us in spite of our willful failing and sin because of Jesus. Hallelujah!

Exodus 20:3
The Message (MSG)
3 No other gods, only me.

Psalm 30:11-12
The Message (MSG)
11-12 You did it: you changed wild lament
into whirling dance;
You ripped off my black mourning band
and decked me with wildflowers.
I’m about to burst with song;
I can’t keep quiet about you.
God, my God,
I can’t thank you enough.

Proverbs 6:16-19
The Message (MSG)
Seven Things God Hates

16-19 Here are six things God hates,
and one more that he loathes with a passion:
eyes that are arrogant,
a tongue that lies,
hands that murder the innocent,
a heart that hatches evil plots,
feet that race down a wicked track,
a mouth that lies under oath,
a troublemaker in the family.

(Scriptures were copied and pasted from BibleGateway.com.)