Michelle
So this appears to me to be an accounting of the descendants of Noah and them being scattered across the earth. I am not sure the relevance of knowing this other than maybe some of them come into play later as there are a few names that seem familiar that may be in later portions of the bible. Also that God said he wanted them to multiply and they show here that is what has been done.
Something that did stand out to me in today's reading is in chapter 11. When I first read this I was confused. It shows the people working together to build something and then the Lord looks down on them and decides they need to be scattered and he says, "If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing is impossible for them." But then he goes on to say he wants to confuse their language so they can't understand each other. Like working together looks like it should be a good thing but he thinks it's not and wants to scatter them even more. When I went back and read it again I realized something. Verse 4 says that the people wanted to build themselves a city, so that they may make a name for themselves. So at this point they are no longer honoring God but only thinking of themselves. I didn't catch this at first and it bothered me that God didn't want people to work together for the good of all. Then reading it again I realized, it's not that he doesn't want that, but the driving force behind it should be to do the good for each other and to honor God in our ways, not to build a name for ourselves and to show so much vanity. At that point they were no longer focused on God but on what they could do for themselves.
Psalm 5. So I have found in reading the bible that I have to get out the dictionary more often than I do any other time. There have been words that confuse me. Not because I haven't heard them but that I just don't always understand the context. Lament is that word today. So in looking this up it gives two meanings based on usage but they basically are the same meaning. Noun reads, a passionate expression of grief or sorrow, verb reads, mourn (such as a person's loss or death.) Now when I first started this journey, I was deeply grieving over mom's death. As the time has passed and my faith and understanding have changed, I understand that there are varying types of lament or grief and they can be applied to so many areas of life. As I look back at some things I have gone thru in life, there are times when I grieved over other things, I just didn't see it as that at the time. But you can have lament over so many things. Losing someone important to you is just a very strong one and that is where most people, as I was, have shown it. But this psalm seems to be asking the Lord to be with them in their lament. They are asking the Lord to be with them in their struggles and trials of life. Asking protection for those who rejoice in the Lord, surrounding them with a shield. I think this could be a prayer said regularly at this time we are living in. There is so much going on and people are so easily swayed to the dark side of things. I know I struggle with that side every day. This might be one to bookmark and to refer to daily. When the darkness creeps in I need to make sure I am asking for protection and guidance to stay on the right path.
Julie
Michelle, I am with you on the first part of today's reading. I think it is just an explanation of how belongs to which line and where they have spread out and populated.
I also had the same confusion with chapter 11 and even in the explanation I was not able to understand how they go to that until I read what you wrote and then I went back and read it again. (I need to be better about doing that). Yes, God could see that they were turning to themselves again and as a protection from having them come together so easily he confused the languages. Obviously, over time that has changed quite a bit, but at the time it seems to have been a type of defense that would hopefully form factions that would have differing ideas as well.
With Psalm 5 I think that we have to remember that enemies and persecutors can come in all forms. I think that you coming to a realization that in your grief you were doing the same thing, but felt justified in wallowing in it, which I believe we tend to do. We feel that if we do not hold on to that grief then we forgetting her in some way. I love how you applied this to things you have been struggling with and that you are able to find some peace in these words. We need protection from so many things and we need to remember that we have the armor of God at our fingertips and in our hearts if we just choose to don it. Your interpretation and understanding of this Psalm has encourage me to look at it in those moments of attack and to remind myself of God's protection.
No comments:
Post a Comment