The steps of a man are ordered from YHWH, and He will delight in his way.  Though he falls, he will not be cast down, for YHWH upholds his hand. Psalm 37:23-24

Falls – Are you a person who delights in the Lord?  Do you seek Him and serve Him?  Are the steps of your way ordered by YHWH?  Then you are geber, a unique individual in a world of chaotic indulgence and addictive power.  God delights in you.

But what happens when you fall?

The Tanakh is the most realistic training manual ever written.  It never minimizes responsibility or culpability.  At the same time, it never overlooks the failures of even the most righteous among us.  Every follower of the Way falls down sometime.  The Tanakh never glosses this fact nor attempts to obscure its devastating effects.  Instead, the Bible offers a guaranteed recovery plan, one that begins with a statement of the unwavering grace of God.  The righteous man or woman will not be cut off.  Why not?  Doesn’t the action deserve punishment?  Isn’t sin hideous to God?  Isn’t the relationship broken?  The history of God’s interactions with Israel paint a picture of hope, not despair.  God does not let go.  We might release our grip on His hand but He will not.  YHWH lifts us back up.

Two crucial lessons may be derived from this fact.  The first lesson is practical.  How we got into the ditch is not as important as how we get out.  Every addict knows that it will take a lifetime of counseling to discover why human beings choose fatal behaviors.  But the addict in recovery knows that getting out of the ditch is all that matters in the end.  Action means getting up, grabbing hold of God’s hand again, and getting out of the ditch.

The second crucial lesson is theological.  It is the geber who discovers God’s hand has not let go.  It is the man who is vigorous for God, ready to follow, willing to face his mortality and finitude, desiring to be redeemed and ready to answer.  God does not let go of those who seek Him even if they should fall.  Why?  Because they have already exhibited a life of submission to His steps.  This is not the same as the man (not geber) whose path was never ordered by the Lord in the first place.  Proclaiming God’s apparent guarantee without previously walking according to His directions will gain nothing.  It is past faithfulness that guarantees present recovery.

I fall down.  It’s like the nursery rhyme.  “Ashes, ashes, we all fall down.”  The song recounts the results of the Plague in the middle ages, but it is true in the spiritual sense as well.  We all fall down.  Even geberim fall down – as the author of the psalm certainly knew from personal experience.  But falling down is not the end.  Those who already know the peace of waiting on the Lord will discover samak, the action of sustaining, upholding or supporting.  Quite important is the fact the samak is also the action of laying a hand on the sacrificial animal.  Add that to your imagery of God upholding you.  Naphal (to fall) is followed by samak (to be upheld).  That’s God’s recovery plan.

Topical Index:  fall, naphal, uphold, samak, Psalm 37:23-24