Taught by the Master
The LORD’s counsel is for those who fear Him, and His pact He makes known to them. Psalm 25:14 Robert Alter translation Makes known – God keeps secrets. He just doesn’t keep them from those He calls His own. The counsel of YHWH is the Hebrew word sod. You will recognize it as the last…
Messianic Expansion
His life will repose in bounty, and his seed will inherit the earth. Psalm 25:13 Robert Alter translation Will inherit – When the ESV, NIV, NLT and NASB choose to translate ‘erets as “land,” we miss the vital connection between David’s poetry and Yeshua’s beatitude. Translators may sometimes be justified in choosing “land” rather than…
Unsubscribe Warning
Recently I have received several requests from readers to add them back to the Today’s Word email list after they suddenly stopped getting the daily email. Upon investigation, I discovered that they had “unsubscribed.” But they really didn’t! What happened is that they forwarded the email to someone else and that person didn’t like it…
The Holy Spirit in the Tanakh
Whosoever the man who fears the LORD, He will guide him in the way he should choose. Psalm 25:12 Robert Alter translation Guide – “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will…
The Answer
For the sake of Your name, O LORD, may You forgive my crime, which is great. Psalm 25:11 Robert Alter translation For the sake of – Why does God forgive? What benefit accrues to Him for this act? He has nothing to gain by forgiving those who despise and resist Him. There is no guarantee…
Backtracking
All the LORD’s paths are kindness and truth for the keepers of His pact and His precepts. Psalm 25:10 Robert Alter translation All – Do you really believe that all of YHWH’s ways are kindness and truth? Are you just as likely to proclaim this with David when the plane crashes and everyone is killed,…
Beneficiaries
All the LORD’s paths are kindness and truth for the keepers of His pact and His precepts. Psalm 25:10 Robert Alter translation Keepers – Think of the covenant like a trust fund with conditions. All of God’s kindness and truth is available as a result of the trust He established. But the benefits aren’t for…
The Third Beatitude
He leads the lowly in justice and teaches the lowly His way. Psalm 25:9 Robert Alter translation Lowly – “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” So reads the usual translation of Yeshua’s third Beatitude. A direct quote from Psalm 37:11, the key word is ‘anawim (the meek, the humble, the lowly)…
