“Deliver me from all my transgressions; make me not the reproach of the foolish.” Psalm 39:8 NASB Reproach – David’s song reaches a crescendo. It starts with silence, then proceeds to murmur, explodes in what appears to be judgment, but swiftly turns into an indictment of humanity and a personal disclosure. The audience is kept off guard, reeling…
“And now, Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You.” Psalm 39:7 NASB For what – Remember the punctuation. Hebrew doesn’t have any. So the phrase, ma(h)-q-qiwwiti, could be a question or it could be a statement, like, “I wait for.” Or it could be, “Now, Lord, what. I wait.” The verb is qāwâ,…
I have something to give to everyone in the community. You can CLICK HERE to get it. I hope you find it a blessing. Skip
“Surely every man walks about as a phantom; surely they make an uproar for nothing; he amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.” Psalm 39:6 NASB Phantom– Perhaps we should credit David as the original author of “The Walking Dead.” Certainly he paints that picture. Men are but wisps of wind in the eternal night. Their lives amount…
Well, the 2019 “Where’s Skip” calendar is ready. CLICK HERE for the itinerary of events. As you will see, there are fewer conferences in the USA, so if you want to talk in person, you might have to travel a bit. Hope to see you. Skip
“Behold, You have made my days as handbreadths, and my lifetime as nothing in Your sight; surely every man at his best is a mere breath.” Selah. Psalm 39:5 NASB Ecclesiastes is a thorough examination of life from inside the box. The result: get it while you can! Most scholars believe that the epilogue, those last few verses that attempt to redeem the…
“Lord, make me to know my end and what is the extent of my days; let me know how transient I am.” Psalm 39:4 NASB Make me know – The Jewish Bible translates this opening phrase as “I would know when I will cease.” The verb is familiar, yādaʿ, used 944 times in the Tanakh for virtually every…
My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue: Psalm 39:3 NASB Hot, musing, burned– The NASB translation of this psalm adds the title, “The Vanity of Life.” The choice is probably based on similarities between Ecclesiastes and the words in verses 5 and 6. But the title distracts…
I was mute and silent, I refrained even from good, and my sorrow grew worse; Psalm 39:2 NASB Grew worse – Let’s make sure we read this in a Hebraic context. In the Western world, sorrow is usually an internal, personal experience. It would probably be located in the “sad” dimension of the “feelings wheel,” right along with stupid, inferior,…
I was mute and silent, I refrained even from good, and my sorrow grew worse; Psalm 39:2 NASB Refrained– David feels as if his voice is tied down. He wants to say something in the face of this evil, but he doesn’t know how. As a result, something even more debilitating happens. He discovers that when he doesn’t speak up…
