I, Wisdom, dwell in shrewdness, and cunning knowledge I find. Fear of the LORD is hating evil. Proverbs 8:12-13a Robert Alter Shrewdness/ Cunning – Perhaps you’re more familiar with the typical English translations of this verse, like the NASB, “I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.” Unfortunately, such translations miss an…
“What are your many sacrifices to Me?” says the Lord. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened cattle; and I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs, or goats.” Isaiah 1:11 NASB I have had enough – The Hebrew word (śābēaʿ) has two connotations. The first is about…
Listen to instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. Proverbs 8:33 NASB Listen – “The strength of the yetzer ha-ra is precisely in convincing us that we do not need these words or instruction because we are above believing in such simple notions as reward and punishment.”[1] How’s your spiritual IQ? Pretty good, right? …
To know wisdom and reproof, to understand discerning maxims. To accept the reproof of insight, righteousness, justice, and uprightness. To give shrewdness to the simple, to a lad, knowledge and cunning, Let the wise man hear and gain learning, and the discerning acquire designs. Proverbs 1:2-5 Robert Alter Reproof – Reconsider the context of that…
Through all this Job did not sin nor did he blame God. Job 1:22 NASB 1995 Nor did he blame – But the Hebrew isn’t quite what we think of when we read these words in English. We think of “blame” as assigning responsibility or finding fault. So, in our Western theology, if God is…
One who gives a right answer kisses the lips. Proverbs 24:26 NASB Right answer – What an odd saying! What does giving the correct answer have to do with a kiss? It’s almost as if the entire verse is idiomatic. And many translations take it that way. So, we get: “An honest answer is the…
A day off for me. This is where I will spend some of it.
You too, be ready; because the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not think He will.” Luke 12:40 NASB Be ready – The March 29 edition of My Utmost for His Highest could have been written by Moses Luzzatto rather than Oswald Chambers (with a few corrections for Christian vocabulary). Chambers…
The eyes of the Lord are in every place, watching the evil and the good. Proverbs 15:3 NASB Eyes of the Lord – Is God everywhere? Does He “see” everything? Answers to these questions are straightforward for most believers. The doctrine has the official title “Omnipresence.” It simply means that God is present in all His creation. There…
Greet also the church that meets at their house. Greet my dear friend Epenetus, Romans 16:5a NIV Church – [The following introduction to our idea of “church” was written many, many years ago when At God’s Table was just beginning. Now, two decades later, we are about to discover something else concerning the purpose of the…
