Your ways, O LORD, inform me, your paths, instruct me. Psalm 25:4 Robert Alter translation Ways/paths – GPS is such a blessing. Just put in the address, press the NAV button, and both map and voice direct me to my destination. Now I only get lost when the guidance map is out of date. Amazingly,…
Happy those who keep justice, who do righteousness at all times. Psalm 106:3 (Robert Alter translation) At all times – “If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands. If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands. If you’re happy and you know it then your life will surely show it.” So…
but Israel, pursuing a law of righteousness, did not arrive at that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as though it were by works. Romans 9: 31-32a NASB By – How are we supposed to live? By faith, of course. But what does that mean? Paul cites Habakkuk in the…
If you know that He is righteous, you know that every one also who practices righteousness is born of Him. 1 John 2:29 NASB Righteous – This is about as close as John comes to describing “born again.” But John’s focus is not on the experience of forgiveness. He focuses on the practice of righteousness. …
Nevertheless I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him ruler all the days of his life, for the sake of My servant David whom I chose, who observed My commandments and My statutes; 1 Kings 11:34 NASB For the sake of – Let’s see now. The usual…
Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, “I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. Then I will take you for My people, and I…
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Matthew 5:6 ESV Hunger and thirst – Are we starving for God? It’s not an easy question to answer. We are inclined to say “Yes” as soon as we hear the question but maybe we need a deeper look into ourselves…
for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. Romans 10:10 NASB Resulting – You’ll need to read a few other English translations of this verse to see the issue. “For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses…
Better is a little with righteousness than great income with injustice. Proverbs 16:8 Injustice – Some things we can do without. This proverb tells us that one of those things is belo mishpat. We can do without “without justice.” While our translation provides us with the correct English equivalent, the Hebrew thought is made up…
And because he put his trust in YHWH, He reckoned it to his merit. Genesis 15:6 (JPS translation) To – Yesterday we looked at the passage in Deuteronomy that suggests our meritorious deeds matter. We discovered that tsedaqah (righteousness) is a very old expression of God’s accounting. But one further point must be made. In…
