Scripture and Ephrem the Syrian

From Cloister Walk by Kathleen Norris.

Scripture brought me to the gate of paradise, and the mind stood in wonder as it entered.

p. xxi.

Psalm 111

Psalm 111:4 reads:

He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered; the Lord is gracious and merciful.

Psalm 78:4

We will not hide them from their children, but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done.

God's work and Man's rule

In Psalms 8:6-8

You make him to rule over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
All sheep and oxen,
And also the beasts of the field,
The birds of the heavens and the fish of the sea,
Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

(NASB)

This just re-iterates what it says in Gen. 1:26

Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

(NASB)

Animals are under our dominion and they our responsibility. They are for our use, but they are also under our care. We should not place them equal to us, but neither should we treat them cruelly. Animals are the work of God and thus, should be treated with respect.

Nehemiah and Work II

When the wall of Jerusalem was finished in spite of the opposition of the surrounding nations. Nehemiah reports this reaction.

And when all our enemies heard of it, all the nations around us were afraid and fell greatly in their own esteem, for they perceived that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.

Nehemiah 6:16 (ESV)

I have to think about this passage's implications. I tend to doubt people should use this verse to support their building programs.

Nehemiah and work

All the returned exiles were rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem. Each tribe was assigned a section. The author of Nehemiah noted this attitude among the Tekoites.

And next to them the Tekoites repaired, but their nobles would not stoop to serve their Lord.

Nehemiah 3:5 (ESV)

This was a great work, but since it was manual labor, the nobles of the Tekoites would not stoop to serve the Lord. Wow. What arrogance! May we all be willing to stoop to server our Lord.

Edwards and Affections

If the great things of religion are rightly understood, they will affect the heart. The reason why men are not affected by such infinitely great, important, glorious, and wonderful things, as they often hear and read of in the Word of God, is undoubtedly because they are blind; if they were not so, it would be impossible, and utterly inconsistent with human nature, that their hearts should be otherwise than strongly impressed, and greatly moved by such things.

p. 50. Religious Affections

One of the treasures that abound in Edwards's writings.

Uzziah and Prosperity

2 Chronicles 26:3-5

Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God, and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.

(ESV).

Again, can we really translate what God did for a godly king of Judah to the Church?

Work and Jehoshaphat

2 Chronicles 20:35-37

After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah allied himself with Ahaziah king of Israel. He acted wickedly in so doing. So he allied himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion-geber. Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat saying, "Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the LORD has destroyed your works." So the ships were broken and could not go to Tarshish.

(NASB)

Because Jehoshaphat allied himself with Ahaziah and did not trust the Lord, the Lord destroyed his works.

Asa and Work (2 Chronicles).

2 Chronicles 15:1-7.

The Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded, and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, "Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The LORD is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. For a long time Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest and without law, but when in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them. In those times there was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for great disturbances afflicted all the inhabitants of the lands. They were broken in pieces. Nation was crushed by nation and city by city, for God troubled them with every sort of distress. But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded."

Is this promise for us? Asa and his people were in the process of rebuilding the walled cities and fighting the invaders. They sought to restore Judah back to its former glory.

God given Wisdom

And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom which God had put into his mind. (ESV) II Chron. 9:22

God's wisdom can be attractive to the world rulers.

Levites and Work (Numbers 8)

In Numbers 8:11:

When you bring the Levites before the LORD, the people of Israel shall lay their hands on the Levites, and Aaron shall offer the Levites before the LORD as a wave offering from the people of Israel, that they may do the service of the LORD. (ESV)

Aaron presented the Levites as a wave offering to God before the people of Israel so that the Levites can do the "work" or "service" of the Lord. In Leviticus 23:7, the wave offering is defined as what is done with the first sheaf of wheat of the harvest and how it is to be presented to the Lord.

I have to think about how this relates to work and the Lord's work.

Luther on Work

Alister McGrath in First Things.
"In this view, Christians were called to be priests to the world, purifying and sanctifying its everyday life from within. Luther stated this point succinctly when commenting on Genesis 13:13: "What seem to be secular works are actually the praise of God and represent an obedience which is well-pleasing to him." (http://www.firstthings.com/article.php3?id_article=3175)

Hannah and Work

In I Samuel 2:7-8
The LORD makes poor and makes rich;
he brings low and he exalts.
He raises up the poor from the dust;
he lifts the needy from the ash heap
to make them sit with princes
and inherit a seat of honor.
For the pillars of the earth are the LORD’s,
and on them he has set the world.

This is part of the prayer that Hannah prayed after she gave birth to Samuel and brought him to the temple for him to serve there. One's economic status is totally dependent on God.

Charles Preuss and Work

I went to a Sarah Vowell talk last night. She spent quite a bit of time on Charles Preuss. Pruess was the cartographer on three Fremont expeditions. His maps were key to the United States's expansion into the West. He was very good at making beautiful maps with side notes that provided useful information for pioneers. He found his calling, Sarah said, but he hated life in the frontier. To do the work he loved, he had to live in a way he hated. For health reasons, he gave up the expeditions at age 50. He committed suicide in 1854.

Moses and the celebration of Work

Deuteronomy 16 13-15

“You shall celebrate the Feast of Booths seven days after you have gathered in from your threshing floor and your wine vat; and you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your towns.

“Seven days you shall celebrate a feast to the LORD your God in the place which the LORD chooses, because the LORD your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you will be altogether joyful.

NASB

Celebration, Productivity, God's Blessing, Joy and Work are all tied together in this passage.

I did some research on "altogether joyful." The emphasis was on community according to this one commentator. The celebration was elaborate and each Israelite was responsible to be joyful and to make every one in Israel joyful on this occasion. The celebration was a thanksgivings to God for His bountiful provision and His acts of salvation in the past.

The priests garments in exodus

Exodus 28

28:1 “And you, bring near to you your brother Aaron and his sons with him from among the Israelites, so that they may minister as my priests – Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons. 28:2 You must make holy garments for your brother Aaron, for glory and for beauty. 28:3 You are to speak to all who are specially skilled, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, so that they may make Aaron’s garments to set him apart to minister as my priest. 28:4 Now these are the garments that they are to make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a fitted tunic, a turban, and a sash. They are to make holy garments for your brother Aaron and for his sons, that they may minister as my priests. 28:5 The artisans are to use the gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine linen.

28:6 “They are to make the ephod of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twisted linen, the work of an artistic designer. 28:7 It is to have two shoulder pieces attached to two of its corners, so it can be joined together. 28:8 The artistically woven waistband of the ephod that is on it is to be like it, of one piece with the ephod, 18 of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twisted linen.

28:9 “You are to take two onyx stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, 28:10 six of their names on one stone, and the six remaining names on the second stone, according to the order of their birth. 28:11 You are to engrave the two stones with the names of the sons of Israel with the work of an engraver in stone, like the engravings of a seal; you are to have them set in gold filigree settings. 28:12 You are to put the two stones on the shoulders of the ephod, stones of memorial for the sons of Israel, and Aaron will bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders for a memorial. 28:13 You are to make filigree settings of gold 28:14 and two braided chains of pure gold, like a cord, and attach the chains to the settings.

28:15 “You are to make a breastpiece for use in making decisions, the work of an artistic designer; you are to make it in the same fashion as the ephod; you are to make it of gold, blue, purple, scarlet, and fine twisted linen. 28:16 It is to be square when doubled, nine inches long and nine inches wide. 28:17 You are to set in it a setting for stones, four rows of stones, a row with a ruby, a topaz, and a beryl – the first row; 28:18 and the second row, a turquoise, a sapphire, and an emerald; 28:19 and the third row, a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst; 28:20 and the fourth row, a chrysolite, an onyx, and a jasper. They are to be enclosed in gold in their filigree settings. 28:21 The stones are to be for the names of the sons of Israel, twelve, according to the number of their names. Each name according to the twelve tribes is to be like the engravings of a seal.

28:22 “You are to make for the breastpiece braided chains like cords of pure gold, 28:23 and you are to make for the breastpiece two gold rings and attach the two rings to the upper two ends of the breastpiece. 28:24 You are to attach the two gold chains to the two rings at the ends of the breastpiece; 28:25 the other two ends of the two chains you will attach to the two settings and then attach them to the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front of it. 28:26 You are to make two rings of gold and put them on the other two ends of the breastpiece, on its edge that is on the inner side of the ephod. 28:27 You are to make two more gold rings and attach them to the bottom of the two shoulder pieces on the front of the ephod, close to the juncture above the waistband of the ephod. 28:28 They are to tie the breastpiece by its rings to the rings of the ephod by blue cord, so that it may be above the waistband of the ephod, and so that the breastpiece will not be loose from the ephod. 28:29 Aaron will bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of decision over his heart when he goes into the holy place, for a memorial before the Lord continually.

28:30 “You are to put the Urim and the Thummim into the breastpiece of decision; and they are to be over Aaron’s heart when he goes in before the Lord. Aaron is to bear the decisions of the Israelites over his heart before the Lord continually.

28:31 “You are to make the robe of the ephod completely blue. 28:32 There is to be an opening in its top in the center of it, with an edge all around the opening, the work of a weaver, like the opening of a collar, so that it cannot be torn. 28:33 You are to make pomegranates of blue, purple, and scarlet all around its hem and bells of gold between them all around. 28:34 The pattern is to be a gold bell and a pomegranate, a gold bell and a pomegranate, all around the hem of the robe. 28:35 The robe is to be on Aaron as he ministers, and his sound will be heard when he enters the Holy Place before the Lord and when he leaves, so that he does not die.

28:36 “You are to make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it the way a seal is engraved: “Holiness to the Lord.” 28:37 You are to attach to it a blue cord so that it will be on the turban; it is to be on the front of the turban, 28:38 It will be on Aaron’s forehead, and Aaron will bear the iniquity of the holy things, which the Israelites are to sanctify by all their holy gifts; it will always be on his forehead, for their acceptance 61 before the Lord. 28:39 You are to weave the tunic of fine linen and make the turban of fine linen, and make the sash the work of an embroiderer.

I've been reading through the Bible fairly consistently. My wife encourages me to read aloud to her. Last night I was reading the above passage aloud to my wife rather quickly. I didn't think I would get anything from this passage. However, notice the picture of the priestly garments. The names of the tribes of Israel are over the priests' hearts. In front of the priests' head is inscribed on a plate, "Holiness to the Lord." This is obviously worth more study. The judgement of the sons of Israel is over the priest's heart. The "Holiness of God" is at the forefront of his head. Oh, what a picture of Christ.

Never take any passage of scripture for granted.

Moses and Rest

Exodus 31:12-25

The Lord said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘Surely you must keep my Sabbaths, 14 for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you. So you must keep the Sabbath, for it is holy for you. Everyone who defiles it must surely be put to death; indeed, if anyone does any work on it, then that person will be cut off from among his people. Six days work may be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; anyone who does work on the Sabbath day must surely be put to death. The Israelites must keep the Sabbath by observing the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between me and the Israelites forever; for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.’”

Notice the polymorphism. I'm not sure how God is refreshed, but His example on the pace of work is very interesting.

Standing before Kings and Work

Do you see a man skilled in his work?
He will serve before kings;
he will not serve before obscure men.

Proverbs 22:29

I always thought "standing before kings" would be a good thing and it is. However, the movie Chariots of Fire brought forth a different slant on this proverb for me. Eric Liddell was a very skilled runner, but I am sure he did not enjoy standing before the crowned prince of England. The prince was encouraging Eric to run on Sunday in the Olympics. This task Liddell would not do and had to say no. This standing before kings may be an honor, but it may be that you will have to honor God before the princes of this world and only receive honor from God in eternity.

Lewis on Old Books

A quote from C. S. Lewis from his introduction to "On The Incarnation" by Athanasius.

It is a good rule, after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between. If that is too much for you, you should at least read one old one to every three new ones.

He was arguing on how to prevent chronological snobbery in oneself.

Chariots of Fire and Work

In one of my all time favorite movies, Eric Liddell was debating about whether to continue running or go to the overseas mission in China. His counselors advised him:

"run in God's name and let the world stand back in wonder."

Of course, there is the famous quote where Liddell is trying to convince his sister that he should compete in races,

"But I've got a lot of running to do first. Jennie... Jennie... you've got to understand. I believe that God made me for a purpose... for China. But He also made me fast, and when I run, I feel His pleasure.... To win is to honor Him."