DAY 239 Read Psalms 74 and 79; Lamentations 1 and 2.
Today's reading: The two psalms may be the product of Jeremiah or some other writer of this period; they vividly reflect the anguish experienced at this time.
Memory gem: "Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake" (Psalm 79:9).
Thought for today:
"The sorrow of the prophet over the utter perversity of those who should have been the spiritual light of the world, his sorrow over the fate of Zion and of the people carried captive to Babylon, is revealed in the lamentations he has left on record as a memorial of the folly of turning from the councils of Jehovah to human wisdom. Amid the ruin wrought, Jeremiah could still declare, 'It is of the Lord's mercy that we are not consumed' and his constant prayer was, 'Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the Lord.' Lamentations 3:22, 40.
"While Judah was still a kingdom among the nations, he had inquired of his God, 'Hast Thou utterly rejected Judah? hath Thy soul loathed Zion?'...'Do not abhor us, for Thy name's sake.' Jeremiah 14:19, 21. The prophet's absolute faith in God's eternal purpose to bring order out of confusion, and to demonstrate to the nations of earth and to the entire universe His attributes of justice and love, now led him to plead confidently in behalf of those who might turn from evil to righteousness.
"But now Zion was utterly destroyed; the people of God were in their captivity. Overwhelmed with grief, the prophet exclaimed: 'How doth the city sit solitary that was full of people! how is she become as a widow!' Lamentations 1:1."--Prophets and Kings, pp. 461, 462.
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Difficult or obscure words:
Psalm 74:13, 14. "Dragons" and "leviathan"--evidently symbolic references to the destruction of Egypt's armies in the Red Sea at the Exodus.
Lamentations 1:7. "Sabbaths"--a Hebrew word found only here in the Scriptures. It is not the word used frequently for "sabbaths" in other places. It more likely means a forced activity.
Lamentations 2:20. "Of a span long"--another word occurring nowhere else. It may mean something desired or cherished.
Today's reading: The two psalms may be the product of Jeremiah or some other writer of this period; they vividly reflect the anguish experienced at this time.
Memory gem: "Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake" (Psalm 79:9).
Thought for today:
"The sorrow of the prophet over the utter perversity of those who should have been the spiritual light of the world, his sorrow over the fate of Zion and of the people carried captive to Babylon, is revealed in the lamentations he has left on record as a memorial of the folly of turning from the councils of Jehovah to human wisdom. Amid the ruin wrought, Jeremiah could still declare, 'It is of the Lord's mercy that we are not consumed' and his constant prayer was, 'Let us search and try our ways, and turn again to the Lord.' Lamentations 3:22, 40.
"While Judah was still a kingdom among the nations, he had inquired of his God, 'Hast Thou utterly rejected Judah? hath Thy soul loathed Zion?'...'Do not abhor us, for Thy name's sake.' Jeremiah 14:19, 21. The prophet's absolute faith in God's eternal purpose to bring order out of confusion, and to demonstrate to the nations of earth and to the entire universe His attributes of justice and love, now led him to plead confidently in behalf of those who might turn from evil to righteousness.
"But now Zion was utterly destroyed; the people of God were in their captivity. Overwhelmed with grief, the prophet exclaimed: 'How doth the city sit solitary that was full of people! how is she become as a widow!' Lamentations 1:1."--Prophets and Kings, pp. 461, 462.
----------------
Difficult or obscure words:
Psalm 74:13, 14. "Dragons" and "leviathan"--evidently symbolic references to the destruction of Egypt's armies in the Red Sea at the Exodus.
Lamentations 1:7. "Sabbaths"--a Hebrew word found only here in the Scriptures. It is not the word used frequently for "sabbaths" in other places. It more likely means a forced activity.
Lamentations 2:20. "Of a span long"--another word occurring nowhere else. It may mean something desired or cherished.
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