Psalm 119:65

Psalm 119:65

Do good to Your servant

We’re already at the ninth letter of the Hebrew alphabet and it is Teth. It’s a mysterious letter because it reveals both good and evil. For instance, when God created all things, Genesis tells us that everything that He did was Teth (good) however, Teth allows for the perversion of good to evil, it recognises that God uses evil in the universe for His good purposes. It’s complicated!

The above theme is continued in the verse before us, if the psalmist pleads for the Lord to do good to him, there is some allowance for the possibility that He could permit bad! This was a reflection of the widely held belief that all things were in God’s hands, that He had the ability to make good happen but then evil could not take place unless He allowed it! I guess this is all about what we view as good. Looking back over my own life, there have been some very tough times, some dark valleys and some moments when nothing seems to have gone right. It could be argued that God withdrew, that He ceased to “do good to His servant’ and yet, looking back, it is now possible to say that He was always with me. The dark places taught me a great deal about myself and about His loving care – He used the darkness to reveal His light. 

It is, of course, true to say that the Word of God is good and teaches us good, but when we think about it, the only reason we need to be shown good is that evil exists and most of us are predisposed to pursue sinful ways rather than God’s ways. When God created light and saw that it was good, it was because darkness already existed. God made light good, He separated it from the darkness; in so doing He exposed the dark for what it really is. That is Teth!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Psalm 106:13

Psalm 106:13 Do not forget We need to remember that Israel’s relationship with the Lord God was based on His laws and their obedience. It was possible for them to live lives that were highly blessed, that incorporated the provision of God in every tiny detail of their national and individual existence. God was prepared to give them everything they needed, He would provide food and water for them and their flocks. He would guide them on their journey. He would protect them from their enemies. He would inspire and direct their leaders. He would keep them from the heat of the sun and the terrors of the desert night. He would take them to the land that He had promised, in double quick time. There was no reason why they could not be in situ in just a few months. Everything they could possibly need was His to provide and He was willing to sacrifice anything to see them gratefully settled in Canaan.  There was just one snag, it all depended upon their obedience and faithfulness. God insis...
Read more

Psalm 51:4

Psalm 51:4 Deliberate sin In Genesis 20 we read the story of Abimelek and Abraham. The latter had passed off his wife Sarah as his sister and Abimelek had taken her with a view to her becoming his wife. The relationship was not consummated, and the Lord used a dream to reveal to Abimelek just what was going on. The insulted king pleaded innocence,  “I have done this with a clear conscience and clean hands ” he said, to the Lord. And God agreed,  “Yes, I know you did this with a clear conscience, and so I have kept you from sinning against me.”  This is a big subject but there is clearly a difference between sinful intentions and deeds where the participant knows that he/she is doing wrong, and those occasions where an action is carried out in innocence.  David knew all along that every detail of his relationship with Bathsheba was sinful, as were his actions in the cover-up. Therefore, he sinned against the Lord God and broke the commandments which said that  “Y...
Read more

Psalm 106:30

Psalm 106:30 Well done Phineas! As we saw in the previous verses, it was Phinehas, the grandson of Aaron the High Priest, who intervened and brought God’s wrath upon the couple who brazenly had a sexual liaison in an Israelite’s tent. The judgement of Phinehas was brutal, he rammed a spear through both bodies and brought instant death upon them. But his actions stemmed the wrath of God, the plague that had killed 24,000 Israelites ended and peace and normality returned to the Camp. The Lord said to Moses that  “Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, the priest, has turned my anger away from the Israelites.”  (Numbers 25:11) The Lord then vindicated Phinehas for his actions.  “Since he was as zealous for my honour among them as I am, I did not put an end to them in my zeal. Therefore tell him I am making my covenant of peace with him. He and his descendants will have a covenant of lasting priesthood, because he was zealous for the honour of his God and made atonement f...
Read more