For a full description of the (Y4) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Lev. 27
I’ve been trying to make sense of this business of vows and valuations. Best I can figure, this is a great example of what I wrote about yesterday. God knows the fickleness of our human hearts and provided a way out. A vow was evidently a promise of self or possession to God, presumably in exchange for His blessing. I think we’re all familiar with how people tend to strike bargains with God when they’re in a tight spot. And that is likely just one of many situations that drive us to make rash promises to God.
Jesus actually spoke against making such oaths in His Sermon on the Mount, saying that anything beyond a simple “yes” or “no” is evil. But we humans do what we do. And God knows that our actions more often than not lead to regret. So God made provisions to ransom the subjects of such hasty promises. Thus, I see these valuations as a provision of grace in God’s Law. In light of Jesus’ later comments, I also see a lesson in the consequences of evil. Because everything has value, our evil actions come at a cost. Furthermore, the cost of redemption due to our evil goes above and beyond original value. And that’s where I see Jesus, who gave His life because of our evil, giving us the high value of the redeemed.
Ps. 34
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken.” (Ps. 34:19-20). This is a prophecy of Jesus, the Righteous One. He carried the afflictions of the entire world – past, present, and future – with Him to the cross. And God delivered Him from them all. So now, “The LORD redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.” (Ps. 34:22). This is the truth for all who believe in who Jesus is and what He did. As Paul wrote to the Romans, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Rom. 8:1).
Ecc. 10
“Dead flies make a perfumer’s oil stink, so a little foolishness is weightier than wisdom and honor.” (Ecc. 10:1). It is easy to corrupt or defile something good. A single fly can do it. And we humans excel at it. It is often impossible, however, to redeem the corrupt or cleanse the defiled. Simply removing the dead fly from the perfume won’t fix it. Thank God that nothing is impossible for Him. He does what all the wisdom, honor, riches, and power on earth cannot. He redeems us fully, giving us a clean heart, a new spirit, and a pure life. Hallelujah!