Praying Pint

Deu 33:22  And of Dan he said, “Dan is a lion’s cub that leaps from Bashan.”

This may not be a complimentary phrase. History records that Dan was a troublesome tribe. They were the tribe to introduce idolatry into Israel (Judges 18:30); Jeroboam set up one of his idolatrous golden calves in Dan (1 Kings 12:26-30), and later Dan became a center of idol worship in Israel (Amos 8:14). Indeed, Jacob said of Dan in Genesis 49:17, Dan shall be a serpent by the way. (Guzik)

Dan is a lion’s whelp; or like one for boldness, strength, and courage; and was verified in Samson, who was of this tribe; who, when a young lion roared against him, the Spirit of the Lord came on him, and he tore it to pieces, Judges 14:5, (Gill)

Jacob compared Dan to a serpent that suddenly springs forth by the way, and bites the heels of a horse so that the rider falls backward. Moses here compares the tribe to a young lion that suddenly leaps from its lair in Bashan on the object of its attack. Both similitudes relate to the vigor and force which the tribe should display in conflict. (Unknown)

Deu 33:23  And of Naphtali he said, “O Naphtali, sated with favor, and full of the blessing of the LORD, possess the lake and the south.”

The tribe of Naphtali was indeed satisfied with favor. Naphtali’s land was in a key portion near the Sea of Galilee, the region where Jesus did much of His teaching and ministry. Since the ministry of Jesus was based in the tribal lands of Naphtali, his blessing was indeed full. (Guzik)

 “Scarcely any of the tribes was more particularly favoured by the wondrous mercy and kindness of God, than Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. The light of the glorious Gospel of Christ shone brightly here, Matthew 4:13, 15, 16. Christ’s chief residence was at Capernaum in this tribe, Matthew 9:1; Mark 2:1; and this city, through Christ’s constant residence, and the mighty miracles he wrought in it, is represented as being exalted unto heaven.” (Clarke)

That only is the favour that satisfies the soul. They are happy indeed that have the favour of God; and they shall have it that place their satisfaction in it. And full with the blessing of the Lord — Not only with corn, wine, and oil, the fruit of the blessing, but with the blessing itself, the grace of God, according to his promise and covenant. (Benson)

O Naphtali, satisfied with favour; with the favour of men, which to have is a great blessing; and as he gave goodly words to others, he had the good word of others, Genesis 49:21; and with the favour of God, as the next clause shows; which is the greatest blessing of all, and is special and peculiar, free and sovereign, and the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; and to be full of this, and satisfied of an interest in it, is the highest of enjoyments; and nothing is of a more satisfying nature, it is a feast of itself. The blessing of the Lord; as such must needs be who are full of and satisfied with the your, good will, and love of God; for they are filled with all spiritual blessings, with all the blessings of grace, which spring from his free favour, as pardon of sin, a justifying righteousness, adoption, sanctifying grace, a right and title to eternal life. (Gill)

In Jacob’s blessing, Naphtali appears invested with the attributes of freedom, gracefulness, and graciousness; here Moses assures that tribe of the Divine grace and blessing, and promises to it prosperity, joyfulness, satisfaction, and pleasure. (Unknow)

Deu 33:20-21  And of Gad he said, “Blessed be he who enlarges Gad! Gad crouches like a lion; he tears off arm and scalp. He chose the best of the land for himself, for there a commander’s portion was reserved; and he came with the heads of the people, with Israel he executed the justice of the LORD, and his judgments for Israel.”

The lion-like character of the tribe of Gad was shown by the fact that Gad furnished many fine troops for David. Gad held the central area of land among the Israelite tribes on the eastern side of the Jordan. (Guzik)

“Gad’s area was by far the largest and best, conforming well to its description as ‘the leader’s portion.’” (Merrill)

Teareth the arm with the crown of the head, i.e. utterly destroys his enemies; both the head, the seat of the crown, their dignity and principality, and the arm, the subject of strength and instrument of action; both chief princes, and their instruments and subjects. (Poole)

He dwelleth as a lion; bold and courageous, secure, and without fear of any of his enemies, though near him, on his borders, as the Moabites and Ammonites were; of the same spirit and temper were the men of the tribe of Gad in the times of David

The Gadites had promised this to Moses and the heads of the people; and this promise Moses regarded as an accomplished act, and praised in these words with prophetic foresight as having been already performed, and that not merely as one single manifestation of their obedience towards the word of the Lord, but rather as a pledge that Gad would always manifest the same disposition. (Keil)

I like how Keil said it above. Could you imagine if our lives were lived for Christ in like manner? “As if already performed”, “always manifest the same disposition”. The commitment so deep and strong, the desire to always perform, and the intentional choice ever before them should be more than fitting for us. The problem with being consumed by the busyness of life is that it draws away from our commitment to Jesus Christ. We allow shallow commitment through neglect of God’s Word, desire to study it, and certainly knowing how to apply it. 

When being “lukewarm” is considered being “hot” there is a falling away. Confusion, worry, hate, fear, stagnation, division, darkness, boastfulness, arrogance, pride, greediness, self-worth, self-reliance, jealousy, and loneliness are close companions. 

If you’re inclined to know, it is very easy to know if you’re “lukewarm”. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you discernment in this. You will be amazed at how much of our lives are being consumed with the busyness of life that yields being lukewarm.

Deu 33:18-19  And of Zebulun he said, “Rejoice, Zebulun, in your going out, and Issachar, in your tents. They shall call peoples to their mountain; there they offer right sacrifices; for they draw from the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.”

Both the tribes of Zebulun and Issachar were in the Galilee region and were blessed to take advantage of the Sea of Galilee. (Guzik)

 “That is, as Zebulun should be prosperous in his shipping and traffic, so should Issachar be in his tents—his agriculture and pasturage.” (Clarke)

The providence of God appoints men’s habitations, and wisely disposes men to different employments for the public good. (Henry)

Rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going out; in their going out to sea, to merchandise, to traffic in foreign parts, it being a maritime tribe, see Genesis 49:13; and so are called upon to rejoice and be thankful for their safe preservation on the seas, and success in trade. Issachar, in thy tents; being a tribe that stayed at home, and attended to husbandry, and dwelt in tents, to take care of and feed their cattle; in doing which they should be prosperous, and have occasion to rejoice, and be thankful to the Lord. (Gill)

I like how Henry put it; “The providence of God appoints men’s habitations, and wisely disposes men to different employments for the public good.”

Likewise, we have been blessed by God through Jesus Christ for public good, but more importantly, in this public good, there should be seen in our lives Honor and Glory to the blessing giver at all times.

Deu 33:13-17  And of Joseph he said, “Blessed by the LORD be his land, with the choicest gifts of heaven above, and of the deep that crouches beneath, with the choicest fruits of the sun and the rich yield of the months,  with the finest produce of the ancient mountains and the abundance of the everlasting hills, with the best gifts of the earth and its fullness and the favor of him who dwells in the bush. May these rest on the head of Joseph, on the pate of him who is prince among his brothers. A firstborn bull—he has majesty, and his horns are the horns of a wild ox; with them he shall gore the peoples, all of them, to the ends of the earth; they are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh.”

The two tribes that came from Joseph – Ephraim and Manasseh – were indeed blessed numerically and with land in Israel. The descendants of this one son among twelve sons of Jacob were far more numerous than all the other tribes. (Guzik)

His portion shall be excellent, and endowed with choice blessings from God, as it here follows. For the precious things of heaven, i.e. the precious fruits of the earth brought forth by the influences of heaven, the warmth of the sun, and the rain which God will send from heaven. (Poole)

For the precious things of heaven; that is, the pleasant, precious, and excellent fruits, reproduced by the influence of the heavens, particularly showers of rain which descend from thence; emblems of the grace of God, and Gospel of Christ, which bring spiritual blessings to the sons of men on earth, and make them fruitful in every good word and work. (Gill)

Can we ever expect blessings from God if we walk the ways of the world and its deceiving pleasures and what it deems as important for satisfaction and purpose in life? We do well to think on things above and how we might give glory and honor to Jesus Christ in all of our thoughts, words, and actions.

Deu 33:1  This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death.

Deu 33:6  “Let Reuben live, and not die, but let his men be few.”

This tepid blessing was consistent with Jacob’s prophecy concerning the tribe of Reuben (you shall not excel, Genesis 49:4). The tribe of Reuben never did excel. As far as is known, there never came a prophet, a judge, or a king from the tribe of Reuben. (Guzik)

Deu 33:7  And this he said of Judah: “Hear, O LORD, the voice of Judah, and bring him in to his people. With your hands contend for him, and be a help against his adversaries.”

Moses prayed for the blessing and sustaining of the tribe of Judah, so that it would fulfill its prophetic destiny to bring the Messiah. Moses knew this destiny for the tribe of Judah from Jacob’s prophecy in Genesis 49:10: The scepter shall not depart from Judah. (Guzik)

Deu 33:8  And of Levi he said……

Deu 33:11  Bless, O LORD, his substance, and accept the work of his hands; crush the loins of his adversaries, of those who hate him, that they rise not again.”

Because of their obedience and loyalty to God, Levi had a blessed place among the tribes of Israel. Moses prayed that the substance of Levi would be blessed and that their enemies would be defeated. (Guzik)

“The blessing of God to the tribe of Levi was peculiarly necessary, because they had no inheritance among the children of Israel, and lived more immediately than others upon the providence of God.” (Clarke)

In the golden calf incident, “Moses had asked ‘whoever is for the Lord’ (Exodus 32:26) to come forward and punish the Israelite idolaters even to the extent of ‘brother and friend and neighbor’ (Deuteronomy 33:27). Levi volunteered and proceeded to slay their own ‘sons and brothers’ (Deuteronomy 33:29).” (Merrill)

Deu 33:12  Of Benjamin he said, “The beloved of the LORD dwells in safety. The High God surrounds him all day long, and dwells between his shoulders.”

The tribe of Benjamin had their inheritance close to mount Zion. To be situated near the ordinances, is a precious gift from the Lord, a privilege not to be exchanged for any worldly advantage, or indulgence. We should thankfully receive the earthly blessings sent to us, through the successive seasons. But those good gifts which come down from the Father of lights, through the rising of the Sun of righteousness, and the pouring out of his Spirit like the rain which makes fruitful, are infinitely more precious, as the tokens of his special love. (Henry)

Ephesians 4:1-6   I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

As Christians, we are to walk worthy of the calling we have received. That means we should remember we are followers of Jesus and there are some things we are to avoid, some thoughts we should reject, and some habits we ought to change. They aren’t healthy for us or the body of Christ. We don’t want to violate our calling. Instead, we should have our Christlike character on full display. Ask the Lord for wisdom in evaluating your habits and knowing how to walk worthy of the calling you have received. (Dr. Jeremiah)

To say that character has nothing to do with blessedness is untrue, both to conscience and to the Christian revelation; and however we trace all things to grace, we must also remember that we get what we have fitted ourselves for. There is a certain vocation to which a Christian man is bound to make his life correspond, and his conduct should be in some measure worthy of the ideal that is set before it. Now, we shall best understand what is involved in such worthiness if we make clear to ourselves what the Apostle means by this ‘calling’ to which he appeals as containing in itself a standard to which our lives are to be conformed. God reveals Himself in any fashion, and by any medium, to a man, the man fails to understand the deepest meaning of the revelation unless his purged ear hears in it the great voice saying it.

For in Jesus Christ we see the possibilities of humanity realised, and we have the pattern of what we ought to be, and are called thereby to be.

Now, if that is the call, if the life of Christ is that to which we are summoned, and the death of Christ is that by which we are inclined to obey the summons, and the Spirit of Christ is that by which we are enabled to do so, what sort of a life will be worthy of these? Well, the context supplies part of the answer. ‘I beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation … with all meekness and lowliness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love.’ That is one side of the vocation, and the life that is worthy of it will be a life emancipated from the meanness of selfishness, and delivered from the tumidities of pride and arrogance, and changed into the sweetness of gentleness and the royalties of love.

‘Fruitful in every good work’-a many-sided fruitfulness, an encyclopaediacal beneficent activity, covering all the ground of possible excellence; and that is not all; ‘increasing in the knowledge of God,’-a life of progressive acquaintance with Him; and that is not all:-’strengthened with all might unto all patience and long-suffering’; nor is that all, for the crown of the whole is ‘giving thanks unto the Father.’ So, then, ‘ye see your calling, brethren.’ A life that is ‘worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called’ is a life that conforms to the divine will, that is ‘fruitful in all good,’ that is progressive in its acquaintance with God, that is strengthened for all patience and long-suffering, and that in everything is thankful to Him. That is what we are summoned to be.

The more nearly we come to realise the purpose of our calling, the more ‘worthy’ of it we are, the deeper will be our consciousness of our unworthiness. The more we approximate to the ideal, and come closer up to it, and so see its features the better, the more we shall feel how unlike we are to it. The law for Christian progress is that the sense of unworthiness increases in the precise degree in which the worthiness increases. The same man that said, ‘Of whom {sinners} I am chief,’ said to the same reader, ‘I have kept the faith, henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness.’ And so the two things are not contradictory but complementary. On the one side ‘worthy’ has nothing to do with the outflow of Christ’s love to us; on the other side we are to ‘walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called.’ (MacLaren)

How much better to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.
Proverbs 16:16

1 Corinthians 3:19-20   For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, since it is written, He catches the wise in their craftiness;  and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”

Wisdom (understanding, insight, perception, discernment, judgment, soundness, knowledge) – the soundness of an action or decision with regard to the application of experience, knowledge, and good judgment

There is wisdom of the world which does not include it’s foundation in God, and there is Godly wisdom which is the foundation of all knowledge and understanding. How are we to know the difference? 

All talents mankind has displayed, sciences, medicine, sports, trades, inventions, manufacturing techniques, farming, music, etc…. are from God. Unfortunately, they are not always used to honor and glorify Him. Man always seems to find a way to look at these gifts from God and claim them as their own. They want the glory, honor, and praise. They hoard more power and lust after its worldly recognition. They look at what they have done and bask in it. They seek praise and honor for what they consider their own talent(s) and their accomplishment(s). 

As I write this and look at how I have looked at some of my projects or accomplishments and how I have taken the honor and praise without giving or recognizing it was because of God’s gift (talent) to me. It is so easy to do.  I am convicted of the very thing I am thinking about, how those without Christ in their lives use their talents and wisdom and give no credit, honor, glory, and praise to God for them.  

I think it would be good to start each day with a thankful prayer:

Thank you God for all the talents and experience you have given to me. Let me not think they were of my own understanding and knowledge. Press this thought deep into my heart and mind so that in all thoughts, words, and actions I give honor and glory to Jesus. Give me discernment to see when I am not. Amen.

Benjamin Franklin once asked a question and answered it himself, saying, “Who is rich? He that is content. And who is that? No one.” I think he’s right.

But discontent is different from desire, which is the want for something more or different than what we have. Desire isn’t always bad. It has been the impetus for some great discoveries, like America. It’s been the incentive for great inventions, like the microchip. It’s been the motivation for great social movements, like the abolition of slavery. All of those things came about because people were dissatisfied with the status quo.

However, dissatisfaction can also be the foundation for sin. In fact, it’s the foundation of just about every sin on the list of Ten Commandments, and I think that’s why God saved this commandment for last in Exodus 20:17: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.”

What does it mean to covet? It’s not the same as desire. Desire can lead us to godly pursuits. Our desire for food motivates us to work, our desire for protection leads us to seek shelter, and our desire for companionship leads us to the relationships we need in life.

But covetousness is desire that has gone awry.

2Ch 7:14  if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

Proverbs 28:13     Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.

Isaiah 55:6-7    “Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near;  let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Isaiah 63:19    We have become like those over whom you have never ruled, like those who are not called by your name.

Psalms 79:6    Pour out your anger on the nations that do not know you, and on the kingdoms that do not call upon your name!

Jeremiah 10:25    Pour out your wrath on the nations that know you not, and on the peoples that call not on your name, for they have devoured Jacob; they have devoured him and consumed him, and have laid waste his habitation.

Acts 14:16    In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.

Ezekiel 18:27-30    Again, when a wicked person turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he shall save his life.  Because he considered and turned away from all the transgressions that he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die.  Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, are my ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?  “Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin.

2 Chronicles 33:12-13    And when he was in distress, he entreated the favor of the LORD his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.  He prayed to him, and God was moved by his entreaty and heard his plea and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD was God.

Leviticus 26:40-41     “But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers in their treachery that they committed against me, and also in walking contrary to me,  so that I walked contrary to them and brought them into the land of their enemies—if then their uncircumcised heart is humbled and they make amends for their iniquity,

James 4:9-10     Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

Ezekiel 33:11     Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways,

Deuteronomy 4:29-30    But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul.  When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice.

Deuteronomy 30:1-6     “And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God has driven you,  and return to the LORD your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul,  then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have mercy on you, and he will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you.

2 Chronicles 6:30    then hear from heaven your dwelling place and forgive and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways, for you, you only, know the hearts of the children of mankind,

2 Chronicles 6:39    then hear from heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their pleas, and maintain their cause and forgive your people who have sinned against you.

Isaiah 65:1    I was ready to be sought by those who did not ask for me; I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here I am, here I am,” to a nation that was not called by my name.

There is much to say concerning the voices shouting out various claims, lies, boasts, slander, division, promises, blame, anger, hatred, etc….. in news outlets, social media, podcasts, and the radio.

Sports, movie, and music celebrities are shouting their election opinions.  They live in a world none of us have access to. Their wealth comes from those who watch them perform and for some reason, they have a very high and elevated opinion of themselves. Their opinions are not based on Godly wisdom or honor of Jesus Christ. No, their opinion is based on worldly and fleshly pursuits of money and fame. Most live with no regard for God.   

News outlets, radio shows, and various podcasts all proclaim value in their opinions and views on the candidates. They distort what is being said, openly lie, misinform, and make predictions about the future of our country based on one or the other candidates. They promote division, anger, hatred, fear, worry, confusion, and give no thought to God. I am amazed at how many people buy into this garbage. People on both sides buy into what these people are saying. They watch and listen to these various agents of Satan and then form like-minded worldly views based on what they have heard or read.

Both sides claim they will bring some form of justice and prosperity and peace to their base all the while bashing the other side. I hear family and friends who say things that are just regurgitated views from the Satan tools speaking. these are not the views of someone who is thinking with a clear bible-focused, God-honoring, God-glorifying, God-trusting, God-reliant, God-obeying, and God-following mind.

What is it that people seek after? Peace, joy, kindness, hope, love, gentleness, justice, prosperity, and fruit of their labors.  Void of God’s Word people will seek to find these in their elected president and congress, both federal and state. They believe with the right person or party in office all of these will manifest in this country, state, and their lives. Imagine the foolishness of believing any candidate can bring about what they desperately seek.

It is hard for me to understand how Christians can be so misled, and misinformed, and not see the worldly (satan) influences at work. Scripture is very clear. God will not honor or bless a country that does not honor and glorify Him alone. When you take this one step deeper, He will not honor or bless a person who does not honor and glorify Him. Hanging hopes on candidates for that which only God can provide is not God-honoring or God-glorifying.

What if God’s plans were to allow the continued moral decline in our country and allow those who reject Him to experience the fullness of their rejection? What if God’s plans were to test the faith of Christians in and through this moral decline? What if God’s plans were to take us to a place of despair where our eyes would look up for the return of Jesus? What if God’s plans were to bring about a revival through this moral decline? What if God’s plans were to open the eyes of the lost to the foolishness of their ways?

I must confess that I get caught up in what is being said and proclaimed and promised in various News outlets. Praise be to God, He has sent His Holy Spirit to discern these wayward thoughts and keep my eyes focused on Him. We do well to confess our wayward focus, repent of it, and open our hearts and minds to the leading of the Holy Spirit in God-honoring and God-glorifying praise, worship, trust, reliance, and obedience. Nothing this world has to offer can compare to the love, grace, and mercy of God and the blessings of knowing the forgiveness of our sins, salvation, and eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Whatever God’s plans are, they are right, true, and just, and will bring about His plans and purposes.