June 7 - Proverbs 13-15: The Way of the Wise

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 13-15

The Message

English Standard Version

Thought to Guide Your Reading

Wise people listen to wise people. Fools listen to daytime television.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Intelligent children develop good conversation skills. They hate false talk and converse in substantial topics. They listen and honor God's Commands. They embrace correction and walk with the wise.
Wise people take care of their mouths and animals. They stay on God's life-track.
Wise people discern truth and cautiously walk forward. They help neighbors and acquire wisdom.
Righteousness can make an entire nation strong but wickedness hurts anyone.
Gentle responses and kind words soothe.
God sees all.
Good advice spreads knowledge.
Intelligent people love being told new truths.
Simple lives with God are better than the high life with evil.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

Wise people welcome wisdom.

Wisdom remains central to the proverbs of Solomon. He mentions this several times: the wise listen to parents, acquire the ability to converse in substantial topics, enjoy correction, and listen to any other wise person. To be wise we must welcome and enjoy listening to those who are wise. If we speak with dullards or read/watch/listen to stories that have little knowledge or wisdom we will eventually become the same. It is best to avoid these types of media/people as much as possible. Cynics cannot accept any form of wisdom—avoid them as well.

Righteousness can lift an entire nation.

Solomon is using the compare-and-contrast method of teaching. He compares the outcome of the righteous to the outcome of the wicked in many different ways. In this case he shows that if right and wrong were ships, righteousness could buoy an entire nation while wickedness could not lift a single person. For this reason individuals, communities, and full nations should invite Lady Wisdom into their homes to help their families, communities, and nations walk in wise ways. Righteousness can lift every person equally. Wickedness can lift no one.

God cannot stand religious theater but loves genuine conversation.

David mentioned a similar idea in Psalm 31. If God cares more for the why of religion instead of the what, religious theater means little. What is significant to Him is connection. This is why true conversation means more to God than anything associated with "religion." God wants you to connect with Him through prayer, not perform the "right" set of rituals.

A simple life with God is better than a flashy life with sin.

George Sanders, the voice of Shere Khan in The Jungle Book, was a talented actor who was good. I remember his captivating performance in All About Eve. I wanted to learn more about him. Unfortunately, what I learned did not impress me. He had no respect for people, especially women. He confessed to being rude and hateful. In April 1972 he committed suicide and his wrote in his suicide note, "Dear World, I am leaving because I am bored. I feel I have lived long enough. I am leaving you with your worries in this sweet cesspool. Good luck." I have never heard of a person coming to the later years of his life and believing God's life was not worth it.

To whom do you listen?

June 6 - Proverbs 10-12: Solomon's Proverbs - The Consequences of Righteousness

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 10-12

The Message

English Standard Version

Thought to Guide Your Reading

The smallest part of righteousness is appreciated. The smallest part of wickedness is scorned.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

God blesses wisdom, honesty, diligence, and hard work.
The wise discipline their tongues.
God's blessings make a rich life.
The worse nightmares of the wicked come true—they are destroyed, but the desires of good people come true.
God loves fair businesses with down-to-earth, honest people. Principled lives help people save more than money.
Entire villages enjoy having good people. They cheer when bad people suffer.
God knows the difference between good and bad people. Each to their own consequences.
Learn God's discipline and be corrected.
Wise people are mindful of their speech. Worry and laziness lead to trouble.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

God blesses the righteous with money and more.

It is currently chic to look down on successful people or businesses as somehow benefiting from an unrighteous system. Also, to save money is a problem because that money could be used to help the ailing economy. The truth is success is more nuanced than that. According to Solomon, God blesses those with hard-working, honest lives and also those who run honest, upright businesses. At the same time, money is neither the benchmark for success nor the goal of a righteous life. It is the byproduct of righteousness. First develop an honest, diligent work ethic and God will bless you with physical blessings. The second without the first leads to a terrible downfall.

God gives direction and insurance.

Solomon summarizes the interpersonal results of righteousness, "When it goes well for good people, the whole town cheers; / when it goes badly for bad people, the town celebrates. " (11:10, The Message). The insurance and help righteous people get is not directly from God. It comes from their neighbors. Good people have the world on their side when bad things happen. Great illustrations of this principle are found when a natural disaster strikes a community. Those who have a reputation for righteousness are gladly helped. Those who do not are helped begrudgingly.

God gives consequences according to our work.

Those who work well are rewarded with good pay. Those who scrape by in life scrape by financially. Kindness returns kindness and cruelty returns cruelty. If you wonder why people are so mean to you, first consider your actions.

Wise people discipline their tongues.

Solomon has a lot to write about in this area. Wise people keep their tongue in check. They do not spout off, pass rumors, talk too much, or flaunt their strengths. What a difficult, essential part of living a righteous life. Wise people listen discerningly and speak accordingly. That is why the wise survive.

What consequences do you see in your life?

June 5 - Proverbs 7-9: Lady Wisdom vs. Madame Whore

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 7-9

The Message

English Standard Version

Thought to Guide Your Reading

Both Wisdom and the Seductress give advice. Only one is worth listening to.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Friend, make Wisdom and Insight your closest confidants.
The Seductress looks for senseless men walking idly. They think sleeping with her safe but instead they die painful deaths.
Wisdom preaches in the square, "Listen up, you blockheads. Want the path to life and great success? God made me before the earth so ignore my words at your own peril. You, in the streets, obey and live well."
Madame Whore also calls out, "Want the good life? It's easy; steal it! You can get away with it!" What her followers do not know, however, is that her followers end up dead.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

What is done in secret never stays secret.

It doesn’t matter how hard a person may try, the sins they commit in secret will not stay secret forever. That is the lesson of the man with an arrow in his liver. One of the main reasons is that sin always lasts longer than expected. The Seductress told the man they were safe for a month. The husband didn't come home early—the man couldn't leave. He was trapped. Beware sins that entice with the perceived cloak of secrecy. They never end up that way.

Lady Wisdom calls out to everyone to live lives that set things right.

Lady Wisdom wants the simpleminded and those who do not know how to live to listen to her. She was created long before the world and knows wisdom that no person could possibly make up. She understands that wealth is not greater than Wisdom and that the obsession for setting things right for God is true sanity. Listen to Lady Wisdom's advice—it leads to life!

Lady Wisdom is not the only one calling.

What a tragedy those who follow Madame Whore become. They believe the secret to success is stealing it from others, or stepping on everyone below to make sure they have no competition at the top. They, too, will become a skeleton in her closet. Do not listen to Madame Whore's call—it leads to death!

Who do you listen to?

June 4 - Proverbs 4-6: Investing in Wisdom and Good Women

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 4-6

The Message

English Standard Version

Thought to Guide Your Reading

There are things God hates. Take note.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Listen to my father's passed-down-generation-after-generation advice. Buy Wisdom and search for Understanding—it's worth the investment.
Evil people dream of evil deeds. Their road leads to darkness.
Listen, your heart is the source of life. Stay on the right path.
A seductive woman is bad news—stay far away. Stay with your own woman; it's better.
If you make a terrible mistake, rectify the situation without delay.
Work hard like the ant. Lazy people wind up poor.
God hates six things and loathes seven: arrogance, lies, innocent-murders, evil hearts, cheap thrills, truth-evading, and family-busting.
Don't commit adultery. It's deadly. Don't.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

Invest in Wisdom and Understanding

One of the issues schools have today is how to help students gain a love of learning while teaching them what they need to know. Schools could teach thousands of facts, but if the student is not invested in learning they are not prepared for life. When we invest in wisdom and understanding (with our foundation set in God) our lives become beautiful. Think of the most beautiful people you know. They are most likely lifetime learners.

The road of the wicked looks like an easy bypass but is a death road.

The get-(insert here)-quick scheme always seems the best until you start doing what they suggest. Then you realize it isn’t as easy as you thought. They have either tricked you into going down the hard path or are trying to get your money/life. The "bypass" around the hard parts of life turns out to be a road of bones—dark and treacherous because of the dangerous people there.

Stay away from cheap women.

"Nothing but Sin and Bones" is the heading for this section in The Message. In reality, that is what a woman who seduces men becomes. Stay away! She only leads to tears. In reality, her love cannot satisfy as much as a woman who makes you "earn" her love. Compare the outcomes from the lovers in the Song of Songs (Song of Solomon) to the lovers of "cheap thrills woman" or the Seductress. Solomon wanted to pound this into our heads. It's repeated tomorrow as well. Stay away from cheap, seductive women. Find a woman who helps you earn her love. They're worth the investment.

Don't wait to set things right.

Solomon uses the negative side of this coin to illustrate how important setting things right should be. If you make a mistake go quickly and set things right. There's no time to lose! Maybe your swiftness can help you get out of the bad decision. If you make a mistake, set things right now! Don't wait!

God hates things that do not set things right.

God is Love (we'll read that in the New Testament). Yet even He hates when people do not set things right. All seven prevent things that set things right. Purge yourself of these seven things:

eyes that are arrogant,
a tongue that lies,
hands that murder the innocent,
a heart that hatches evil plots,
feet that race down a wicked track,
a mouth that lies under oath,
a troublemaker in the family. (6:17-19, The Message)

What are your investments?

June 3 - Proverbs 1-3: Introducing Solomon's Manual for Living -- Surprise! It's God's Manual After All

Today’s Reading: Proverbs 1-3

The Message

English Standard Version

Today we begin the wise sayings of Solomon, Proverbs. The first part of this book can be summarized easily; however, as we go through the summaries will transition to listing the topics instead of summarizing the chapters. We will continue this book solo until Solomon's portion is finished.

Since the book is a treasure-trove of setting things right I will attempt to give broader-themed comments instead of getting bogged down in the minutiae. Feel free to do so in the comments!

Thought to Guide Your Reading

The foundation of all wisdom is trusting in God's Way.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

These are the wise sayings of Solomon, his manual for living.
If you want to be wise the first step is bowing before God. Fools act like self-made humans.
These wise sayings will bring blessings.
Wicked people will lead you into a personal abyss.
Lady Wisdom calls for people to live better lives.
This book—it will become gold to your life.
Good company helps thwart bad ideas.
Life comes from wisdom, not physical blessings.
Think clearly with common sense—the recipe for stress-free living. Help your community if you are able and be courteous. God blesses and curses accordingly.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

The book of Proverbs is a manual for living.

There have been several books similar to Proverbs—short sayings that help guide people to better living. Proverbs is a book as an ironic entry in the self-help genre—a book that states self-help comes from not doing what "self" wants. Although Proverbs stands along peers, you will find that it stands above and beyond all of them. This is because it came from the Creator. The book of Proverbs is a manual for living—God's manual for practical living.

The beginning of knowledge is to bow before God.

The Manual for Living (Proverbs) is a book filled with great sayings and important interpersonal, familial, and business advice. However, the most important part of the entire book, the part that if missed will cause the rest of the book to make no sense, is the first piece of advice—start with God. When our foundation is God, all things make sense. When our foundation is in something else it can only take us so far. Consider scientific or mathematical mindsets—highly rational and logical. Both can give great insights into how the world is made up and how it works. Great marvels of engineering, healthcare, and data processing mesh into an amazing world. However, logic alone cannot sustain life. Consider the story of Job. The entire point is that only God makes sense when all other things fail: possessions, physical life, family, religion, logic, reason. Nothing can compete with God's ability to set things right.

Setting things right will make life go well.

In what could be considered the way in which Solomon proves his point that when God is your foundation all things make sense, he uses several personifications of setting things right: Lady Wisdom, Knowledge, Common Sense, Madame Insight, etc. Each of these take you through their functions of setting things right in the book. They prevent bad situations and help through trials. But all of them ring with the same idea: setting things right makes life go well; in essence, setting things right for others will set things right for you.

Not setting things right—either by doing wrong things or by ignoring calls to set things right—will make life more stressed.

The second way that Solomon proves his point that God is the foundation of all things that make sense is the negative—pointing out where things go wrong. These, too, have personifications, though not as many: the Temptress, the Seductress, etc. They will try to make people not do what is right. Here is the difficult part—we cannot know the difference between the personifications of good and evil until God is our foundation. When God is our foundation we can live a relatively stress-free life because good and evil become as different as night and day. The gray areas of life, when examined, become patches of black and white which were only blurred together to make gray.

Giving freely when you are able and not being a bully leads to few enemies.

The first example Solomon uses is helping others. Never tell a neighbor you cannot give what they need if you actually can. We can debate the definition of "neighbor," "help," and/or "need" another time. What is important here is the idea that God does not take advantage of His People; therefore, His People should not take advantage of each other. When we take advantage of others we live worried about who will call, who will visit, and who is out to get us. God's Way circumvents that stress. God's Way leads to life.

Do you live without looking over your shoulder?

June 2 - Song of Songs (Song of Solomon): Pure Love Allowed to Ripen

Today’s Reading: Song of Songs (Song of Solomon)

The Message


English Standard Version

Today’s reading is the entire book of the Song of Songs, also known as the Song of Solomon (book 13). It is a love poem between a man and a woman with a chorus interjecting to ask questions. It is frustratingly vague as to who the woman could be; therefore, it is placed in this position.

Thought to Guide Your Reading

Each person earnestly desires to be with the other.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

This is the best of all songs--Solomon’s song!
A woman calls out to her lover because she misses him while he works. They lovingly exchange intimate feelings of love. They compliment each other on their beauty and strength. They belong to each other. Being apart causes anxiety.
One night, he came to her door asking to come in. When she finally opened the door, he was gone. She went looking for him but was caught and mistreated. She does not wish to ever leave her lover again! Each tell of their lover’s wonder and long to reunite soon.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

Do not rush love—allow it to bloom until it is ripe.

The woman in this song repeats this theme three times. True, wonderful love is allowed to ripen before it is taken and consumed. What wise advice for lovers of any age. Don’t rush into a relationship—allow it to blossom and grow naturally and it will be enjoyed by both. When love is prematurely devoured it leave both sides feeling worse.

Be possessed with love—do not possess love.

The woman twice exclaims “My lover is mine, and I am his” (2:16, 6:3, The Message). They also humble themselves to believe they did not “earn” the love of the other but were brought up to a higher place. Neither believes they “own” the relationship and allows the other to possess them. When you allow your lover to possess you, you realize that your feelings toward each other glue you together instead of chain you up.

Why is this book here?

This question applies to this book more than most. It does not discuss God’s love with His People. It does not even include God’s name. So why is this book here? I believe it is here because the Song of Songs—Solomon’s Song displays pure love between man and woman. It shows what love can be when it stays unmolested by either side taking control or allowing cheap love alternatives to spoil it.

Do you have a ripened love?

June 1 - Psalm 119:89-176: Ode to God's Way Found in God's Word - Part 2

Today’s Reading: Psalm 119:89-176

The Message

English Standard Version

Today we finish the longest chapter in the Bible, Psalm 119. Because the psalm is so long it was split it up into two days' worth of reading. This is the only chapter that is split because of sheer length.
In a technical detail, the psalm is arranged as a grand alphabetic acrostic, meaning the sections follow the Hebrew alphabet and within each section the first letter of every line begins with that letter. There is no easy-to-find English equivalent to this setup; however, there are about a dozen of these versions found in the Bible.
In addition, today's reading marks the end of the concentrated psalms readings. There are 18 psalms remaining (we have read 132!), but they will be spread out from now until the end of September.

Thought to Guide Your Reading

Notice how the psalmist's attitude toward the wicked is indifference rather than anger.

Psalm (P)Synopsis

Psalm 119

(From Wednesday's reading) In this ode to God's way, the writer continuously praises God for His Way that protects His People who study them in His Word.
(From today's reading) God's Way never goes out of fashion. The psalmist loves God's Way and that has made all the difference. All that God has written will help us survive—if God helps us learn. May God's Word always stay with us.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

God's Way is always up-to-date.

As a person who loves technology I am amazed at how fast it becomes antiquated. My phone I bought in 2009—four years ago—now lies in the dinosaur tech pile. Philosophies also become dated. How many of us subscribe to the philosophy of "technology will make all things better?" Although there are grains of truth within these philosophies which last, none of them have had the staying power of God's Way. Think about it, I am a man living three to four thousand years after the Bible was written and I have found hundreds of ideas for my life today. That's staying power! God's Word and God's Truth are as dependable as ever.

When the wicked lined up for battle, the psalmist focused on God's plans.

What dedication! I love the reason behind it as well, "I see the limits to everything human, / but the horizons can’t contain your commands!" (v. 96) "As those out to get me come closer and closer, / they go farther and farther from the truth you reveal", (v. 150,The Message). Even teachers' wisdom became too superficial. When we focus on God's Commands, the world's ways will seem shallow and unworthy of our time. In the end you realize the world doesn't understand God's Ways or how God sets things right because they have never looked in God's Word to see how He sets all things right.

Focusing on the Word of God leads to action.

I grew up thinking this psalm was an ode to God's Word. What a limited view of this psalm! God's Word was not intended to guide study. It was intended to guide action! It is in action that God's Way is found—by setting things right.

God is right and God does right!