Cyber-Chapel Blog

In a recent post, I called attention to a word family in Hebrew, derivatives of the verb עלל, with an interesting pattern of distribution. When applied to God, these words are consistently used to motivate people to praise him. When applied to men, they are just as consistently negative, and describe an attitude of childishness and irresponsibility.

This is not the only word family that is negative when applied to man, but positive when applied to God. Here are two examples from another:

Isa 12:5 Sing unto the LORD; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.

Ps 17:10 [The wicked] are inclosed in their own fat: with their mouth they speak proudly.

This time, the focus is on pride. It is wonderful for God to behave in a proud, haughty fashion, but every verse that applies these terms to people condemns them.
Continue reading God is Haughty…

In our study of Isa 37:3-6, I was struck with how Hezekiah motivated his request to the Lord for help against Assyria, and with the rich precedent for his request.

How do we motivate our requests for God’s intervention? We often plead the dismal condition we face, and ask that God in his love would intervene. Our focus is on ourselves, our needs, and God’s attitude toward us. All of these have their place, but Hezekiah’s example can teach us a much more fundamental principle for motivating God in prayer.

Continue reading How to Motivate God…