Fence Rail

Wednesday, November 28, 2018

November 29, 2018 Reading Notes

If you don't have a One Year Bible or prefer something online, this link will take you to the day's reading, http://oneyearbibleonline.com/daily-oyb/. This site allows you to select from several languages and several English translations.

NOVEMBER 29

Daniel 6

In my thinking, there are few chapters in the Bible that are as under-taught, underestimated and misunderstood as this chapter. This is one of those chapters that makes Bible study a lot of fun. Buckle up!

Vs. 1-3 Now, how is this possible? It should be impossible for anyone to read this and just accept it without wondering why Darius, the conquering general and ruler over this part of the Persian Empire, should elevate Daniel. Daniel was not only the final ruler of the Babylonian Empire, but he had served Babylon as a high ranking official for 67 years. These are the guys you kill when you take over. Assuming Darius was a rational man, why would he do this? It doesn’t make sense. Darius must have had very good reasons for bringing Daniel into his government.

Just for fun look at the following verses: Daniel 9:1 and 11:1. All of this is happening in the first year of Darius.

The fact that Darius was 62 years old meant he would have been in his twenties when Neb lost his mind. There were great relationships between the Babylonians and the Persians and Medes. As royalty, Darius would have visited Babylon many times on official business or to attend events. He may have even fed Nebuchadnezzar a carrot. He would have known Daniel all his life as the ruler of the province of Babylon and the chief of the wise men. Daniel’s eminence would have been even greater during the seven years while Neb was grazing. We don’t know when Daniel was sent as an ambassador to Susa, but we find him there in chapter 8. This would have given Darius and Cyrus more contact with Daniel. Now, these could have been some reasons for Darius to have respected Daniel, but as we read on, we will find some reasons that were far more powerful.

Vs. 4-9 There are two things that are important to see here. First, these people were very religious, and to break the will of a people, you made them compromise themselves in the worship of their gods. We saw that in Daniel 1 and 3. So, as silly as this might sound to us, it made good sense to them. Second, in v. 8, it is very clear that Darius was an equal with Cyrus, in that he could sign a decree into existence that was binding and could not be broken in the entire empire. Official records of this would have been made, sent out by courier and put into official books. This information about official recorded decrees will come in handy at the end of the chapter.

Vs. 10-11 Daniel went and prayed anyway. Why? I’ve heard people attribute this to the faithful habits of a person having their quiet time and their sweet hour of prayer before the Lord. That is all great stuff. But, if you really want to know why Daniel prayed, as well as what he prayed, read Daniel 9:1-19. This was an absolutely crucial time in the history of Israel. Daniel’s passion for the Lord and for his people, as representatives of the God of salvation, was burning in him. The seventy years were up and a new government had taken over. Daniel knew his entire life had been directed by God to save his people. He was begging God to fulfill His promise, given in Jeremiah 29:10, to end the exile after 70 years and return the people to Jerusalem. It is really deeper than that and we’ll see it in chapter 9. There was no way in the world, regardless of the enemy or the cost, that Daniel would not beg God for His people. (By the way, we’ll see later that facing Jerusalem in prayer was a part of another promise in Scripture.)

Vs. 11-13 The trap was sprung, but as we saw in Esther with Haman, sometimes the traps you set for others have a way of biting you back. In this case, the biting is meant literally.

Vs. 14-20 Here we go again. Darius is acting very strangely.

V. 14 I’ve heard this explained that Darius really loved Daniel and didn’t want to lose such a cool leader. Maybe, but how do you explain that Darius is very distressed. This section shows that Darius was fearful. How do you explain that? Read on.

V. 15 This would not have endeared these men to Darius. How many men were a part of this conspiracy? Certainly there were the two other presidents, but some suggest that many of the local leaders were a part of this. I've read of numbers into the hundreds, but only so many men and their families would have fit in the lion's den. I think the main actors here were those other presidents and a few other high ranking men.

One of the things that leads people to misunderstand the depth of this book is that the first six chapters are seen individually, as disconnected children’s stories. Just for the fun of it, Google “Daniel in the lion’s den,” and then click on “images.” Notice how many of the pictures do not show that Daniel was in his eighties. I found one picture that looked like “Samson in the lion’s den.” Anyway, it should be impossible to read chapters 1-6 and not know that 70 years have passed, but most people still visualize Daniel as a young man.

V. 16 How did Darius have this information? I think Darius had known this about Daniel most of his life.

V. 18 No TV, no dancing girls, no nothing! Why in the world is a pagan king fasting, and whom is he seeking by his praying and fasting? Why couldn’t he sleep? What was he worried about?

V. 19 Why is he going to the den so early and with so much agitation? Did he want to collect the bones? Guys like this never traveled alone, so the coach or the guys who carried him apparently had to do double-time.

V. 20 Why is he crying out in anguish? Just think of what Darius says here, servant of the living God. That is a grade “A” shocker. How did Darius know that?

I think Darius expected that God would act that night to save Daniel. I think Darius knew all about God’s education of Nebuchadnezzar: the first dream, the dedication and furnace, and particularly the events that led up to Neb being punished. All of these actions were official Babylonian events, recorded in Aramaic, copied, sent out to the capitals of the provinces and filed. Then, the night that Darius took over, he heard of this strange event in the ballroom. He and Mrs. Darius walked into their new ballroom the next day to decide on paint and drapes, and there on the wall they saw the words carved in the plaster. Not only did he know the stories of what had happened to Neb, but now he had become a part of that history of this mighty God who mixes Himself in empires, and disciplines those kings who resist Him. For Darius, living in Babylon might have been kind of like inheriting a haunted house. I think that when Darius realized he had been tricked and maneuvered into putting Daniel to death, he feared for his life before Yahweh.

Vs. 21-23 Not only was Darius happy (and off the hook), but it was a visual sign and miracle to all of those officials and soldiers who were with him.

V. 24 Darius was also very mad. It was time for some "payback." And just like we saw in the book of Esther, when the decree was given to destroy the Jews, their enemies revealed who they were and were dealt with.

Vs. 25-27 I just have a few observations here. First, another pagan king is worshiping God. Actually, Darius is doing such a good job of it, you wonder if this event moved him to become a worshiper of Yahweh only.

Second, Darius writes a binding decree for the entire Persian Empire stating that people were to fear Yahweh. Remember that Nebuchadnezzar did this after the furnace in chapter 3. The force of Neb’s decree was that no one dared force the Jews to worship any god but their own. That decree protected the Jews up until the Persian Empire. When the Persians came to power, they hit the “reset” button and the Jews were threatened again with being forced to worship other gods. With this decree, the Jews were again a favored people in the empire and they were granted the freedom to worship Yahweh only.

Third, this information, the entire written account, would have been sent out in Aramaic to all the ends of the earth, not just the empire. Cyrus would have gotten a copy. The first year of Darius was also the first year of Cyrus. Guess what Cyrus did in his first year, and after this event? He sent the Jews back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. Notice that they were sent to rebuild the temple, not the city. The focus of Cyrus' decree was the worship of Yahweh and wanting to earn Yahweh's favor. Was this event the catalyst to Cyrus’ decree? That makes a lot more sense to me than that God just whammied him and Cyrus mindlessly did it. Read Ezra 1:1-2, and you’ll notice that Cyrus had a lot of information. He most certainly had been influenced by what happened to Neb, and Cyrus might have read some of the official Babylonian documents that had been written by Daniel, that is, chapters 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7. (Chapter 7 is interesting and was written in Aramaic, years earlier.) I think that God used this crisis to put the fire under Cyrus to seek the favor of God and to send the Jews home.

Fourth, look at what God does through crisis. In God’s hands, crisis is our friend. This should teach us something.

Fifth, though Belshazzar knew what God had done to Nebuchadnezzar, he failed to learn from it and paid the price. Darius was different. He not only observed; he took it to heart. Darius got an “A.”

As disciples, when Jesus tells us to go into the harvest and not to fear, I think He can really back that up. The question is, after reading all of this, have we learned anything?

2 Peter 3

Vs. 1-3 Peter is doing the same thing that Paul did with Timothy, when he told Tim in both letters that in the last days there would be false teachers. In this case Peter is saying that, from within the church, there will come false teachers who, among other things, will cause others not to take certain things seriously. People will scoff at God. It happens, too, and as a result, bitter, disillusioned, fruitless believers are easy to find.

Vs. 4-7 In this case they are creating doubt regarding the return of the Lord and judgment. Peter uses the example of the flood, to show that what happened once will certainly happen again. The same Word that created the world has brought judgment once, by water, and will bring it again. As sure as there is a visible world, there will be a time of accountability before the Creator. I think the issue here is not only God’s delay, but whether He will bring judgment.

Vs. 8-10 Notice the prominence of the harvest and the importance of our mission in what Peter says here. The reason that God is waiting is for the harvest to be brought in. Notice that this judgment will come with fire on the earth. That sounds like the book of Revelation.

Vs. 11-13 Since we know the judgment is coming, we should live a particular kind of life, following Jesus. Since everything on earth will be done away with, except people, saving people is the goal, not acquiring stuff or fulfilling our desires. By working in the harvest, bringing in those whom God will save, we are hastening the coming of the Lord. Notice that Peter adds some reality here regarding the coming judgment and the promise of our future not being on this earth, but on the new one. Too many believers still think that heaven is on this earth. This earth and this time on earth is like the foyer or entrance to a building. We haven't really entered the true building yet.

Vs. 14-18 Notice here that Paul’s writings are equated as Scripture. The people are to resist the false teachers, wait on the Lord, honor God and work in the harvest during this time of God’s patience. Notice that there were other Scriptures besides what Paul had written. This could be referring to the Gospels of Mark, Luke and the letter from James.

V. 18 says it all. Amen!

The time to be working in the harvest is now, before God's judgment begins. And, this is the perfect season in many Western nations to use Christmas as a conversation starter, or to show kindness to someone in the name of our Lord.

Psalm 119:129-152

Vs. 129-130 Here, the Word becomes the light to the soul, giving understanding. Unfolding gives the sense of the Word gradually making sense to us as we spend time in it daily.

Vs. 131-136 On the basis of the light you have, you know how to move and respond in the darkness. David had plenty of darkness around him.

V. 133 David needed God to steady his steps and this came through the Word. In reading this, I think of how strong David was when he was afflicted and distressed. He was forced to go to the Lord in His Word. It seems like David lived in the Word. When he got comfortable and busy and important in his palace, I think he let the Word gather dust, and we’ve read the tragic results.

Vs. 137-144 Righteousness seems to be important in this section. Righteousness is like a standard, or measurement or guide to help us. Driving "righteously" would be obeying the rules, stopping at signs and staying inside the lines. We learn of God's guides for us in His Word. David's adversaries were out of bounds in pursuing David. It was a matter of knowing God's Word and living righteously before Him. David was distressed by the danger and the unjustness, but the Word gave David comfort. The righteousness of God and those standards expressed in the Word pleaded David's case.

Vs. 145-146 David's interest in God and in His Word was with his whole heart.

Vs. 147-148 I wonder if this was David’s quiet time. Notice the mention of the promise.

Vs. 149-151 And here’s the reason David got up so early. David knew of the steadfast love of God as revealed in His Word. God was near.

V. 152 David knew that the Word was eternal.

This makes me think that we need to pursue the Lord in times of “peace,” the way we do in times of need and distress. The reality of this life is that we live behind enemy lines, with people around us being deceived and destroyed, around the clock. When God gives us peace, we shouldn’t abuse it by forgetting why He has left us here. We are to pursue Him in this dark harvest, following Christ, reaching the lost, making disciples, who make disciples. Very soon, both in the OT and in the NT, we will begin reading about the judgment that is coming.

Proverbs 28:21-22

V. 21 I’m sure this was another reason why Jesus taught His disciples that we should expect our bread from God and lay up treasure in heaven. If that’s where our bread comes from, we can’t be bought.

V. 22 I’m sure that “poverty of soul” is included in this.

Please Read the Following Disclaimer

I'm writing the Reading Notes to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and are interested in growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship culture in the church, that is, groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples, who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal and important discipleship manual we have and it is the key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here, or what we are to be doing, or whom we are to be following. My comments are only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us, as disciples, focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, making disciples in the harvest.

If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary (BKC). I read the BKC in doing background for the Reading Notes and refer to it quite often. I also make reference to maps or charts in the BKC, though I will only note where those resources can be found. Often you can do a search for these and find them in Google books. Buying both volumes of the Bible Knowledge Commentary would be a good idea.

I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible translation; in fact, I read something you probably don't, Die Revidierte Lutherbibel, 1984. Unless noted, all Scripture quotes are from the ESV Bible.

Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it. Often there is a breadth of opinion on certain events, both historical and prophetic. Many of my views come from my church background, theological training and my personal study.

I'm doing this with discipleship in mind, meaning, I'm writing out thoughts that will keep discipleship and our growth as disciples applied to what we are reading. Remember, the real focus of the Reading Notes is to be a supplement, a disciple’s commentary, giving motivation and insight so that we will keep following our Lord in the harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Being in the Word every day, sitting at Jesus’ feet, learning directly from Him, is the essential essence of being and making disciples.

May the Lord bless you as you follow Him in the harvest, reaching the lost and making disciples, who make disciples. Dan

The daily installments of the Reading Notes can be found at http://fencerail.blogspot.com/

If you would like documents containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.

If you would like a full presentation of discipleship read Simply Disciples*^{Making Disciples}.

Or if you are struggling with insomnia and would like a long boring dissertation on disciple making, these can both be found on https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes.

Reading Notes ©, Dan Kachikis 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018

The One Year Bible © by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton Illinois 60189

All charts/graphics/outlines from the Bible Knowledge Commentary are used with the permission of David C. Cook.

Tuesday, November 27, 2018

November 28, 2018 Reading Notes

NOVEMBER 28

Daniel 5

One of the reasons that God has put the stories of so many people in the Bible is for us to learn from them. In a way that only God would dare, He shows us their faith and their failures. At times, like with David, He shows us things in great detail. God does this expecting us to learn from them. Put another way, God really, really expects us to learn and be warned by what He shows us from those who lived before us.

Nebuchadnezzar’s life became an open book to the world, that Yahweh and His people were to be respected. It’s time to see who learned and who didn’t.

After Neb, the Babylonian Empire declined through murders and weak rulers. Finally, Nabonidus became king and reigned for the last 17 years of the empire. He actually left the city of Babylon to rule from another city further north. He appointed his son, Belshazzar, to rule in Babylon as a co-regent. So Babylon had two rulers.

We will see from the coming chapters, that Daniel lost his position in the palace when Nebuchadnezzar died. Two of the later chapters mention Daniel during the years of Belshazzar, and in one of those chapters, Daniel seems to be in the Persian capital of Susa, apparently working as a diplomat. If that was the case, God perfectly designed this “demotion” of Daniel. As a result, Daniel most likely knew both Cyrus and Darius, the coming rulers of the Persian Empire.

As Babylon was falling apart, the Persian Empire was going through its own growing pains. The young Cyrus wanted to expand Persia, but was held back by his grandfather who ruled in Assyria. A member of the royal family of the Medes, a general named Darius, sided with Cyrus and together they launched a civil war. Darius was an older man and was apparently highly respected. It seems that Cyrus and Darius agreed to co-rule Persia. Well, the civil war went so well that they decided to go against Babylon. Nabonidus was an absentee ruler and Belshazzar was really not a ruler at all. Persia began devouring Babylon. All of the diplomatic ties were cut and the city of Babylon began to become a small, lonely island.

The night of this chapter is the last night of the Babylonian Empire. Darius was working to take the city, having already captured Nabonidus. Belshazzar didn’t know that yet. The city had massive walls and enough supplies to endure a 20-year siege. Now we’ll look at what Belshazzar, this military genius and leader of the people, decided to do to stop the Persian attack on the city of Babylon.

Vs. 1-4 Belshazzar drank wine in front of them and tasted the wine. In other words, he got roaring drunk. At some point, probably recounting the victories of Babylon, he ordered those cups and vessels to be brought out that Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem. We read about Neb taking these in chapter 1. Then they praised the gods represented by the precious metals.

Vs. 5-6 This was a visible hand and finger, and the writing was inscribed into the plaster of the wall. The king’s reaction might hint that he knew what he had done and that it wasn't smart.

Vs. 7-9 Now we see another crisis and another failed attempt by the wise men of Babylon. The king’s offer of being the third ruler in the kingdom was right, except that he didn’t know that Nabonidus had already been dethroned and captured.

Vs. 10-12 The actual genealogy of Belshazzar is hard to understand. It appears that he might not have had a clear blood tie to Nebuchadnezzar, but Neb is referred to as his father meaning he was his successor. I’ve read elsewhere that Belshazzar was a grandson and that the queen mother was one of Nebuchadnezzar’s wives, probably his queen. If this woman was Neb's queen, she was Persian. We just don’t have enough records to know. But this woman knew about Daniel. According to her, Daniel had to have been indwelt by the spirit of the holy gods. How else could he know what he knew? The excellent spirit describes Daniel’s attitude and heart. Not everyone who is an exile and a slave and demoted, etc., has an excellent spirit as a result of the Spirit. Daniel was a disciple.

Vs. 13-16 Notice that Daniel is still referred to as a Jewish exile. Since you know that the exile of the Jews lasted 70 years, and now with the Persians coming, you can imagine that Cyrus will soon be sending the Jews back to Jerusalem as God foretold, you can add up some years. If Daniel was taken when he was 16, that would make him about 86 now. Sometimes when you wake up old people they get grumpy. As Daniel walked in, having served all the years of Nebuchadnezzar, I’m sure he was disgusted to see what was happening. The empire had crumbled and this night was the cherry on top. Also, Daniel recognized the vessels of gold from the temple in Jerusalem.

Vs. 17-23 This is a very strong section of Scripture. Notice that while Daniel is respectful in turning down the riches and the offer to rule, there is a tone of acknowledging the foolishness of this evening.

What do you think is the key verse in this section? God expected Belshazzar to have learned from all He had done to Nebuchadnezzar. I would choose v. 22.

Vs. 24-28 Measured, measured, weighed and wanting, your kingdom is divided among the Medes and the Persians. Notice the writing was inscribed. It was not invisible/disappearing ink. It was written into the ballroom wall. That little observation might have a big impact.

V. 29 This is a very interesting and sad verse. In every chapter since chapter 2, we have had a pagan king worshiping God. I know this isn’t worship, but it sure feels like Belshazzar is saying that Daniel and God are right, and that he was a fool. Ordering Daniel to be given these things was his humble admission of guilt. Belshazzar was tested on what God had done with Nebuchadnezzar, and got an “F-.” He was measured and found wanting.

Understand what has just happened here: Daniel, the 86-year-old Jewish exile, has been made a ruler of the Babylonian Empire. A proclamation was made in the still uncaptured city.

V. 30 Later that evening, Darius entered the city practically without resistance. He captured and killed Belshazzar. At that moment, Daniel was the sole ruler of the Babylonian Empire. In a moment of time, God took Daniel from a place of forgotten obscurity, to being the wisest and sole ruler of the Babylonian Empire. It might look like this is dubbing someone the captain of a sinking ship, but God was on the move at the right time, to rescue His people and to show them grace. God was still bending the nations to His will. In Daniel’s years of obscurity after the death of Nebuchadnezzar, God was strategically positioning Daniel to save His people and begin their journey back to Jerusalem. What an amazing God and Savior.

Here are some thoughts for tomorrow. Why is it important that Darius was 62 years old. So what? Why didn’t Darius kill Daniel? You always killed the top rulers of a nation when you took it over. Do you think Darius was told what had happened that night? Was there any proof other than Daniel's new clothes and royal necklace? Keep all of this in mind when you begin reading chapter 6. There are reasons why the following events and a new crisis situation will develop.

2 Peter 2

Vs. 1-3 Peter and the Spirit are not holding back talking about the false teachers that are rising up in the church. Harry Ironside is credited with the saying, “Where there’s light, there’s bugs.” It sounds funny, but when it comes to teachers who create dissension in the church, there is nothing funny. It is terrible to see very good and godly people get drawn into bitterness or into something false. This is why elders have to know the Lord, know the Word and be committed disciple makers, passing on a passion for the Word. If you understand Ephesians 4:12-16, you see that disciple-making not only brings maturity in Christ, but is a protection against false teachers and deception.

Peter mentions four things in this section that result in the rise of false teachers. Take a minute to identify these. The bottom line is that the work of a church in the harvest is lost and Jesus is held up to ridicule.

Vs. 4-10 To get what Peter is saying here, notice the “if – then” structure. There are lots of “ifs,” but the “then” doesn’t come until v. 9. Highlight if, and when you get to the then, notice that it has two parts, a positive and a negative.

V. 4 This is the first if, and a very interesting verse. If you look at Genesis 6:1-5, you will find that the sons of God saw the daughters of man and mated with them. These sons of God are fallen angels. I don’t understand it, but it wasn’t good. That we know of, no other demons are bound. These are a special group. It would be nice if they all were bound, but this particular group violated something that God had forbidden. I’m not sure how it worked, but it increased evil in the world and it deepened the rebellion against God, and God stopped it. If you think of what demons said to Jesus, you can see that they were still afraid of being judged as God had judged those angels back in Genesis 6.

Notice that all of these “ifs” are chronological. So what you see in Genesis 6 is correct. This action by these angels preceded the flood.

Vs. 10-16 Peter and the Spirit are on a roll.

It is hard to boil down all of these descriptions, but look to see what themes you find in this section. A couple of things stand out to me.

First, these teachers have no real spiritual understanding, but play with spiritual things, like a drunk juggling knives. They get hurt and don’t really understand the powers they are dealing with. Remember that Jesus said it would be possible to use His name and to perform signs and still to be lost. Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ (Matt. 7:21-23) Never means never. Jesus never knew them. They didn't lose their salvation. They never had it from the beginning.

Second, they are in the company of believers. They are at the feasts. They are accursed children. Worst of all, they are like Balaam, who for the sake of money gave spiritual insight to the enemy, to the king of Moab, showing him how to bring God’s wrath on Israel. Paul told Timothy (2 Tim. 3:5) and the Romans (Rom. 16:17) to avoid these kind of people. They were to be disciplined and put out of the fellowship, but not to be argued with.

Vs. 17-22 These people promise freedom, but are themselves slaves. Worse than that, it appears that some of them might be saved; but they have twisted the truth so much, that they’ve shipwrecked their faith and warped their understanding. They will be permanently damaged on earth, only to be saved as through fire.

And in the meantime, they cause unbelievers to scoff and they deceive the hearts of the simple-minded (Rom. 16:18 RSV).

Romans 16:17-18, - I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

Again, this is why you are in the Word, so that as you follow the Lord in the harvest, those you bring to Christ, and those who become disciples, will be firmly rooted in the Word and in following Christ in the harvest.

Psalm 119:113-128

As you see how David depended on the Word, find in each verse a concern on David’s mind. For example, in v. 113 David was concerned with those who were shaky in their loyalties, or in their promise to help him. But rather than worry about them, he found the faithfulness and firmness he needed in God and His law. That’s a good lesson for all of us. David was a very distressed individual. What would he have done without God and His Word?

Vs. 113-120 The double-minded are the problem here. This is very interesting since we are reading something like this in 2 Peter regarding the false teachers. They were kind of following God, but not following God. Notice v. 115. That sounds a lot like Matthew 7:23. The judgment that David feared in v. 120 would be that same judgment of fire and the revealing of the heart. This judgment would reveal those who truly loved God and His Word and those who were merely there to enjoy the benefits, using godliness as a means of gain.

Vs. 121-128 The first two verses define David's concern in this section. He had powerful, hypocritical, religious-sounding enemies. Yet David was true to God, following the Word. To honor God and honor the Word, David had spared Saul's life twice. Still, David had moments he feared for his life, or feared that he himself would be put to shame for having such trust in God and His Word.

David longed for everything he had read about in God's Word. God's promises cannot fail and His steadfast love never ends. You might want to listen to “Your Love Never Fails,” by Chris Quilala / Jesus Culture.

Proverbs 28:19-20

V. 19 It is interesting to read this. I like the “p’s” at the end and the play on the word plenty. Actually, I was just reading the parable of the man who built the barns in Luke 12:21. God says it is worthless to lay up treasure for yourself and not be rich toward Him.

V. 20 Why the punishment? But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction (1 Tim. 6:9). They punish themselves.