March 9

NT -- Mark 14:22-52
I love this.



My Bible Dictionary has an interesting note about 14:51-52. "Early church history suggests that the naked young man was Mark, the gospel writer himself. Perhaps he - in his night clothes - had followed the disciples from his home where Jesus and the Twelve had earlier celebrated the Last Supper (inferred from Acts 12:12). He may be including a bit of his own biography, however shameful, right in the middle of this dramatic story." Then, of course, I had to go to Acts 12:12. I could not infer that from the text which was about Peter escaping from prison and going to Mark's home as an escapee. But it was interesting none the less.

Psalm 52
Now this is appropriate today. I read in the paper today about The New Orleans Saint football team that put bounties on opposing players. If that isn't evil, I simply do not know what is. And this is bound to bring down a bunch of people's careers and lives.
Check out this link. And prepare to see Psalm 52 play out in front of us on the TV and newspaper.
Saints Football Team

Proverbs 11:1-3
Nowadays, we pick up a package of hamburger and it says 1 pound and we believe it. In Bible days, they used weights and measures. Dishonest merchants had shaved or hollow weights. You had to know your seller in order to be sure you weren't being cheated. And in some cases, the merchant was honest for one, dishonest for another. These are not Godly virtues.
I remember reading Centennial years ago by James Michener and one of the 'measures of a man' that Levi Zendt believed about his older brother Mahluf whom he despised Mahluf's weights and measures were 'true'. And if he didn't add a pinch on, neither did he take a pinch off with bad weights. As an aside, that was one of the first books that I read that I recognized the Jacob/Esau struggle in literature. When I wrote a paper about it for my tenth grade teacher Peggy Dyer, she gave me a D for using 'worthless trash' as my book choice. Humph.

OT -- Numbers 11:24-13:33
See what I mean about reading ahead? I was totally taken aback by God's response to the people eating the quail. But a little poking around on the web made me realize that nobody said thank you. My Stone Chumash said it was only the whine instigators who were killed.
I also did not understand why only Miriam got the leprosy but the Stone had a comment about that as well. Moses was not having marital relations with Zipporah because he had to remain ritually pure at all times in case he had to hear God's word. Zipporah by chance remark let Miriam know who told Aaron. She was concerned that Moses was incorrect. God himself appeared to chastise them and put Moses' prophesy was of a higher order which meant he had to remain ritually pure. This exchange is the basis for all the rules and regulations against slander by the the Jewish people.

May you hear all the story. Peace and grace to each of you as you read and meditate on the Word.