Views from an Evangelist

Psalm Summary

142: Another brief, 7 verse, Psalm where the Psalmist cries out to the Lord to protect Him from his persecutors. He cries because the Lord will hear and answer. A genuine heartfelt cry is received by the Lord.

143: Same type of Psalm. The Psalmist cries out because he knows of the Lord’s great feats in delivering Israel from Pharaoh and her enemies. With confidence the Psalmist cries out for the Lord to protect him for the sake of His name and righteousness.

Scripture Summary

Proverbs 22:1-16: Again a multitude of descriptions of the wise and the wicked. Below is a summary but you need to read the text to grasp the depth of the message.

Righteous: good name; hides from evil; fear the Lord; train their children; generous; drive out scoffers; loves purity of heart.

Wicked: embrace thorns and snares (sin); sows injustice; lazy; listen to the adulteress; oppress the poor and give to the rich.

Matthew 15:1-20: Jesus begins by illustrating the difference between believing God’s Word and following your traditions which typically violate God’s Word. To violate or translate God’s Word is sin. A further exposition be Him of the Pharisees accusation Jesus explains eating with unclean hands doesn’t cause one to sin but what comes out of the heart and subsequently out of your mouth is what defiles you.

To further the depth of His message He said verses 13 & 14, “…Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant will be uprooted. ¹⁴ Leave them alone; they are blind guides of blind people. And if a person who is blind guides another who is blind, both will fall into a pit.”