Daily Reading // Isaiah 32:1-20
READY // SILENCIO
Take a moment to quiet your mind and prepare your heart for your time with the Lord.
READ // LECTIO
Read the passage above up to three times aloud. Allow yourself to feel the words as they are read.
REFLECT // MEDITATIO
Now direct your focus on the words, phrases concepts or sentences that got your attention. What is God speaking to you today through His word?
Isaiah 32:5 The foolish person will no longer be called generous, Nor the miser said to be bountiful;
There are many people that have an unhealthy relationship with money. In fact, it is probably very difficult to have a healthy relationship with money. She sure plays hard to get.
Sometimes what we call generous is really just foolish. What we might admire as a large net worth is actually just miserly. Somewhere in the space between foolish and miserly lies a healthy relationship with money.
Judas, the betrayer of Jesus, sold his soul for thirty pieces of silver just as Joseph’s brothers violated their family for the same amount. It is as hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven as it is for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle. The prodigal son left his loving father for his half of the inheritance. Once it ran out, he came crawling back.
Jesus commended a poor widow for giving all she had, a very small amount, in the temple treasury.
All of this and more leads me to reflect upon my relationship with money. Is it healthy or unhealthy? Is it miserly or foolish? Does it put other relationships at risk? Do I give it too much attention and too much priority. Does it get in the way of my relationship with a God?
Money is a servant, not a master. It is a tool, not a goal.
RESPOND // ORATIO
Pray in response to what the Lord has spoken to you.
Jesus, Reveal to me things about my attitude towards money - both good and bad. I cannot serve two masters. I want to serve You, not the empty promises of money. Amen.
Tomorrow’s reading -> Psalm 18:1-24
You’re right! It takes some digging and some revelation to get the real treasure.
Thank you for this great explanation and reminder to look up meanings of words to bring clarification. Also what you said in the message on Sunday applies to this; to study the Word and wait for spiritual revelation.
I know what you mean. But think of the different versions actually give us a fuller understanding, rather than confusion. For example, the English word ‘generous’ actually means ‘of noble birth’ (see the root for ‘gene’ or ‘genetics’ in it). Generous speaks not just about handing out money, but also about an attitude of nobility. I often compare different versions to get a broader sense of a word. The Amplified Version basically does that work for you. I don’t think that one particular version is necessarily more accurate than the others. They’re all good. It’s great to use them together.
The NIV version and many other versions say it this way, seems the only I could find that states it as you have it is the NKJV- here’s the NIV: “No longer will the fool be called noble nor the scoundrel be highly respected.”
Isaiah 32:5 NIV
Instead of generous and bountiful we see noble and highly respected which seems to change the entire meaning. This is frustrating that the versions can be so different. What are we do to with this fact? Do you have certain versions you recommend over others? I’ve always read the NIV mostly.