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Front PageMeditation 1.19
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On Saturdays, we consider a passage of Scripture. This is not a thread for theological debate, but for considering the truth in an ancient text.
I know, O Lord, that the way of man is not in himself,
that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.
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I’m struggling to accurately understand this verse.
What is exactly meant by “way of man”?
Is it his direction, or his manners? Or both?
Is this a reference to God’s sovereignty?
I think maybe yes.
I get this way with scripture sometimes. I hope I’m not alone. It’s not all “crystal clear” to me. Perhaps it’s the old language.
You’re not alone in that, EYG.
EYG,
Yes, I think it’s about God’s sovereignty. The first part is unclear as it’s worded in the version Lynn used, but the second part (which in Hebrew parallelism is a restatement of the first) makes it more clear.
I checked four other Bible translations (my husband has a 4-in-1 parallel Bible), and they all make it more clear that it is about our not being able to control the course of our lives. (Though probably Lynn’s translation is the wording actually used in the original, and these others are interpreting it, to some extent.)
I always knew that intellectually, but it came home very personally when I was raped 20 years ago. There was no way to think anymore, about potential disaster, “Well, it won’t happen to me.”
My life has gone in many directions I never imagined, such as becoming a pastor’s wife (he was a research scientist when I married him) and having an a child with autism. Not that I consider either of those “bad” things - but they introduce a lot of challenges that I would never have chosen on my own. I am constantly surprised to find myself coping fairly well with some (hardly all) of them.
I think it may be useful to read this along side Psalm 1 — again there is that word, “way”.
In Jeremiah’s context I think the emphasis is on the decision or will of people. This is especially difficult in tough times, when the path seems any thing but clear, or when the path away seems the easier.
I also find something of the petition in the Lord’s Prayer about not being led to a time of testing (”temptation”). It is hard to see that God is with us on the difficult path. And even harder, to see how he wants to correct or change us. On that score, the next verse provides some guidance
“O LORD, correct me, but with justice;
Not in Your anger, lest You bring me to nothing.”
(tho’ the Heb mishpat does not seem quite right for “justice”)
I am glad God directs my steps. I would be constantly stumbling in the dark w/out Him.
Pauline,
Wow.
I’m so sorry that happened to you.
I thank God you survived it.
Thanks for your input.
Yours too, Karen O
(hi)