...Pray the Imprecatory Psalms? A research paper submitted to Dr. B. Keith Lester. In partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the course OBST 520 Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary By Lynchburg, Virginia Friday, July 03, 2015 Contents INTRODUCTION 3 IMPRECATORY PSALMS 3 Context Matters 4 Problematic Solutions 7 Author’s view of Imprecations 9 Should Modern Day Christians Pray Imprecatory Prayers? 10 “Wrong” is not the same as “Sinful” 12 Concluding Thoughts 13 Bibliography iv INTRODUCTION Between the September 11th terrorists, ISIS, and other terror plots and organizations which openly call for the extension of Christians, more Christians than ever are wondering how to properly think about and handle such violent and gruesome persecution. One idea which is regaining traction is imprecatory prayers or “cursing” prayers. These prayers of cursing are found throughout the Bible but the most notable examples are found in Psalms. Christians struggle, however, with whether or not praying these prayers is in keeping with the orthodox teachings of Christ whose teachings involved mercy, grace, and forgiveness. So can and should Christians utilize the imprecatory psalms as part of their regular prayer life or not? This paper will attempt to answer this question by first briefly examining an example of an imprecatory psalm and the context surrounding it and then comparing it to the New Testament teachings of Christ. IMPRECATORY PSALMS According...
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...OBST 592 Exam 3—Study Guide Thanks to Brian & Jung for their notes..I used both to complete this. Maybe it can be of some help for whoever hasn’t gotten a chance to fill it out. If there is something that says “I” it’s referring to Dr. Yates…Jung’s notes were transcribed, so its exactly what Dr. Yates said. If anything is wrong or should be added, please let me know This test will cover the books of Zechariah, Joel, Malachi, Psalms, Proverbs, and Job. Some test questions will cover general knowledge of these books discussed in the class sessions on these books. The best way to prepare for these questions is to study through your notes from the class sessions covering these books. Zechariah: Know the three sections of the book: The night visions: The night visions (Zech 1:1-6:14) 1. The vision of the man among the myrtle trees (1:7-17) a. Angels of God going out to judge the other nations b. God will bring judgment against the nations who feel safe and secure 2. The vision of the four horns and the four craftsmen (1:18-21) a. The nations that harm Israel will be destroyed b. Craftsman will destroy horns 3. The vision of the man with a measuring line (2:1-12) a. Jerusalem will be bigger and better than ever before 4. The vision of the new garments for the high priest (3:1-10) a. Cleansing of the priest and the restoration of Israel’s worship b. Satan appears in this vision 5. The vision of the golden lampstand and the two olive trees (4:1-14) a. Joshua...
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...Cruelty The prophet David from the Bible who spoke of false accusations people make, an angry dragon from Scandinavia whose fury could not be withheld, and a man who knows the brutality of human nature. Though all different situations, they share a common theme, cruelty. Cruelty in gossip, cruelty in temper, and cruelty in nature. Cruelty can be found in all types of literature even as old as the Bible. “Deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies: for false witnesses are risen up risen up against me, and such as breath out cruelty” (Psalms 27:12). This quote is asking God not to let us give into our enemies, and for us to not believe the brutality of people’s false accusations. The prophet David was the one who conveyed this quote. By speaking out about the cruelty of people he is indirectly saying that God is the only person you need to seek approval from. He is also saying that no one else’s words or savageness should matter. Though David’s message is centuries old, it proves that a verse, or phrase can contain the same significance even centuries later. Only decades later cruelty was still evident with World War II and the Nazis, and in modern day situations such as terrorism. Many other works of literature are also proof of this same idea. One example of a piece of literature that conveys cruelty well is the story of Beowulf. “And the signs of its anger flickered and glowed in the darkness, visible for miles tokens of its hate and its cruelty...
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...Psalm 37:7-8 ADAM CLARKE'S BIBLE COMMENTARY Verse 7. "Rest in the Lord " - mwd dom, "be silent, be dumb." Do not find fault with thy Maker; he does all things well for others, he will do all things well for thee. "And wait patiently for him " - wl llwjthw vehithcholel lo, and set thyself to expect him; and be determined to expect, or wait for him. Such is the import of a verb in the hithpoel conjugation. "A heathen gives good advice on a similar subject: " - Nil ergo optabunt homines? Si consilium vis, Permittes ipsis expendere Numinibus, quid Conveniat nobis, rebusque sit utile nostris. Nam pro jucundis aptissima quaeque dabunt Di. Carior est illis homo, quam sibi. Juv. Sat. x. 346. "What then remains? Are we deprived of will? Must we not wish, for fear of wishing ill? Receive my counsel, and securely move; Intrust thy pastime to the powers above. Leave them to manage for thee, and to grant What their unerring wisdom sees thee want. In goodness, as in greatness, they excel: Ah, that we loved ourselves but half so well!" DRYDEN. Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible Verse 8 REASONS FOR NOT FRETTING OVER EVIL-DOERS "Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: Fret not thyself, it tendeth only to evil-doing. For evil-doers shall be cut off; But those that wait for Jehovah, they shall inherit the land. For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be: Yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and he shall not be. But the meek shall inherit the land, And shall...
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...I chose a specific Bible verse that speaks to me most which is, “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. For you will be treated as you treat others. The standard you use in judging is the standard by which you will be judged. And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye” (Matthew 7:1-5). I decided to choose this Bible verse because it fits my life perfectly. When I first read this verse it caught my eye because I felt like it fit to one of my personal experience from last year. I then read it a few more times to really understand what the Lord was trying to say throughout the verse. As I was pondering the meaning of what I was reading, I realized that I chose this verse because I feel judged every day and especially on the one day over a year ago. At this point in the stages of Lectio Divina I am visualizing what happened to be and how the scripture applies. Before I came to college I worked for a Christian camp over the summer doing random jobs such as, housekeeping or snack shack, or whatever they needed me to do. They absolutely loved having me work there and always enjoyed talking highly of me to my parents. They said that I was one of their hardest and best...
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...Psalm 46 is recognized by most scholars a community song of confidence. The stanzas and refrains represent features of a confession and a declarative statement of trust. However, after several observations of Psalm 46, I have found that there is a lot of debate as to the classification of this Psalm. In this essay, I will present scholars that dare to differ on their views on Psalm 46, and I will conclude with a critical examination of their viewpoints. Psalm 46 is the first of the Songs of Zion. According to Walter, Psalm 46 demonstrates a prophetic message of hope. The Songs of Zion (Ps. 46, 48, 76, 84, 87,122) feature the importance and meaning of Jerusalem in the Lord’s relationship to his people and the world. In Psalm 46, “Zion...
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...Ho Man Chan RELI 1301 05 J. Jonathan Kim, Ph.D. 11-12-2010 Books of Wisdom Literature Wisdom Literature is a style of Hebrew literature. It was originated from 6th century BC, when the Israelites in exile after being swept into the AD era. These literary works are such as "Wisdom books." "Wisdom literature" has four main characteristics: 1. The writing time should be after the Israelis were swept and before the birth of Jesus Christ; 2. The contents should focus on ethics, but not designed to focus on theology; 3. The way of expression are mainly the maxim, aphorism, metaphor, fables, poems, eulogy, etc; 4. The writing object is not only limited to Jews. There are five main books of Wisdom Literature, Book of Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Psalms and Song of Songs. First, Job is a faithful servant of God who is known for piety and patience. At that time, the Israelites were polluted to worship the Egyptian demons, but only Job is adhered to worship the God purely. The most ancient tradition believed that Moses is the author of this book. Many Jewish and early Christian scholars also agreed with this proposition. It is because the style of Job is very similar with the Pentateuch. So, the time of writing should be estimated around 1500 BC of the Patriarch Period. Most of this book (3:1-42:6) is a form of play or epic written. The front (1:1-2:13) is a prelude and (42:7-17) is the end. These two parts is written in prose form. Job not only teaches a great truth. “The Book of Job deals...
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...Week 4 Chapter 15 JOB Describe the enormity of Job's losses. Why did God allow this to happen to him? God allowed Satan to take everything from Job including, eventually his health. God does this to prove Job's righteousness to Satan. pg. 176 Chapter 16 PSALMS What is the major purpose of Psalms in regard to worship? Many were written to be sung as expressions of faith and worship/ express full range of human emotions. pg. 183 Chapter 17PROVERBS In what way does Proverbs exhibit the wisdom of God? Fear of the Lord as the key to wisdom and knowledge. God is the ultimate source of truth. pg. 200 Chapter 18ECCLESIASTES AND SONG OF SONGS What is unique about the author's approach in writing Ecclesiastes? The author was frustrated by injustice and the inability of man to straighten what is crooked. He was also frustrated by the transitory nature of life and the inability of wisdom to provide any sense of guarantee over what tomorrow might bring. pg. 203 5. Describe the various types of proverbs with biblical examples. Marriage and Sexuality Wealth and Poverty Power of the Tongue Principles on Child-Rearing Personal Discipline Friendship 6. How did these tragedies impact Job's wife? She says "Why don't you curse God and die?" out of realistic agony of losing all her children and soon to lose her husband. pg. 176 7. How does the Song of Songs caution the reader? Cautions the...
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...by showing the difference in style of writing and content between a psalm and a passage in 2 Kings. Historical Narrative in 2 Kings | Poetry in Psalms | The book uses historical narratives as a style of writing. Its main content is a continuation of the history in 1 Kings. The history opens with the translation of Elijah into Heaven, and ends with the story of ungodly Jews moving to Babylon (Tanzer, 2012). Chapter One of 2 Kings sets the record of its documentation of what happened in the past, appearing in prosaic style. This passage assumes that its contents are the actual records of what transpired, and does not give much room for evaluation (Wilt, 2014). | Chapter One, just like the entire books of Psalms employs the poetic style in the presentation of its contents. The content is presented in the form of a poem, which gives the book a distinct structure. Unlike in Chapter One of 2 Kings, characterized by narration, there is an element of meter, alphabetic matching, as well as rhythm in the book of Psalms. Furthermore, there is a sense of hyperbole and fantasy in the content, which makes the message more poetic, enhancing its effectiveness to the readers (Gaebelein, 2013). | As a wrap up therefore, it is evident that even though different books of the Bible have different styles of writing, there are common themes that underlie in them. For instance, the first chapters in both 2 Kings and Psalms share a common theme, in which there are consequences...
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...Shayna Joyner Intro to Biblical Literature Brower 10/3/14 Psalm Analysis Paper Psalm 37 Written of David, Psalm 37 expresses different righteous ways of the Lord, and how to be a better follower. The Psalm not only directly tells you what one needs to do in order to become more Christ-like, but it also shows one how to be a better follower through imagery, making God himself seem more tangible. Psalm 37 instructs one how to wait, shows the end of Godless people, proves that God will help the righteous, and describes what happens to righteous people, while being apparent in our lives each day. Something that I personally struggle with is waiting on God’s timing. A lot of times I find myself wanting things to happen on my own time, rather than...
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...about me. But it's times like these when I need to look to the truth of the Bible, and not trust my feelings. I found some scriptures on perseverance, and I am trying to memorize them and say them to myself when I start getting discouraged and impatient. If you are going through the same struggles, I hope these Bible verses will help you persevere and hold on while you're waiting for your breakthrough. It's coming!! • "Look to the Lord and His strength; seek His face always." 1 Chronicles 16:11 • "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him." James 1:12 • "Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord." Psalm 27:14 • "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." Galatians 6:9 • "You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised." Hebrews 10:36 • "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:2-4 • "As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy." James 5:11 • "Let us hold unswervingly to...
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...Behind The Psalms by Dr. Jack Hyles PREFACE There are three books in the Bible from which I read every day—the Psalms, the Proverbs and the book of Acts. I read the Psalms for love, the Proverbs for wisdom and the book of Acts for power. These three things—love, wisdom and power have for years been on the top of my prayer list. One day while meditating on one of the Psalms, I found myself wondering where the author was when he wrote it, what the circumstances were surrounding its writing and what exactly prompted the author to compose such a masterpiece. I fled to the library of my memory and the refuge of my commentaries until my temporary search became long research. This venture was so enjoyable that I traveled the historical path of another Psalm, then another, then another, which soon led to a series of Bible studies at the First Baptist Church of Hammond on the conditions and circumstances surrounding the writing of each of the Psalms. It makes our study richer as we stand beside the author as he writes and as we feel his heartbeat, watch his tears, enjoy his laughter and join in his praise. May the author beg scholastic mercy of the reader. The following words were not penned to be examined by the microscope of the scholar but rather to be enjoyed by the study of the saint. With lovingkindness, a prayerful spirit and a desire to bless, let me lead you into the Psalms, the songbook of Israel, that we together may enjoy the stories behind the Psalms. PSALM...
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...Detailed Lesson Plan in English for Grade 7 I. OBJECTIVES: By the end of the lesson the students should be able to: a. re-tell the Bible verse; Psalm 23; b. identify the meaning of the adjectives and its comparison; c. share insight; relate David’s love to God in our own life. II. SUBJECT-MATTER: “Psalm; 23, A Psalm of David” Adjectives https://www.Ids.org/scriptures/ot/ps/23 Jesus Christ LCD, Projector, chart Individual/ Group work Love God above all III. PROCEDURE: Teacher’s Activity 1. 1. Daily Routine a. Prayer “Good morning everyone, all of you Please stand up and Mika will lead the prayer” b. Checking of the attendance “The Secretary of this class please go in the front and Write those absentees in the blackboard” c. Classroom Management “Before you take your sit, kindly pick up the trash and Arrange your chair properly” 2. 2. Lesson Proper a. Review “Yesterday we tackled about noun. Can you please define and give some example? b. Unlacking of difficulty -The teacher posted a picture with a four pics one words. | Student’s Activity -“In the name of the father the son, the holy spirit Amen. Dear lord, Thank you, for another knowledge that our Teacher will impart to us”-“Yes ma’am...
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...The Bible talks a lot about the teachings of Hebrews wisdom on diligence and laziness. An example is Solomon’s teachings on wisdom and diligence with contrast between wisdom and folly. This topic is mostly found in the books of Proverbs where the Proverbs are mostly sharing wisdom. Solomon whom authored Proverbs and was well known for the gift he received from God after being asked for anything he chose wisdom and that’s what he received. When he taught about diligence he always tried to contrast it with laziness with parallels. He teaches that a diligent man will never want. Proverbs 13:4 says, “… the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.” In Proverbs 21:5,”The plans of the diligent only lead to abundance…” while Proverbs 10:4 says, “The hand of the diligent enriches”, and Proverbs 12:11 says, “He who works his land will have plenty of food.” And all those these things seem outright and not too important, they obviously had to be other wise Solomon wouldn’t have recorded them then. But because of the money Solomon’s kingdom had there was a lot of room for laziness for the people. In the eyes of the diligent people the lazy people were low lives or people who they just didn’t like or care for. An example is Martha who worked so hard she missed almost all of Jesus’ sermon in Luke 10:40 in her own house. Solomon says diligence is described like this, “She looks after the ways of her household, and the bread of idleness she will not eat.” This teaching could bring a lot...
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...Liberti Todd BIBLE 105 September 28, 2014 Diligence and Laziness vs. Wisdom and Folly The believer is called to live a life that is above reproach. While that does not mean the believer will never stumble it does mean that the believer is to live life wisely. There should always be a difference between the lifestyle of a Christ follower and an unbeliever; the life of someone that has been transformed is not common but carful and consistent with their change. Evidence of thought plus attention to certain actions are what help the believer to stand out in the world, there is a call to diligence and wisdom as opposed to living life lazy and imprudent. Although there are similarities between diligence and wisdom, laziness and folly, there are differences as well; observing scripture and context each will be addressed in this essay. Solomon, the wisest man in the bible, was the author of the book of Proverbs. The book goes into great detail about the difference in outcome for the diligent and wise man compared to the lazy and foolish man. It is imperative for every believer to read and study the book of Proverbs in depth to understand the sayings and to be able to apply it to their lives. Interesting enough the Hebrew teaching on diligence show the blessings of the Lord flowing on those that to choose to obey; blessings do not just flow on the believer but also the unbeliever as well. The dictionary definition of the word diligence is “constant and earnest effort to accomplish...
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