https://youtu.be/fNNbulojWcw
Peter
described several
graces
that reflect the
love of Christ in the life of believers,
including like-mindedness, sympathy,
brotherly love, compassion, and humility
(1 Peter 3:8).
Christians who emulate these characteristics enjoy
spiritual blessings and favor from the Lord:
“For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are
attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil”
(1 Peter 3:12).
Peter was quoting from Psalm 34 to describe the blessed life to which Christians are called: “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth”
(Psalm 34:15–16).
Other passages of Scripture affirm Peter’s thought that
God looks with
favor on the righteous
(Genesis 6:8).
The psalmist says,
"Surely, LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them
with your favor as with a shield”
(Psalm 5:12).
The “righteous” Peter referred to are born-again Christians
who live out their new
lives in Christ,
practicing unity,
love, compassion,
sympathy, and humility.
They “don’t repay evil for evil”
and
“don’t retaliate with insults”
when they are insulted.
Instead, they “pay them back with a blessing.
That is what God has called you to do,
and he will grant you his blessing”
(1 Peter 3:9, NLT).
The phrase eyes of the Lord is an anthropomorphic expression that ascribes humanlike qualities to God. The initial encouragement we receive from knowing that the Lord’s eyes are upon the righteous is that God is omniscient and sovereign over all creation.
God knows everything (1 John 3:20) and sees all people,
both the evil and the righteous.
His eyes “are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good” (Proverbs 15:3). Nothing escapes the Lord’s purview.
If the eyes of the Lord are everywhere and always upon us,
then we can count on
His presence to always be with us:
“If I go up to the heavens,
you are there; if I make my bed in the depths,
you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you”
(Psalm 139:11–12).
We can rest knowing that God will never leave or forsake us
(Deuteronomy 31:8; Joshua 1:5; Hebrews 13:5).
We are never alone, “never abandoned by God”
(2 Corinthians 4:9, NLT)
or separated from
His love
(Romans 8:38). God is omnipresent or present everywhere.
His eyes “range throughout the earth to
strengthen those
whose hearts are
fully committed to him”
(2 Chronicles 16:9).
The eyes of the Lord also refers to His individualized care.
God sees every step His children take (Job 34:21).
“He gives them security,
and they are supported,
and his eyes are
upon their ways,” assures Job 24:23
Just as God cared for
Israel
"as the apple of his eye”
(Deuteronomy 32:10),
He continues to keep watch over
"those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love”
(Psalm 33:18).
Knowing the eyes of the Lord are always on the righteous,
we can be confident of His constant protection.
Our Heavenly Father
“will not let your foot slip—he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who
watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep”
(Psalm 121:3–4).
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous like those of a loving shepherd tending the sheep of his flock (Psalm 23:1; Revelation 7:17). God’s blessings of favor extend to eternal life (John 3:16; 17:3; 1 John 2:25) yet also fill our days on earth with good things: “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow” (James 1:17, NLT; see also Psalm 85:12; 107:9).
Abraham and Lot's conflict
(Hebrew: מריבת רועי אברהם ורועי לוט)
Is an event in the Book of Genesis, in the weekly Torah portion, Lech-Lecha, that depicts the separation of Abraham and Lot,
As a result of a fight among their shepherds.
The dispute ends in a peaceful way, in which
Abraham concedes a part of the Promised Land,
which belongs to him, in order to resolve the conflict peacefully.
Abraham and Lot Divided the Land, Abraham (then called Abram)
and Lot separate, as a result of the quarrel among the shepherds.
At the beginning of the story,
Lot is described as a very wealthy man, like Abraham is after his return from Egypt. The biblical text does not elaborate on the exact reason for the dispute, however, as a result of this, Abraham offers Lot to separate, in order to prevent the fight, and he grants Lot with the right to be the first among the two to pick the territory he desires:
And Lot also, which went with Abram,
had flocks, and herds, and tents.
And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together, for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.
"And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and between the herdmen of Lot's cattle, and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.
And Abram said unto Lot, "Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and between thee and between my herdmen and between thy herdmen, for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee?
Separate thyself, I pray thee; if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, I will go to the left. "
— Genesis 13:5-9 suggests that Abraham's language is
"clear, firm and polite."
Lot accepts the peace deal, for the Partition of the Land,
and chooses the area of the plain of the Jordan – in the area
including Sodom, and the story ends with
Abraham and Lot separately settling in different areas of the Land:
And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of the Jordan,
that it was well watered every where;
before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah,
even as the garden of the Lord,
like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
Then Lot chose him all the plain of the Jordan; and Lot journeyed
east:
and they separated themselves the one from the other.
Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and he pitched his tent toward Sodom.
2 Peter 2:6-9
Three times in this section, Lot is called "righteous,"
and once he is called "godly."
Yet, when we
look at his story,
found in Genesis 11 - 19, everything that is written about the man is negative.
It is not good.
He is not put in a good light at all, yet
Peter calls him "righteous" and "godly."
It is even more shocking to consider Peter's obvious inference that
he was righteous
while all the evil, wicked things were happening in Sodom. From this, we can conclude that he did not become righteous through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ after the shock of events that occurred with the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah,
but that God
deemed him righteous before that time and through the event.
Lot, that righteous man, was troubled with what was
occurring within the city.
Lot, then, was not what we would consider a bad or evil man. He was, in fact, what we would consider to be a converted man. He had received the grace of God, so righteousness was imputed to him, even as it is to us.
Peter writes that Lot was tormented by the things that he saw in Sodom and Gomorrah. What does this mean? It means that he clearly understood sin. It does not seem that the Sodomites were concerned at all, but Lot was. He understood that his neighbors were far off the mark.
Peter
described several
graces
that reflect the
love of Christ in the life of believers,
including like-mindedness, sympathy,
brotherly love, compassion, and humility
(1 Peter 3:8).
Christians who emulate these characteristics enjoy
spiritual blessings and favor from the Lord:
“For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are
attentive to their prayer,
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil”
(1 Peter 3:12).
Peter was quoting from Psalm 34 to describe the blessed life to which Christians are called: “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth”
(Psalm 34:15–16).
Other passages of Scripture affirm Peter’s thought that
God looks with
favor on the righteous
(Genesis 6:8).
The psalmist says,
"Surely, LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them
with your favor as with a shield”
(Psalm 5:12).
The “righteous” Peter referred to are born-again Christians
who live out their new
lives in Christ,
practicing unity,
love, compassion,
sympathy, and humility.
They “don’t repay evil for evil”
and
“don’t retaliate with insults”
when they are insulted.
Instead, they “pay them back with a blessing.
That is what God has called you to do,
and he will grant you his blessing”
(1 Peter 3:9, NLT).
The phrase eyes of the Lord is an anthropomorphic expression that ascribes humanlike qualities to God. The initial encouragement we receive from knowing that the Lord’s eyes are upon the righteous is that God is omniscient and sovereign over all creation.
God knows everything (1 John 3:20) and sees all people,
both the evil and the righteous.
His eyes “are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good” (Proverbs 15:3). Nothing escapes the Lord’s purview.
If the eyes of the Lord are everywhere and always upon us,
then we can count on
His presence to always be with us:
“If I go up to the heavens,
you are there; if I make my bed in the depths,
you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you”
(Psalm 139:11–12).
We can rest knowing that God will never leave or forsake us
(Deuteronomy 31:8; Joshua 1:5; Hebrews 13:5).
We are never alone, “never abandoned by God”
(2 Corinthians 4:9, NLT)
or separated from
His love
(Romans 8:38). God is omnipresent or present everywhere.
His eyes “range throughout the earth to
strengthen those
whose hearts are
fully committed to him”
(2 Chronicles 16:9).
The eyes of the Lord also refers to His individualized care.
God sees every step His children take (Job 34:21).
“He gives them security,
and they are supported,
and his eyes are
upon their ways,” assures Job 24:23
Just as God cared for
Israel
"as the apple of his eye”
(Deuteronomy 32:10),
He continues to keep watch over
"those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love”
(Psalm 33:18).
Knowing the eyes of the Lord are always on the righteous,
we can be confident of His constant protection.
Our Heavenly Father
“will not let your foot slip—he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who
watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep”
(Psalm 121:3–4).
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous like those of a loving shepherd tending the sheep of his flock (Psalm 23:1; Revelation 7:17). God’s blessings of favor extend to eternal life (John 3:16; 17:3; 1 John 2:25) yet also fill our days on earth with good things: “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow” (James 1:17, NLT; see also Psalm 85:12; 107:9).
Abraham and Lot's conflict
(Hebrew: מריבת רועי אברהם ורועי לוט)
Is an event in the Book of Genesis, in the weekly Torah portion, Lech-Lecha, that depicts the separation of Abraham and Lot,
As a result of a fight among their shepherds.
The dispute ends in a peaceful way, in which
Abraham concedes a part of the Promised Land,
which belongs to him, in order to resolve the conflict peacefully.
Abraham and Lot Divided the Land, Abraham (then called Abram)
and Lot separate, as a result of the quarrel among the shepherds.
At the beginning of the story,
Lot is described as a very wealthy man, like Abraham is after his return from Egypt. The biblical text does not elaborate on the exact reason for the dispute, however, as a result of this, Abraham offers Lot to separate, in order to prevent the fight, and he grants Lot with the right to be the first among the two to pick the territory he desires:
And Lot also, which went with Abram,
had flocks, and herds, and tents.
And the land was not able to bear them, that they might dwell together, for their substance was great, so that they could not dwell together.
"And there was a strife between the herdmen of Abram's cattle and between the herdmen of Lot's cattle, and the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.
And Abram said unto Lot, "Let there be no strife, I pray thee, between me and between thee and between my herdmen and between thy herdmen, for we be brethren. Is not the whole land before thee?
Separate thyself, I pray thee; if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, I will go to the left. "
— Genesis 13:5-9 suggests that Abraham's language is
"clear, firm and polite."
Lot accepts the peace deal, for the Partition of the Land,
and chooses the area of the plain of the Jordan – in the area
including Sodom, and the story ends with
Abraham and Lot separately settling in different areas of the Land:
And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of the Jordan,
that it was well watered every where;
before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah,
even as the garden of the Lord,
like the land of Egypt, as thou comest unto Zoar.
Then Lot chose him all the plain of the Jordan; and Lot journeyed
east:
and they separated themselves the one from the other.
Abram dwelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and he pitched his tent toward Sodom.
2 Peter 2:6-9
Three times in this section, Lot is called "righteous,"
and once he is called "godly."
Yet, when we
look at his story,
found in Genesis 11 - 19, everything that is written about the man is negative.
It is not good.
He is not put in a good light at all, yet
Peter calls him "righteous" and "godly."
It is even more shocking to consider Peter's obvious inference that
he was righteous
while all the evil, wicked things were happening in Sodom. From this, we can conclude that he did not become righteous through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ after the shock of events that occurred with the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah,
but that God
deemed him righteous before that time and through the event.
Lot, that righteous man, was troubled with what was
occurring within the city.
Lot, then, was not what we would consider a bad or evil man. He was, in fact, what we would consider to be a converted man. He had received the grace of God, so righteousness was imputed to him, even as it is to us.
Peter writes that Lot was tormented by the things that he saw in Sodom and Gomorrah. What does this mean? It means that he clearly understood sin. It does not seem that the Sodomites were concerned at all, but Lot was. He understood that his neighbors were far off the mark.
RSS Feed
