Yet more ponderings

Yes, I admit it. I've been guilty of reading through the prophetic books of the Old Testament just because--well--it's still part of the Bible, you know, and I should probably read through them since the New Testament quotes them so much--I mean, at least for reference purposes. Of course, the beautiful Messianic prophecies of Isaiah especially catch one's attention, but haven't we all been a little guilty at one time or another of zoning out somewhat when Isaiah and the other prophets begin warning of destruction against such-and-such unpronounceable city or such-and-such country that was located over somewhere in that region thousands of years ago or the Somethingorother-ites that sometimes sound like something out of a modern Dr. Seuss book? In other words, we are tempted to maintain a rather detached view of these prophecies since they'd already been fulfilled (at least, most of them) by the time Jesus Christ lived on this earth.

However, as I'm reading through the Old Testament again, somehow I seem to notice more than I ever had before how--well--really modern the prophets sound in their judgments against nations and kingdoms. Take Isaiah 31:1 for example: "Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord." Now, at first glance, I'm tempted to glaze over when it comes to the part about horses and chariots since those haven't been used as weaponry for centuries and when it talks about wanting Egypt to help since nobody gets help from Egypt today (in fact, there the ones that need help now...). However, that misses the point of this verse entirely. Perhaps recent events in the news regarding toppling governments and economic uncertainty around the world have given this verse fresh vigor for me. What Isaiah is saying here if you peel back the layer of historical terms is really, "Trusting in alliances or modern weaponry--including (especially nowadays) the power of money--isn't going to save your nation when you've turned away from God." In fact, the verse states that woe will come to those who trust in those things. Sounds rather modern, doesn't it?

In short, when one peels back the layers of names of countries and cities that have been dust-piles for the longest time, one finds that the prophecies have lost none of their fire at all. In fact, they seem to be refulfilling themselves today. Once again, "The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun" (Eccl. 1:9). God hasn't changed his attitude toward nations who, like Israel, have forsook him as a nation or are forsaking him (think "America"); nor has he changed his attitude toward the heathen nations like Assyria, Babylon, Edom, Moab, Philistia, etc., who have never as a whole worshiped him as the one and only God (e.g., the Muslim nations of the Middle East). This is the part when I get that shiver up and down my spine because of what history teaches happened to those nations: utter destruction. The city of Tyre, which was viewed at one time as the harbor of the nations, was torn down and literally dragged into the sea. Today, it's just a fishing town (fulfilling Ezek. 26:14). Jerusalem was burnt with fire and the temple was destroyed, first by the Babylonians and finally by the Romans. To this day, it has never regained its magnificence and splendor. With all this in view, what does that mean for us? Are we to suffer their fate? God's word is clear: our nation's destruction will come, unless we repent. Countless times in the Old Testament Israel is instructed to turn and repent to save herself from destruction, but she did not during the final days of the kingdom of Israel first and the kingdom of Judah afterwards, and was destroyed. We would do well to take heed to that warning.

The following is a poem that I wrote after reading through Jeremiah 9, one of the saddest passages of that book, yet a glimmer of hope (from verse 24) remains at the end:

Jeremiah's Lamentation:

A Poetic Paraphrase of the Ninth Chapter of the Book of the Weeping Prophet

O that I could but weep and cry,

For on my nation God's wrath doth lie!

O that I could fly from the vile,

E'en if to some deserted isle!

But God is just; He sees their work--

He sees that they His laws do shirk.

From evil they cannot be still,

And regard not Him on Zion's hill.

They lie, they all; there's not a soul

Whose reputation is all whole.

E'en family one can't believe,

For lies abound, and truth doth leave.

A bond, a pact, is worthless now;

They teach their tongues lies to allow.

Fatigued and tired are they from sin,

Yet do they walk e'en more therein.

For th'land I weep--it is on fire;

The flames do rise continually higher.

The beasts and birds, they all do flee.

No person in the towns I see.

Who is the wise one who doth know

For what the land doth perish so,

And why the wilderness is burned,

That travelers from it must turn?

Yet saith the Lord, "My judgment's right,

For from My laws they do alight,

And after their own hearts do walk;

To bow to idols they do not balk.

"Yea, verily may they weep and cry,

For I cruel waters do apply.

Yea, verily may they mourn and wail,

For I their false hopes do assail!"

Cruel death is come into our land,

And there is none to lend a hand

To bury all the dead around,

For dead men shall so much abound.

"Let not the wise their wisdom boast;

Let not men trust in pow'r and hosts,

And let not rich men's glory be

Their wealth, their great prosperity.

"But let their glory ever be

To understand and to know Me,

The great Jehovah, Adonai,

And to me let them send their cry.

"In lovingkindness, judgment right,

And righteousness I do delight,

But let them not trust in their work,

For punishment in that way doth lurk."

And that ends yet another post that is much longer than I ever anticipated, but I hope it still remains thought-provoking although rather (all right, very) wordy. Goodbye for the present!

Today's ponderings

It's amazing how a thought will randomly come up to me and grab me when I least expect it, leaving me to wonder whether I should drop what I'm doing and write it down or just shrug it off, as it were. Such an event happened to me today while I was at Walmart just minding my own business. Be that as it may, I bought what I was going to buy at Walmart and came home in Red Butler, my little red 1996 Honda Civic (more on that later), and wrote down the thought before it escaped. Thankfully it didn't take long to put it on paper since I had a nice pile of dishes to wash and put away and textbooks to look up online (oh the joy...). So, here 'tis!

Today we see more clearly than ever the decline of the nation dubbed "the world's last beacon of hope and freedom." Suddenly the nation and the world see the hammer and chisel of financial neglect poised for a mighty blow which would threaten to crumble the very foundation laid by the Founding Fathers.

Yet an even more long-lasting threat plagues the nation: the systematic decline of the Western nations in righteousness and power. The date in the past when this downfall began is hard to place, however, because at no time has all of the West been at its peak. In fact, one can almost see a sort of sinusoidal motion [to use a mathematical term] in history in the West from east to west. As one nation rises, another declines; as one nation reaches its peak, another begins to rise to take its place. For example, as England rose in 1588 after the defeat of Spain's armada, Spain declined. As England reached its pinnacle of power, the United States began to rise. As the United States became the most powerful nation on earth, the continent of Asia (especially China) began to rise. Not only has power traveled thus, but the light of God has also generally done so and is doing so as it disappears almost completely in Europe, fades in North America, and brightens in Asia. Just based on this pattern, who seems to be next in line for world power? The oil-rich, fierce Middle Eastern nations.

The words of the Old Testament prophets can often seem archaic at best, with words of impending doom on nations that had ceased to exist before Christ walked the earth; but, as the West as a whole slips into the darkness from which it came, one can almost hear those words of the prophets echoing down through history with one simple yet profound statement: "What happened to Israel, to Judah, to Egypt, to Babylon, is about to happen to you."

Nevertheless, by now means should we slip into the error of fatalism, nor should we wish that we could have been placed elsewhere on the "sinusoid of history." Rather, we should pray that God would not forsake this nation and cast it into another Dark Age but would mercifully renew this nation's light of truth and freedom to the world, and that we would be His lights no matter how dark the spiritual twilight of the West may become. Let us not cower as darkness rises in this land and, with it, persecution--now indirect but becoming more blatant year by year. Let us face the darkness with the godly defiance of the Christians in Roman times and rejoice as the light of the gospel reaches another land formerly in the darkness. For the day swiftly approaches when the gospel will finish its march around the world--whether east to west or otherwise--to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people and the last of the elect will be gathered into the fold. Then God's purpose for this world will be complete, and the Light of God will ascend to heaven with all His children, leaving the world and the wicked for the final, everlasting judgment and destruction. 

 

A first welcome and introduction

First of all, welcome to this, my humble online abode for prose, poetry, and silliness (as put forth in the title above). How often I shall update this blog I cannot say, but I shall to the best of my ability put forth my ponderings on a regular basis for the consumption of all who may be interested.

As for the name of the blog, I have to tip my hat (although I'm not currently wearing one, but I'm sure you take my meaning) to my sister Stacey and the Ritchies. First, thank you, Stacey, for coming up with one of the two possibilities that I originally had in mind for the blog, namely "The Cliffs of Insanity" (from The Princess Bride, in case anyone is wondering). Second, thank you, Eliot, for allowing me to rather randomly steal--er--commandeer one of your statuses (or stati?) to ask about ideas for a blog name. Finally, thank you, Kim, for coming up with the compromise between the two possibilities (the afore-mentioned "The Cliffs of Insanity" and my idea, "Chronicles of a Bookworm") which became the title for it.

(My congratulations to anyone that was able to safely navigate that treacherous sea of parentheses found in the paragraph above and encircling this sentence. Perhaps I should change the name to "Chronicles of Parenthetical Insanity.")

My wish is that this blog be a place for my readers (should there be very many) to ponder life's often-humorous randomness and partake of some silly, random laughter in the process. Anyway, here it goes!