I have been staying off
of Facebook because I did not want to see any ignorant posts about a certain incident.
I popped on today to respond to Thanksgiving posts and share some joy when what
to my wandering eye did appear but the following poster.
I immediately looked up
the verse and actually the verse does not forbid, does not even use the word
forbid at all. The verse is not even speaking about the tree. It is the
fashioning of idols from the tree and worshiping them.
I want to reply to my
cousin Mason but am not sure how to do so in a positive friendly way that will
not appear to be aggressive, ignorant or challenging. Ughhhh!!!!!
I originally typed
this “Sweet cousin.... no, that is not what it says.... it says not to fear
idols made by people from other nations that are made from trees. The idols cannot
harm nor can they do good.”But it was not enough to be clear about the true meaning
of the verse. Maybe I can simplify it but I have not figured out how and keep
it non-aggressive sounding.
10: 1-25 Hear what the Lord says to you, people of
Israel.
2 This is what
the Lord says: “Do not learn the ways of the nations or be terrified by signs
in the heavens, though the nations are terrified by them.
3 For the
practices of the peoples are worthless;
they cut a tree out of the forest, and a craftsman shapes it with his
chisel.
4 They adorn it
with silver and gold; they fasten it with hammer and nails so it will not
totter.
5 Like a
scarecrow in a cucumber field, their idols cannot speak; they must be
carried because they cannot walk. Do not
fear them; they can do no harm nor can they do any good.”
6 No one is like
you, Lord; you are great, and your name is mighty in power.
7 Who should not
fear you, King of the nations? This is
your due. Among all the wise leaders of the nations and in all their kingdoms, there
is no one like you.
8 They are all
senseless and foolish; they are taught by worthless wooden idols.
9 Hammered silver
is brought from Tarshish and gold from
Uphaz. What the craftsman and goldsmith have made is then dressed in blue and
purple— all made by skilled workers.
10 But the Lord
is the true God; he is the living God,
the eternal King. When he is angry, the earth trembles; the nations cannot
endure his wrath.
11 “Tell them
this: ‘These gods, who did not make the heavens and the earth, will perish from
the earth and from under the heavens.’”
12 But God made
the earth by his power; he founded the world by his wisdom and stretched out
the heavens by his understanding.
13 When he
thunders, the waters in the heavens roar; he makes clouds rise from the ends of the
earth. He sends lightning with the rain and brings out the wind from his
storehouses.
14 Everyone is senseless
and without knowledge; every goldsmith is shamed by his idols. The images he
makes are a fraud; they have no breath in them.
15 They are worthless,
the objects of mockery; when their judgment comes, they will perish.
16 He who is the
Portion of Jacob is not like these, for he is the Maker of all things, including
Israel, the people of his inheritance— the Lord Almighty is his name. Coming
Destruction
17 Gather up your
belongings to leave the land, you who live under siege.
18 For this is
what the Lord says: “At this time I will hurl out those who live in this land; I will bring
distress on them so that they may be captured.”
19 Woe to me
because of my injury! My wound is incurable! Yet I said to myself, “This is my
sickness, and I must endure it.”
20 My tent is
destroyed; all its ropes are snapped. My children are gone from me and are no
more; no one is left now to pitch my tent or to set up my shelter.
21 The shepherds
are senseless and do not inquire of the Lord; so they do not prosper and all
their flock is scattered.
22 Listen! The
report is coming— a great commotion from the land of the north! It will make
the towns of Judah desolate, a haunt of jackals.
Jeremiah’s
Prayer
23 Lord, I know
that people’s lives are not their own; it is not for them to direct their
steps.
24 Discipline
me, Lord, but only in due measure— not in your anger, or you will reduce me to
nothing.
25 Pour out your
wrath on the nations that do not
acknowledge you, on the peoples who do not call on your name. For they have
devoured Jacob; they have devoured him completely and destroyed his homeland.
Can you see my dilemma? Some
anti-Christian has once again twisted the Bible to their own delight. But then
the Bible does warn us that this will happen. This chapter is from the New
International Version. The King James Version does not say forbid either. I
actually looked at the verse in 10 different versions of the Bible and not one
verse says forbid.
I like this version from
The Message the best….
The Stick Gods
10 1-5 Listen to
the Message that God is sending your way, House of Israel. Listen most
carefully: “Don’t take the godless nations as your models. Don’t be impressed by their glamour and
glitz, no matter how much they’re impressed. The religion of these peoples is
nothing but smoke. An idol is nothing but a tree chopped down, then shaped by a
woodsman’s ax. They trim it with tinsel and balls, use hammer and nails to keep
it upright. It’s like a scarecrow in a cabbage patch—can’t talk! Dead wood that
has to be carried—can’t walk! Don’t be impressed by such stuff. It’s useless
for either good or evil.”
Maybe I should just post
this as a reply to his wrong, uninformed poster. I am truly disturbed by this.
How many non-Christians will post and re-post this without ever reading the
verses to see for themselves. Maybe instead of
reposting The Message version in word I could just post up the link and let
them follow it for themselves.
Maybe I will just walk
away…. And finish this letter.
Well I just heard from a
friend who says she drove by a shopping center and people had tents up already
in line waiting for Best Buy to open. Seriously? I am going to take the Deviled Eggs to my brother’s
house eat some smashed potatoes, come
home and decorate the tree.
Camping out for a $119.00 86 inch flat screen? Insane!!!
I hope he made coconut pie!!
Do not worship trees!!!!
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