Reading: Psalm 49:1-12
Hear this, all you peoples; give ear, all inhabitants of the world, both low and high, rich and poor together. My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding. I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the harp. Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me, those who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches? Truly, no ransom avails for one’s life, there is no price one can give to God for it. For the ransom of life is costly, and can never suffice that one should live on forever and never see the grave. When we look at the wise, they die; fool and dolt perish together and leave their wealth to others. Their graves are their homes forever, their dwelling places to all generations, though they named lands their own. Mortals cannot abide in their pomp; they are like the animals that perish. Reflection I am not aware of anyone having successfully bribed Death. No one has ever made so much money that he or she never died. That is the general thrust of this week’s Psalm: rich or poor, wise or foolish, one way or another, death comes for us all. I have recently been listening to Bob Brier’s series of lectures titled “The History of Ancient Egypt” (Great Courses, 2013). Brier meticulously details all the things Pharaohs brought with them into their tombs: gold, jewels, beloved pets, mummified bodyguards and soldiers, and, in one instance, a massive ship. All these things were buried with the pharaoh so that he might be able to enjoy in the next life all the things he loved in this one. Interestingly, however, Brier comments that the vast majority of these tombs were robbed. The great pyramid of Giza was constructed by the Pharaoh Khufu in 2570bc and was certainly robbed by 2500bc. Often times, the workers who constructed the tombs were the ones who robbed them because they knew where everything was. Can you imagine the look on Khufu’s face waking up in the next world only to find that all his stuff had been stollen!? Despite our best efforts, we cannot take it with us when we die. This is a hard truth with which we must all—even pharaohs—reconcile. But that’s not the final word on death. The psalmists writes, “Truly, no ransom avails for one’s life, there is no price one can give to God for it”—and certainly that is true for we mortals. But we have a savior, God in-the-flesh, who came and gave his life as a ransom for us. While we all must face death, death does not have the final word. God, in God’s mercy, has the final word. And God has chosen to give us life. --Jim Vitale Prayer Gracious God, we spend so much of our lives accumulating things that have no eternal significance. Free us from the things which distract us from you and remind us of your love which endures forever. Amen.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Authors
Anyone is welcome to contribute! If you'd like to write for us, please e-mail [email protected] Email
Get our daily devotions delivered to your e-mail box each day by signing up below:
Archives
May 2022
Subscribe |