Moreover Sum chaH ghaH lIj toy'wI' ghuHmoHta'. Daq keeping chaH pa' ghaH Dun pop.
Moreover by them is your servant warned. In keeping them there is great reward. Psalm 19:11
nuqneH? That all purpose Klingon greeting is a good place to start as we enter the Bible - nuqneH, literally, "what do you want?" IS a fine place to begin, for our expectations CAN direct us as we read God's word.
This verse from Psalm 19 gives us a good answer, showing us two dimensions:
1) to be warned, and
2) to find great reward.
Now, no Klingon would refuse "ghuHmoHta'" - warning. The Klingon word used here is derived from the word ghuH, prepare for, be alerted to. That's exactly what a good warning makes us do - PREPARE. This is indeed the value of being well versed in God's words - for we will be ready for the challenge of life as we absorb the warnings that direct us toward living a righteous life, the life God intends.
Psalms 34:14 Depart from evil, and do good. Seek peace, and pursue it.
Proverbs 4:27 Don't turn to the right hand nor to the left. Remove your foot from evil.
Zechariah 7:10 Don't oppress the widow, nor the fatherless, the foreigner, nor the poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart.'
But the Lord wants more for us than simply being warned; his promise is for "great reward". For this, the Klingon word is "pop" - reward. The Hebrew word used here is interesting - `eqeb, a heel, i.e. (figuratively) the last of anything. In other words our reward, the gift that God intends - is what comes to us AT THE END. We follow his word, not to experience the lifestyle of the rich and famous, but to receive, in the end to hear, as Jesus puts in a parable:
Matthew 25:23 "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'
"nuqneH? What DO you want?" is self-serving if it is our ONLY approach to the Bible. We need to know that the Bible is not just a tool kit, or a warehouse that we come to for meeting our needs. The words that we need to zero in on are "your servant", `ebed in Hebrew. this is the same root for servant in the prophet Obadiah's name - God's servant.
Our participation in the warnings and rewards of scripture begin as we enter as SERVANTS of God, not customers demanding service. I pray that I remember that each day as I open the word.
Moreover Sum chaH ghaH lIj toy'wI' ghuHmoHta'. Daq keeping chaH pa' ghaH Dun pop.
Moreover by them is your servant warned. In keeping them there is great reward. Psalm 19:11
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