Night and Day

The pemHov DichDaq ghobe' harm SoH Sum jaj, ghobe' the maS Sum ram. The sun will not harm you by day, Nor the moon by night. Psalms 121:6

(click for podcast)

Space travelers may look across the cosmos and consider that dangers lurk everywhere - but in most cases I doubt they would look at the celestial bodies themselves as preparing to strike out.

This verse may strike us with its poetic promise of protection FROM the Sun and Moon as an odd turn of phrase - what kind of protection do we need from the sun AND the moon? Certainly the sun has power - from sunstrokes to cancer, we have no trouble thinking of what we need to be protected from there. But the moon?

Considering this verse, a number of commentators point out that there are long held beliefs tieing the moon (luna) to madness - to luna-cy. In fact the Greek word, used in Matthew for epileptic is seleniazomai means MOON-struck.

Another points out that - considering ancient (and modern) followers of astrology, this may refer to insulation from the supposed influences of the heavenly bodies. And certainly, these ideas may be part of the meaning.

But I'd rather point to the first time we encounter the moon and the sun in the Scriptures. We read

For God made two great lights, the sun and the moon, to shine down upon the earth. The greater one, the sun, presides during the day; the lesser one, the moon, presides through the night. (Gen 1:16NLT)

The Klingon words here are pemHov and maS - "daytime star" and moon - and here on earth, those two, well, from the beginning of time, are at the heart of our clocks and calendars - all the measures of time.

In this life, we find our lives ruled by time. We sleep, we go to school or work, we come home, we eat, we play - all in time. And OVER time our powers, our moods - everything that makes up our SELF - all those things ebb and flow through TIME. As we age, time sees us grow stronger, and weaker.

By these two we mark the days, mark the seasons, and we live through the pilgrimage of life - but the believer can have confidence that - despite the outer toll time takes

The pemHov DichDaq ghobe' harm SoH Sum jaj, ghobe' the maS Sum ram. The sun will not harm you by day, Nor the moon by night. Psalms 121:6

There's a love song that says "night and day, you are the one." With those words, Cole Porter say "ALWAYS." Here in this Psalm, in this verse we get the same message. All day, all night - through all time - God extends his protective care over us.

I know that isn't always an easy promise to grasp. The believer may not always feel that protection is present. Through trials and struggles, we may wonder - how can we claim this protection?

For me the key is this - we're not destined to remain IN time forever. The reason the moon, and the sun - those greater rulers of time - cannot in the long run touch us, is WE DON'T BELONG TO THEIR REALMS. As St. Paul writes

being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ. (Phil 1.6)

Our confidence, our hope is that despite the setbacks we might experience today or tomorrow - GOD ISN'T FINISHED. Our goal, our delight will be seen when we finally step outside of time and he completes in us, the good work he has begun. Till then take hope,

The pemHov DichDaq ghobe' harm SoH Sum jaj, ghobe' the maS Sum ram. The sun will not harm you by day, Nor the moon by night. Psalms 121:6

wa'DIch jIbej - I'll Take the First Watch

yIlegh, ghaH 'Iv poltaH Israel DichDaq ghobe' slumber ghobe' Qong.

Behold, he who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.

Psalms 121:4

(click for podcast)

Picture this: a group of travelers are making their way through a challenging landscape. Their ship has crashed on this planet, and together they are working their way to a destination that has their only hope of rescue. The heroes set up camp - tents are pitched, meals are sorted out and together they face a long night by a campfire. One of them, a Klingon, eventually speaks up, saying, wa'DIch jIbej - "I'll take the first watch!"

How would you respond? Are you sure this frightening watchman is someone you WANT to stand guard? He's no doubt up to the task - but is he trustworthy? Or would you agree, but secretly keep one eye open, watching him as he stands guard?

It's a familiar scene in adventure stories - for centuries writers have given us this scenario again and again. And often the story has a certain tension over whether the watcher is truly trustworthy or up to the task. Any Klingon can tell you, this is an important point - who will take the watch while the others sleep. Your life hangs on finding someone who really is dependable - who will neither betray you, or fail you by falling asleep.

yIlegh, ghaH 'Iv poltaH Israel DichDaq ghobe' slumber ghobe' Qong.

Behold, he who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.

This psalm tells us good news - we've got someone on watch who doesn't need to be relieved, and who is ultimately the most dependable guard we could hope for; believers can count on this promise, that "he who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep."

"Keeps" here in Klingon is rendered "poltaH" to-keep (pol) with the continuous suffix (-taH). This translates the Hebrew word shamar which I've noted before is used more than 400 times in the Bible, and conveys the idea of a hedge, a fence to protect one. We need to realize this does not make us invulnerable - we will be kept safe, but it doesn't mean we will have a completely placid existence. I love the example in Hebrews 11 - a chapter that recounts great heroes of the faith:

By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. 35 Women received their loved ones back again from death ...

This sounds like what we want to hear - God, our keeper, protects us like a forcefield! But the chapter continues:

But others trusted God and were tortured, preferring to die rather than turn from God and be free. They placed their hope in the resurrection to a better life. 36Some were mocked, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in dungeons. 37Some died by stoning, and some were sawed in half; others were killed with the sword. Some went about in skins of sheep and goats, hungry and oppressed and mistreated. 38They were too good for this world. They wandered over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. (NLT)

yIlegh, ghaH 'Iv poltaH Israel DichDaq ghobe' slumber ghobe' Qong.

Behold, he who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.

We will be kept, we will be preserved, by God as we work our way through this life. But, to be kept means to be preserved to an end - not just frozen in place. Think back to our original scenario - the travelers making their way through a hostile environment. If they were simply KEPT, stored away and safe, they'd never reach their destination. They need to continue on the move - even if it involves danger.

Do you live as if this were true? Do you go to sleep easily, trusting the one who has promised to "take the watch?" This Psalm brings good news IF you trust the watchman and not everyone does. As we grow into this trust, we not only learn to rely on God - we help others see that, indeed, he who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep!

vIHbe'!

ghaH DichDaq ghobe' allow lIj qam Daq taH vIHta'. He will not allow your foot to be moved. Psalms 121:3a

(click for podcast version)

What does it mean to be "unmoved?" I ask because, over and over, the book of Psalms present an interesting phrase along these terms - something that seems to promise immobility to the "saints," to believers:

• Psalms 15:5 He who doesn't lend out his money for usury, Nor take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be shaken.
• Psalms 16:8 I have set Yahweh always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
• Psalms 21:7 For the king trusts in Yahweh. Through the loving kindness of the Most High, he shall not be moved.
• Psalms 46:5 God is in her midst. She shall not be moved. God will help her at dawn.
• Psalms 125:1 Those who trust in Yahweh are as Mount Zion, Which can't be moved, but remains forever.
• Psalms 66:9 Who preserves our life among the living, And doesn't allow our feet to be moved.
• Psalms 112:6 For he will never be shaken. The righteous will be remembered forever.
• Psalms 121:3 He will not allow your foot to be moved. He who keeps you will not slumber.
• Psalms 55:22 Cast your burden on Yahweh, and he will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be moved.

The Hebrew word here, in all these is mowt - a primitive root meaning to waver, and translated in the KJV as terms like fallmoved, shake, slide, and slip among others - it's a word we've run into in other Psalms, and here again I've used the Klingon work vIH, move, to be in motion.

Now any space traveler - Klingon, Vulcan, Ferengi or Human - anyone who knows the smallest thing about space travel would know "remaining unmoved" is an impossibility. The biggest boulder on Earth, rooted in the ground MOVES. Aside from the movement of the solar system and our whole galaxy, this whole planet itself moves in orbit around the sun 30 kilometers (or 18.5 miles) EVERY second!

The problem is that the English word "move," and the Klingon "vIH" are too general. The heart of the Hebrew word is not just motion; MOWT has the idea of slip, or waver - it isn't really that believers will be frozen in place, but that their course in life will be steady. Their path, their destination is sure.

This last week I got to help out some neighbors running a kids summer science club. My special guest appearance was to show off (and fly) rockets with the kids - it was terrific fun for me - the kids seemed to enjoy it too, especially when I let them launch the air rockets (http://www.sciencetoymaker.org/airRocket/index.html). OF the three air rockets, I found I'd made one with badly attached fins - and it was clear in flight after flight that, while the other two flew straight and true, the third (with the bad fins) had a weird corkscrew path every time. Each time that one flew it slipped, and wavered in a sloppy trajectory - but the ones with the good fins were anchored in a course that was like a ruler.

Those fins could keep the rocket on (or off course). They gave them their direction - and God can do that in the believer's life. The English preacher Spurgeon says this about this verse:

in the slippery ways of a tried and afflicted life, the boon of upholding is of priceless value, for a single false step might cause us a fall fraught with awful danger. To stand erect and pursue the even tenor of our way is a blessing which only God can give, which is worthy of the divine hand, and worthy also of perennial gratitude. Our feet shall move in progress, but they shall not be moved to their overthrow

How do you set your course? If you wish to remain vIHHa', unmoved - just ask, and He'll be happy to set you on the right course!

ghaH DichDaq ghobe' allow lIj qam Daq taH vIHta'. He will not allow your foot to be moved. Psalms 121:3a

'Iv nuq ghap

'Iv nuq ghap
(click for podcast version)

jIH DichDaq lift Dung wIj mInDu' Daq the hills.
nuqDaq ta'taH wIj QaH ghoS vo'?
wIj QaH choltaH vo' joH'a',
'Iv chenmoHta' chal je tera'.

I will lift up my eyes to the hills.
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

Psalms 121:1-2

How do you answer the question of this psalm,

nuqDaq ta'taH wIj QaH ghoS vo'? Where does my help come from?


HELP! One short word - it can be a noun, a verb, and - in times of desparate need, it can be a plea. Webster describes it this way:

To aid; to assist; to lend strength or means towards effecting a purpose; as, to help a man in his work; to help another in raising a building; to help one to pay his debts; to help the memory or the understanding.

and

To assist; to succor; to lend means of deliverance; as, to help one in distress; to help one out of prison.

The Klingon word (both as a verb and a noun) for "help" is "QaH," as in "nom QaH yIqem," "get help quickly."

Here in Psalm 121 the Hebrew word, 'azar is what I've translated by the Klingon word, QaH. A form of that Hebrew word is known to many in the proper name "Ebenezer," EBEN - EZER 'stone of help', the name given to the memorial stone set up by Samuel to commemorate the divine assistance to Israel in their great battle against the Philistines.

As it is posed here, I think the question comes down to "'Iv nuq ghap?" "WHO or WHAT?" That is, what is our source of help: someTHING or someONE? Does my help come "from the hills" - from nature, from things... or does it some from someone greater than things. Someone who, with care and attention, is there to support me in my time of need.

This last week I returned from a business trip, and as my plane landed I saw some odd questions pop up on my cell phone - "are you alright?" I was puzzled - why wouldn't I be? - until, I called home and learned that a short time ago, just as my flight began, a major bridge in my community has completly collapsed into the Mississippi River. It was a startling tragedy that immediately mobilized many near and far ... to help.

In fact, in story after story, the focus has been on people - especially how they were galvanized to give assistance to the survivors. The story isn't about the things that helped, the ambulances or the rescue boats. The story is on WHO helped.

And that's the story here in Psalm 121. Whatever good we find in creation - and there IS wonderful bounty to be found - we don't look to nature, to mountains or rivers to help us, rather we turn to the one greater than all the cosmos - the one who made it, who put it into motion:

wIj QaH choltaH vo' joH'a',
'Iv chenmoHta' chal je tera'.

My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.

Amen!

Across the Sea of Stars (rebroadcast)

(I'm travelling for work - so here's a repodcast from 2006)

vaj wIj tIq ghaH Quchqu', je wIj jat rejoices. wIj porgh DIchDaq je
yIn Daq safety.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my tongue rejoices. My body shall
also dwell in safety. Psalm 16:9

(click for podcast)

Here's news of interest, especially if you've been working on building a starship. In recent weeks, at the American Association for the Advancement of science, researchers published a short list of ten "habstars," stars "where intelligent civilizations might lurk or they can try to actually spot planets like our own in habitable zones..."

The stars - as close as 4.5 light years away are targets for scientists who are developing ways to study extrasolar planets - it's an exciting prospect and an incredible challenge.

Now when we consider what it might mean to communicate with people around such stars - or travel to them - the challenge may seem impossible. That's because there's no known way to travel at the speed of light - let alone faster. So messages or vessels would take decades - probably centuries to travel back and forth. How could we hope to have a meaningful relationship with such worlds?

How? I've got a Klingon word to answer that: qay'be'! No problem! We've been doing it.. well, for centuries.

One of the delights of Bible study - besides the core delight, of enjoying the Word of God - is the way such study brings us into communication with people centuries apart from our time. And even though the communication might seem one way, we still enter into a conversation with believers more than a thousand years ago.

In this verse from Psalm 16 we find these words:

vaj wIj tIq ghaH Quchqu', je wIj jat rejoices. wIj porgh DIchDaq je
yIn Daq safety.

Therefore my heart is glad, and my tongue rejoices. My body shall
also dwell in safety. Psalm 16:9

Now - if you check the King James, or the Jewish Publication translation, you'll see that for "my tongue rejoices" they have "my glory rejoiceth." That isn't surprising - the Hebrew word chabod, glory, is what we find in the Hebrew, not "loshen," tongue. However.... here's where we start having a conversation with believers across the ages.

How was this understood - how does "glory" rejoice? It's an odd sounding idea, and when we look back we discover that in the ancient Greek translation, the Septuagint DIDN'T say glory - it said "tongue." Not only that, in the book of Acts, the apostle Peter, quotes this Psalm and he said, probably quoting from the Septuagint, "my tongue was glad." The Vulgate, the Latin translation, follows this as well.

So when we consider this verse, we have an opportunity to "discuss" across the sea of time - just as we might across the sea of stars with our interstellar neighbors. We can't engage in an immediate conversation, but we can listen to them and weigh their understanding of the passage as we translate it, not only into words, but into our lives.

Modern translations like the New International Version, the New Living Translation and the World English Bible have followed the Septuagint and others in using the word "tongue," some noting the difference in notes.

The progression: "my heart is glad/ my tongue rejoices" echoes for me, the words of Psalm 107 "Let the redeemed of the LORD say so" - that is, when we experience God's saving love - don't keep it secret! TELL someone - much like the Sunday School Song "If you're happy and you know it/ then your face will really show it!" Perhaps this is where the "glory" or "tongue" become synonyms - whether in speech or the joy we express, we rejoice in what God has done!

The Bible is an ancient book - written across centuries. and by people long gone. Yet as we read these words, and enter into a dialog across the ages, God gives us insight, gives us promise and gives us hope.

Eye Sees

The lamp vo' the porgh ghaH the mIn. chugh vaj lIj mIn ghaH wab, lIj Hoch porgh DichDaq taH teblu'ta' vo' wov.

The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light. (Matthew 6:22)

(click for podcast)

The word here for eye is the Greek word "opthalmos" - a root word that ought to be familiar from eye-related medical words like ophthalmology or ophthalmologist. The Klingon word is the simple "mIn," But of course there is more here in Jesus words than the literal eye, I like the way the Message translation recasts this verse from Matthew's gospel:

Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light.

These words from Jesus give me pause, and make me ask what is it that opens my eyes in wonder? What is it that fills me with delight? Well, there are many things.

If you're like me, you perhaps collect pictures - you'd see that the walls of my workspace are littered with family photos and pictures from vacations - it is always great to see reminders of those I love, and good times.

Recently I've let my gaze turn further out, as I've been drinking in the sights across the solar system thanks to a program called WorldWind from NASA. It's a great program that collects the vast quantities of images from interplanetary explorations and lets you wander across Venus, Mars, Mercury, the Moon - even the Earth. Your computer becomes a virtual spaceship. And, since WorldWind actually taps into NASA databases online, it has a wealth of imagery. Short of a personal spacecraft, it is one of the best ways to play space traveling tourist.

More than just pretty pictures, this exploration fills me with awe and joy as I marvel at the rich creation God has spread out before us. This enjoyment is a wonderful gift, something that can and ought to make us cry out in thanks to our creator. In the same way the pictures of my loved ones, and treasured memories, reminds me of the ways God has blessed me.

For, we have a decision to make in how we respond to the world - if we are open to the joy God offers, we can be filled with light, and take hold of the inheritance he offers to all his children. Jesus continues though:

If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar. If you pull the blinds on your windows, what a dark life you will have! (Matt. 6:23 MSG).

What sort of life do you want? Filled with light, or a dank, dark cellar? We live in a world that presents us with a continuous barrage of bad news. This is, of course, no surprise - the Bible is clear that in a fallen world, there is much that needs to be set right - that is the message of Scriptures. Not just the bad news, but the power God has exerted to restore his creation.

The lamp vo' the porgh ghaH the mIn. chugh vaj lIj mIn ghaH wab, lIj Hoch porgh DichDaq taH teblu'ta' vo' wov.

The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light. (Matthew 6:22)

Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light.

choDev!

legh chugh pa' ghaH vay' mIgh way Daq jIH,
je Dev jIH Daq the everlasting way.
See if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.Psalms 139:24

(click for podcast)

Do Klingons ask for directions? We know they have words that would help. For example lugh, Quv, 'ev, tIng and chan.

• lurgh the word for direction (spatial)
  
• Quv coordinates
• 'ev northwestward, area to the northwest (320 degrees on terran 360 degree compass counted clockwise with 0 at north)
  
• tIng southwestward, area toward the southwest (approx 220 degrees on terran 360 degree compass counting clockwise with 0 at north)
  
• chan eastward, area toward the east (90 degrees on Terran 360 degree compass with north as 0 and degrees counted clockwise)
  

You'll notice that, instead of four directions, north, south, east and west, they have three. This isn't surprising if you picture the three pointed star associated with Klingons. It probably follows from the fact that their ancient mathematical systems are based on the number three. I've written programs to explore that kind of math, even constructed a primitive Klingon computer to work with such numbers - it's a fascinating subject if you have an interest in different number systems.

No matter - having the vocabulary for geography and directions isn't enough. After all, in English, we have quite a few words for directions - yet everyone knows someone who is resolute in refusing to "stop and ask for directions," even when hopelessly lost - why would Klingons be any different?

legh chugh pa' ghaH vay' mIgh way Daq jIH,
je Dev jIH Daq the everlasting way.
See if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.Psalms 139:24

We need to ask for directions.


Scripture is woven through with this message - we need to find our way.

As the Apostle John notes:

If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 1 John 1:8

The good news is that God wants to set us upon the right path! John makes that clear when he says,

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us the sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

At the end of Psalm 139 we find the psalmist knows this too, as he says:

See if there is any wicked way in me (Psalms 139:24a)

We NEED directions. We need God to search out the migh, the evil that has stained our lives.

The Good news is that the story continues from there. We CAN be set on the right path, as this verse calls on God:

And lead me in the everlasting way. (Psalms 139:24b)

nachah, the Hebrew word for "lead" here in the KLV is translated by "Dev," to lead, the same root I've used for shepherd or leader, DevwI'. This same Hebrew word is found in the familiar Twenty-third Psalm:

"he leadeth <nachah> me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake."

Righteousness - the RIGHT way - is what God desires we follow. And it's this path for which we NEED to ask directions.

What a joy it is to realize that God is there to lead us, to guide us in that way. Don't be afraid to ask!

jIH muS chaH

joH'a', yImev jIH muS chaH 'Iv muS SoH? 'oH jIH ghobe' grieved tlhej chaH 'Iv Hu' Dung Daq SoH?
LORD, don’t I hate those who hate you? Am I not grieved with those who rise up against you? Psalm 139:21

(click for podcast)

Here we we come to an example of Psalms that make humans squirm - the imprecatory psalms. Imprecatory psalms are those which invoke curses upon enemies. (http://www.theopedia.com/Imprecatory_Psalms ) There are passages which may strike us, as CS Lewis said, as devilish, since they seem to revel in the great and horrible judgements they call down on their enemies.

On the other hand - these are words that certainly would catch the attention of a Klingon - after all, as far as we know, they DON'T have a word for to love, but they most certainly DO have a word, muS, for "to hate." (in fact that word has been pressed into services by Klingonists to make muSHa', to love. muS, to hate. plus the "undo" suffix, -Ha', gives muSHa'. so "I love you" becomes "qamuSHa'", literally I don't hate you.)

The Hebrew here is a very basic root, sawnay, and it appears over 130 times in the Bible, from Genesis to Malachai. And it's clear as you look at examples of it in use, that the Hebrew authors are expressing deep feelings, their hate, hate, HATE about the enemies of God:

• Psalms 97:10 You who love the LORD, hate evil. He preserves the souls of his saints. He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
• Psalms 101:3 I will set no vile thing before my eyes. I hate the deeds of faithless men. They will not cling to me.
• Psalms 119:104 Through your precepts, I get understanding; Therefore I hate every false way.
• Psalms 139:21-22 O LORD, don't I hate those who hate you? Am I not grieved with those who rise up against you? I hate them with perfect hatred. They have become my enemies.

Those are the tame ones - the Psalms don't skip over wishing great and detailed violence on those who oppose God.

There's a tension here - because those aren't the ONLY thing the Bible has to say about enemies, ours and God's.

• Exodus 23:4 "If you meet your enemy's ox or his donkey going astray, you shall surely bring it back to him again.
• Proverbs 25:21-22 If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat; If he is thirsty, give him water to drink: For you will heap coals of fire on his head, And the LORD will reward you.
• Matthew 5:44 But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you,

How do we reconcile these? One good piece of advice comes in the old adage, "hate the sin, love the sinner." That is, the Bible's message of redemption calls us to to always seek the redemption of the enemy, to trust the power God used to redeem US to be just as effective on those we count as enemies.

We're also reminded that seeking revenge is NOT our privilege or duty: Don't seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God's wrath. For it is written, "Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord." Romans 12:19

But one thing is clear through the Bible - whether calling curses or love down on our enemies - there is an agreement in one fact: there ARE enemies in this world. For all the "Good News" the Bible brings (and make no mistake, it brings GREAT Good News!), we err if we forget there is also BAD News. Something is wrong in the cosmos. We live in a sin shrouded world, a wonderful and good creation of God where something HAS gone wrong. That means there ARE enemies. There are things that need to be set right.

When we reflect on that, we may come closer to understanding these psalms - and understand the spirit that recognizes that we have to take sides - not to wreak God's wrath on evildoers, but to share the good news that He can and will set things right. If that's so, doesn't it make sense to be on His side?

joH'a', yImev jIH muS chaH 'Iv muS SoH? 'oH jIH ghobe' grieved tlhej chaH 'Iv Hu' Dung Daq SoH?
LORD, don’t I hate those who hate you? Am I not grieved with those who rise up against you? Psalm 139:21

Thinking

chay' precious Daq jIH 'oH lIj thoughts, joH'a'! chay' vast ghaH the sum vo' chaH!

How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Psalms 139:17

(click for podcast)

There is a challenge - and a delight to believers to realize that God does not hide.

That is, in his creation, and in his word, he has freely shared himself and his thoughts with us. That is why the study of Scripture can be so rewarding - and that is why the adventure of science can be so rich. I like the example of the early scientist, Johannes Kepler, who gave humans the foundation of the astrodynamics used today to chart the motion of the heavens, and plot the course of spacecraft. As noted in Christian History magazine:

Kepler believed that there was an art and orderliness in God's creation and that the more Christians recognized the greatness of creation, the deeper their worship would be. Didn't God himself encourage the heathen to look carefully at creation so that they might come to know God? God created man in His image, and He wants us to recognize and know His design for the universe: The chief aim of all investigations of the external world should be to discover the rational order and harmony which has been imposed on it by God and which He revealed to us in the language of mathematics. In his astronomical research, Kepler only wanted to, as he put it, "think God's thoughts after Him."

http://chi.gospelcom.net/GLIMPSEF/Glimpses/glmps067.shtml

chay' precious Daq jIH 'oH lIj thoughts, joH'a'! chay' vast ghaH the sum vo' chaH!

How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Psalms 139:17

God doesn't hide. Whether we know or understand creation with mathematical rigor - we have the Scriptures, and in them we have the opportunity to learn of God's thoughts - his care for us, and the path he challenges believers to follow. Psalm 40 notes,

Many, LORD, my God, are the wonderful works which you have done, And your thoughts which are toward us. They can't be set in order to you; If I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered. Psalms 40:5

This is one of the reasons I've found scripture memory to be so rewarding - I have often found that tracing the course of a treasured verse serves as a way to "think God's thoughts after him," to remind myself and refresh my spirit. So too, has been reading of the lives of the saints, believers in ages past who have provided an example, a model for me of the direction God wishes me to follow.

In the next week, I'd encourage you to seek out a single verse - one that has reassured you - or given you comfort - and commit it to memory. It might as well be a word of reproof - a verse that calls you to account. I don't know which verse you'll find - but memorize it as best you can. Read it in context. Find reference books (you'll be amazed at how many are online) and find some of the background of that one verse. Then, spend the next week rehearsing that - maybe writing it down to test yourself. With that start you'll have a connected yourself to God's word - you'll carry that thought wherever you go.

And then.... do it again! It's tremendously rewarding! Don't worry about whether you are word perfect (though it's a great goal) - the effort of the study and the memory will help you soak this deep into your heart. And you'll have taken another step in the journey of following God's thoughts.

For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope in your latter end. Jeremiah 29:11

SovtaH

wIj qa' SovtaH vetlh very QaQ.
My soul knows that very well.

(click for podcast version)

What do you KNOW? Some might start with simple unencumbered facts -arithmetic, geometry and the like. Others might recite details of their personal narrative - the history they know first hand.

In law there is a measure "beyond a reasonable doubt," that ascribes reliability to conclusions. It is the kind of certainty we want when matters of life and death are under consideration. It is that SOLID assurance that this psalm brings us here. But about WHAT is the author so certain?

Here in the middle of Psalm 139 the psalmist brings us the miracle of life - the power of God's creativity at work.

For you formed my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to you, For I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. My soul knows that very well. My frame wasn't hidden from you, When I was made in secret, Woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my body. In your book they were all written, The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there were none of them. How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them!
Psalms 139:13-17 WEB

In this description the author catches his breath to say My soul knows that very well. / wIj qa' SovtaH vetlh very QaQ.

My SOUL, or nephesh in Hebrew is rendered with qa', the Klingon word for "spirit." For a Klingon this spirit is that which battle nourishes (the saying is : qa' wIje'meH maSuv. - We fight to enrich the spirit.). The Biblical language is a bit different - in Hebrew the soul - life - is "that which breathes," since obviously when we cease to breath, we cease to live.

As we think about the relam of knowledge, we see that today science seems to tread on God's creative prerogative. From lifelike robots, to artificial life - it might seem that God's majesty is less significant - "we can do THAT ourselves."

Yet, to the person of faith it is quite the opposite. The more details we know of genetics or cosmology - the more we marvel at what God HAS DONE. In creation, in our lives he IS AT WORK - even when we don't see it.

What do you KNOW - REALLY know?

We know the details of our lives. We may master our jobs, the tasks that we do every day.

But what makes us say

wIj qa' SovtaH vetlh very QaQ.
My soul knows that very well?

As I reflect on my life and God's word, it's my prayer that what I really know is not some collection of facts, but that I know God.

As the prophet Jeremiah tells us:

This is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise man gloat in his wisdom, or the mighty man in his might, or the rich man in his riches. Let them boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the LORD who is just and righteous, whose love is unfailing, and that I delight in these things. I, the LORD, have spoken! Jeremiah 9:23,24 NLT

HurghtaHghach

'ach the HurghtaHghach ta'be' So' vo' SoH, 'ach the ram shines as the jaj. The HurghtaHghach ghaH rur wov Daq SoH.

Even the darkness doesn't hide from you, But the night shines as the day. The darkness is like light to you. Psalms 139:12

(click for podcast)

We can't see most of the Universe.

That is, as best we understand it today, the part of the cosmos we see - the people, planets, pulsars and stars - is only a fraction of all creation. The rest is referred to as "dark matter," as Wikipedia notes:

In astrophysics and cosmology, dark matter refers to hypothetical matter of unknown composition that does not emit or reflect enough electromagnetic radiation to be observed directly, but whose presence can be inferred from gravitational effects on visible matter.

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_matter )

It's a perplexing idea - that what we see and understand is only a bare fraction of all that is around us. But to a believer this mystery can be exciting - for with confident faith in the Creator, we can trust that this mystery is part of the beautiful complexity of his handiwork.

The words of the psalmist are worth reflecting on as we think about the pursuit of astronomy. That science is a study devoted to the observation of the light of the blazing stars in the heavens, but a study which takes part in darkness, often in remote places (even in space!) to avoid the light that can obscure our view of the sky. For the astronomer - as for God - the ram shines as the jaj / the night shines as the day.

I've constructed the Klingon word HurghtaHghach for "darkness." It's the word Hurgh (be dark), plus the suffix -taH (ongoing) with the nominalizer ghach: HurghtaHghach. Here it translates the Hebrew word choshek - first heard in Genesis 1:2, "darkness was upon the face of the deep."

What darkness confronts you? It is not surprising that we may face the darkness of the unknown with concern. It might be worries about ourselves and our loved ones. It could be fears for the future, or regrets over some past wrong. But Scripture reminds us that what is murky to our sight is clear and sunny to God:

'ach the HurghtaHghach ta'be' So' vo' SoH, 'ach the ram shines as the jaj. The HurghtaHghach ghaH rur wov Daq SoH.

Even the darkness doesn't hide from you, But the night shines as the day. The darkness is like light to you. Psalms 139:12

Remember the astronomers? In their study - often in the darkest of night - they have cataloged countless stars. With new technologies they are adding to a growing list of known planets throughout the Universe. And, as they chart the formation and influence of "dark matter," darkness is like light to them.

As we trust in a loving God who made it this universe - with its dark and light - we too, can be confident as we face the "darkness." For God promises to be with us.

For, behold, he who forms the mountains, And creates the wind, And declares to man what is his thought; Who makes the morning darkness, And treads on the high places of the Earth: the LORD, the God of Armies, is his name." (Amos 4:13)

Tactics

'ach joH'a' chose the foolish Dochmey vo' the qo' vetlh ghaH might lan Daq tuH chaH 'Iv 'oH val. joH'a' chose the weak Dochmey vo' the qo', vetlh ghaH might lan Daq tuH the Dochmey vetlh 'oH HoS;

but God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong 1 Corinthians 1:27

(click for podcast version)

What does it take to succeed?

In battle, and in life, we expect that you would prosper if you have strength and intelligence on your side. A Klingon would say you need to be val (intelligent) and HoS (strong). It's probably what most humans would say as well. Without some measure of ability, and the brains to use it... how CAN you succeed?

And yet - we may be confounded to come across passages like this one from the apostle Paul. Words that suggest that victory depends not on our mustering superior resources.

This should not surprise us. God seems to favor a different tactic - one perhaps that reminds us of our dependance on HIS favor. Remember back to the era of the Judges, how God told Gideon to choose his army in such a way as to make his army far smaller than he had wanted to take into battle. And yet, he won.

Think of David - a youth - defeating a giant though he was a shepherd boy with no more than a sling and some stones. Hardly a reasonable force, nor what would look like a wise strategy. And, yet he won.

God's grace is able to use us - foolish as we might be, weak as we are. This is not to say we should not strive to be all that we can be. But measured against His wisdom, against His power - we know that we are weak. And there's nothing wrong with that.

Think of how the apostle Paul struggled with some unknown illness - and was never healed from it, despite long efforts of prayer. This failing, this puj, weakness did not stop him, for he realized how God could use him in his weakness:

2 Corinthians 12:9-10 He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Most gladly therefore I will rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest on me. Therefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong.

To beings who seek to win at all costs, beings like Klingons, or we humans, no doubt this sounds foolish. But if we trust in God, we'll learn that indeed, despite our weakness, despite our foolishness, God can use us victoriously!

'ach joH'a' chose the foolish Dochmey vo' the qo' vetlh ghaH might lan Daq tuH chaH 'Iv 'oH val. joH'a' chose the weak Dochmey vo' the qo', vetlh ghaH might lan Daq tuH the Dochmey vetlh 'oH HoS;

but God chose the foolish things of the world that he might put to shame those who are wise. God chose the weak things of the world, that he might put to shame the things that are strong 1 Corinthians 1:27

Guidance System

'ach pa' lIj ghop DichDaq Dev jIH, je lIj nIH ghop DichDaq 'uch jIH.

Even there your hand will lead me, And your right hand will hold me. Psalms 139:10

(click for podcast)

Missiles, rockets, and spacecraft come in endless varieties. Different missions, different propulsion systems, and different fuels (some don't even HAVE fuel). Some only travel the airless regions of space, others are aerodynamic and need to contend with atmospheric travel. Some carry passengers, other are completly automated.

BUT, one thing they all do have in common is: a guidance system. Whether a pilot, a computer, or even simple fins on a primitive missile - in order to reach their destination, they all need guidance.

AND, so do we.

In marvelling at God's presence, this psalmist asserts that he cannot escape from God's presence. No matter how far he goes:

'ach pa' lIj ghop DichDaq Dev jIH, je lIj nIH ghop DichDaq 'uch jIH.

Even there your hand will lead me, And your right hand will hold me. Psalms 139:10

The guidance in this psalm is God's leadership, his drawing us forward through life. In the KLV I've used Dev, the Klingon word for "to lead." I used a form of that verb in the KLV of Psalm 23, DevwI' for "shepherd" (to lead, Dev, plus the suffix -wI', indicating something which leads). The Hebrew word in this psalm for "lead" is nachah. A primitive root meaning to guide, it appears almost 40 times in the Bible. (And it also appears in Psalm 23, "he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.")

Now, sometimes our problem is not LACKING guidance - but having too much. Radio, TV, Internet, bringing us news, entertainment and more can batter my spirit with "look here," "see this," and "what's that?" It goes on and on till I don't know what I think or believe. The great thing is, while we can NEVER escape God, we CAN turn off the media, we can set aside this confusing chaos of "leaders."

Recently I read a touching book "I'm Proud of You" about one man's friendship with the late Fred Rogers. It's a wonderful book - and one thing that struck me was - what a man of prayer Mr. Rogers was. Every day he took significant time - out of a very busy life - to pray for many people. That need for prayer and time alone with God was crucial in his life.

It spurred me to make new effort to try to carve out a space at the beginning of each day, a time to listen to the Word, and note prayer concerns on an index card I carry with me through the day. The best thing is that when we retreat from the chaos and establish a little quiet time with prayer and the Bible, we can advance, renewed and rejoice with the psalmist:

'ach pa' lIj ghop DichDaq Dev jIH, je lIj nIH ghop DichDaq 'uch jIH.

Even there your hand will lead me, And your right hand will hold me. Psalms 139:10

There are lakes on Titan

chugh jIH tlhap the telDu' vo' the dawn, je settle Daq the uttermost parts vo' the bIQ'a

If I take the wings of the dawn, And settle in the uttermost parts of the sea... Psalm 139:9

(click for podcast)

There are lakes on Titan, one of the moons orbiting Saturn. Something like 859 million miles away (more than a billion, 382 million kilometers), those seas (of methane, but seas just the same) are farther than the farthest ocean on earth. AND.

God. IS. there.

No doubt there are more distant seas.

We know of dozens of worlds circling distant stars already - mostly huge Jupiter-sized worlds, and there are certainly many more. As we refine our technologies we get better and better at discovering what seems like an endless supply of planets that God has made. There are shores out there as well. The farthest oceans are many tens, thousands, MILLIONS of light years out there. And should we travel "on the wings of the dawn" to those shores - we will find the same.

God. IS. there.

The Hebrew word used here for sea, yam, occurs more than 300 times in the Bible, and comes from a root meaning "to roar" (think of the sound of the surf). On some distant planet, if you needed to translate that word in conversation with a Klingon fellow traveler, you might use bIQ'a.' That Klingon word is a construction, taking the word for water (bIQ) and augmenting it with -'a'. Essentially it means "very big water" and it's a word that a Klingon might use mean lake, sea or ocean.

And whether we cross real oceans, or methane ones far away, there are always new shores in our lives, new frontiers as we journey through each day.

There is a prayer "O, God Thy Sea Is So Great And My Boat Is So Small." The good news is that on the waters of life - no matter where - in that boat, we will NOT be alone.

The comfort we find in the reflections of Psalm 139 is that, we can't go so far - Titan, Alpha Centauri or beyond - so far that we can ever get away from HIM.

Busy week!

Sorry, there'll be no new post this week - I've been busy. If you miss the sound of my voice, however, you can listen to my readings at verbumdomini.com, where I'm doing the readings for 4/6-4/12.

And here's a post about someone who has taken the Klingon Language Version and made it available for the Macintosh program Accordance.

Beyond Limits

chugh jIH ascend Dung Daq chal, SoH 'oH pa'. chugh jIH chenmoH wIj bed Daq the Daq vo' the Heghpu', yIlegh, SoH 'oH pa'!

If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in the place of the dead, behold, you are there! Ps 139:8

(Click for podcast version)

Artificial intelligence developers speak of something called the "Horizon Effect" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horizon_effect). When programming a game - like chess or checkers - they discovered that as a program looked ahead and evaluated its choices, there was a limit - a horizon that was beyond the computers finite capacity to anticipate.

This meant simply that the machine would make decisions that turned out to be disastrous once the game advanced beyond that "horizon."

chugh jIH ascend Dung Daq chal, SoH 'oH pa'. chugh jIH chenmoH wIj bed Daq the Daq vo' the Heghpu', yIlegh, SoH 'oH pa'!

If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in the place of the dead, behold, you are there! Ps 139:8

This verse pictures the limits-beyond-the-limits of human experience. "Heaven" - shamayim in Hebrew appears nearly 400 times in the Bible, and carries the idea of something lofty - the sky, the realm of the stars. Poetically, as in English, it can convey the idea of a spiritual place. I've translated it as "chal" the Klingon word for "sky."

At the opposite extreme we have "the realm of the dead," in Hebrew "sheol" the invisible world of departed souls. What that means to the Psalmist isn't clear - but collectively - from the heavens to the grave, he is confident he cannot cross any border to escape the LORD.

God has no horizon. It's clear - there is no distance so far that we might escape God's notice.

Right now, the space probe New Horizons (http://pluto.jhuapl.edu/), the fastest human ship ever, has just passed Jupiter. This craft took 13 months to get there - an incredible speed - and it still has around 8 years to reach Pluto. It's thrilling to see the amazing pictures it has returned of the Jupiter systsem, and I'm looking forward to what it will find in the outer reaches of our solar system. This vessel, true to its name, extends our view, gives us new horizons. And yet - we know, and certainly the author of Psalm 139 would agree - even at this incomparable distance, we will not be beyond God's boundaries.

Of course, we generally are not moving at such speeds, or travelling such distances. But our lives can ascend to great joys and triumphs and just as quickly descend into deep moments of despair. The strength, the encouragement we have here is that - in those moments - WE AREN'T OUTSIDE GOD'S HORIZON. He's there, he's ready to hear. And he's ready to help.

chugh jIH ascend Dung Daq chal, SoH 'oH pa'. chugh jIH chenmoH wIj bed Daq the Daq vo' the Heghpu', yIlegh, SoH 'oH pa'!

If I ascend up into heaven, you are there. If I make my bed in the place of the dead, behold, you are there! Ps 139:8

Presence

nuqDaq laH jIH jaH vo' lIj qa'? joq nuqDaq laH jIH Haw' vo' lIj Daq?

Where could I go from your Spirit? Or where could I flee from your presence? Psalm 139:7

(click for podcast)

Without a transporter, shuttlecraft or starship - any one of us can extend our presence across the solar system right now. Thanks to what is called, telepresence

"...a set of technologies which allow a person to feel as if they were present, to give the appearance that they were present, or to have an effect, at a location other than their true location."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telepresence

Today, from my desktop at home, I can tap into a web cam and look out at the view from my work. Or check on Old Faithful. Or, I can take up a position far above Earth and follow storms across the globe. Tapping into NASA and ESA I can get recent images from Mars and beyond.

Technology gives us a variety of ways to extend our presence. Parents use two-way intercom s and video monitors to watch over sleeping infants. Cellphones and instant messaging allow distant loved ones to stay in touch. Someday, perhaps holographic telepresence will allow us to participate in gatherings across the world or even the solar system.

Technologically extended presence - telepresence - has a chilling side as well. Recent news from Great Britain about batteries of cameras - along with a loudspeaker and microphone to inform people of their misbehaviour has alarmed many. Having the police watch, and command from a distance may be "efficient" but it is hardly comforting.

Here in Psalm 139, we are reflecting on God's presence - an inescapable presence that is truly everywhere.

In Klingon I've used a very simple word for presence, Daq. By itself it means "location." As a suffix, it can indicate a place/location for an activity - for example QongDaq (Qong, to sleep, plus Daq) means "bed." On the other hand, the Hebrew word translated "PRESENCE" here is paniym, used nearly 1900 times in the Bible is more complex. It's a plural form "faces" literally, from the verb for "to turn," that is "to face." When we think of being in God's presence - it is a personal thing, it is His FACE, his attention, his concern that we are before.

It's not surprising that just as teleprences can be threat and comfort, Scripture also reflects this regarding another kind of extended presence: God's omnipresence.

As Job said:

No wonder I am so terrified in his presence. When I think of it, terror grips me. God has made my heart faint; the Almighty has terrified me. (Job 23:15,16 NLT)

The good news is that when we have made peace with God, the awareness of his presence can be a joy.

One of my treasured Bible study tools is the Thompson Chain Reference Bible (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thompson_Chain-Reference_Bible). I especially enjoy the way it provides a topical cross-reference across the whole Bible for different themes and ideas - in particular it was very useful in considering how God's omnipresence means we can know that his nearness brings a multidimensional comfort to believers in the pilgrimage of life

(Genesis 28:15 WEB) Behold, I am with you, and will keep you, wherever you go, and will bring you again into this land. For I will not leave you, until I have done that which I have spoken of to you."

As the Israelites fled Egypt, they were reminded how His presence will keep them going:

(Exodus 33:14 WEB) He said, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."

So too, they were reminded that God gives courage in Life's battles :

(Deuteronomy 20:1 WEB) When you go forth to battle against your enemies, and see horses, and chariots, and a people more than you, you shall not be afraid of them; for the LORD your God is with you, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.

Through the prophet Isaiah we hear of comfort in trials:

(Isaiah 43:2 WEB) When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you: when you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle on you.

We also need to remember, as Jesus assures, God's presence is there even in the smallest assembly of believers

(Matthew 18:20 WEB) For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them."

And best of all - it doesn't have a limit - it will last till the end of time, as we're reminded:

(Matthew 28:20 WEB) Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

nuqDaq laH jIH jaH vo' lIj qa'? joq nuqDaq laH jIH Haw' vo' lIj Daq?

Where could I go from your Spirit? Or where could I flee from your presence? Psalm 139:7

Baby monitors, web cams, Police CCTV systems, cell phones and more are technological tools that extend our presence. For good or ill, they can be a comfort or threat.

But the presence of God, the presence that we can never escape, is one He wishes not to be a threat, but a real and powerful comfort. A comfort that will give us peace, courage and joy.


Rejoice!

Wow!

vam Sov ghaH beyond jIH. It's lofty. jIH ta'laHbe' attain 'oH.
This knowledge is beyond me. It's lofty. I can't attain it. Psalm 139:6

(click for podcast version)

The writer of Psalm 139 concludes the introduction to his ode to God's complete knowledge of our lives with this verse - one that can be summed up with one word-

WOW!

Wow.... what is there that makes you say that one-word explosion of wonder and amazement?

After describing how thoroughly God surrounds and knows him, rather than express fear or alarm, this verse exclaims in wonder:

vam Sov ghaH beyond jIH. / This knowledge is beyond me.

using a rare Hebrew word (only twice in the Bible) meaning secret, wonderful. It is actually a repeated Hebrew word: palee-palee, derived from a more common palaw, which means to be separated, removed, apart. This knowledge of God's overwatching care is - as the WEB puts it "beyond me" - we just can't grasp it. It's one of those things that might make us say "wow!"

Again, I'll ask, what makes you say "wow?" Or, however you might express amazement - if you were a Klingon you might say majQa'! A Mandalorian (like Boba Fett) would say kandosii'lar. Whatever word you use - what draws it out of you?

It may be the beauty of nature with stars wheeling overhead, the butterfly's wings, or it could be the majesty of the Grand Canyon. Then again, you might be struck by the marvels of human accomplishment, in works from the great Pyramids to the Space Shuttle.

Certainly all those marvels are "wow"-inspiring. They're a start, at least.

Often, I turn as well to the Scriptures, and delight and exclaim over God's mysteries: His truth as the Bible brings it to us.

What can compare to the detail in God's Word - the incredible coming together of prophecy and the description of creation? See Peter Stoner's classic book, Science Speaks for details of how intricately the Bible witnesses to these things (see http://www.geocities.com/stonerdon/science_speaks.html). Furthermore, modern cosmology as it considers concepts like the anthropic principle, point to our Universe being a place just MADE to be inhabited (see http://www.reasons.org/resources/apologetics/design.shtml). Wow.

vam Sov ghaH beyond jIH. It's lofty. jIH ta'laHbe' attain 'oH.
This knowledge is beyond me. It's lofty. I can't attain it. Psalm 139:6

Of course - it isn't enough to say "wow."

It is a start, of course. It is a way God arrests our attention, that is makes us ATTEND to him - to give heed to his plans, his hopes, his deep and abiding love for us.

Paul says it well in his letter to the Ephesians:

When I think of the wisdom and scope of God's plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. (Eph 3:14,15 NLT)

I pray that we all are struck by those "wow" moments - and go beyond them in prayer to the living, loving God who will never cease to amaze us.

Behind and Before

SoH hem jIH Daq behind je qaSpa'. SoH laid lIj ghop Daq jIH.

You hem me in behind and before. You laid your hand on me. Psalm 139:5

(click for podcast)

Perspective is everything.

Imagine walking down an ill-lit corridor on DS9, only to realize that in front of you - AND behind - you are being shadowed by Klingons. At the moment you realize this, out of the gloom, a hand comes down on your shoulder. No doubt this is terrifying - UNLESS you happen to BE a Klingon and this is not a siege, but your comrades, come to your aid.

This psalm continues to confront us with how thoroughly we are surrounded by the Almighty. "Hem"med in the WEB translation says translating a Hebrew word that occurs fewer than 40 times in the Bible - tzur, a primitive root meaning "to cramp," used in a variety of meanings with the notion "to confine," we can once again ponder whether this is good news or not.

It comes down to a matter of relationship. It is terrifying, if you are surrounded by an enemy. BUT - this is wonderful news - if you've made peace with God. This is the reminder, the reassurance that you are not alone, no matter where you are:

SoH hem jIH Daq behind je qaSpa'. SoH laid lIj ghop Daq jIH.

You hem me in behind and before. You laid your hand on me. Psalm 139:5

The support of God's hand is a delightful reminder of his power to act in our lives. The Bible never guarantees we will skate through life without trouble, but in the midst of it, we are reassured to hear His Hand is there, as in the promise given through Isaiah:

Don't you be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be dismayed,
for I am your God. I will strengthen you. Yes, I will help
you. Yes,
I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness. (Isaiah 41:10)

Interesting also is the description of how we are surrounded: You hem me in behind and before. The words behind and before are achor and qedem, and besides having the idea of location, they also can express the idea of time, achor meaning hereafter, and qedem the time before. Considered this way, we can see that God's surrounding care doesn't just encompass us at-this-moment but always.

Think about this: there is no time BEFORE God loved you. It is not something you had to earn, there is not something you had to do to deserve it.

AND - there is no time AFTER the time God loved you. He isn't going to stop - through ALL time, he surrounds you with his love, before AND after your life.

Better yet - God is no spectator. He doesn't watch from a distance - he hasn't isolated himself from you, for by faith we can join the psalmist and say You laid your hand on me.

SoH hem jIH Daq behind je qaSpa'. SoH laid lIj ghop Daq jIH.

You hem me in behind and before. You laid your hand on me. Psalm 139:5

Today, you are walking down the path that is your life. The way may seem bright or shrouded - but rejoice you are not facing it alone.

Rerun: Life Signs!

(nuqneH juppu'wI' - hello, my friends: This is a very busy time of year, and I don't have time to prepare a new Klingon Word. Please accept this Classic Klingon Word and my best wishes for the Easter season.)

SoH DichDaq cha' jIH the path vo' yIn. Daq lIj Daq ghaH fullness vo' Quch. Daq lIj nIH ghop pa' 'oH pleasures forevermore.

You will show me the path of life. In your presence is fullness of joy. In your right hand there are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11

(click for podcast version)

Because most humans don't have starships, we find other ways to explore distant solar systems. Astronomers have come up with many creative ways to study and evaluate impossibly remote locations - we've used their techniques, for example, to discover planets - before we can even see them! And today we use their methods to hunt for what Klingons would call yInroH - life signs. Signs the psalmist sees as well.

David delares that the Lord shows him the path of "yIn" - life. In Hebrew, the word is chayim, a familiar word from the toast "L'Chaiim" and the jewelry that uses the shorter form "chai" made up of the two letters het and yod. This word for "life" occurs over 450 times in the Bible.

The New Bible Dictionary says that, in scripture

"life ... is associated with light, gladness, fullness, order and active being... and contrasted with the darkness, sorrow, emptiness, chaos, and silence which are charecteristic of death..."

Indeed, David, by speaking of a path of life, suggests that there are some other path, perhaps like the book of Proverbs describes: "There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death." (Proverbs 14:12)

The astronomers who hunt for yInroH, life signs, in the universe talk of something I think of that is like the path of life: "the habitable zone." You see, depending on how powerful a star is, you can easily identify the orbital region that is "just right" for life as we know it. Too close or too far from the sun and life has no chance. If a planet's orbit is like Goldilock's porridge - neither too hot or too cold - then that world is in the "path of life" for that star.

We're not planets. The path we find for ourselves is not an orbit. It's the result of choices made - by us, by family, by friends.

And David tells us - the path we choose can be one that the LORD shows us - a path that leads to life - not just in the here and now, but a path into life, forever.

As it says in Proverbs:

But the path of the righteous is like the dawning light, that shines more and more until the perfect day. (4:18)

Looking for yInroH - signs of life? There's someone ready, right now - to show you where to find it! Ask him today!