Psalms 39

 

The last verse of this Psalm could sound as if the Psalmist is asking God not to pay any attention to him so that he could have a little enjoyment before death. However, what the Psalmist is saying isn't that he wants God to ignore him but that God would not look at him in judgment in what time he has left. Looking at the whole of this Psalm the Psalmist wants God's help and not the judgment that he deserves. What the Psalmist is asking for is mercy but just in a different way. The Benson Commentary indicated that the Psalmist wants time to make things better before the end. The phrasing at the end is a quote from Job 10:21, which is interesting considering the turmoil the Psalmist seems to be going through. 

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Leviticus 10

After the death of Nabab and Abihu, a command that the priests were not to come into the Tabernacle if they had drank fermented drinks. It seemed to me and upon referring to several commentaries that this command was given as a result of these two men's actions. It seems that it seems reasonable that they gave the wrong incense because they were not sober. Some may think this is harsh, but God had made it clear that those coming before Him needed to be holy, and being drunk definitely could keep you from being fully concentrated to God. In the New Testament, the command seems to be repeated in 1 Timothy 3 where an overseer and deacons are not to be addicted to wine. 

It is my conclusion that though Liqueur may not be entirely forbidden, it seems to be at least as dangerous as wealth. For those who have addictive tendencies, as I do, it would be wise to let it go.  

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Leviticus 9

 Moses had seen God's glory, and now he says that if they do the things that God commanded, they will see God's glory. After it was all done the people not only saw the fire come down but they saw the glory of God. There isn't a great description of what they saw here but there was no doubt that God was in their presence. However, as I noted before this great sign wasn't enough to permanently change the hearts. However, it couldn't be said that God didn't make himself obvious to them, and with great signs comes great responsibilities and greater judgment (but that's later).