Wisdom Truck 27

 

Before we get into this week's reference, a bit of a mea culpa.  In Numbers 19 there are two other uses for hyssop other than with blood- and I think it's going to pay to look at them.

In Numbers 19 is the sacrifice of the 'red heifer' a subject that some of you that follow emerging prophesy might know of.  The red heifer without blemish was to be a special sacrifice that involved a lot of "you shall be unclean, and then you shall be clean" things that, quite frankly, I haven't dwelt on long enough to fully understand.  But the day after I typed last week's message, I hit this passage in my morning reading.  Hang with me here, and we might actually get to this week's verse!

So the red heifer was burned COMPLETE in a place outside the camp, in a fire to which was added cedarwood, scarlet thread and HYSSOP.  There are a ton of interpretations why these things were added; as good a synthesis as any is that cedar, which resists decay, represents Christ, whose body would not suffer decay; the hyssop represented the tool of our purification, perhaps faith; and scarlet for the blood of Christ that washes us clean.  Of course back then, they wouldn't have known this- but what they did know was that these same three items were required in the sacrifice to be cleansed of their great scourge, leprosy (Leviticus 14, if you're curious).  Leprosy represented in the body what sin did to the soul.

Sin leads to death; and thus what happened next was that someone would then gather the ashes in holy vessels, and they would be saved for when neccessity required someone to handle a dead body.  At which point, some of the ashes would be put into a vessel with running ("living") water; the hyssop would then be used to sprinkle the person to purify them.  Hyssop, I believe, is symbolic of faith, in God and in Christ's sacrifice.

Moeover, when I read that passage that next day, I found that I had used "Man's wisdom" yet again in not waiting one more day; and I remembered something I'd hit in the morning a couple weeks before, in Numbers 9:

Num 9:22  Whether it was two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud stayed upon the tabernacle, remaining on it, the sons of Israel stayed in their tents and did not journey. But when it was taken up, they pulled up stakes. 

"Two days, a month, or a year..." That word, year, is an undetermined time which, according to 'man's wisdom' can mean anything from 'a few days', to '18, or even 19, years'.  And here I was, worried about a post I usually do Friday or Saturday, being done on Monday, and not knowing if I would get to it waiting till Tuesday... but I guess my 'cloud' had not went up yet!

So that brings us to this week and Psalm 64:9- which can be translated thus:

Psa 64:9  And all men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall in wisdom think of His doing. 

But this is a place with a lot of different interpretations for what the KJV renders wisdom; and I thought it might be helpful to look at the way it is rendered elsewhere:

- ...And shall wisely consider...

- ...and understood...

- ... so they will ponder...

- ...and reflect on...

All are correct; and all are the same.  God's Wisdom takes time.  Whether it be a day, a month, or 19 years.  And all should lead to 2 things: Fear of the Lord (as in reverent respect and awe), and our desire to share it with others.