Mark 8:27-38 – Die of self and let Jesus be your front man

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.

Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

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This is the Gospel selection to be read aloud by a priest on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 19], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. This will be preceded by one of two sets of Old Testament readings, paired with a Psalm or other choice. If the church is on the path of Track 1 during Year B, the reading will focus on Proverbs 7, where Solomon wrote, “For waywardness kills the simple, and the complacency of fools destroys them.” If Track 2 is the path, the reading will focus on Isaiah, where he wrote, “Who will contend with me? Let us stand up together. Who are my adversaries? Let them confront me.” Those will accompany the Epistle reading from James, where the Apostle wrote, “For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one can tame the tongue– a restless evil, full of deadly poison.”

I wrote about much of this reading last February, when Mark 8:31-38 was a Lenten Gospel reading. That can be read by searching this site. In regard to those verses set aside for the second Sunday in Lent, I posted another article that can be searched here. Still, in 2018, the last time this full reading came up in the lectionary cycle, I wrote once again, with that explanation posted on this site. With so much written prior on this reading, I will only address a few elements of this reading now. Please, feel free to read all and compare them to one another, to see the depth that surfaces. I welcome all comments, suggestions, and corrections [I am notorious overlooking typos].

Today I want to focus on the verses that are not part of the Lenten reading, which are twenty-seven through thirty. In particular, I want to make sure verse thirty is grasped, which says [NRSV], “And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.” In 2018, I made a point of giving my opinion about what that order means; but I did not dwell on it, nor did I relate that to anything else. Now, I want to expand on why Jesus gave that order.

First of all, last Sunday’s Gospel reading came from Mark 7, the chapter before today’s reading selection. Then we read about Jesus healing a deaf man with difficulty speaking; and, I pointed out that Jesus also healed the family of that man from the stigma of them having been seen as less that normal, because they still loved and cared for their relative who was deemed by Judaism as a sinner. All were healed by the deaf man becoming free of physical maladies. In Mark 7:36 we read, “Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.” That order must be part of understanding this order in Mark 8:30.

In Matthew’s eighth chapter, he told of Jesus healing a man with leprosy. In Matthew 8:4 [NRSV] we read, “Then Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” This event is retold by Mark, found in Mark 1:14.

In Matthew’s ninth chapter, we read about two blind men that ask Jesus to heal them, He does; and then we read, “Then Jesus sternly ordered them, “See that no one knows of this.” But they went away and spread the news about him throughout that district.” (Matthew 9:30-31)

In Mark’s fifth chapter, after Jarius came to Jesus about his sick daughter, Jesus went to Jarius’ home and raised the girl from death. In verse forty-three we read, “ He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.” This story is retold In Luke’s eighth chapter (Luke 8:56).

In today’s reading, Matthew 16:20 retells what is written in Mark 8:30. Matthew recalled this: “Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.” Luke also wrote of this event, writing, “He sternly ordered and commanded them not to tell anyone.” (Luke 9:21)

In Matthew 17:9 and Mark 9:9, after the event known as the Transfiguration, as Jesus was descending from the high mountain, he ordered, “Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.” [NRSV]

All of this needs to be seen in the light of the reading from James, where he wrote of “teachers” and the power of the “tongue” to be one’s direction in life. It has to do with Solomon waxing philosophically about wisdom (a goddess), while belittling those who do not seek knowledge as their god; and, this reading fits the theme of Isaiah, who sang about those having been given the “tongue of a teacher” by Yahweh. Jesus gave orders not to promote a human being as another idol of worship, because Jesus is not to be that. Yahweh did not send His Son to become such an icon. Thus, Jesus did not casually brush off all the praise that was directed towards him, saying, “Aw shucks, you’re embarrassing me.” Instead, he sternly ordered such an external “Savior” is not why the Father sent the Son in human form.

In the vast number of healing that Jesus is associated with performing, he did little more than tell one seeing good health, “Go, your faith has healed you.” While there were times when Jesus made physical contact with someone and he or she was healed, the truth of all healings was not because Jesus, the man, was walking around the earth as some special freak show. The truth of all healings was Yahweh. Because Yahweh merged His Spirit with the soul of a seeker, who came to Jesus as a culmination of one’s faith, the presence of Jesus must be seen as symbolic of a transfer of his soul-spirit into each of the seekers, so the seekers all went away as the wives of Yahweh, spiritually possessed by the soul of Jesus. All became an extension of Yahweh, as His Son reborn, all Anointed by Yahweh to be in the name of Jesus – a name that means “Yah[weh] Saves.”

The importance of understanding this transfer of soul, before Jesus physically died and his soul was fully released to be used by the Father in the rapid creation of the movement now called “Christianity,” is why Jesus followed up his questions to his disciples about the scuttlebutt around the towns, as to who the people said Jesus was. When Yahweh’s Spirit entered Peter and caused his flesh to blurt out, “You are the Christ” [“Sy ei ho Christos.”], the truth of that says Jesus’ soul was the one Anointed by Yahweh. That is why Jesus then told (three times) about his coming death, resurrection and ascension. To truly be the “Christos,” Jesus had to release his Anointed soul so all seekers could become souls married to Yahweh’s Spirit and then be divinely possessed by His Son’s soul. Jesus did not want people thinking Jesus of Nazareth was the only one who could ever be the “Christos.” Jesus thought what Yahweh led him to think.

When Peter, James and John (of Zebedee) were with Jesus on the high mountain and saw the soul-spirit of Jesus appearing not only as his present incarnation, but also as his prior incarnations as Moses and Elijah, he ordered the three not to tell about what they did not understand. Before Jesus was “raised from the dead,” meaning before those three witnesses were reborn as Jesus, having had his soul become one with theirs, anything they could have said would sound like they “saw ghosts,” which was a sign of a crazy person, not a sane one. Once they were divinely in spiritual possession, led by the soul of Jesus, they would know that exact same soul was Yahweh’s extension into the earth plane, which results in most righteous incarnations. Then, Peter, James and John would know the truth of what they had seen; but then, that realization would be more reason why not to tell anyone.

When James, the brother of Jesus and the Apostle who wrote the Epistle connected to this Gospel reading, wrote, “we who teach will be judged with greater strictness,” that means the “greater strictness” of the Spirit of Yahweh, which brings about the soul of Jesus. So, that presence means teaching souls to marry Yahweh and be reborn as His Son, without spewing nonsense. Nonsense is running around telling people what some man has the powers to do, because the “greater strictness” is to go out in ministry, so seekers can find you. Then, do not tell anyone what Jesus did for you, because you do for others as Jesus reborn.

This is why Peter became the vehicle of Yahweh again, when he took Jesus aside and “rebuked” him for talking about his pending death. Peter was the leader of a group of ‘round table’ disciples, each of which had been given the soul-spirit of Jesus [while he was alive and well], so they could be examples of human beings walking around as Jesus reborn [before he was dead and his soul fully released]. Jesus had sent his soul-spirit into his apostles, who were commissioned to go out like Jesus, without looking like Jesus [Jesus reborn interns]. When they returned from their mini-ministries, they then acted the same in the miracle feeding of five thousand Jewish pilgrims [plus wives and children]. Therefore, Peter knew what the others were thinking.

Peter was the spokesman then, speaking for those who today call themselves “Christians” too, simply because they believe a man was born and walked the earth with magical powers, named Jesus [of Nazareth]. When Peter “rebuked” Jesus, he was saying, “Let me tell you what is going to happen! We will protect you, because the world cannot be without Jesus! Jesus cannot die and be reborn in anyone else!” Jesus called out that mindset, saying, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

In the classic command, the Greek written by Mark is this: “Hypage opisō mou , Satana”. In that, “Hypage” is a capitalized word, meaning it takes on a divine level of meaning, beyond the ordinary meaning of “get.” The root Greek form is “hupagó,” which means, “to lead or bring under, to lead on slowly, to depart.” (Strong’s Definition) The use of that word implies “I go away, depart, begone, die,” such that “get” should be seen (ordinarily) as a command to an animal, as “Get along little doggie.” Still, HELPS Word-studies adds, “hypágō (from 5259 /hypó, “under” and 71 /ágō, “lead away”) – properly, to lead away under someone’s authority (mission, objective). 5217 /hypágō (literally, “going under”) indicates a change of relation which is only defined by the context.” Seeing that the context is Peter telling the Son of man what to do, rather than listen to Yahweh speaking through the Son of man, “Hypage” becomes Yahweh telling Peter’s soul, “Die of self, mortal!” If you want to use “Get,” it means “Git rid of the self-ego, mortal!”

When that can be seen, the Greek word “opisō” needs to be grasped, as it means “after, backward, behind.” When the capitalization of “Hypage” is understood to be Yahweh speaking to “Die of self,” then for that self is then told to move “backwards,” meaning the submission of self-will and self-ego unto God, who must then be seen as “me” (mou) – Jesus. In that, “mou” is the possessive (genitive) form of the Greek word for “I,” which is “ἐγώ (egṓ).” This means “me” says, “of I,” which means taking on the name of Yahweh in human form, which is “Jesus” [“Yah[weh] Saves]. Thus, this command by Yahweh, through the mouth of the Son, says “Die of self and let my Son be your possessor.” The command was then spoken to “Satan,” who was the spirit that possessed Peter and made him speak for the group as if Jesus must not ever speak of dying. [Notice the paradox of Peter in one moment being possessed by Yahweh to give Jesus the truth in answer to his question, while the next moment his soul was controlled by Satan, and made to rebuke the Son of man.]

After having a direct confrontation of Peter, which was witnessed by all the followers of Jesus, who like Peter did not want to think about life without their “Savior” in human form, it becomes important to realize the truth of Jesus telling them, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” Now, I have written much about this meaning. It speaks clearly of then, when Jesus was still alive and well on earth, but it speaks equally loud and clear about all the people who have paraded through life under the umbrella of “Christianity.” A “follower” is both someone who has a tongue that spews forth brackish water – like Solomon preaching all the wonders of ‘Lady Wisdom’ – while a “follower” is also everyone since who has been a soul possessed by the soul of Jesus, after divine marriage to Yahweh, so the lineage of a true Christ, in the name of Jesus, has followed his death, resurrection and ascension ever since [the true meaning of “Christianity”].

The point I want to make clear now is that aspect of “Satan.” It is Satan that does not want souls to step backwards in submission to Yahweh. It is Satan that does not want souls to be reborn as Yahweh’s Son, becoming “of me” through the Spirit that transforms brackish water into fresh water. It is Satan who promotes wisdom as the power of self, in the mastery of life, so others will happily follow in one’s own footsteps, never once thinking he or she should be a new Jesus walking the face of the earth, helping others do the same. That makes the form of Christianity that exists today be a church headed by Satan, because those churches cannot “Die of self-will and get behind Yahweh,” because that would cause their extinction [as they are now]. There are no churches led by Jesus reborn. All the true Saints venerated by the Roman Catholic Church were not advocates of a religious organization that refused to let Jesus die, so he could be reborn as Saints. Because there are no more Saints leading churches, Satan has worked his evil way into their heads; and, none are making followers in the name of Jesus Christ. They only promote the one “Christ,” who they keep nailed to a cross on the walls of their church buildings [although they think they can call him down to bless wafers and wine, before sending him back into his box].

When Mark wrote of Jesus saying, “For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life?” this refers one back to the capitalized “Hypage,” where the divine meaning says, “Die of self, mortal.” The command from Yahweh is self-sacrifice, so one can be reborn in the name of Jesus, the Son again in man [flesh of either gender]. If one does not want to give up the worship of self, then the foregone conclusion that every self is going to lose its body of flesh (eventually, at death), then the thing worshipped will “Get.” However, for those souls who do submit to marriage to Yahweh and become His Son reborn [again, regardless of human gender], then “for the sake of me and the news that tells others to do the same (the Gospel)” will be eternally saved.

This is the repeated message of the New Testament. The corruption of true Christianity – where all members of that true Church are all Anointed ones of Yahweh, as His Son resurrected within bodies of flesh – means the idolization of “Jesus Christ” and the “Holy Spirit,” both as external and separate entities that love everyone and require nothing of anyone, preach simple belief in Jesus as the Son of God means eternal salvation, regardless of how much one sins … and Jesus died so everyone can sin … forever and a day … thanks be to the god of wisdom! That is the purpose of this lesson.

As the Gospel reading selection to be read aloud on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson is to let Jesus die, so he can be reborn as oneself. Do not go about telling others who Jesus was or how Jesus can save everybody and perform miracles. The lesson is to be a follower, one whose personal cross of righteousness is to be an erect stake on the earth, upon which the true vine of Jesus grows, so oneself (as Jesus reborn) produces the good fruit of that vine. To be a true follower of Jesus means to do as Jesus did, after total submission of one’s soul to the Will of the Father. Anything less is letting one’s soul be led to ruin by Satan.

Language, Psalms, Teaching

Psalm 19 – A heart that is acceptable in the eyes of Yahweh

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

1 The heavens declare the glory of el, *

and the firmament shows his handiwork.

2 One day tells its tale to another, *

and one night imparts knowledge to another.

3 Although they have no words or language, *

and their voices are not heard,

4 Their sound has gone out into all lands, *

and their message to the ends of the world.

5 In the deep has he set a pavilion for the sun; *

it comes forth like a bridegroom out of his chamber;

it rejoices like a champion to run its course.

6 It goes forth from the uttermost edge of the heavens

and runs about to the end of it again; *

nothing is hidden from its burning heat.

7 The law of Yahweh is perfect

and revives the soul; *

the testimony of Yahweh is sure

and gives wisdom to the innocent.

8 The statutes of Yahweh are just

and rejoice the heart; *

the commandment of Yahweh is clear

and gives light to the eyes.

9 The fear of Yahweh is clean

and endures forever; *

the judgments of Yahweh are true

and righteous altogether.

10 More to be desired are they than gold,

more than much fine gold, *

sweeter far than honey,

than honey in the comb.

11 By them also is your servant enlightened, *

and in keeping them there is great reward.

12 Who can tell how often he offends? *

cleanse me from my secret faults.

13 Above all, keep your servant from presumptuous sins;

let them not get dominion over me; *

then shall I be whole and sound,

and innocent of a great offense.

14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my

heart be acceptable in your sight, *

Yahweh, my strength and my redeemer.

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This is one of two possible Track 1 accompanying songs that can be read aloud in unison or sung by a cantor on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 19], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. If chose, it will follow the Old Testament selection from Proverbs 7, where Solomon proposed wisdom said: “I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when panic strikes you, when panic strikes you like a storm, and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.” That pair will then precede the Epistle reading from James, where the Apostle wrote, “Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.” All will connect to the Gospel reading from Mark, where it is written: “Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”’

In the above translation provided by the NRSV, one will note that I have amended the text in several places. First, in verse one, the Hebrew written is “el,” which has been translated as a capitalized “God.” I have restored the lower-case, not so much to diminish the status of Yahweh [“the One God of Israel”] but to display how David knew the difference between “el” [“god” in the singular] and “elohim” [“gods” in the plural]. This usage, rather than “Yahweh” can indicate an individual whose soul has married Yahweh, such that one of the “elohim” is then an “el.” In seven other places, twice each in verses 7, 8, and 9, I have restored “Yahweh” [in bold type], where the NRSV has translated “the Lord.” Yahweh is not a generic “Lord.” Many addictions can generalize as a “Lord” over a soul and its flesh. David did not write of a generic god, but his God, specifically by name: Yahweh.

In verse one, David immediately sang about “the heavens.” This immediately brings up images of outer space and distant stars and nebulae. This is a mistake in human thinking. The “heavens” [the Hebrew word “shamayim” in the plural number] are multiple because they are the “elohim,” which are everywhere there is life in the universe. Without “the heavens” the universe is absolutely dead. Thus, “the heavens” should be read at all times in the Old Testament as meaning “the spiritual,” as where “life” abounds in the physical. When the plural number is applied to that, the equivalent is the “elohim,” who are all spiritual lives enhanced by Yahweh’s hand.

By seeing that simple clarity of meaning, the verse then confirms this by singing, “[they] declare the glory of el,” where the singular number means both Yahweh, as the One God, but also the singular powerful creation that is given the power of Spiritual life by Yahweh. Because angels are eternal Spiritual creations made by the hand of Yahweh they equate to “gods.” One angel is an “el.” Again, the plural number applied to “el” is “elohim.” When they “declare the handiwork of his “firmament,” that sings of the multiplicity of these divine creations. Yahweh cannot be limited in how many Spiritual creations His hand can give “life” to. In that, the Hebrew word “raqia” means “an extended surface, expanse,” which should be read as the definition of the Spiritual within the expanse of the universe, meaning all Spiritual creations – with form and without form – that inhabit the material and physical are these “heavens.”

Verses two then sings literally in English, “day by day flows promise ; and night by night declares knowledge .” Here, the opposites stated in “day” and “night” need to be read as metaphor for the life that “flows” from “the heavens” that “declare” Yahweh. The light of “day” is the presence of Yahweh’s Spirit that “flows” or “pours out” unto souls. Because the souls are animating bodies of dead matter, they exist in the “night” of death. A soul alone in a body of matter has no Spirit of life, thus it is limited to the time matter can support the presence of a soul. However, the touch of Yahweh’s Spirit brings the “promise” [“omer” means “promise, speech, thing, word”] of the return to “day.” That “promise” becomes the source of true “knowledge” that creates an “el” that is a Saint, a Prophet, a Son of man. It is a soul no longer alone in a body of dead matter.

In verse three is literally said, “no promise and no word ; not is heard their voice .” This is David stating the absence of “knowledge” comes from that of “night” [death]. He sang about there being nothing that can be created by death that is Spiritual. Thus, all souls animating dead matter can say nothing of importance that will lead another soul to return to the light of “day.” In that regard, those souls not filled with the “flow of the heavens” cannot speak for Yahweh, nor heed His Word.

Verse four then literally sings, “through all the earth has gone out their line , to the end of the world their words ; for the sun , he has set a tabernacle for them .” When the Hebrew form of “qav” [“line”] is written as “qaw·wām,” the plural number is reflected as “their line.” This is not a statement of lineage, but more a reflection on sound, as “line” becomes the “string” used on stringed instruments, such as the harp. Sound is waves of vibrations that are unseen, yet detectable by ears, although the range of audible sounds are greater than those detected by human receptors. It is then like this that David said the elohim of Yahweh are everywhere in the material universe, with “eretz” meaning the “earth” and “tebel” meaning the “inhabited world.” Thus, like sound, light is radiated in “lines” from the “sun,” giving life to the material “earth,” our “world.” The “sun” is then metaphor for Yahweh’s truth, so the “tabernacles” of “the world” are the wives of Yahweh, as those souls who receive His Spirit.

Verse five then literally translates into English as saying, “it like a bridegroom coming out of his canopy ; rejoices like a strong man , to run its course .” Here, the use of “bridegroom” [“chathan”] is a clear statement of marriage, with the metaphor being the Spiritual creation of elohim. The “canopy” [“chuppah” also as “chamber”] is symbolic of the covering that keeps Yahweh unseen, until He appears within His brides. The ones “rejoicing” are then both those united as one, as the celebration of nuptials. Still, it is the wife who “exults” the divine presence within, which brings forth the “strength” of a holy union. The Hebrew word “orach” is a “path” or “way,” which is then led by the Husband’s presence. To “run that course” is to enter into ministry and live a life of righteousness, having taken on the name of the Husband.

Verse six then sings out [literally]: “one end of heaven is rising , and coming around to the other end ; and nothing hidden , from the sun .” Once more we are shown opposites, as “one end coming around to the other end.” When the “end of heaven” is remembered to be the “end of Spirit,” this says receipt of Yahweh in marriage elevates one’s soul – it “is rising” [“mō·w·ṣā·’ōw,” from “motsa“]. There, the Hebrew word “motsa” means, “a place or act of going forth, issue, export, source, spring.” That means the “rising” is more like a welling up within, like a “spring” or “fountain” that is the “flow” from Yahweh, as eternal waters. Again, from being cloaked under a “canopy” until the entrance into a holy wife means “nothing is hidden,” as the Spirit knows all. That is the truth of light that comes from the “sun” [“chammah”], which brings the “heat” and “warmth” of faith and trust.

In the next three verses David wrote the name “Yahweh,” twice in each verse. That identifies the Husband that has been discretely mentioned in the previous six verses. Verse seven then literally sings in English, “the direction Yahweh complete returning the soul ; testimony Yahweh confirm , making wise simple .” After having sung about one coming full circle, the warmth of marriage with Yahweh is now praised. By taking on the name of God [“Jesus” means “Yahweh Will Save”] a soul is promised eternal life, which comes from “returning the soul” to Yahweh’s “heavenly” realm. To reap this promise of reward, a soul then must speak the Word of Yahweh that comes from His Spirit. One “confirms” that salvation is possible. In one’s “testimony” the truth comes forth, which is greater than any brain-led wisdom. This verse makes this Psalm be the response to the Proverbs 7 message of goddess worship, where he claimed wisdom was reason to belittle the simple. Here, David sang that Solomon was nothing, even with his Satanic gifts of wisdom and wealth, because he lacked the truth of Yahweh.

Verse eight then literally sings, “the precepts Yahweh straight rejoicing the heart ; the covenant Yahweh is pure , enlightening the eyes .” The first words of verses seven and eight can be read as “laws” and “statutes,” such that “the direction” is the “law” within one’s heart and the “precepts” are the marriage vows of the Covenant. Seeing those as statements confirming a marriage agreement and the commitment that comes, David sang that following the lead of Yahweh makes one walk a “straight” path [righteousness]. This ability makes the soul [“heart”] “rejoice,” as such perfection is impossible alone. When David sang, “the covenant Yahweh is pure,” this means marriage erases all past sins and debts, so one’s soul has been made “pure” by marriage. That divine union of the utmost holy matrimony means Yahweh’s presence will bring forth the “enlightenment” of truth.

Verse nine then becomes the final in a trilogy that repeats Yahweh’s presence with a soul. This verse then states in English, “fear Yahweh pure to take one’s stand perpetually the judgments of Yahweh truth ; righteous unitedness .” This says it is only natural to experience Yahweh with one’s soul and then “fear” losing that presence. It is that “pure fear” that motivates a soul to submit fully to Him and meet all agreements of His Covenant. This becomes a commitment for eternity and adherence to His demands are done lovingly, always accepting His Will as best, without question. The Hebrew word “yaḥ·dāw,” meaning “unitedness,” makes it clear that “righteousness” can only come through divine marriage of a soul to Yahweh’s Spirit.

Verse ten then sings, “more to take pleasure in , than gold and yea pure gold much ; and sweeter than honey , flowing honey from the comb .” Here, David is singing that the presence of Yahweh with one’s soul is beyond comparison to anything worldly. The “unitedness” of divine marriage brings a sense of elation that is unlimited “desire,” coming from true love (given and received). It is a presence that is of greater value than anything on earth can match. It is greater than the sweetest taste, where “sweetness” becomes a statement of the five senses, such that human feelings cannot describe how amazing this presence is. In the last segment, David is saying that the greatness is beyond one’s ability to control it; so, it flows outward from a wife of Yahweh, just as honey flows from a honeycomb.

Verse eleven then literally translates into English as, “moreover your servant is enlightened by them ; in keeping them reward great .” The initial focus is on being “your servant,” which is one’s subjection of self through marriage. By receiving the “light” of Yahweh, one is not entrapped by the dangers the world naturally sets for souls in bodies of flesh. When one is doing the works of Yahweh, one becomes a light that shines upon others. By being obedient and subservient – a dutiful wife – the promise of salvation is earned.

Verse twelve then sings out, “errors ? who can discern , from concealment empty mine .” In this verse, the one word “errors” is presented as itself being a question. The answer is then saying no human soul alone “can discern” what the right path should be. This means that all human beings will make the wrong choices and sin. It is inevitable. However, from divine marriage, where the Spirit of Yahweh is “secretly” within one’s flesh, merged with one’s soul, then all past sins and “errors” will be erased and remembrance of things done wrong become lessons to share with others. Knowing sin and redemption allows a soul to speak with authority, thus demonstrating true faith.

Verse thirteen then literally translates into English, saying “moreover from insolence refrain your servant , not let them have rule over me then I shall be blameless ; and then I shall be empty of transgression much .” Here, the element of redemption is put in focus, as the ability to “refrain” from the “insolence” that is the “arrogance” of human brains, such as Solomon’s worship of his big brain (gifted him by Lady Wisdom), makes their egos become their “gods.” It becomes external sources of power that become the lords who “rule” over their souls, making them be possessed by unclean spirits [demonic possession]. They all bring the blame of sin upon their souls, which David sang not to have that happen to his soul. The prayer is to be cleansed of all past wrongs, which one makes in a plea to have Yahweh come into one’s soul and lead all one’s future actions.

The final verse in this companion Psalm to Proverbs 7 then literally sings in English, “become present goodwill speaking from my mouth and be the meditation of my heart in your eyes ; Yahweh my strength and my redeemer .” Here is another prayer to Yahweh, such that David wanted Yahweh to see his actions that spoke of his obedience and displayed the true meditation of his soul, discerning what pleases his Holy Husband. By listening and acting David became strong as a leader of Israel and not only was his soul redeemed, but those also of the Israelites who followed David’s lead.

As a potential Psalm to be sung on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson is to turn away from the lures of Solomon – to bow down before intelligence – and find the love of Yahweh that has been sewn into the fabric of every soul. The theme here is of divine marriage, when one’s soul ceases self-idolatry and submits to the highest power possible. Once Yahweh’s Spirit has merged with one’s soul, one fears ever losing that inner presence. The Law is inscribed on the walls of one’s soul and one exudes faith and the light of truth. Ministry cannot be true if one’s soul turns away from Yahweh and only references Him through worship of His Son. The lesson here is to become that Son, regardless of what genitalia one’s body possesses.

Language, Teaching, Wisdom of Solomon

Wisdom of Solomon 7:26–8:1 – The nature of wisdom

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

[7:26] For wisdom is a reflection of eternal light,

a spotless mirror of the working of el,

and an image of his goodness.

[7:27] Although she is but one, she can do all things,

and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;

in every generation she passes into holy souls

and makes them friends of יְיָ and prophets;

[7:28] for יְיָ loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.

[7:29] She is more beautiful than the sun,

and excels every constellation of the stars.

[7:30] Compared with the light she is found to be superior,

for it is succeeded by the night,

but against wisdom evil does not prevail.

[8:1] She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other,

and she orders all things well.

——————–

This is the second of two possible songs that are designated as companions with the Track 1 Old Testament from Proverbs 7 that can be read aloud in unison or sung by a cantor on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 19], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. If chosen, it will follow the words of Solomon that say, “Wisdom cries out in the street; in the squares she raises her voice.” The pair will be presented before the Epistle reading from James, where the Apostle wrote, “For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Mark, where Jesus asked his disciples who they thought he was, so we read, “Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.” And [Jesus] sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.”

This optional reading is Apocryphal, meaning is is not accepted as Canon, although widely accepted as true. Because it is not Canon, my reference site [BibleHub Interlinear] does not offer the Hebrew of the Wisdom of Solomon. As such, I do not have access to the literal translations or have an easy reference to the definitions of Hebrew words that they provide. There are, however, Hebrew sites that offer semblances of that, although they are much harder for me to navigate and ascertain the deeper meaning. As such, I offer a most rudimentary interpretation of this song-poem of Solomon.

There are thirty-one verses in the seventh chapter. This reading is then the last six verses of that chapter and the first verse of chapter eight, making a total of seven verses. I have applied the verse numbers in bold type, within brackets, to assist in my analysis when referring to verses. Those numbers come from the NRSV translation, which the Episcopal Church claims to be their source. However, the Episcopal Church has modified that translation. In verses twenty-seven and twenty-eight there are two times that a Hebrew word has been translated as “God.” I have removed that translation and replaced it with the Hebrew written [“יְיָ”], sometimes called “HaShem.”

When this reading is seen as an optional selection to Psalm 19, Psalm 19 has one use of “el” that is translated as “God.” In many other Psalms, David wrote “elohim,” which commonly are erroneously translated as “God.” This is erroneous because the word is “el” is singular, so to be translated here are “God” means it is ludacris to pretend a word written in the plural number (“elohim“) is anything other than “gods” [not worthy of capitalization]. This means Solomon wrote something that amounts to an abbreviation [or something less], which makes it worthwhile to understand what “יְיָ” [“HaShem“] means.

According to the definition supplied by the Klein Dictionary, directed from the Sefaria.org website (where the Hebrew text of the Wisdom is found), this is the explanation:

יְיָ masculine noun: the proper name of God in the Bible, Tetragrammaton. [It prob. derives from הוה (= to be). The usual transliteration ‘Jehovah’ is based on the supposition that the Tetragrammaton is the imperfect Qal Hiph. of הוה and lit. means ‘the one who is, the existing’, respectively ‘who calls into existence’. In reality, however, the pronunciation and literal meaning of the Tetragrammaton is unknown. cp. יָהּ ᴵ.] (Klein Dictionary)

In verse twenty-six, the above translation that had Solomon writing, “For wisdom is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of el, and an image of his goodness,” one very important word is left out. According to all Hebrew sites I could find that offered the Hebrew text, verse twenty-six begins with the word “הִיא” or “hiy,” which means “she.” The Roman Catholic translation of this verse states, “for she is a reflection,” not “wisdom.” The NRSV translation also includes that feminine third-person pronoun, which says the Episcopal Church wants to make it clear to the lambs in the pews that “she” means “wisdom,” without any questions asked. This should bring up the question, “Why is wisdom referred to as a “she”?”

In my writings posted here, I have regularly commented that the call of divine Scripture is for a soul to marry Yahweh; and, in that scenario of marriage, I have regularly stated that human souls are the brides or wives of Yahweh [both males and females], who is the bridegroom and Husband. This is because Yahweh is “the Father,” thus masculine. Anything of the physical universe (including flesh, bones, and blood) is of feminine essence. As such, those who believe in gods and goddesses see “Mother Earth” as a “she,” which makes all souls in human flesh be feminine in essence because their flesh is part of Mother Earth. This same analogy is stated by Solomon when he routinely referenced wisdom as feminine.

In a past Old Testament reading, when David died and Solomon encountered Yahweh in a dream, I wrote how Yahweh stepped aside and let Solomon converse with Satan, the elohim who had been cast into the depths of the earth. Satan’s reign is thus worldly, but as a demon of the earth his spirit manifests as feminine. When young Solomon asked for the knowledge of good and evil, he sought the forbidden fruit that keeps a soul from achieving heaven. This means it was Satan who granted a young boy king the greatest wisdom – a gift known well by the serpent of Eden – in addition to worldly riches. Yahweh does not tempt human souls with material things. Therefore, wisdom is a she because it is the external world connecting to the human brain, in metaphysical ways that are the gifts of intuition and psychic abilities that are deductions of mind, not the all-knowing instant wisdom of Yahweh.

For anyone who has studied metaphysical topics, such as astrology, one can readily see how a translation saying, “she is a reflection of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of el, and an image of his goodness” becomes a statement of the sun (the eternal source of light) and the moon (a reflective mirror of light). The goodness of the sun’s light gives life to earth, whereas that goodness of the moon is weak, beyond an effect on waters of the earth, so it can only provide dim light to the darkness. The moon’s reflection of goodness during daylight is nil. That means the sun reflects the light of life, while the moon reflects the light of death. Everything is metaphoric and symbolic; but just as the sun and the moon reflect heavenly lights, day and night, so too does goddess wisdom confirm that there is a stronger wisdom – that of Yahweh – which the goddess wisdom can only mimic in reflection. The pronoun “she” says the wisdom of Solomon is not and inner light of truth, but an ability to discern external variables through enhanced intelligence.

In the statement that includes “el” – “a spotless mirror of the working of el” – the use of “el” should not be seen as Yahweh per se, because Yahweh does not Himself shine in the material realm. As such, He is unable to be reflected, like is the sun. That makes the sun be metaphor for Jesus – the Son of man – who shines as an elohim [an el] of Yahweh. This makes Saints, as those who are reborn as Jesus, each be like a sun, as a Christ resurrected [the light of Christ]. Therefore, Solomon was saying the powers of brain (called the goddess wisdom) is the mirror image of a true Saint. A true Saint has all the knowledge of Yahweh readily available (as needed), whereas a false prophet has lots of tricks up his or her sleeves. [Remember how Moses was enabled divinely by Yahweh, when he did battle with the priests of Pharaoh, who performed reflective deeds of wisdom.]

When verse twenty-seven begins by stating, “ Although she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things,” the focus needs to be on the number stated – “one.” To know that Yahweh is the only true “one,” who is the Creator of all that is, including every elohim, including all the spiritual powers of the universe, wisdom can be nothing more than one of many, meaning wisdom was insignificant in the grand scheme of Creation. This means it can only be Solomon stating he was the “one” in whom wisdom reigned. As far as Solomon was concerned, he was the only “one” in whom such great powers of wisdom mattered. For as many as Solomon reigned over as king, he could never become outside of Solomon, so he could never experience more than the “one” that was himself, his own soul-flesh being.

This should be seen as a flaw, which can also be projected on the flaw of thinking Yahweh [like Solomon’s wisdom] can only be in “one.” This is the flaw found in the failing religion that is Christianity, as it is a parallel to Solomon initiating the failure of the concept of Israel as being all individuals who retained Yahweh, the One God. Solomon led the Israelites to worship lesser gods, marrying women who imported pagan religious ideas into the mindset of the people of Israel [the name of a nation]. The same worship of wisdom [intelligence] makes every man and woman a god, like Solomon saw himself as, such that Christians worship themselves [like gods], while seeing only “one Christ,” specifically named the “one Jesus Christ,” to whom they pray to be given great wisdom. All eyes are taken away from the inner soul’s need for Yahweh – the Creator of all souls – instead placing focus on icons of the world, turning all away from a proposal for all souls to marry Yahweh and become His Son resurrected within their souls.

The second half of verse twenty-seven then says, “in every generation she passes into holy souls and makes them friends of יְיָ and prophets.” Here, the first presentation of the unknown Hebrew ‘word’ is found. When Solomon said, “she passes into holy souls,” this should be read as a spiritual possession, where a “soul” has become overcome with a worship of intellectual being. A “holy soul” is one that is “generated” by Yahweh, and only Yahweh; but a soul in a body of flesh is set free, allowed to find its way back to Yahweh. In that process, all souls become possessed by this goddess that expands the brain. It is a necessary growth of the flesh that needs to learn discernment, as normal education. To then see how that “makes them friends,” this is coming to realize there are many deities to be recognized, many other than Yahweh. This means the writing of “יְיָ” becomes a reflection of polytheism, not simply Yahweh. Thus the addition of “prophets” says all “gods” [elohim] have those who worship them exclusively and benefit from such selling of their souls. Solomon’s wives brought in many ‘priests’ of foreign gods, beginning the downfall of Israel. [Remember how Elijah challenged the priests of Baal (450 in number), where those who failed were the “friends” of Ahab and Jezebel, as the “prophets” of a dead god, with “יְיָ” symbolizing Baal.]

For verse twenty-eight to then repeat the use of “יְיָ,” stating “for יְיָ loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom,” this again takes one away from the concept of Yahweh, the Father [masculine essence], where “יְיָ” is “she” who “loves nothing so much.” The “nothing” is the reward of being such a servant or subject of wisdom. This then says the “nothing loved” is given to souls who “live with wisdom,” where “life” is the false appearance of the world [the realm of death] seeming full of “life.” That is only the illusion of an eternal soul animating dead matter. This says wisdom is only possible through material means; so, when the body dies and the soul is released, wisdom cannot be taken with a soul. Wisdom is therefore like material wealth, which gets left behind at death bringing about separation of a soul from all in that realm.

Verse twenty-nine then states “She is more beautiful than the sun, and excels every constellation of the stars.” In this, “beauty” must be seen as in the eyes of the beholder, such that what Solomon meant is this: You can look at the full moon and see imaginations possible; but if one stares at the full sun, one will go blind. By speaking about “every constellation of the stars,” the imaginary lines that connect the tiny dots of light that the stars are, turning separate points of light into a figure within one’s brain, this becomes a statement that says external facts [stars] can be read through reason, deduction, inference, and induction, such that wisdom is that ability to ‘connect the dots.’ That can sometimes lead to the truth, if the mathematics of true logic is applied; but often reason is flawed and the conclusions are (more often than not) invalid and false.

In verse thirty the translation says, “Compared with the light she is found to be superior, for it is succeeded by the night, but against wisdom evil does not prevail.” Here, the meaning of “superior” is akin to the heuristic that says, “the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.” [Gestalt theory] There is nothing greater or superior to Yahweh; and, the light of the Son [an Anointed soul in flesh] is the truth, at all times. Because nothing of mind can be superior to the truth, wisdom (“she”) can only shine in darkness, where ignorance is always inferior to knowledge. When Solomon said, “against wisdom evil does not prevail,” “evil” has no need to use ploys against a soul already committed in marriage to a demonic possession. The aspect of being “succeeded by the night” says wisdom is given to those who choose death [“night”] over life [“light”]. Overall, this verse speaks of the values of having knowledge of good and evil, which is the fruit that prevents a soul from attaining a return to be one with Yahweh.

Whenever the Episcopal Church chooses to combine the end of one song with the beginning of the next (as is done here, with the first verse of the eighth chapter next to be read), the impression given is all being on the same page. The reason for a separate chapter is not running out of parchment. The eighth chapter begins a new line of though, from a new set of core ideas. That needs to be understood when reading, “She reaches mightily from one end of the earth to the other, and she orders all things well.” This is less about specific comparisons of wisdom to natural phenomena and turning to address the way wisdom can direct one’s life.

In the titles given to sections of Scripture, to guide the thought processes of readers, the Catholic Bishops page says verses 23 to 30 of Chapter 7 can be expected to be about “Nature and Incomparable Dignity of Wisdom.” That, of course, is based on the meaning of the words found written in those verses by Solomon. In this regard, the NRSV also applies a header, one that says, “The Nature of Wisdom.” Relative to Chapter 8, the Bishops place a header before verse two, saying, “Wisdom, the Source of Blessings,” while the NRSV puts one in the same place, which states, “Solomon’s Love for Wisdom.” Both do not reflect upon verse 1 of the eighth chapter, as if it were some lost verse, stuck at the top of a random chapter. It should not be read as the leftover thoughts of “The Nature of Wisdom,” but the precursor of “Solomon’s Love of Wisdom.” In that regard, Solomon soon after [verse two] wrote of marrying wisdom, taking it as another of his many wives.

This means Solomon saw the appeal of wisdom, as an asset to behold, or a conquest to be obtained. This is nothing like a comparison of the light, as a reflection, which has to do with the enhancement of mental capacities. This is about the worldly lusts that wisdom can bring within one’s grasp. Thus, “from one end of the earth to the other” praises the vast array of “material things” that wisdom can reveal the secrets for obtaining them. When Solomon said, “she orders all things well,” this should be seen as a value ranking, such as that in which metal objects fall in line with. The rarest are the most valuable, while the most plentiful are the least valuable. The prettier are more valuable than the uglier. This has nothing to do with the truth, as it has only to do with the opinions of an individual. As a king, Solomon could lust for the rarest and the prettiest, so wisdom was his way to achieve all of his lustful desires.

I want to add that the Safaria.org website offers the Hebrew text, with some words searchable as to meaning and definition on their site, linking to the Klein Dictionary. Many Hebrew words are not found on that site, but can be found on other translation websites. In my rudimentary attempts to verify the translations of the NRSV, the Hebrew text presented by Safaria does not translate anywhere close to what the NRSV shows. While I could see how verse twenty-six is most likely correctly translated, verse twenty-seven went far off the rails. Here is what is listed above, compared to what I found:

“Although she is but one, she can do all things, and while remaining in herself, she renews all things” [from verse 26 above]

“by herself she could all turn work and reason all affairs. Appointed time fit in the minds worthy industry my love towards getting.” [My literal translation gleaned.]

In this, there is a very broad scope of leeway given to the translators, which makes everything become a paraphrase that fits snugly into whatever agenda the translator had to begin with. It says this “Wisdom of Solomon” can become more Satanic than it already appears, if one was to seriously dig deeply into what was written. I feel dirty from what I have done to this point; so, I do not care to go further.

As a potential accompaniment to the reading from Proverbs 7 on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson here is to be wary of wisdom. For Solomon to flaunt wisdom as a “she” or “her” is to pronounce his lust for worldly matters, not having any spiritual concerns of value. The focus of this translation says to be a light in the darkness for those who love the night, fearing their exposure in daylight. This makes the lesson to be wary of the dangers of evil that come dressed up in packages of intelligence. So many priests and pastors line the walls of their offices with sheets of paper that profess them to be full of wisdom. However, to have never married one’s soul to Yahweh, being reborn as His Son Jesus, none of the people who sit in the churches of those so-called religious leaders [the children of wisdom] will ever be able to ‘graduate’ and receive grandiose diplomas of wisdom from their church leaders. No souls will be made better, much less have themselves be able to go find a job in a church and have their own office, where they too can line the walls with trinkets of wisdom.

The lesson is then be Jesus, so one can touch the souls of others and have them too become Jesus reborn. That is far better than playing ‘Father Brainy, Mother Superior, or Lady Wisdom” in the eyes of Yahweh.

Language, Psalms, Teaching

Psalm 116:1-8 – Finding paradise before reaching Sheol

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

1 [1] I love Yahweh, because he has heard the voice of my supplication, *

[2] because he has inclined his ear to me whenever I called upon him.

2 [3] The cords of death entangled me;

the grip of the grave took hold of me; *

I came to grief and sorrow.

3 [4] Then I called upon the Name of Yahweh: *

“Yahweh, I pray you, save my life.”

4 [5] Gracious is Yahweh and righteous; *

welohenu is full of compassion.

5 [6] Yahweh watches over the innocent; *

I was brought very low, and he helped me.

6 [7] Turn again to your rest, O my soul, *

for Yahweh has treated you well.

7 [8] For you have rescued my life from death, *

my eyes from tears, and my feet from stumbling.

8 [9] I will walk in the presence of Yahweh *

in the land of the living.

——————–

This is the companion Psalm that will be read aloud in unison or sung by a cantor on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 19], Year B, if the Track 2 Old Testament option is chosen, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. In that track, a reading from Isaiah will state, “Yahweh helps me … therefore I have set my face like flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame; he who vindicates me is near.” That pair will precede the Epistle reading from James, where the Apostle wrote, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” All will accompany the Gospel selection from Mark, where Jesus said, “Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

In the above English translation of Psalm 116, you will note that I have made some amendments. First, in one place the text had been incorrectly translated to say, “our God, when the Hebrew written is “welohenu,” which is in the plural number, as “our gods.” I have restored the Hebrew text. Next, there are seven places where “Yahweh” has incorrectly been translated as “the Lord.” Yahweh is a proper name, while “Lord” is a generic that David did not praise. He named “Yahweh” specifically, for a purpose; so, I have restored those proper names. Finally, the Episcopal Church has made the executive decision to change the numbering of this Psalm, as the numbers they show do not reflect what the truth is AND what the NRSV shows [supposedly the source for what the Episcopal Church presents]. I have adjusted the verses to show the correct numbering [there are nine, not eight], shown in bold type, between brackets. This is odd (in my mind), as half the time the Episcopal Church simply does not number anything. Perhaps that is because when they do number the verses, they do it wrong?

Psalm 116 is nineteen verses in length, in total. It is a little odd, in that it does not begin with an announcement of any kind, such as: A psalm of David. It simply begins. Half of it will be read today and on a day during Easter week. The other half will be read on two other dates in the lectionary cycle; with one other reading being some of these verses, combined with the verses from the second half. So, a total of five times some part of Psalm 116 will be read aloud. Because of the misnumbering by the Episcopal Church, I can only assume [without deeper investigation] verses eighteen and nineteen are read on those dates when the second half is read aloud. Otherwise, verses eighteen and nineteen will never be read.

The literal English translation of verse one is this: “I love that he has heard ׀ Yahweh ; my voice , my supplications .” In this, there is a bar [“׀”] placed after “he has heard” and before “Yahweh,” which acts as [I assume] a musical direction that can relate to a pause. That pause makes “I love that he has heard” be a statement, with “Yahweh” being the explanation of who “he” is, after the mark of pause. In the BibleHub Interlinear heading of verses, this whole song is headed: “He Listens to My Voice.” The NRSV heads it as “Thanksgiving for Recovery from Illness.” Neither headers were part of the actual song. However, the assumption made by the BibleHub Interlinear translator is that the Yahweh listens to what prayers ask for. I think this is limited and a one-way view of what is written by David.

Because “Yahweh” is followed by a semi-colon, the second half of this verse is a separate thought, although related to that before. The relationship is Yahweh hearing the one praying to Him. The separation must then also be read as relative to both Yahweh and the soul praying. As such, “my voice” is more than one praying for help. It says Yahweh has answered the prayer and become one’s “voice.” That “voice” is then the actions of “Yahweh” within a wife of His, who has not just listened to one’s “supplications,” but acted on them. It says Yahweh has asked the one praying [His wife] to do what needs to be done, as Yahweh pleading with His wife to follow His directions. Those then become the wife’s to comply with, as “my supplications.” The key to this assumption of a Husband listening to and then helping His wife reverts back to the first word of this verse – “’ā·haḇ·tî” – which says “I love.” That is a statement of the “love” that reciprocates in marriage.

The literal English translation of verse two then sings,

“that he has extended his ear to me ; as long as I live I will proclaim .”

When this verse is read as if David sang, “Oh boy! Yahweh listens to me! Now I can ask for everything in the Sears Wish Book!” it is wrong. By seeing how the “ear” of Yahweh has been “extended,” it is then David’s “ear” that can divinely hear the Spiritual insights of his Holy Husband. Therefore, after the semi-colon, David stated he could hear what Yahweh spoke to him, so he would “proclaim” that heard. That becomes a reflection of ministry, so others can also hear the Word of God. The aspect of “as long as I live” means marriage is forever; but ministry in divine marriage does not stop while one is a soul in the flesh, once ministry begins.

Verse three then literally translates into English as singing: “surrounded me the bands of death , the distress of Sheol found me ; distress and sorrow I discovered .” Here, when David wrote “ḥeḇ·lê-mā·weṯ,” as [NRSV] “the cords of death,” where “chebel” can mean “cord, territory, band” (Strong’s), the “territory” of death is one’s body of flesh. It is the “rope” that ties a soul to the material realm, keeping it captive, unable to freely return to the spiritual realm. The “distress of Sheol” means the threat of death AND Judgement, as a place in between, where a soul is still kept from returning to the spiritual realm, pending Yahweh’s review of the life past in the flesh.

The Hebrew word “sheol” refers to “underworld (place to which people descend at death).” (Strong’s) This means a soul descends into a non-physical realm, where it is in holding before Judgment. This means “Sheol” is where a soul is either deemed clean spiritually and able to ascend into the divine plane with Yahweh; or, when its sins committed in the flesh condemn that soul, causing it to return into new flesh [start over again], or worse [be cast into the eternal darkness due to unredeemable sins]. For David to then moan, “distress and sorrow I discovered,” this means his soul has been made aware of all its past sins, through having an “ear extended” to and from Yahweh.

Verse four is then literally translated into English as: “and in the name of Yahweh I proclaimed ; I beseech you Yahweh save my soul .” In this, it must be realized that “in the name of” [from “ū·ḇə·šêm”] is a statement of marriage, such that a wife takes on the “name” [“shem”] of the husband. When David sang about being “in the name of Yahweh,” he declared he was such a wife; therefore, he proclaimed as Yahweh’s extension on earth. His declarations “implored” outwardly to others to also marry their souls to Yahweh, because salvation is only possible through such a divine marriage of love.

The literal English translation of verse five then sings, “gracious Yahweh and just ; of us elohim of love .” In this verse is found the Hebrew “welohenu,” where the plural number [“elohim” as “gods”] is amended to be more than simply David, but others like him. As such, that says Yahweh has many “elohim” [therefore the plural]. The multiplicity is then “of us” or “our,” in the possessive or genitive case. By beginning this verse singing, “gracious Yahweh,” this speaks of the presence of Yahweh upon a soul, which is the truth of His “grace.” That, again, sings of divine marriage; and, it says that this union of Holy Matrimony is what makes all past sins “justified,” as the soul-flesh then becomes totally submissive to the Will of God, out of reciprocal love. Therefore, following the semi-colon, David sang out that this state of being is the same in all of Yahweh’s wives, with all being divinely possessed “elohim.”

Verse six then literally translates into English as singing, “keeps watch the simple Yahweh ; I was brought low , and me he delivered .” In the segment of words in this verse that says, “keeps watch the simple Yahweh,” the mind wants to only see them as saying “Yahweh watches over His wives.” While that is true, the same words also say that the wives of Yahweh [His elohim] also “keep watch” or “care” [from “shamar”] the “simple” [“pthiy”]. In that, the wives of Yahweh have sacrificed self-ego, so their brains are not an altar of self-worship, making them “open-minded” or “simple” in knowledge. This makes them like children who need to be taught; and, in that way the wives of Yahweh will “care” for the “simple” who know nothing about how to marry their souls to Yahweh.

Following the semi-colon mark, the segment that says, “I was brought low” stems from the Hebrew word “dalal,” which means, “bring low, dry up, be emptied, be not equal, fail, be impoverished, be made thin.” This should be seen in terms of the word “pthiy,” or the state of being “simple.” The biggest hurdle to clear, when a soul is being led to accept a marriage proposal from Yahweh, is its own brain making a soul think it is self-sufficient and all-knowing. It is that obstacle within that must be “emptied, made thin, and impoverished,” relative to one’s dependence on intellect. This is so one stops thinking how to be saved and one accepts the brain cannot supply that state of being. This reflects on receiving Yahweh’s Spirit and from personal experience [unknown prior] one being able to have true spiritual faith. It says one must die of self-ego and self-will, from having reached the depths of self-reliance, so one can become simply led by Yahweh. Then salvation can be gained.

The seventh verse then translates literally into English as, “return my soul to your permanence ; for Yahweh has dealt adequately with you .” When one is searching for the assured state of salvation, the singing of David that says [NRSV], “Turn again to your rest, O my soul,” the “return” of a “soul” to the presence of Yahweh is divine marriage. This takes place when a soul is still animating its flesh. When the death of the flesh comes and a soul has not married Yahweh prior then, instead of finding the “permanence” that is “rest,” such peace will not be found after descending into Sheol for Judgment. Without receiving Yahweh’s Spirit prior to physical death, no soul is capable to die with all sins washed clean. This means a soul must find its way to sacrifice its self-will [symbolic death], so Yahweh’s Spirit can return the soul into that presence of eternal life while the soul is still residing in a body of flesh. Thus, when David then sang, “for Yahweh has dealt adequately with you,” this sings of the path of righteousness that a soul-flesh will lead, which must be walked in order to find a favorable Judgment for a soul in Sheol.

Verse eight then literally translates into English as singing, “for you have withdrawn my soul , from death my eyes from tears ; my feet from falling .” In this, the Hebrew word “chalats” means “to draw off or out, withdraw,” with an intent of use being “to rescue” or “to ready, arm, make fat.” This scope of meaning says one’s “soul” has been increased, by the addition of a divine Spirit, which “withdraws” the soul from control over its body of flesh, so it backs away in submission to a higher power. This is the only way a human being can truly live righteously. That transfer then eliminates all fear of “death,” so the soul no longer sees that transition as a point of Judgment, foreseeing sorrow to come. When David sang of his “feet” kept “from falling,” this sings of his body of flesh being led by the Spirit of Yahweh to walk in His ways. This sings of a joyful ministry for Yahweh.

The final verse in this selection [verse nine] then translates literally into English as singing, “I will walk before Yahweh ; in the land , of the living .” Here, the Hebrew word written that translates as “before” is “lip̄·nê,” which is rooted in “panim,” meaning “face.” This then says David will “walk” while wearing the “face” of Yahweh “before” his own “face.” This is the truth of the First Commandment, which literally says, “not you shall have other elohim upon face.” The last two Hebrew words there are “‘al- pā·nā·ya,” which says “upon face.” The meaning says to wear one’s own face [self-ego] is to deny Yahweh and not wear His face before one’s own face. Such a refusal says one’s self-ego will not have been “withdrawn” and moved back in submission. Refusing to agree to the first vow of divine marriage means one’s soul rejects Yahweh and turns away from Him, seeing self as more important. Therefore, David sang about his soul’s marriage to Yahweh, by singing that he wore the “face of Yahweh” when he “walked” [righteously].

Following the semi-colon mark, David then made it clear that his “walking” was “in the land,” or “on the earth,” which means “of the flesh” and “in the physical.” This says salvation is only assured when one marries Yahweh while a soul in the flesh, so all past sins are cleansed and a new self [one’s soul led by the Spirit] then proceeds through life, wearing the “face” of righteousness, in the name of Yahweh. Because the “earth” or “land” [“eretz”] is a soul giving animation to the death of matter, the following statement – “of the living” – is then the truth of salvation. That sings of when the soul can truly be freed to eternal life, no longer trapped in the death that is a body of flesh, in the physical realm.

As the accompany Psalm to Isaiah 50, to be sung aloud on the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson of David’s song is to marry one’s soul to Yahweh and wear His face to the world. Ministry for Yahweh can only come from His presence, so His voice is personally heard and His message proclaimed for all to know. Wanting to be good and trying to read lots of good researched opinions and then go out armed with those opinions as one’s own will invariably lead one to be positioned between a rock and a hard place. There, one will be forced to admit, “It wasn’t my idea, so I can’t explain it.” True ministry for Yahweh makes one’s mouth appear before others, unprepared, as one who is “simple.” Then, welcomed by others as non-threatening, one lets Yahweh do the talking. No one will be led to marry their souls to Yahweh by preaching a sermon only one person can understand.

Language, Proverbs, Teaching

Proverbs 31:10-31 – Worshiping the feminine

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

A capable wife who can find?

She is far more precious than jewels.

The heart of her husband trusts in her,

and he will have no lack of gain.

She does him good, and not harm,

all the days of her life.

She seeks wool and flax,

and works with willing hands.

She is like the ships of the merchant,

she brings her food from far away.

She rises while it is still night

and provides food for her household

and tasks for her servant-girls.

She considers a field and buys it;

with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.

She girds herself with strength,

and makes her arms strong.

She perceives that her merchandise is profitable.

Her lamp does not go out at night.

She puts her hands to the distaff,

and her hands hold the spindle.

She opens her hand to the poor,

and reaches out her hands to the needy.

She is not afraid for her household when it snows,

for all her household are clothed in crimson.

She makes herself coverings;

her clothing is fine linen and purple.

Her husband is known in the city gates,

taking his seat among the elders of the land.

She makes linen garments and sells them;

she supplies the merchant with sashes.

Strength and dignity are her clothing,

and she laughs at the time to come.

She opens her mouth with wisdom,

and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

She looks well to the ways of her household,

and does not eat the bread of idleness.

Her children rise up and call her happy;

her husband too, and he praises her:

“Many women have done excellently,

but you surpass them all.”

Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,

but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

Give her a share in the fruit of her hands,

and let her works praise her in the city gates.

——————–

This is the Track 1 Old Testament reading selection fot the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 20], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. If Track 1 has been determined to be a church’s path during Year B, it will be accompanied by a choice of readings, the first of which is Psalm 1, which sings, “They are like trees planted by streams of water, bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither; everything they do shall prosper.” The other optional accompaniment is from Solomon’s Book of Wisdom, which states, “We are considered by him as something base, and he avoids our ways as unclean.” Whichever two will be read aloud, they will then precede an Epistle reading from James, where the Apostle wrote, “Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Mark, where we read of Jesus saying, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.”

I wrote of this reading when it was last a selection in the lectionary cycle. I published my views on my website, and that commentary can be viewed by searching this site. I stand by my comments then, although I no longer appreciate much that has to do with Solomon’s Proverbs or his Wisdom. I see the truth of Yahweh coming from the words of Solomon, but those nuggets of truth are more difficult to realize than are those of other Scripture. I invite all to read my relatively short and painless offering of the meanings of wifely virtues, as they still apply today. However, I will now make new observations.

In the first verse of this reading, the first two words (combined as one) in the Hebrew is “’ê·šeṯ-ḥa·yil,” which translates [NRSV] as “a capable wife.” In reality, the two word independently are “ishshah” and “chayil.” The Hebrew word “ishshah” means, “woman, wife, female.” In Genesis 2 and 3, there is no mention of the name “Eve,” as the only references to her is as “ishshah.” In Genesis 4, when Cain and Abel are born to “man” and “woman-wife,” we read “and Adam [man] knew,” then in the Hebrew, “ḥaw·wāh ’iš·tōw” (from “chavvah ishhah”). In that, “chavvah” (which means “life”) is where “the first woman” is named, as “Eve.” In that, “the first ishshah” is a better understanding, as “Eve” was not a ‘day six’ creation. As for Solomon combining “ishshah” with “chayil,” the word “chayil” means “strength, efficiency, wealth, army.” Thus, instead of “a capable wife,” Solomon meant “a valuable woman.”

In the vast history of the world, a man without offspring, most notably a male heir, is seen as worthless. As such, a man needs a woman to be his wife and produce his heirs. Because man is a mortal creature, his strength comes from being a link in an unbroken chain of souls in a lineage of souls. To be childless means to break the chain; and, that becomes the importance of men whose wives were barren in Genesis (Sarai and Rachel the two most prominent), but Yahweh intervened to show His power, so a “wife” can become the “strength” and “wealth” a man needs.

Because Solomon was the king of Israel, his wives would be deemed “queens.” Before he had his dream about wishing for great powers to understand good and evil, an arranged marriage between young Solomon and an Egyptian princess had taken place. His taking a foreign wife was not a wise decision, according to Mosaic laws. David was chastised in hindsight by scholars for having married Maacah, the daughter of Talmay, king of Geshur. This is wrong because in the genetics of the Israelites the woman born of Israelite lineage will always produce another of that line. Conversely, a woman of a Gentile line will always produce Gentile children, unless some official conversion paperwork is submitted and probably some holy water sprinkled to remove the Gentile from the wife of an Israelite.

In the story of Esther, she was a Jewish woman who had been taken as one of many wives of a Persian king. Like Solomon’s many sexual partners, Esther ended up on the ‘used wives’ pile in the harem of Ahasuerus. This history says, in essence, a “woman, wife, female” is only good for producing babies; but when a husband tires of the same ole same ole and a little strange is the perk-me-up needed, then it is time for another “wife, woman, female.” The woman never gets the luxury of such variety in life.

Because the ancient times have melted down into the modern acceptance of same sex marriage, where sterility is an excuse to adopt the unwanted children of who knows what lineage, with women more often than not preferring to wear the pants and control as many men as possible. To read Proverbs 31 makes more women mad, than those who love to please their husbands ‘the old fashioned way.’ This is why my 2018 commentary went into that direction. This reading has little appeal in these times when Christianity is dwindling into the acceptance of perverse ideas, simply to pay the electric bills of churches and keep food and medical benefits on the plates of its hired hands.

What needs to be read into these words of Solomon, where the feminine gender is applied to Hebrew words creating twenty times “she” is translated into English. That goes along with twenty-seven times the feminine possessive is applied as “her.” All stem from verse ten identifying “ishshah,” which of course is feminine [as “wife”]. It gives the impression that Solomon is in control, as the masculine. So, even though a wife was necessary for Solomon’s strength to come forth, for him to be known, Solomon had to marry with a counterpart, so that two became one, while always realizing that Solomon is still the controlling factor. This attitude needs to be seen as egotistical and unequal. Solomon needs to be seen – for all the wisdom he proclaims to have – as blind as a bat to the reality of marriage.

Because Solomon has delightfully proclaimed the wonders of “wisdom” as his bride, it should be recognized that he is not singing praises to a human woman, because those are a dime a dozen to him. He is singing praise to his true wife, the goddess to his god-ship. This means Solomon saw himself as an “elohim,” where his divine marriage to Wisdom brought him great physical strength, through the powers of a brain to discern things. In Roman terms, Solomon saw himself as a Caesar … a god in human flesh. In reality, his soul was the feminine plaything for his spiritual husband, Satan.

This brings up the polytheistic comparison, from Greek mythology, of the twin gods (Titans) Prometheus and Epimetheus. The two together created a whole, where alone their divine powers were reduced, but together they were strongest. The two names mean, in Greek, Foresight and Hindsight. Prometheus can be seen as the Husband, while Epimetheus can be seen as the Wife. Solomon saw himself as Prometheus, and his thousand wives and concubines as the lessons of the past that had nothing to do with the future. Still, in this comparison, the Titans were the ancient gods and goddesses, which were replaced by the ‘new wave’ gods and goddesses. As such, Solomon could not see the future beyond the realm of worldly reality. So, he could not see how all his selfish plans were the condemnation of his soul. Solomon sold his soul for about fifty years of Wisdom’s service, only to spend eternity wishing he had never been born.

As the Track 1 optional Old Testament reading to be read on the twentieth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson here is see the dangers of self-worship. The feminine essence is everything in the material realm, including the powers of the brain, which see self as more important than Yahweh. This reading being so heavily leaned towards adoration of womanly traits, judged from a male’s perspective, should be a warning not to see oneself as able to judge in the ways Solomon did. Ministry for Yahweh is the subjection of the feminine to the masculine [His], where receipt of the Spirit means to be sent into service for Yahweh [as a Son reborn from the feminine]. Anything short of that obedience is rejection in the eyes of Yahweh.

Jeremiah, Language, Teaching

Jeremiah 11:18-20 – Lambs to the slaughter willingly

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

[18] It was Yahweh who made it known to me, and I knew;

then you showed me their evil deeds.

[19] But I was like a gentle lamb

led to the slaughter.

And I did not know it was against me

that they devised schemes, saying,

“Let us destroy the tree with its fruit,

let us cut him off from the land of the living,

so that his name will no longer be remembered!”

[20] But you, Yahweh of hosts, who judge righteously,

who try the heart and the mind,

let me see your retribution upon them,

for to you I have committed my cause.

——————–

This is the Track 2 Old Testament selection, which will be read aloud if a church is on the Track 2 path during Year B, on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 20], according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. If the Track 2 path is chosen, then this reading will be paired with Psalm 54, which sings, “For the arrogant have risen up against me, and the ruthless have sought my life, those who have no regard for elohim.” That pair will precede a reading from the Epistle of James, who wrote, “if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Mark, where is written: “[Jesus] was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.” But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.”

I wrote about these three verses the last time they came up in the lectionary cycle, and I posted those views on my website in 2018. That commentary can be viewed by searching this site. I stand behind the words I wrote then, as they still apply today as valid insights. I welcome all to read what I wrote then and compare it to what I am about to add. Comments, suggestions, questions and corrections are always welcome.

In this presentation of the reading, the verse numbers have been left off by the Episcopal Church. Presumably, this is their way of remedying the fact that when they do number verses from the Old Testament, they often do so incorrectly. I have supplied the verse numbers in bold type, within brackets. I will then refer to those numbers in the analysis, if need be. Also, in two places you will note that I have placed “Yahweh” in bold type. This is restoring the truth of what was written, whereas the NRSV has generalized this specific name as “Lord.” If one were to actually read all of Jeremiah 11, one would see how Yahweh told the prophet:

“Then the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem will go and cry out to the gods to whom they make offerings, but they will never save them in the time of their trouble. For your gods have become as many as your towns, O Judah; and as many as the streets of Jerusalem are the altars to shame you have set up, altars to make offerings to Baal.” (Jeremiah 11:12-13)

In both places where “gods” is written [“ha-elohim” and “eloheka”], that can be generalized as the many “lords” of the wayward people of Judah and Jerusalem. A “Lord” can be seen as “Baal,” when generalized as such, with nothing specifically naming what “Lord” Jeremiah [et al] was talking about. The specific name, “Yahweh,” has thus been restored; and, it should be learned by Christians today.***

These verses are shown differently by the NRSV, where the text prior and the text after is presented in standard story fashion. These three verse are displayed in song style, as Jeremiah breaking into an ecstatic chant, channeling the voice of Yahweh. As such, it is displayed like a psalm, rather than as normal prose. Because of that difference in presentation, the NRSV places a title before verse 18, which says, “Jeremiah’s Life Threatened.” BibleHub Interlinear gives it a header that says, “The Plot against Jeremiah.” Those titles extend beyond these three verses, to the end of Jeremiah 11, to verse 23.

While the observation I presented in 2018 dealt with the content of this from that perspective of Jeremiah’s conditions and ministry, I will take a broader scope of it and present how this selection fits into it being an alternate selection to the Proverbs 31 reading [Track 1]. It is important to know that all was not rosy in Israel, after David died and Solomon began to mislead the people. There has to be realized that at some point in time the Israelite people began a slow slide to oblivion; and, the Track 1 readings are pointing out the origins of that failure to serve Yahweh as His people, with Track 2 showing the destruction and ruin of long periods of bad habits and practices.

The origin of their demise was (of course) their being human beings, thus nothing any more special than all the other “Gentiles” in the world; but Year B is pointing out the history that first became endangered, when the elders of the tribes went to Samuel and demanded him appoint a king to rule over them, like other nations. Track 1 shows the beginning of that bad decision, while Track 2 shows the end results of that bad decision. The same failures made by the Israelites are made by Christians today, because it all comes down to realizing no human beings are special, especially when those people disregard the name of their marriage partner [“Yahweh”] and shuffle Him off to being some “Lord,” while bowing down before so many “gods” it is disheartening to think about how Yahweh dislikes all who do that.

This means the Proverbs 31 ooze of filth that prays to the slut “wisdom” as one’s “woman” of virtues is part of the reason Jeremiah was tapped by Yahweh to go tell the wayward, “Yahweh has disowned you guys.” It all began with goddess worship, of which Solomon promoted. When one sees how “wisdom” is the god of the 21st Century, as “science” and “philosophy” that cries out, “Beware getting a cold that might kill you.” They influence us, like Solomon’s Wisdom and Proverbs did then, to put your faith in young boys and girls [med school graduates] whose brains have been paid [hired hands] to think the way of profiteering [government and business] and selling faith in knowledge to the masses [religions] will save mankind. So, they pretend to create preventions that are impossible to create by Man. When one can see that parallel to today in Proverbs 31, then reading Jeremiah 11 becomes the parallel for tomorrow.

In verse eighteen, when Jeremiah sang, [literally translated into English] “Yahweh gave me knowledge and I know ; then you let me see their doings” this has to be seen as contrary to how Solomon schmoozed, “She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” All the wise of Judah and Jerusalem were being led to sacrifice children – human sacrifices to Moloch – which Yahweh never ordered. One can only imagine a child would be burned to death after parents were soothed by the “teaching kindness from the tongue” of some priest of a goddess – “The gods will bless you for your sacrifice.” Imagine how a priest saying homosexuality is blessed by God, when that form of sterility means the end of a line. Are they not giving the go ahead – “Burn, baby, burn!”?

When one has been made aware of the “doings” of the souls who have been sold into slavery in a world that is temporal and offers absolutely nothing beyond death [a foreseen conclusion to all human lives], there is then a decision that needs to be made. Solomon was lobbying for more to sell their souls, singing nonchalantly, “Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.” So, one can choose to join the club and go with the flow of sewage to eternal damnation; or, a soul can choose self-sacrifice to Yahweh.” Both ways you die; but one way leads to salvation and the other leads to the failure of repetition.

By knowing the “doings” of wicked ways, Jeremiah then sang of being “like a docile lamb brought to the slaughter.”

Rather than think of poor ole Jeremiah not having a clue about what was going to happen to his fluffy-haired throat, think of Jeremiah as being exactly like young Isaac, who asked daddy Abraham, “If we’re going to make a sacrifice to Yahweh, aren’t we forgetting the lamb?”

Isaac figured out he had to do what his father led him do, even if it meant dying for a cause. Americans make a lot about veterans of military service (something that usually is just a few years of a young adult’s life), making heroes of the ones killed in action or maimed for life. [“Thank you for your service,” the ones who never served say.] So, both Isaac and Jeremiah willingly went forward with self-sacrifice, knowing faith in Yahweh would make their souls A-Okay.

When Jeremiah sang, “not did I know that against me they had devised schemes,” that lack of knowledge is best. Whereas Solomon confused the brains of the Israelites by singing about “wisdom,” as if that worship of intellect was the ‘cat’s meow’ for some beauty to make one’s wife, Isaac and Jeremiah both knew only what was important: What Yahweh wanted their souls to know. The “devised schemes” are the workings of self-worshiping brains that are bowed down in subservience to a “Lord” of demonic qualities.

When verse nineteen then sings, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will no longer be remembered!” this is the scheme devised. Jeremiah was the fruit and they were the tree – Judah and its leaders. Their scheme to “destroy the tree” was akin to thinking wisdom had led them to commit suicide, in order to punish those who still wanted to be servants of Yahweh. When Jerusalem would fall and the Temple would be destroyed, the tree would bear no more fruit from there. The fruit is filled with the seeds of Yahweh; so, just like from the stump of Jesse would come a new shoot, the tree is replaceable. Therefore, those who forsake Yahweh will forever be forgotten.

In verse twenty, Jeremiah sang out, “Yahweh of hosts is who will judge righteously.” That does not mean Yahweh is so “righteous” that He gets to “judge.” It means Yahweh is who makes human beings act “righteously.” When Jesus cursed the fig tree that bore no fruit, the metaphor is the same as Judah being some worthless tree that no longer produced any worthwhile fruit. Just as that fig tree withered and died, so too did Judah, the land from which “Jews” get their name. The whole point of true Christianity is this: EVERY member of that group is a CHRIST, which means Anointed by Yahweh through divine marriage with a soul, so EVERY member is His Son resurrected in his or her flesh. That means EVERY TRUE CHRISTIAN “is who will judge righteously.” Yahweh is “Yahweh of hosts” because He can Anoint as many souls as He sees fit to be Anointed. When they say, “An apple doesn’t fall from the tree,” the meaning here is the fruit of “righteous” living has to fall from any tree calling itself “Christian.” If that fruit does not fall, then regardless of what a tree calls itself, if it is a fruitless Christian tree, then it will be cursed for using that name in vain.

When Jeremiah then sang, “testing the mind and the heart,” the words of Proverbs 31 is Solomon failing the test of the mind. He had terminal ‘Big Brain Disease’ and was so full of himself that he though intelligence was his “woman,” his main ‘squeeze.’ All the kings and priests of Israel and Judah, all who followed the lead of Solomon and took to the ways of wickedness, never giving righteous living a chance, they all were tested by how their brains thought and they all failed miserably. In terms of Dr. Seuss, they all had tiny, tiny black hearts, which were incapable of finding one iota of love for Yahweh [they called Him “Lord,” I imagine].

This means a human being today, in the Age of Wisdom, when praying to the scientists is en vogue, the test is just as applicable as always. A brain is a terrible thing to waste; and, using a brain to navigate Salvation is never going to find a soul anywhere positive. A tested mind means self-sacrifice – death of an ego – so the Mind of Christ can come and use the fleshy organ to find reason to follow all the insight that comes and verifies it as simply amazing! A well tested mind hears a question from Yahweh and says, “Whatever you say boss!” A poorly tested mind comes up with arguments that try to change the Mind of God. [Never a good thing to do.]

The test of a heart means following the advice of Jesus, when he was asked, “What is the most important Commandment?” When he said, “Well, of course, the first thing is to love Yahweh with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind,” that says marriage to Yahweh must come; and, it must come from a deeply seated love. Failure to be a soul married to Yahweh [thus His Son reborn into one’s flesh] means the heart test failed.

When Jeremiah sang [NRSV], “let me see your retribution upon them, for to you I have committed my cause,” that says as long as one’s soul is married to Yahweh, it does not matter what happens to all the riffraff that plot and scheme to rule the world. Souls like those of Solomon and the kings of Judah (Zedekiah) are like how Jesus said “dead branches will be pruned from the tree and thrown into the fire and burned.” The fates of the wayward are brought about by their own devices; and, that makes them self-fulfilling prophecies of “retribution upon them.” The element of “commitment my cause” speaks loudly of marriage vows to Yahweh that will not ever be cause to rebel against.

As a reading possible for the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson of Jeremiah is to be a sacrificial lamb. The only thing that gets in the way of the “commitment of cause” is one’s big brain making one think, “There’s no guarantees. Woe is me. What if there is no God and I turn my back on all the luxuries of life I have become addicted to. I might never get all my things lost back!!!” If your brain thinks like that, you can have no ministry for Yahweh. You worship Solomon and his daddy – Satan. A life of abject poverty and miserable suffering is like a fleeting memory, once eternity comes and the things of this world are left far behind. Ministry means Yahweh will provide as needed. No other opinions need be considered.

***

Moses asked, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” (Exodus 3:13, NIV) The answer given was, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:14, NIV) The actual Hebrew text that is translated as “I am who I am” is ’eh·yeh ’ă·šer ’eh·yeh, where this is the root meaning of “Yahweh.” In Judges 13:18 is written, “the angel of YHWH said to him, “Why do you ask my name, seeing it is incomprehensible?”‘ (Abarim Publications) Still, the word “Yahweh” is written 6,220 times in the Hebrew text, without any attempt to make that ‘name’ stand out. As Yahweh told Moses, “I AM WHO I AM” was an instruction to Moses that said, “If anyone asks who empowers you to go in my name, you tell them “I AM” here, because “I AM” sent by the One.

This is most important to realize, as “Yahweh” means one’s soul has been made a Christ (word meaning “Anointment” by Yahweh’s Spirit) and is in His name (YAH Saves is the meaning of “Jesus”). A LORD that is anywhere other than in oneself (one’s soul) is a lesser god. Yahweh was in the soul of Jeremiah. He was thus a gentle lamb led to slaughter willingly, to be led in His name.

James, Language, Teaching

James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a – The wisdom from heaven

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace.

Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.

——————–

This is the Epistle reading selection for the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 20], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will follow a pair of Old Testament selections, with an accompanying song, based on a church’s path during Year B, either Track 1 or Track 2. If Track 1 is the path, then a reading from Proverbs 31 will be read aloud, which says, “The heart of [a capable wife’s] husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.” That will be paired with either Psalm 1 or Wisdom 1 -2. Psalm 1 sings, “Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgment comes, nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.” The Wisdom says, “Let us lie in wait for the righteous man, because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions; he reproaches us for sins against the law, and accuses us of sins against our training.” If Track 2 is the path, then the Old Testament reading will come from Jeremiah, who said, “And I did not know it was against me that they devised schemes, saying, “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit, let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will no longer be remembered!” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Mark, where Jesus said, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.”

I wrote about this reading and published my views the last time it came up in the lectionary cycle, in 2018. That commentary can be read by searching this site. I welcome everyone to read my observations from three years ago, as they are still valid today. However, at this time I will take a different approach and discern James more in a perspective of the other readings that this is read with. Feel free to compare the two articles and offer comments and suggestion, ask questions or point out where corrections need to be made.

In the first question posed here by James – “Who is wise and understanding among you?” – it becomes important to realize that Proverbs 31:10-31 is headed [NRSV] “Ode to A Capable Wife.” That “wife” is his metaphor for the goddess “wisdom,” whom Solomon saw are his divine wife, as if he were a god. That means all the wonders of a human female-woman-wife is not what ‘Mr. Loverboy’ ever looked for. Solomon had seven hundred wives and three hundred concubines, meaning [one can deduce] he never met a human being that could be a wife capable enough for ole Solly to be committed to for long. Thus, every ‘woman’ he wrote poetry or wisdom about was his inner self, which was his lust for being the smartest guy around. So, Solomon would have raised his hand, if he heard James ask this question.

The reason we need to disregard everything Solomon wrote, in particular everything he wrote to make his brain appear to be the biggest the world had ever known, is Solomon would have egotistically read what James wrote incorrectly, just like every average Joe does. In the Greek text of James, it literally translates into English as asking, “Who wise kai
understanding in yourself ?” In that, the word “Tis” is capitalized, which means the word must be elevated to a divine level of meaning, higher than the simple definitions: “who?, which?, what?, why?”

This means the question can be shortened to asking, “Who in your soul?” That means “Who, What, Which” is all a statement of Yahweh’s presence “in yourself,” which means one with one’s soul. Therefore, seeing that means realizing James is asking a rhetorical question to other Saints of Christianity, because Yahweh is their true source of “wisdom and most important [from “kai”] “skillful, experienced, knowing” [the true definitions of “epistémón”]. Solomon saw his personal intelligence as a goddess that belonged solely to him; but James saw the knowledge of the movement that was Christianity as all souls married to Yahweh sharing all the knowledge they needed.

James then followed his question with: “Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.” This can literally translate into English as saying, “let him show out of this good conduct these works of same self.” In that, a “self” equals a “soul,” and “same” refers to the marriage of a soul to Yahweh, so the “soul” then acts the “same” as He would have done. When “wisdom” is then that “born” from this divine marriage, the feminine “wife” is then all souls who receive the Spirit of Yahweh. This is then the truth of “a capable wife,” as it is not something determined by Solomon – a human in control of his soul – but by Yahweh. Thus, everything Solomon said about some imaginary “woman, female, wife” [“ishshah”] must be applied to all souls [those of both men and women] who welcome Yahweh into them; and, therein lies the truth of His wisdom, not the smarts of a big brain.

In verse fourteen, James addressed the lady friend of Solomon and his lust for intelligence, by writing [NRSV], “But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish.” This is what I have been led to see of Solomon. It was not Yahweh who offered him a gift for burning incense and making blood sacrifices in holy places, because the impish young king was not approved to enter such places and do such things, not being a priest [which being king does not make]. When Yahweh asked Solomon what punishment he deserved, Solomon requested, “Fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, please; and, more than anyone ever before.” At that point Yahweh told Satan, “He’s all yours.” That made Solomon demonically possessed, probably with him not given the wisdom to realize that.

In verse sixteen, James wrote the Greek word “anōthen,” which means: “from above, from heaven,” and the NRSV translates the verse as: “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.” The implication from that says “wisdom” can come “from below” or “not from heaven,” which must be realized as worldly knowledge. Worldly knowledge is taught in public school and ‘pay-to-play’ colleges and universities. This includes [and this must be seen as the whole point of James’ views, as he was not a ‘secular’ kind of guy] the schools of wisdom that produce priestly-dressed fellows, those who would advise kings in religious matters. Think of James being there to say this verse [had he been there] when Jesus marveled at how Nicodemus taught religious wisdom, while not understanding spiritual matters. Just because someone wears robes on Sunday does not mean they have “wisdom from above.”

Verse seventeen, which is the last verse in chapter three, sums up who has wisdom from heaven,” when he pointed out “fruit.” James specifically said this “fruit” came from a tree or vine that produced “righteousness,” not dogma. When James repeated the word “eiréné” twice, meaning “peace,” he was not speaking like an old hippie from the sixties [which is how many Episcopal priests present the word, as a catchphrase]. The word “peace” should be read as the seeds of righteousness that must be sown, not promoted beforehand, as the acts of an Apostle who truly “walks in peace.” One sows peace without pointing out: “Hey are you watching me? I’m walking in peace. You should try it.”

At this point, the reading jumps into chapter four, going through the first three verses, before skipping on to verse seven, and the first part of verse eight. The BibleHub Interlinear heading for chapter four is “Warning against Pride.” The NRSV header says, “Friendship with the World.” Obviously, the “wisdom” talk is no longer the theme; but, that can still carry over, since Solomon certainly took pride in his main ‘squeeze,’ wifey Wisdom. He was friendly throwing her name about as often as he could find a pen and paper.

The focus of chapter four initially is on arguing and bickering, which has to be James pointing this out in rabbinical circles, especially those who wanted to debate the theology of Jesus being the long awaited “Mashiach.” Everything the ruling elite of Jerusalem did was break every law in the Holy Book of Moses, when they put their big brains together and determined killing Jesus was the way to go. Some, obviously, could argue that they had to break the laws, if Jesus was the one, even if they could not defend doing what they did in that regard. After all, Jesus said he must die; and only the Apostles knew that means his death freed his soul to be resurrected in countless others.

James said the bickering was within each. That would relate back to them saying “Peace, brother” a lot, but never finding true “peace.” Even the Jews who were on the fence, wanting to believe Jesus was the promised Messiah, they were struggling with how to tell and be told what to do. This becomes the problem of still being strongly attached to their love affair with a big brain [like Solomon]. Verse three has James telling them, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.” This has to be seen as the ongoing failure of Christianity, especially today; so, this needs to be explained.

For as long as I can remember, being raised in a Christian denomination at the young age that had me watched in a nursery crib in my mother’s church, prayer has been a promotional tool used by religions. Certainly, there is a power of prayer; but James is saying prayers are not answered. He says they are not answered because “you ask wrongly.”

In my mother’s church, the pews had printed forms in slots, along with a pencil, which was titled “Prayer Request.” I imagine, some people might have actually filled out one of those forms and turned it in some place. After that, members of the church would gather in the “prayer room” and pray for the people requesting prayers. I was not old enough to submit a prayer request; but my adult mind tells me there is a chance that is a door-opener to getting names and phone numbers, in order to get new members and new sources of income. That equates to “your pleasures,” more than it does any good knowing what people want prayers for.

My mother’s life was saved by some person who answered the Oral Roberts Prayer Hotline, when she called for prayer when she was having congestive heart failure. The person kept her on the line and called 9-1-1 and reported a medical emergency at my mother’s address. On a Facebook group, Episcopalians regularly ask for prayers, because of one’s illness or tragic accident, dangerous operation or medical procedure, even for someone about to die. It comforts people to think others are helping them pray.

As an Episcopalian, I found they have little use for Bibles in racks on pews; but they make sure many Prayer Books are available. They have prayers pre-written for many possible reasons. The Jews also have many prayers they memorize and recite ritually; so, it is quite possible solicitation of prayers and having ‘canned’ prayers have made prayer requests be like taking a Xanex. However, having books of prayers ready for those who are not souls married to Yahweh seems to be putting the cart before the horse.

Because the focus on prayer is so strong in religions, with Judaism and Christianity not the only ones, this takes one back to the wisdom not from heaven point made by James, in chapter three. The “disputes and quarrels” that can be applied to dogma and ritual, as intellectual approaches to prayer, says it was almost a foregone conclusion that a prayer was not expected to be answered, as it was coming from an intellectual perspective, where prayer was an expectation of duty. To think prayer is demanded of faith, in order for God to see one was making an effort to memorize all the songs and prayers, that is faulty reasoning, as if prayer was done so God could deem who was a ‘good Jew.’ The same can be applied to Christians.

To think God led some to write prayers and put them in books, so all the intellectual work was done ahead of time, saving the dimwits from having to think up words to pray, seems Solomonesque, in my mind. That formalized form of prayer can then be seen as at the root of Jesus’ disciples asking Jesus to teach them to pray. As Jews, having been taught to recite prayers for everything under the sun, their question could then be seen as less about, “What is prayer and how should we go about it?” Instead, it was more like asking, “Does praying help us in any way?”

When Jesus gave his disciples [not the whole wide world] and example of how each soul married to Yahweh should talk to him, beginning by calling Him “Father” [an individual statement applied to twelve disciples (maybe some more followers) means Jesus would say “our,” as a way of specifically speaking to that one group that was more than one], Jesus was not suggesting to them, “Hey guys! You know how you always memorized prayers and that work led you to ask, “How do I pray, so Yahweh hears me?” Well, memorize this one too!”

In that bit of teaching (which seems to be totally overlooked), Jesus said this:

“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (Matthew 6:5-8)

Every one of those rules is broken by anyone standing in a church (or synagogue), reciting a prayer from memory or one published in a book. It makes understanding the meaning of “hypocrite,” which is: “a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion.” [Merriam-Webster] In Luke 11, Jesus told them to use less verses like those he said [similar to Matthew], but then he told about a scenario where someone asked them for something. Prayer should be like that example, when a friend comes asking for help ‘after hours.’ Jesus pointed out someone asking for free bread because of a surprise happening – another friend came visiting when the man was not prepared for a visit. Illnesses and accidents, surgeries and deaths come unexpectedly, when one is not prepared to handle it. At those times of need, Jesus said, “Ask and you will receive.” The point is this: Jesus did not tell his disciples to fill out a wish list and give the list to a friend, expecting to have the friend buy them everything they want, without ever having to do squat.

When Jesus said to call Yahweh “Father,” that is a special relationship that everyone in the world cannot truthfully say. It means a love relationship must be developed. The capitalization of “Father” raises it to a divine level of meaning, where Yahweh becomes one’s “Teacher.” This says the disciples were to Jesus the way Jesus was to Yahweh. All were in the same family of love. Jesus was not telling the members of the Sanhedrin to call Yahweh “Father,” because Jesus would have then promoted them lying, knowing their hearts were far from loving Yahweh. Thus, their souls were far from joining Yahweh’s personal family, which means a soul marrying Him and receiving His Spirit.

Next, when Jesus said Yahweh will know your prayer before your brain can even formulate it into a question [“Ask and you will receive”], look at how often people [Gentiles and Jews] came to Jesus out of faith, from having unspoken a prayer for healing. Jesus told them many times, “Go, your faith has healed you.” Their prayers were answered because they did something, based on faith. Without true faith, one’s soul has no personal experience with Yahweh [most don’t even know His name], so “You ask and you do not receive.”

This is where it is good to recall James writing, “Faith without works is dead.” When that is applied to prayer, it says prayers are normal conversations between a soul and Yahweh. Yahweh knows what one needs before one asks; so, the faith that does what Yahweh says to do, without questioning, means prayers will be answered without having to ask. One knows what others need, so one acts towards meeting those needs. When asked for bread late at night, after the doors are closed and locked, that means do the work required to give the bread asked for. One must have faith that Yahweh sent a prayer to you, for you to answer.

To minimally meet the “friend” status, one has to do something to impress Yahweh first. So, when one goes knocking on Yahweh’s door after it has been closed for the night, asking for some bread to serve someone who came visiting unexpectedly, He at least knows who the heck that one soul is. Being a “friend” of Yahweh means being one of His family. Going and sitting on a church pew and reciting some prayers out of a book is not establishing that kind of close, personal relationship Yahweh wants from His “friends.”

As an optional reading selection to be read aloud on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson of James is to stop thinking you own God, so all you have to do to get to heaven is minimal dogma and ritual stuff: give to a church; go a couple of times a year; own a Bible and a Prayer Book; join some Facebook group for Christians; and put a decal on your car window. All of that might be headed in the right direction, but it is still headed down a path of wisdom that is not from heaven. Being a Christian that has a single soul, not married to Yahweh, possessed by His Spirit, is like being a twelve-year old sister of an older sister who is: a.) married; and, b.) pregnant with her second baby. One can watch that all day long and believe it is real; but until one goes through the same, one has absolutely no faith in one being married and one being a mother. Ministry is not about seeing someone else do it and thinking that’s the way it works.

Language, Mark, Teaching

Mark 9:30-37 – Welcoming the boy Jesus and God the Father in your arms

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

Jesus and his disciples passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.” But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.

Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”

——————–

This is the Gospel selection that will be read aloud by a priest on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 20], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will follow one of two pairs of Old Testament and accompaniment readings, based on a predetermined path for an individual church, being either Track 1 or Track 2. The Track 1 option reads Proverbs 31, where Solomon wrote, “[A capable wife] looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.” That is balanced either by Psalm 1, which sings, “Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked, nor lingered in the way of sinners, nor sat in the seats of the scornful!” Or, a reading from Wisdom 1-2, where Solomon wrote: “The ungodly by their words and deeds summoned death; considering him a friend, they pined away and made a covenant with him, because they are fit to belong to his company.” If the Track 2 path is the route, then the Old Testament reading will be from Jeremiah, where the prophet wrote, “But you, Yahweh of hosts, who judge righteously, who try the heart and the mind, let me see your retribution upon them, for to you I have committed my cause.” That will be paired with Psalm 54, which sings, “Hear my prayer, elohim; give ear to the words of my mouth.” One of the two pairing will precede a reading from James’ Epistle, where he wrote, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.”

The last time this full reading came up in the lectionary cycle (2018), I wrote my observations and published them on my website. That commentary can be read by clicking on this link. What I saw then is still valid today; so, I welcome all to read that article and then compare what I wrote to what will follow now. As always, I welcome comments, suggestions, questions, and corrections. What I will address now will differ slightly, as additional thought that need to be expressed.

Last Sunday the Gospel selection was from Mark 8, the chapter before this. Jesus had gone to the north, to Caesarea Philippi, when he asked his disciples who they thought Jesus was. While in that same populated area, Peter rebuked Jesus for saying he would suffer, die and be raised; at which point Jesus rebuked Satan and told all his followers there to “take up your cross and follow me,” adding that “those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.” [NRSV] That took place before the “Transfiguration,” which was an event on a “high mountain,” which is Mount Hermon, not far from Caesarea Philippi.

With that logistical setting known, it was on the trip south, to Capernaum, that today’s reading is focused. This means that Jesus again made mention of what the near future held, to prepare his ‘children’ for what was coming. Whereas before Peter tried to tell Jesus he would hear no more of this talk of suffering and death, when Jesus said Peter was Satan-possessed, talk on this matter at this point in their travels did not elicit a response from the disciples. Mark says, “they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.”

What Jesus said that the disciples fully understood was Jesus saying he would be made to suffer and be killed by the Temple elite. Because Jesus told everyone, clearly, do not tell me differently, they were afraid to talk back to the teacher again. However, among themselves they were trying to figure out who was the strongest among them; and thereby, who would be the best bodyguard to always stay close to Jesus. That needs to be seen as what Jesus knew they were “ arguing about on the way.”

The Greek word that is translated as “greatest” is “meizōn.” As an adjective, it represents a comparative by degrees of measurement, which can be read as them questioning, “Who is strongest?” or “Who is largest?” This would make James and John of Zebedee be immediately lead candidates, as their nickname was “Sons of thunder,” meaning they were probably the meanest and burliest looking pair of the lot. So, that would mean a discussion as to who might best intervene if someone came to take Jesus and make him suffer. After all, Peter would make sure he carried a knife with him to Gethsemane, like he saw himself as an armed guard. Still, the same word has a noun meaning.

The word “meizōn” also means “village elder.” If that were the intent of the word, then rather than a “village,” the disciples and followers would better classify as a “church” or “synagogue” – an “assembly” or “gathering” that would be similar to a “village.” This direction of argument would then be akin to someone questioning, “What if Jesus is right and there is nothing we can do to stop his being killed? Who leads then?” In this light, the “greatest” takes on the meaning that questions, “Who has learned the most, so he can take over running the gathering like Jesus?”

When this reading is read on a Sunday when Solomon is giving long and loud praise to what makes a capable wife, where “wife” is metaphor for the “greatest” smarts; and, when James was questioning where the “greatest” form of “wisdom” comes from [above or below], this needs to now guide this reading from Mark. This must then factor into explaining why Jesus said, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.”

When Peter had before taken Jesus aside, he became the student chastising the master. Peter put himself above all the others when he did that, which was a statement of self-importance and self-will. While Peter figured [a wisdom from the brain thing] his views were in line with the views of all the other disciples and followers, making all be equally fearful of facing religious life without the guru Jesus to lead them, Peter was acting like a spoiled brat, jumping in the face of his parent who had told him something he did not want to hear. Because Peter (most likely) was a little older than Jesus, thus probably the elder of the disciples [measured by age], he felt that age superiority gave him the freedom to act like he knew more than the teacher.

In the Greek written by Mark, the word “prōtos” has been translated as “first,” giving the impression that “greatest” means being “first.” The word can also mean, “before, principal, most important” (Strong’s Usage), and “beginning, best, chief.” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance) The word translated as “last” is “eschatos,” which can also mean “extreme” (Strong’s Definition), “at the last, finally, till the end” (Strong’s Usage), and “end, uttermost.” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance) Thus, a different way of reading what Jesus said about their argument about who would lead them, should Jesus die, was: “Whoever wants to be the beginning must be until the end and most importantly [from the use of “kai”] servant of all.”

When Solomon has set a theme of “wives,” knowing that his intellectual focus was on females and women, take a moment to reflect on the concept of a mother-wife in a household. The mother-wife must become the reality of what Jesus told his all-male lead disciples. In a society that placed ALL importance on menfolk, so men constantly argued over who did the most work and needed to be given the most respect, the women-wives-mothers got no such respect, while doing all the day-to-day chores, including raising the children, to the point that their age meant nothing. They were the servants to all, from morning till night, from the beginning of the day until the end of night. Thus, Jesus just told his group of studs, “If you want to replace me, then you have to be a capable wife to Yahweh.”

From seeing this lesson being taught by Jesus to his twelve male disciples, knowing that they had come to Capernaum, where Jesus had purchased a house and lived, the followers of Jesus include his mother, aunts and uncles, and his wife Mary Magdalene, sister-in-law Martha, and brother-in-law Lazarus. The women followers did all the washing, cooking, mending, and getting water and food, to keep the ministry of Jesus thriving. Included in this mix was John, the son of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. At that point in time, John was a boy, probably around ten years of age. Without a wife, Jesus would have had no son. Thus, after having told his male disciples if they want to replace him, then they need to be prepared to serve everyone … like a wife … then they need to make a baby … like Jesus had done in his son John.

After a few hours of suffering, the life of self-importance will forever die and one will be reborn as a mother – slave to all that is family.

I went into my views on how John the Beloved, the Gospel writer, was the son of Jesus. The point does not require anyone believe that, in order to grasp the lesson of Jesus saying, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” That says a lot.

First it says, “Whoever welcomes one such child.” That means a good wife bears children. Being Jesus’ replacement means more than being top dog. It means receiving the Spirit and giving birth to a baby boy soul within … a new you.

Second, it says, “one such child in my name.” That means receiving a specific soul that possesses one’s own soul and body, which comes with the name “Jesus.” The name “Jesus” means “Yah[weh] Saves.”

Third, it says a soul-body “welcomes me,” where the “child in my name” is not only named “Jesus,” but whoever that baby boy soul was born into “welcomes” being reborn in that identity. It means the love of a mother welcoming this new birth as as the extension of Yahweh to be His servant, as His Son resurrected.

Finally, when Jesus said, “whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me,” that says a soul who “welcomes a child named Jesus,” who is “not” the one named Jesus before [fill in your name here]. One’s self-ego has died and moved to the rear in submission to divine possession, which is the soul of Jesus raised again in the flesh. For one being who “welcomes the one who sent me,” that soul has married Yahweh [not some generic “lord”], having become His “capable wife.”

This means just as Jesus was not selfish [or gay], so that he did not made life be all about building up a singular ministry, refusing to not do any of the mandatory things demanded of all Jewish male adults, he exemplified obedience to the Laws. Jesus followed all the rules and expectations set upon a Jewish male. All the Jewish females did the same. As human beings devoted to a religious cause, they all followed the law that commanded, “be fruitful and multiply.” Jesus cursed a barren fig tree to wither and die. Had Jesus been fruitless [without child], it would have been hypocritical for him to have been that selfish. Jesus sired one son. That physical reality was Yahweh’s plan for all the followers of Jesus to do the same – SPIRITUALLY.

The true followers of Jesus must become wives of Yahweh – SPIRITUALLY. The true followers of Jesus must give birth to the one Son of their most Holy Husband – SPIRITUALLY. As a capable wife of the Father and the subservient mother of the Son, one must serve all, from beginning until end, in a ministry that is in the name of Jesus … another Christ of Yahweh raised from the dead of mortal existence. Ministry as Jesus reborn is led by Yahweh’s SPIRIT.

This means the message of this reading calls upon all who call themselves followers of Jesus – as a devotion to the human man, based on belief – to go beyond that belief and experience the truth of faith. To do that, one must:

1. Become a wife of Yahweh, through love and absolute submission of self-will to His Will.

2. Become impregnated with the soul of Jesus, which makes that soul be “in the name of Jesus,” no longer in the name of one’s biological father.

3. Enter into ministry as Jesus reborn, becoming a servant to all, as “a capable wife” for Yahweh.

As the Gospel reading to be read aloud on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson is to stop planning how great one’s future will be, when you die and go to heaven. That is a mindset that serves oneself alone and nobody else. One must die of self, which means one will follow in the footsteps of Jesus: suffer, die, resurrect – before one will amount to a capable wife of Yahweh. In order to die of self-ego, one must truly love Yahweh, so His love is returned in a proposal of marriage. One must enter the nuptial tent as the wife of Yahweh and receive His Spirit that makes one full of the fruit that is His Son [no daughters allowed, only Jesuses]. Then one lets Jesus lead one’s body of flesh into ministry, however Yahweh sees fit.

Language, Psalms, Teaching

Psalm 1 – Choosing the right path [out of two]

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

1 Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked, *

nor lingered in the way of sinners,

nor sat in the seats of the scornful!

2 Their delight is in the law of Yahweh, *

and they meditate on his law day and night.

3 They are like trees planted by streams of water,

bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither; *

everything they do shall prosper.

4 It is not so with the wicked; *

they are like chaff which the wind blows away.

5 Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgment comes, *

nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.

6 For Yahweh knows the way of the righteous, *

but the way of the wicked is doomed.

——————–

This is the accompanying Psalm for the Old Testament reading from Proverbs 31, which will be read aloud in unison or sung by a cantor on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 20], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. This Psalm is optional and may not be sung, as the Proverbs 31 reading can be accompanied by a “First Lesson” that is from the Book of Wisdom. In either case, Proverbs 31 says, “ A capable wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.” The pair of readings will precede an Epistle reading from James, where the Apostle questioned, “Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you?” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Mark, which says, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.”

Please take note of the two places where I have restored “Yahweh,” because that is the transliteration of the word written by David [“יְהוָ֗ה” – “YHWH”]. The NRSV [et al] love to transform this to “Lord,” as if using the name of God that David used is not allowed. David was not a Jew. David was an Israelite, a name that means “He Retains God.” To reduce David from that divinely elevated state of being to be a Jew whose God was named “Yahweh,” the name of the God of Israel, therefore not the name of the God of Christians, is demonic thinking. The name “Israel” was the holy name given to the soul of the flesh named “Jacob,” as Jacob had been Spiritually transformed into one “Who Retained God.” David was like that; and all should be like David, which is signaled by calling one’s God “Yahweh.”

The BibleHub Interlinear presentation of this Psalm shows a title that says, “The Two Paths.” The NRSV header is about the same, saying, “The Two Ways.” In this six verse song there are four times the word “wicked” is found. When “Yahweh” is found repeated also [twice used], the “two” roads taken must be seen as those walking “in the law of Yahweh” and those walking “in the counsel of the wicked.” One is a path of righteousness, while the other is “the way of sinners.” In this, it is valuable to realize the truth of the Hebrew word “rasha,” which has been translated as “the wicked.”

The word “rasha” means, “wicked, criminal” (Strong’s Definition), but implies “condemned, guilty, ungodly, wicked man, that did wrong” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance) According the NASB translations, it appears in Scripture 262 times, translated as: “evil (1), evil man (1), evil men (1), guilty (3), man (1), offender (1), ungodly (1), wicked (228), wicked man (21), wicked men (2), wicked one (1), wicked ones (3).” The BibleHub Interlinear translates this word as “the ungodly,” which I see as appropriately identifying all who walk an unlawful path, as being unmarried souls to Yahweh.

When this particular Psalm is seen as an accompaniment to the Proverbs 31 reading, where Solomon gave his opinions as to who qualifies as “a capable wife,” this now sings that Solomon’s views also follow two paths. In one way, “a capable wife” is metaphor for “wisdom,” which is an “elohim” [one of the gods] that possesses a soul and makes a brain become ‘book smart.’ That would be the path of the “wicked,” not the righteous. Thus, the righteous way to see “a capable wife” is as a soul in a body of flesh, which makes it a feminine essence bride-to-be of Yahweh, so once divinely united with His Spirit, then the body of flesh walks the path of the law … naturally, willingly, lovingly, and without needing a brain to determine which way to go.

In the first verse, the literal translation into English has it saying, “blessed the man , who ׀ not does walk in the counsel of the ungodly or the path of the sinful nor take that stance ; and in the dwelling place of the mockers not remains .” This translation makes it clearer that being “blessed” [as well as being “happy”] is a statement of love, because it is from one’s heart that happiness comes. This means being “blessed” is when the soul of a “man” [meaning mankind generally] has become possessed by Yahweh. Following the word “who” [“’ă·šer” or “asher”] is a bar [“׀”] that symbolizes a musical rest, therefore a verbal pause. The placement of the bar designates the first of two paths that “man” can take. In this, it is important to realize the Hebrew word for “man” is “ish,” which is what Solomon’s “wife-woman-female” comes from, as the Hebrew “ishshah.” This reflection says “man” can be either negative-feminine-receptive or positive-masculine-penetrating.

Following the bar marker, David wrote the word “not” [“lō”], which becomes a statement of the “negative-feminine-receptive,” as “man” is “blessed” by going the path that is positive-masculine-penetrating, and “not” the natural essence of the material realm. Here, it is important to realize that “happiness” can seem to be all the rewards of the material realm, but such ‘rewards’ are “not” based on love or heartfelt spiritual desires being satisfied.

Where the NRSV translates “lingered in the way of sinners,” the Hebrew word translated as “lingered” is “amad,” which translates as “to take one’s stand, [or] stand.” (Strong’s) While it can be seen that “standing” is akin to idling, thus lingering, that perspective should be seen as taking pleasure in the “path of the sinful,” implying that remaining in such a place says one enjoys sinful acts. According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, the implication of “amad” is “abide behind, appoint, arise, cease, confirm, continue, dwell, be employed,” such that one sees sinful ways and takes a stance in support of those ways. Therefore, lingering becomes a sign of someone desiring to be sinful, enough to argue those ways of sin do have virtues.

The Hebrew word translated as “scornful” is “lê·ṣîm,” the plural form of “luts.” This word means “ambassador, have in derision, interpreter, make a mock, mocker,” such that to apply “scorn” [defined as “the feeling or belief that someone or something is worthless or despicable; contempt.”] reflects more on a directive towards those who are righteous; and, the usage becomes confusing otherwise. To make the translation “mockers” means one does not linger or “dwell” in a place where no shame is placed on sins, because one enjoys a sinful existence, becoming an “ambassador” that “interprets” one’s acts and beliefs not as sin, but as pleasures. This is justifiable because “happiness” comes to one when one does such acts. For one to be “mocked” in such a place, then one has to point out how those pleasurable acts are deemed against one’s laws, therefore “criminal.” It is then that which brings out mockery of such ideas. As such, the first verse paints a clear picture that mankind has two different paths in life; and, it will always remain that way. Life’s primary path leads a soul in the flesh to know sin, as a natural way of the world; and, from learning to walk a path that puts one alongside everyone else, the safety in numbers makes all who walk a different path be the focus of ridicule and condemnation.

Verse two then confirms the truth that began verse one, where those “blessed” are those who reject the path of the wicked are those who “take delight in the laws of Yahweh.” In this, one needs to realize that David knew “the laws” were not of Moses, but passed on by Moses to the Israelite people, by Yahweh. The “laws,” from “torah,” are the marriage vows that each soul must agree to as the only source of “instruction” that one’s life is led by. Being “chosen” means a soul proposed to; so, being chosen means agreeing to the vows of divine marriage. Those who are “blessed” are then those married to Yahweh; and, that marriage is not to be a partial commitment. It is full-time, as one must “meditate on those instructions day and night.” In that, “day” is during the easy times, while “night” is the dark times of trouble, when having the inner link to Yahweh’s voice (through divine marriage) keeps one’s soul from becoming lost and wandering back onto the path of the wicked.

Verse three then states this marriage metaphorically, saying “he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water so its fruit comes forth in its season.” There, the word “planted” is a direct statement of purposeful “transplanting,” not some natural luck of a seed falling onto fertile soil in a good location. By actually being purposefully “planted,” this becomes another statement of marriage, where one’s soul must make a decision that demands the commitment of putting down roots, so growth comes from a permanence of being in solid ground. This means a soul is planted in Yahweh, and He in turn with one’s soul. The “rivers of water” represents His Spirit; and, the “fruits” are the works of righteousness, which projects to others a way to live.

When David then continued in verse three, singing “whose foliage shall not wither , and whatever he does shall prosper .” this sings of eternal life. Because the divine spiritual realm is the place where it is always day and always happy and youthful, the acts in the material realm are irrelevant as far as what is determined prosperous. There can be nothing worldly that will ever diminish the reward of righteous living; and, that can only come through holy matrimony between a soul and Yahweh, while in the flesh.

Verse four then sings, “not so the ungodly ; for if like chaff , that drives away like by wind .” Whereas verse three sang of eternal life, verse four is singing of reincarnation. By not being married to Yahweh [as the “ungodly”] they will die. Their bodies of flesh will fall away, just like chaff falls away from the kernel of grain. The soul is that kernel, which is then blown back into the material realm, into a new body of flesh [a newborn baby], through reincarnation. This means the “wind” is like the recurring weather patterns, which are always the same, over and over and over again.

Verse five then sings, “upon this not shall stand ungodly in judgement ; nor the sinful , in the congregation of the righteous .” This sings the truth of Judgment, which will find the “ungodly” and the “sinful” not being able to achieve salvation. Seeing how all human beings are born with souls in bodies of flesh, set on the path of life that always offers two choices, the main road travelled is that of the sinners. That is why a soul must be “planted like a tree by rivers of water,” because without a conscious decision to change paths and commit to servitude to Yahweh [not self], one cannot find redemption. The “fruit” of one’s ways of righteousness is then how one can be considered to be “in the congregation of the righteous.” This places everything as the responsibility of the soul to choose, with Yahweh offering to help those who choose to marry Him.

Verse six then sings, “for knows Yahweh the way of the righteous ; but the way of the ungodly shall perish .” This says Yahweh knows which path one’s soul travels. He especially knows the way of the righteous, as those souls walk with Him, having been united as one with His Spirit. Those who do not walk as one with Yahweh will be known for that absence. When all souls come from death of the flesh to the time of Judgement, the righteous will live forevermore. Alas, the sinful will die and come back to die again. The place where souls “perish” is the physical world; and, their worship of the flesh will prophesy their way to find “happiness.”

As a companion song to the Proverbs 31 reading on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson is simple. There are two paths in life. One serves self and the other serves Yahweh. Any ministry taken into the world by a single soul, one ‘living together’ with ‘lady wisdom,’ has nothing of value to offer the world. One is then “lingering with sinners,” not to help them, but to wallow in their love of wickedness. To preach that sinners are loved by Yahweh is to mislead souls to ruin; and, that will bring a double share of their ruin upon one’s own soul. This says sacrifice your self-egos and become planted by the living waters that are Jesus Christ resurrected with one’s soul. Otherwise, expect to return to a world you love, perhaps not with all the blessing you enjoy in this life now being repeated in the next.

Language, Teaching, Wisdom of Solomon

Wisdom of Solomon 1:16-2:1, 12-22 – How to use a Big Brain to belittle the children of God

January 3, 2026 R. T. Tippett Leave a comment

[1:16] The ungodly by their words and deeds summoned death;

considering him a friend, they pined away

and made a covenant with him,

because they are fit to belong to his company.

—–

[2:1] For they reasoned unsoundly, saying to themselves,

“Short and sorrowful is our life,

and there is no remedy when a life comes to its end,

and no one has been known to return from Hades.

—–

[2:12] Let us lie in wait for the righteous man,

because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions;

he reproaches us for sins against the law,

and accuses us of sins against our training.

[2:13] He professes to have knowledge of יְיָ [HaShem],

and calls himself a child ha-elohim.

[2:14] He became to us a reproof of our thoughts;

[2:15] the very sight of him is a burden to us,

because his manner of life is unlike that of others,

and his ways are strange.

[2:16] We are considered by him as something base,

and he avoids our ways as unclean;

he calls the last end of the righteous happy,

and boasts that יְיָ [HaShem] is his father.

[2:17] Let us see if his words are true,

and let us test what will happen at the end of his life;

[2:18] for if the righteous man is elohim child, he will help him,

and will deliver him from the hand of his adversaries.

[2:19] Let us test him with insult and torture,

so that we may find out how gentle he is,

and make trial of his forbearance.

[2:20] Let us condemn him to a shameful death,

for, according to what he says, he will be protected.”

[2:21] Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray,

for their wickedness blinded them,

[2:22] and they did not know the secret purposes of יְיָ [HaShem],

nor hoped for the wages of holiness,

nor discerned the prize for blameless souls.

——————–

This is the “The First Lesson” that can be chosen over Psalm 1, as the companion reading for the Track 1 Old Testament reading from Proverbs 31 to be read aloud on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost [Proper 20], Year B, according to the lectionary for the Episcopal Church. It will be a companion for Solomon writing, “[A capable wife’s] children rise up and call her happy; her husband too, and he praises her: “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.”’ That pair will be presented before the Epistle from James, where the Apostle wrote, “You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.” All will accompany the Gospel reading from Mark, where is written: “Then [Jesus] took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”’

To repeat my prior disclaimer about the Wisdom of Solomon being Apocryphal and thus not in my standard reference for the Hebrew text, it is too difficult for me to do any more than a rudimentary translation, which is quite taxing and time consuming. What I have done is number the verses, based on a Bible.com English publication of this reading, confirmed by the NRSV translation, which the Episcopal Church has deemed unnecessary to number. In this you will also find three more uses of “יְיָ” or what one Hebrew source stated as “HASHEM,” which means a proper name for “God,” like “adonay,” but not. It also is not a standard abbreviation for “YHWH,” but is thought to be from the Hebrew word meaning “to be” [“haya”]. I also point out where two translations as “God” are actually the word “ha-elohim,” meaning “of elohim,” with another that is clearly “elohim.”

In verse sixteen of chapter one, Solomon concluded a train of thought that dealt with soul marriage, although not one married to Yahweh. The words “ungodly,” “death,” and “covenant” all speak of a soul falling in love with the material plane and marrying that which disappears when “death” comes. Human being are mortals because “death” is the ‘god’ of the physical world. Satan is the “lord” that sways souls away from divine marriage to Yahweh, so their “covenant” can be seen as a ‘pact with the devil.’ Being “fit to belong to his company” means a soul denied eternal life in heaven; so, those souls get to rejoin the worldly plane they sold their souls for.

The transition from chapter one to chapter two should be seen as a change of theme [not running out of space on parchment]. Thus, verse one is stating the theme that changed from one of ‘righteous versus ungodly’ to one of knowledge, where Solomon begins by saying “poor thinking” [“For they reasoned unsoundly”] is the difference between having a happy, rewarding life on earth and going to Hell [“no one has been known to return from Hades”]. While chapter one [entitled “Exhortation to Uprightness,” with verse sixteen entitled “Life as the Ungodly See It”] is focused on the duality of good and evil [the wisdom Solomon prayed to receive], chapter two is now advancing the notion that wicked people are those who just don’t have good brains on their shoulders.

Solomon sings, “I’m too brainy for my head.”

The limitations that must be seen in Solomon’s worship of his own big brain is seen when he conjects that there is no return from “Hades,” which is actually written “sheól” [“שְׁאוֹל”]. For Solomon to think he could tell whether the guy standing next to him was not the reincarnated soul of some past king [or queen] of a foreign nation, one that crashed and burned, or even the reincarnated soul of one of the wicked Israelites who died in the wilderness, due to not obeying the Commandments, shows how little he knew in reality. To even surmise such an idea as wisdom is the same as science, saying it is the only way to good judgment when it is proved to be wrong many times (after declaring it was right), is idiocy.

The concept of Sheol [from the second Temple perspective] was all souls went there. The thinkers that returned from Babylon captivity divided into two main sects: One believe there was nothing after death [Sadducees]; and, the other thought death was a ticket to something akin to Purgatory [Pharisees]. By simply by being born a Jew [formerly Israelites], the Pharisees believed death meant that soul would be taken to heaven after the Messiah came. Of course, that mindset figured all Gentiles were either like dogs and cats [soulless], or they had evil souls, so death meant they went and roasted in Hell. That should be seen as who were the wicked people of whom Solomon was talking about, because (certainly) any right-minded Israelite of Solomon’s reign would see him as a god worthy of worship [smart as he was].

Skipping down from verse one of chapter two, to verse twelve, this is where Solomon is making himself out to be “a righteous dude,” as if Israel still had Gentile enemies they were worried about. Of course, David’s Israel was always at war with those who refused to accept their God Yahweh had given them that place to live, with the Philistines being those who still retained land that was not Israel’s. They, however, were not an issue, since Solomon had married an Egyptian princess and then had an ally that could put the squeeze on the Philistines, from the west. Still, verse twelve is Solomon’s self-worth as a hero of the righteous coming forth, as he equates all who would challenge his authority as being wicked.

It is in verse thirteen that the truth of Solomon’s wickedness is exposed. In this verse there are two references to [NRSV translator] “God” and “the Lord.” The reality of what is written (as best as I can look up the Hebrew) is this [using the NRSV otherwise]: “He professes to have knowledge of יְיָ [HaShem], and calls himself a child ha-elohim.” In Solomon’s reign, the prophet Nathan was still actively advising the king. Others like Nathan were those who claimed “to have knowledge of” Yahweh. For Solomon to not write that name, but to instead write marks that are confusing, as to whom or what is being referenced [some say the letters are an abbreviated form of the verb translating as “to be”], this says Solomon was not like his father David, nor the divine prophets who advised as the conduits of Yahweh. Solomon saw himself as a god, who was married to the goddess Wisdom, with Yahweh was believed by Solomon to be the servant god who served him: יְיָ [HaShem].

Look closely at the Hebrew text and see the “HaShem” marks [ovals] and the words “*haelohim*” and “*elohim,*” in the verses circled.

In the NRSV translation, the world “child” is footnoted, with the footnote saying the word written can equally translate as “servant.” For one to say he was “a servant of elohim,” that describes a prophet like Nathan to a T. The point of the Hebrew word “elohim” is not to state “God” [the error of all translators], but to state the reality of “gods” [in the plural number], which are those souls married to Yahweh and thus given His powers on earth, as His “servants” [His “children”]. Thus, in verse thirteen, Solomon is placing himself above that of true prophets, because of his big brain. This then equates his soul to a state of wickedness.

Verse fourteen then has Solomon scoff at the condemnations of the prophets, who say worldly wisdom is what condones evil ways. Verse fifteen is then Solomon belittling the true holy priests of Israel as the ones who take all the fun out of life. IIt was the true priests and true prophets of Israel who were reminding everyone of the laws, reminding the leader [Solomon] that maintenance of those vows is what keeps souls from infidelity, or breaking their marriage agreement with Yahweh. Solomon was calling the restrictions placed on being a true priest of Yahweh as unnatural. That is true, when a nation of people are being led away from adherence to their Covenant and finding normalcy in the ways of other nations.

In verse sixteen, Solomon again references the “HaShem” in a way that makes it be used as if he knew he would bring some physical condemnation upon his flesh [leprosy maybe?] by using the name “Yahweh,” as his father David had done frequently in his songs. Solomon took purposeful steps away from his father, by refusing to write the proper name “Yahweh” [“יְהוָ֣ה”] Here, Solomon belittles one who claims to be an “elohim” of Yahweh, because they make the claim that Yahweh is their “Father,” while also implying He is their Holy Husband. This becomes Solomon cursing Jesus, who routinely told his disciples [not the whole world, not all of Judaism] to address Yahweh as their “Father.” To call Yahweh “Father” means one must be His Son [all souls are masculine essence, especially when married to Yahweh’s Spirit … males and females in the flesh].

In verse seventeen, Solomon is beginning a series of verses that become the standard punishment governmentally set upon any who claim to be divine Sons of Yahweh. To make such claims means to be put to death. This concept would be viewed as holy wisdom, as Yahweh’s gift to Solomon, when in reality it was Satan’s serpent whispers [a marriage that made Solomon’s soul become the demonic elohim of his evil spiritual husband] that influenced all who would follow Solomon. The routine Solomon established would be for kings to marry foreign wives, import foreign priests, and then kill any priest who spoke out against that process. The culmination of this mindset of ‘wisdom’ was how the elite of Jerusalem could even fathom it would be okay to plan the execution of Jesus, the promised Messiah; but to even believe in a promised Messiah, one has to first believe in Yahweh. Solomon taught them not to believe in being “He [Who] Retains God” [the meaning of “Israel”].

In verse eighteen is a second use of “elohim,” which again must be seen as “gods,” specifically those whose souls have married Yahweh and become His hands on earth. At the time of Solomon’s reign, all true divine “elohim” were priests of the Ark of the Covenant [transferred from the Tabernacle of Zion to the Temple of Solomon] and the holy prophets [such as Nathan]. In this verse, Solomon laughs at those who make claims to be divine Sons of man, such that Solomon’s mindset was cast into the future, executed at Golgotha, when someone yelled out to a dying Jesus, “If he is the Messiah, let him save himself.” Here, Solomon scoffs that the test of death will bring out the truth of being a “servant” [same use of “child”], by having Yahweh physically rescue such a servant.

Verses nineteen and twenty are Solomon giving the go ahead from that point in time onward to torture and insult the prophets of Yahweh. To claim to be “peaceful” means Solomon’s plan was to beat hatred and anger into those who made such claims. In today’s world, the destroyers of Christianity love to promote that Jesus is the Prince of Peace and would bend over and take insults and torture all day long, rather than strike anyone down in wrathful anger. They persecute the believers to the point of forcing them away from Yahweh, by punishing their will to serve. What those do not realize is the truth that every hateful strike brings them in return. When they put forth persecution against one of Yahweh’s children, the same return blows will come upon their souls, a hundred-fold.

The NRSV then places one of its titles or headers before verse twenty-one, saying the rest of chapter two focuses on the “Error of the Wicked.” This is an assumption that “the wicked” are false prophets [like Solomon’s wisdom] and not the true prophets of Yahweh. Solomon reflected the intellect of humanity, as one who worshiped ‘Sherlock Holmes-like’ abilities to discern physical clues and make logical deduction that result in the truth. None of that worldly wisdom is divine, thus far from all-knowing, as that given to Yahweh elohim. Thus the title would be better stated as “Error of the Intelligent.”

Verse twenty-one is then a perfect summation of all Solomon’s views that have been written on parchment. By saying, “Thus they reasoned, but they were led astray, for their wickedness blinded them,” this projects as truth upon the priests of logic and reason that deduce wrongly and are blinded by the science of the visible world. No true priest of Yahweh is reading the Law [the Torah] and coming away with clear-cut, black and white knowledge. Divine Scripture is written [according to Jesus] so the truth is hidden from the wise and intelligent, but exposed to the children [insert “servants” here]. The truth known by Yahweh elohim does not come from carefully crafted thought processes. However, once the truth has been shown, all those arts and crafts can find a truth fully justified and true. Thus, a simpleton [one of those Solomon belittled, when he prayed to his god “wisdom”] can be shown the truth of God, while all the big brains could not see the truth before their eyes.

In verse twenty-two [not the last verse, as chapter two has twenty-four verses], Solomon returned once again to displaying his fear of naming “Yahweh,” using his code-word called “HaShem” [יְיָ]. In this verse, Solomon sings that his lost soul never once considered self-sacrifice for the unseen rewards that are postmortem. The wise and intelligent cannot possibly see that which is “secret” and thus spiritual. They seek the material rewards that are the “wages” of being the elite, not the commoners. They never seek to restrict themselves from that which can be freely taken, for the seeming bargain of one’s soul [everything material for nothing spiritual]. They have no desires for holiness. They do not believe anything exists beyond death. Therefore, they have no need for thinking blamelessness is a virtue.

As the optional “First Lesson” to accompany Proverbs 31 on the seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost, when one’s own personal ministry for Yahweh should already be well underway, the lesson here is to see the trap of intellectualism. Solomon could not see how his words were condemning his own soul, all the while thinking he was making light of those who said they served Yahweh. Solomon did not believe Yahweh was anything more than a stepping stone to a mastery of life on earth. He did not believe in an afterlife; as there was no proof that anyone had ever returned from the depths of the ground. The lesson that must be taken from this is being a “child of elohim,” which means having one’s soul be married to Yahweh, with His Son Jesus resurrected within one’s soul-flesh. Having a big brain keeps one from having access to All Knowledge, readily available to the children of Yahweh, when needed. No planning necessary.

Explaining the Readings

Monthly Archives: January 2026

Mark 8:27-38 – Die of self and let Jesus be your front man

Psalm 19 – A heart that is acceptable in the eyes of Yahweh

Wisdom of Solomon 7:26–8:1 – The nature of wisdom

Psalm 116:1-8 – Finding paradise before reaching Sheol

Proverbs 31:10-31 – Worshiping the feminine

Jeremiah 11:18-20 – Lambs to the slaughter willingly

James 3:13-4:3, 7-8a – The wisdom from heaven

Mark 9:30-37 – Welcoming the boy Jesus and God the Father in your arms

Psalm 1 – Choosing the right path [out of two]

Wisdom of Solomon 1:16-2:1, 12-22 – How to use a Big Brain to belittle the children of God

The Episcopal Lectionary Discerned