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Tag Archives: Wealth

It is easy for the rich to believe 

30 Monday Mar 2015

Posted by memoirandremains in Amos, John Bunyan

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Amos, By-ends, Culture, John Bunyan, Pilgrim's Progress, Wealth

It is easy for the rich and happy to believe that they have divine approval. What better assurance could they have than the pleasure and power in which they stand? In these secure ones the nation felt itself not only prosperous but divinely favored. Since they are conscious of representing the country, interference with them and their pursuits would be interfering with the country’s welfare. To disturb their order is to disturb the social order. To criticize their religion is to prove oneself a heretic and a blasphemer. God is on the side of those in power (they think), and so to the security of financial and political position the leading people of Amos’ day added the comforting conviction that they were Jehovah’s chosen people—chosen to be thus superior and secure.

Amos, Prophet of a New Order, Lindsay B. Longacre, 1921. This sort of “belief” is precisely that held by Mr. By-Ends in Pilgrim’s Progress:

This town of Fair-speech, said Christian, I have heard of; and, as I remember, they say it’s a wealthy place.

By-ends. Yes, I will assure you that it is, and I have very many rich kindred there.

Chr. Pray, who are your kindred there, if a man may be so bold?

By-ends. Almost the whole town; but, in particular, my Lord Turn-about, my Lord Time-server, my Lord Fair-speech (from whose ancestors that town first took its name): also Mr. Smooth-man, Mr. Facing-both-ways, Mr. Any-thing; and the parson of our parish, Mr. Two-tongues, was my mother’s own brother, by father’s side; and to tell you the truth, I am become a gentleman of good quality; yet my great-grandfather was but a waterman, looking one way, and rowing another; and I got most of my estate by the same occupation.

Now such people are plainly not true pilgrims nor true believers. They hold only a pretense as long as it seems to serve their end.  They could no not know what to do when Amos appeared:

Amos 6:4–7 (ESV)

4  “Woe to those who lie on beds of ivory

and stretch themselves out on their couches,

and eat lambs from the flock

and calves from the midst of the stall,

5  who sing idle songs to the sound of the harp

and like David invent for themselves instruments of music,

6  who drink wine in bowls

and anoint themselves with the finest oils,

but are not grieved over the ruin of Joseph!

7  Therefore they shall now be the first of those who go into exile,

and the revelry of those who stretch themselves out shall pass away.”

Plutarch’s Marriage Advice, Section 20: No Need for a Pre-Nup

09 Monday Dec 2013

Posted by memoirandremains in Greek, New Testament Background, Plutarch

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conjugalia praecepta, Greek Translation, idolatry, nature, New Testament Background, Plutarch, Plutarch Moralia, Plutarch translation, Plutarch's Marriage Advice, prenuptial agreement, property, Wealth

The previous post in this series is found here: https://memoirandremains.wordpress.com/2013/11/15/plutarchs-marriage-advice/

Plutarch, Section 20:

This section sounds quite romantic: Each of the partners to the marriage must give themselves up completely to the other so that there is no longer mine or yours. And yet, when we reach the punch line we learn that Plutarch means that a wife should give up her property to her husband and no longer consider her wealth – even if it is greater than the husband’s before marriage – as hers.

 

Translation:

Plato says that in a prosperous and blessed city, people really hear “mine” or “not mine”—especially when it comes to those things most needful for the good of the whole. Even more so should such expressed be refused in the state of marriage.

It’s like when physicians say that a wound to the left side is felt on the right.  It is beautiful when a wife sympathizes with her husband, and a husband with his wife.

Or, it’s like this: When the strands of a rope are interwoven, each strand gains strength from the other.  When goodwill is given one-to-another the whole is preserved through the union.

Nature unites our bodies in order that from each a measure is received and mixed and something of fellowship is received by both, so that neither can limit or distinguish oneself or the other.

This is most especially important when it comes to property in marriage: there should be just one common fund, poured together and deeply intertwined so that one can longer tell what is mine and what is yours.

It’s like when we called wine mixed with water “wine” – even if it is mostly water: it is very important to call the entire household property the “husband’s” even if his wife contributed the greater share.

 

Greek Text and Translation Notes:

 

ὁ Πλάτων φησὶν εὐδαίμονα καὶ μακαρίαν εἶναι πόλιν, ἐνh ‘τὸ ἐμὸν καὶ τὸ οὐκ ἐμὸν’ ἣκιστα φθεγγομένων ἀκούουσι διὰ τὸ κοινοῖς ὡς ἔνι μάλιστα χρῆσθαι τοῖς ἀξίοις σπουδῆς τοὺς πολίτας, πολὺ δὲ μᾶλλον ἐκ γάμου δεῖ τὴν τοιαύτην φωνὴν ἀνῃρῆσθαι. πλὴν ὥσπερ οἱ ἰατροὶ λέγουσι τὰς τῶν εὐωνύμων πληγὰς τὴν αἴσθησιν ἐν τοῖς δεξιοῖς ἀναφέρειν, οὕτω τὴν γυναῖκα τοῖς τοῦ ἀνδρὸς συμπαθεῖν καλὸν καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα τοῖς τῆς γυναικός, ἵνʼ ὥσπερ οἱ δεσμοὶ κατὰ τὴν ἐπάλλαξιν ἰσχὺν διʼ ἀλλήλων λαμβάνουσιν, οὕτως ἑκατέρου τὴν εὔνοιαν ἀντίστροφον ἀποδιδόντος ἡ κοινωνία σῴζηται διʼ ἀμφοῖν. καὶ γὰρ ἡ φύσις μίγνυσι διὰ τῶν σωμάτων τῶν ἡμᾶς, ἵνʼ ἐξ ἑκατέρων μέρος λαβοῦσα καὶ συγχέασα κοινὸν ἀμφοτέροις ἀποδῷ τὸ γεννώμενον, ὥστε μηδέτερον διορίσαι μηδὲ διακρῖναι τὸ ἴδιον ἢ τὸ ἀλλότριον. τοιαύτη τοίνυν καὶ χρημάτων κοινωνία προσήκει μάλιστα τοῖς γαμοῦσιν εἰς μίαν οὐσίαν πάντα καταχεαμένοις καὶ ἀναμίξασι μὴ τὸ μέρος ἴδιον καὶ τὸ μέρος ἀλλότριου ἀλλὰ πᾶν ἴδιον ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ μηδὲν ἀλλότριον. ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸ κρᾶμα καίτοι ὕδατος μετέχον πλείονος οἶνον καλοῦμεν, οὕτω τὴν οὐσίαν δεῖ καὶ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ ἀνδρὸς λέγεσθαι, κἂν ἡ γυνὴ πλείονα συμβάλληται.[1]

 

 

ὁ Πλάτων φησὶν

Plato said

The article refers to THE Plato. Wallace calls this the “Well-Known, Celebrity” use of the article (225).

εὐδαίμονα καὶ μακαρίαν

Fortunate/prosperous and blessing

εἶναι πόλιν

is a city

A city which is happy and blessed (prosperous).

The infinitive indicates indirect discourse. Plutarch is summarizing what Plato had said.

ἐνh

In which (in which city)

‘τὸ ἐμὸν καὶ τὸ οὐκ ἐμὸν

The “mine” and the “not mine”

Here the article marks the quotation.

ἣκιστα φθεγγομένων ἀκούουσι

rarely being uttered they hear

They rarely hear it said.

The passive/middle participle provides the ground for what is heard: it must have been uttered for one to hear the word.

ἥκιστος , η, ον, prob., like foreg., Sup. of ἦκα,

A.least, “ὁ δ᾽ ἥκιστ᾽ ἔχων μακάρτατος” S.Fr.410.

 

2. c. inf., worst at . . , ἥ. θηρᾶν, κρυμῷ ὁμιλεῖν, Ael.NA9.1,4.31 (cf. foreg.).

 

II. mostly as Adv., ἥκιστα least, Hp.Acut.68, S.Ph.427, etc.; “οὐκ ἥ. ἀλλὰ μάλιστα” Hdt.4.170; ὡς ἥ. as little as possible, Th.1.91.

 

2. in reply to a question, not at all, S.OT623, E.HF299, etc.; “ἥκιστά γε” S.OT1386, Pl.Phdr.276c; “ἥ. πάντων” Ar.Pl.440.

 

3. οὐχ ἥ., freq. in litotes, above all, more than all, A.Ch.116; “οἵ τε ἄλλοι καὶ οὐχ ἥ. Ἀθηναῖοι” Pl.Prt.324c, cf. Tht. 177c, Smp.178a, al.; “ἐπὶ πολλῶν μέν . . , οὐχ ἥ. δὲ ἐν τοῖς παροῦσι πράγμασι” D.2.1, cf. Th.7.44, etc.: c. gen., “οὐχ ἥ. Ἀθηναίων σέ, ἀλλ᾽ ἐν τοῖς μάλιστα” Pl.Cri.52a.

 

 

διὰ τὸ

Because the things

Dia + accusative: because.

τὸ: This is an accusative neuter plural and refers to all things of whatever sort covered by the following clause.

κοινοῖς ὡς ἔνι

common [dative plural] as one [dative singular]

The verb is implied: those common things should be

μάλιστα χρῆσθαι τοῖς ἀξίοις σπουδῆς τοὺς πολίτας

especially to use those most worthy (needful) for the city

πολὺ δὲ μᾶλλον

Now much more

ἐκ γάμου

From marriage

That is out of marriage: certain things must be taken out of the marriage (here denied, forbidden)

δεῖ τὴν τοιαύτην φωνὴν ἀνῃρῆσθαι

it is necessary that such things spoken be denied

δεῖ It is necessary – completed in thought by the infinitive ἀνῃρῆσθαι.

τὴν τοιαύτην φωνὴν that such like things vocalized.

πλὴν ὥσπερ οἱ ἰατροὶ λέγουσι

Nevertheless just as physicians they say

τὰς τῶν εὐωνύμων πληγὰς

The blows/wounds of the left side

The materials between the article and the substantive constitute modifiers. The genitive is used to indicate the place of the pain.

τὴν αἴσθησιν ἐν τοῖς δεξιοῖς ἀναφέρειν

The sensation (recognition of the pain) on the right side is borne up.

Anapherein is sometimes used as a technical term to “sacrifice” in the sense of bringing something up to the altar. This is a good example of how one could easily misuse a lexicon. I don’t think Plutarch means the right side is sacrificed when the left side is struck.

οὕτω τὴν γυναῖκα τοῖς τοῦ ἀνδρὸς συμπαθεῖν καλὸν

Even so the wives to their husbands to sympathize is beautiful

The wives is accusative as the subject of the infinitive.

The articular “husbands” is possessive (an article is used rather than a possessive pronoun).

καὶ τὸν ἄνδρα τοῖς τῆς γυναικός

Likewise husband to their own wives

ἵνʼ ὥσπερ οἱ δεσμοὶ

in order that just as the ropes

Desmos means anything for tying or binding together. It frequently refers to chains. Here, the reference is to ropes.

The complex transition language: hina hosper sets up the comparison.

κατὰ τὴν ἐπάλλαξιν ἰσχὺν διʼ ἀλλήλων λαμβάνουσιν

according to (by means of) the interweaving they strength through one-another they receive

οὕτως ἑκατέρου τὴν εὔνοιαν ἀντίστροφον ἀποδιδόντος

Thus from the two the goodwill for the other giving

ἡ κοινωνία σῴζηται διʼ ἀμφοῖν

The common is saved/preserved through both

καὶ γὰρ ἡ φύσις μίγνυσι διὰ τῶν σωμάτων τῶν ἡμᾶς

For Nature unites  through the bodies of us  [our bodies]

Dia + genitive seems to be spatial: through our bodies, rather than an agency or means.

τῶν σωμάτων τῶν ἡμᾶς: the article for the possessive, emphasized by the pronoun.

ἵνʼ ἐξ ἑκατέρων μέρος λαβοῦσα

In order that from both a measure they receive

καὶ συγχέασα κοινὸν ἀμφοτέροις ἀποδῷ τὸ γεννώμενον

and poured together in common the both may receive the same being (nature?)

συγχέασα: means to mix, confuse, pour together.

 

ὥστε μηδέτερον διορίσαι μηδὲ διακρῖναι τὸ ἴδιον ἢ τὸ ἀλλότριον

so that not two  to limit nor distinguish his own (self? Nature) or the other’s (self/nature)

διορίσαι: to set a limit

διακρῖναι: to distinguish

The infinitives indicate the result of the mixing.

τοιαύτη τοίνυν καὶ χρημάτων κοινωνία προσήκει

Hence, such as this and of property in common is fitting

Τοίνυν: hence

Προσήκει: this either refers to an approach or something suitable/fitting. Here is it suitable.

μάλιστα τοῖς γαμοῦσιν εἰς μίαν οὐσίαν

Especially for those married into one substance/wealth/fund

πάντα καταχεαμένοις καὶ ἀναμίξασι

everything being poured together and joined

καταχέω , pour down, mix together, run together

There is a bit of play on words here:

ἀνα-μίσγω , poet. and Ion. for

A.“ἀναμείγνυμι, ἀνέμισγε δὲσίτῳ φάρμακα” Od.10.235; “αἷμα δακρύοισι” Tim.Fr.7:—Med., have intercourse with, “τινί” Hdt.1.199:—Pass., “γέλως ἀνεμίσγετο λύπῃ” Call.Aet.Fr.7.3 P.

μὴ τὸ μέρος ἴδιον καὶ τὸ μέρος ἀλλότριου

Not a portion one’s own and not a portion of the other

ἀλλὰ πᾶν ἴδιον ἡγεῖσθαι καὶ μηδὲν ἀλλότριον

But all one’s own  to be reckoned and nothing the other’s.

ἡγεῖσθαι is a pretty strong word. It means merely more than to think something to be so, but rather to think it so and live like that.

ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸ κρᾶμα

Just as the “mixed wine”  

καίτοι ὕδατος μετέχον πλείονος οἶνον καλοῦμεν

even so water mixed more with “wine” we call

οὕτω τὴν οὐσίαν

Thus, the property

δεῖ καὶ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ ἀνδρὸς λέγεσθαι

It is necessary the household of the husband to be called

κἂν ἡ γυνὴ πλείονα συμβάλληται

even if the wife the greatest part throws in (contributes)

 


[1] Plutarch, Moralia, ed. Gregorius N. Bernardakis, vol. 1 (Medford, MA: Teubner, 1888), 343–344.

If you’re so smart

18 Monday Nov 2013

Posted by memoirandremains in Literature

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Epigram, Learning, poem, Poetry, Thomas Bastard, Wealth

How come you ain’t rich?

BOOK 3, EPIGRAM 36

By Thomas Bastard

The peasant Corus of his wealth does boast,
Yet he’s scarce worth twice twenty pounds at most.
I chanc’d to word once with this lowly swain,
He called me base, and beggar in disdain.
To try the truth hereof I rate myself,
And cast the little count of all my wealth.
See how much Hebrew, Greek, and Poetry,
Latin Rhetoric, and Philosophy,
Reading, and sense in sciences profound,
All valued, are not worth forty pounds.

From Seven Books of Epigrams, 1598

I have learned to abound

04 Monday Mar 2013

Posted by memoirandremains in Biblical Counseling, Philippians, Uncategorized

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1 Timothy 6:17-19, Abound, Biblical Counseling, Comfort, Contentment, Ease, Ecclesiastes 7:14, Ecclesiastes 7:2-4, Mark 8:34-38, Philippians, Philippians 3:12-16, Philippians 4:12-13, Philippians 4:14-19, poverty, Proverbs 30:7-9, Riches, Robert Buchanan, The Book of Ecclesiastes Its Meaning and Its Lessons, Uncategorized, Want, Wealth

Paul writes to the Philippians:

11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.
12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.

Philippians 4:12-13.

We can understand why Paul would need to learn how to live with being brought low. But the idea that “good” could be something which would require wisdom and learning seems positively foreign. Consider the words to a popular Christian song

Blessed be your name
When the sun’s shining down on me
When the worlds all as it should be

This is contrasted with the “road marked with suffering”. I don’t mean to push too much weight onto a song which was not written to bear too much scrutiny (I think of the ghastly graduate thesis where a poor student tries to wring some semiotic significance from a pop song). But the given of the song is that getting what I would like (even if it is not a sinful thing, merely a matter of comfort) is how things “should be”. For the Christian, isn’t everything “as it should be?”

In the day of prosperity be joyful, and in the day of adversity consider: God has made the one as well as the other, so that man may not find out anything that will be after him.

Ecclesiastes 7:14. Both want and fullness present trials:

7 Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die:
8 Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me,
9 lest I be full and deny you and say, “Who is the LORD?” or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.

Proverbs 30:7-9. Melanchthon explains:

In prosperity, men become reckless; they think less of God’s wrath, and less expect His aid. Thus they become more and more presumptuous; they trust to their own industry, their own power, and are thus easily driven on by the devil.—

Buchanan draws out this point at greater length:

Alas! that prosperity, instead of thus drawing the soul nearer to the great fountain of all blessedness, should, on the contrary, serve so often only to wed it more closely to the world! It is in this way that “the prosperity of fools shall destroy them” (Prov. 1:32). As was exemplified in the case of Israel of old, “Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness: then he forsook God which made him, and lightly esteemed the Rock of his salvation.” Therefore the Lord said, “I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be” (Deut. 32:15, &c). Solomon himself had painfully illustrated, in his own personal history, this fatal tendency of outward prosperity to alienate the heart from God. The wisdom, and wealth, and power with which the Lord had so remarkably endowed him, became his snare. In that dark season of spiritual declension he tried to be joyful. He said in his heart, Go to; I will prove thee with mirth. He withheld not his heart from any joy; from any joy, that is, but one. He had ceased to joy in God. And how empty and unsatisfying did his earthly joys prove! Of the best of them he had nothing better than this to say, “It is vanity.” When he, therefore, with all this experience, says, “In the day of prosperity be joyful,” let us be well assured he does not mean us to repeat his own error; but rather that, taking warning from that error, we should turn every blessing we receive, whether temporal or spiritual, into a fresh argument for stirring up our souls and all that is within us, to praise and magnify the great name of our God.

Robert Buchanan, The Book of Ecclesiastes Its Meaning and Its Lessons, 1859, 259-260.

Of the two, ease and mirth are the more dangerous:

2 It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter, for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning, but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

Ecclesiastes 7:2-4.

How then did Paul learn to abound? Did he merely consider the end of death? No, he writes, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13).

In what does Christ strength Paul? By rightly valuing all the things of this life. He happily receives gifts and comforts as gifts from The Lord which will prosper those who give them (Philippians 4:10 & 14-19). But Paul does not fall into the trap of trusting in such things:

17 As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.
18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share,
19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

1 Timothy 6:17-19. He sees a thing for what it is — uncertain. But he also sees something better:

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
15 Let those of us who are mature think this way, and if in anything you think otherwise, God will reveal that also to you.
16 Only let us hold true to what we have attained.

Philippians 3:12-16. Thus, the answer is not enforced poverty. The answer is not a grimace and growl. We may learn how to abound by realizing that even gaining the entire world cannot compare with Christ:

34 And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
35 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it.
36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?
37 For what can a man give in return for his soul?
38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

Mark 8:34-38

Comparison and Contrast, Ecclesiastes 2:23 and Proverbs 13:22

23 Saturday Feb 2013

Posted by memoirandremains in Ecclesiastes

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Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes 2, Inheritance, Proverbs, proverbs, Proverbs 13:22, providence, toil, Vanity, Wealth

Proverbs 13:22
A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the sinner’s wealth is laid up for the righteous.

Ecclesiastes 2:
18 I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me,
19 and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will be master of all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity.
20 So I turned about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under the sun,
21 because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil.
22 What has a man from all the toil and striving of heart with which he toils beneath the sun?
23 For all his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night his heart does not rest. This also is vanity.

Dying Thoughts.2

03 Monday Dec 2012

Posted by memoirandremains in Biblical Counseling, Meditation, Puritan, Richard Baxter

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1 Joh 3:1-3., 1 Timothy 2:1-4, 2 Corinthians 1:3-6, 2 Corinthians 5:1-5., Acts 17:29-34, Amos 2:6–8, Biblical Counseling, Bodily Resurrection, Charity, Compassion, demons, Dying Thoughts, Ecclesiastes 5:18-20, Jesus, love, Luke 24:36-42, Mark, Mark 1: 32-34, Matthew 25:27-40, Meditation, poverty, Puritan, Resurrection, Richard Baxter, Romans 12:14-16, Self-Examination, Sheep and Goats, Sickness, Wealth

What and why must be the concern of the Christian in this life? First, it is a good to the church that one’s life and one’s society be peaceful, civil, ordered:

 

1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:1-4

 

Second, it is good that the church have peace — not for the sake of peace alone, but for the good which can come from the church’s peace.

 

Third, it is good to be thankful for the health of one’s body. It is a wicked Gnosticism which makes the real world into a false or unimportant one. For example, the biblical counselor must be sensitive to the physical body. It is often best to send a counselee to see a medical doctor at the first — either their state has caused injury to their body (through worry or anxiety), or their physical condition in part gives rise to one’s distress.  Only a fool would sever the body and soul as to make the body the tomb and the soul a bird set to fly away — as the pagans had it, soma sema (and no, the “flesh” in Paul does not mean the physical body is the source of sin).

 

Baxter proves this from the Lord’s own actions: if the physical body were nothing, than why did Jesus grant physical healing:

 

32 That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons.33 And the whole city was gathered together at the door. 34 And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. Mark 1: 32-34.

 

(Note: demons are associated with disease — not as the cause for some sin. Second, not every disease was caused by a demon.) Second, The Lord himself came in a physical body — a point which believers must not deny:

 

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.

2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,

3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. 1 Joh 3:1-3.

 

He also  physically resurrected:

 

36 As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!”

37 But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit.

38 And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?

39 See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”

40 And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet.

41 And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?”

42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish,

43 and he took it and ate before them. Luke 24:36-42

 

And believers are promised a physical resurrection:

 

1 For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

2 For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling,

3 if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked.

4 For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened-not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.

5 He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. 2 Corinthians 5:1-5.

 

In fact, it was this point which brought on the gawfaws of the Mars Hill crowd:

 

29 Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.

30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,

31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

32 Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, “We will hear you again about this.”

33 So Paul went out from their midst.

34 But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them. Acts 17:29-34

 

Without question then the physical body must be affirmed and seen as good (corrupted by sin, yes; but not intrinsically evil).

 

Moreover, enjoyment of physical good is commended:

18 Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot.

19 Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil-this is the gift of God.

20 For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart. Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

 

We must also rejoice in our friends, and join in their sorrows:

 

14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.

15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Romans 12:14-16

 

We are also called to give comfort to other in distress:

 

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

6 If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 2 Corinthians 1:3-6

 

Thus, the real life of others is a matter of great concern. It is such a matter to be considered at the time of judgment:  At the separation of the sheep and goats, The Lord will commend those who cared for the prisoner, the hungry, the naked, the stranger:

 

37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?

38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?

39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’

40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Matthew 25:27-40

 

Likewise, the wicked will condemned for their refusal to care for the poor — for they failed to care for The Lord himself. This is a constant reference for the judgment which came upon Israel:

 

6 Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals-

7 those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned;

8 they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge, and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined. Amos 2:6-8

 

Baxter also gives thanks for “the land of my nativity” (8).  He notes the connection between the ordering of the civil state and the good of the Gospel. Now, Baxter wrote at such a time that godliness could easily land one in prison or worse. Oppression on all sides was the order of the day — he lived through the working out of freedom of conscience (a thing rare under the sun).

 

What Baxter did not see was the poison which the state could feed religion by gradual compromise and coziness.

Powerball Jackpot: There is an evil that I have seen under the sun. Ecclesiastes 6:1-5

30 Friday Nov 2012

Posted by memoirandremains in Biblical Counseling, Ecclesiastes

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Biblical Counseling, blessing, Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes 6:1-5, God, Happiness, Lottery, Powerball, Wealth

Wednesday’s Powerball jackpot is now expected to be an unimaginable $500 million, the second-biggest jackpot in history behind March’s $656 Mega Millions pot. But winning the lottery can have its pitfalls. Distant relatives and fair-weather friends can come clamoring for their share; spouse can turn on spouse; kidnapping and murder can suddenly become very real threats. And sometimes, the greatest danger to the newly well-off can be the winners themselves. Here are ten cautionary tales of some of the biggest-winning losers in lottery history.

Read more: http://newsfeed.time.com/2012/11/28/500-million-powerball-jackpot-the-tragic-stories-of-the-lotterys-unluckiest-winners/#ixzz2DeiD8zLa

 

Ecclesiastes 6:1–5 (ESV)

1 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind: 2 a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; it is a grievous evil. 3 If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life’s good things, and he also has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he. 4 For it comes in vanity and goes in darkness, and in darkness its name is covered. 5 Moreover, it has not seen the sun or known anything, yet it finds rest rather than he.

Job as the blessed man of Ecclesiastes 5

24 Saturday Nov 2012

Posted by memoirandremains in Ecclesiastes, Job

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blessing, Ecclesiastes, Job, John Noble Coleman, Parallel, Wealth

Job begins thus:

1 There was a man in the land of Uz whose name was Job, and that man was blameless and upright, one who feared God and turned away from evil. 2 There were born to him seven sons and three daughters. 3 He possessed 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, and 500 female donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the east. 4 His sons used to go and hold a feast in the house of each one on his day, and they would send and invite their three sisters to eat and drink with them. 5 And when the days of the feast had run their course, Job would send and consecrate them, and he would rise early in the morning and offer burnt offerings according to the number of them all. For Job said, “It may be that my children have sinned, and cursed God in their hearts.” Thus Job did continually.

Job 1:1-5.

Now consider the comment of Ecclesiastes a comment which Job illustrates:

Ver. 4. Feast.—The family banquet given by each of Job’s sons on his birthday was not in itself sinful, but is rather to be commended. Solomon must have been conversant with the Book of Job, and with this recorded practice of the sons of Job, the oriental Sheikh, “great beyond all the sons of the East.” His inspired language is expressive of commendation, not of censure:
“Behold, I have considered that it is good, that it is comely,
That a man should eat and drink and experience delight in all his labour,
Wherein he laboureth under the sun,
During the number of the days of his life which God hath assigned him,
Truly this is his allotted portion.
Yea, to every man to whom God hath given riches and wealth,
And hath enabled him to eat thereof,
And to sustain his allotted portion, and to rejoice in his labour,
This is the very gift of God.”—Ecclesiastes, 5:18, 19

The Book of Job, Translated from the Hebrew with notes explanatory, illustrative, and critical by
Rev. John Noble Coleman (1869)

Ecclesiastes 6 as a Discourse Peak: Solomon’s Wealth

17 Saturday Nov 2012

Posted by memoirandremains in 1 Kings, Biblical Counseling, Ecclesiastes, Ephesians, Philippians

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1 Kings, 2 Chronicles, Biblical Counseling, blessing, Discourse Analysis, Discourse Peak, Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes 2, Ecclesiastes 6, Ephesians, Fearing the Lord, Humility, joy, Philippians, Self-denial, Solomon, Wealth

 The sixth chapter of Ecclesiastes also ties together the strands concerning wealth and blessing which had been raised in various forms throughout the preceding chapters. It also brings the previous points together with heightened vividness.[1] There is even a slightly different rhetorical effect in that the passage does not ask questions but rather lays out some definite conclusions.[2]   Yet when reading the passages on wealth together, it is instructive to read them in tandem with the story of Solomon’s life. Even those who reject Solomonic authorship still admit that book uses Solomon’s life as a background for at least the first two chapters.

 

I contend that the parallel between Solomon’s history and the commentary of Ecclesiastes persists even beyond Ecclesiastes 2:11 (where many commentators believe the parallel falls off).

 

The Correspondence Between the History of Solomon and Ecclesiastes

 

First, we begin with a brief recount of Solomon’s wealth:

 

11 God answered Solomon, “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked possessions, wealth, honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not even asked long life, but have asked wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may govern my people over whom I have made you king 12 wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. I will also give you riches, possessions, and honor, such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none after you shall have the like.”

 

2 Chronicles 1:11-12. This astounding wealth is described in Ecclesiastes 2:3-10: money, land, buildings, pleasures, human beings (it is a recapitulation of Eden, but it also makes a perverse parallel of the parody of Eden in Revelation 18):

 

3 I searched with my heart how to cheer my body with wine-my heart still guiding me with wisdom-and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the children of man to do under heaven during the few days of their life.

4 I made great works. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself.

5 I made myself gardens and parks, and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees.

6 I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees.

7 I bought male and female slaves, and had slaves who were born in my house. I had also great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem.

8 I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I got singers, both men and women, and many concubines, the delight of the children of man.

9 So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me.

10 And whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil.

 

However, looking back on it, Qoheleth (at the very least speaking as Solomon) can offer only a triple condemnation and despair over his life:

 

Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.

 

Ecclesiastes 2:11. The extraordinary wealth and bounty ending in a bitter taste well parallels the life of Solomon. First Solomon did acquire an astounding hoard of humanity and wealth:

 

1  Now King Solomon loved many foreign women, along with the daughter of Pharaoh: Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women 2 from the nations concerning which the LORD had said to the people of Israel, “You shall not enter into marriage with them, neither shall they with you, for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love 3 He had 700 wives, princesses, and 300 concubines. And his wives turned away his heart 4 For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father.

 

1 Kings 11:1-4. Yet, for all his wealth and women, he lost the blessing of God:

 

9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice 10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the LORD commanded.

 

1 Kings 11:1-4, 9-10. Thus the blessing became a curse in Solomon’s mouth. He had the stuff, he it seems he lost the ability to enjoy it. When reading the story of Solomon, it seems the trouble with the wealth only came at the very end, when God finally pronounced judgment upon Solomon.

 

Using Ecclesiastes to Understand Solomon

 

However, when we read Ecclesiastes as partial commentary on the history of Solomon (especially if one takes Solomon as the author, Qoheleth), one can conclude that the property did not bring contentment to Solomon.

 

This point becomes even tighter when we come to Ecclesiastes 5 & 6. The thoroughly negative valuation of Ecclesiastes 2:11 seems like the despair and disgust did not come until after he come to the end of his life. But Ecclesiastes 5 & 6 adds something more: it states that the “blessing” was really no blessing unless God provides an additional element: the blessing to enjoy the abundance.

 

Ecclesiastes 5 states the proverb that one cannot be satisfied with money:

 

10 He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves wealth with his income; this also is vanity. 11 When goods increase, they increase who eat them, and what advantage has their owner but to see them with his eyes? Ecclesiastes 5:10–11 (ESV)

 

When one considers both the absurdly large household of Solomon, you think Of course! The wealth of gold and goods, of slaves and wives (human property)could not possibly be enjoyed in any sort of intensive manner.  Solomon could see the harem of a 1,000 women, together with their servants and attendants, and think I must feed them all. In fact, Ecclesiastes 5:10-11 is precisely the sort of conclusion one would expect from a man in Solomon’s position.

 

Verse 12 casts an almost envious eye on the men who built the palaces and public buildings:

 

Sweet is the sleep of a laborer, whether he eats little or much, but the full stomach of the rich will not let him sleep. Ecclesiastes 5:12 (ESV)

 

One must note that Solomon is not describing abject poverty – the man does have labour and is not starving. Yet, he does put his finger on the important aspect: the little bit the labourer possesses has come with the blessing of God – and thus sleep.

 

Ecclesiastes 5:13-17 then sets out the fear which comes from possessing property:

 

13 There is a grievous evil that I have seen under the sun: riches were kept by their owner to his hurt, 14 and those riches were lost in a bad venture. And he is father of a son, but he has nothing in his hand. 15 As he came from his mother’s womb he shall go again, naked as he came, and shall take nothing for his toil that he may carry away in his hand. 16 This also is a grievous evil: just as he came, so shall he go, and what gain is there to him who toils for the wind? 17 Moreover, all his days he eats in darkness in much vexation and sickness and anger.

 

Earlier in the letter, Solomon had raised the opposite circumstance: What if I keep my property and then leave it to a fool:

 

18 I hated all my toil in which I toil under the sun, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me, 19 and who knows whether he will be wise or a fool? Yet he will be master of all for which I toiled and used my wisdom under the sun. This also is vanity. 20 So I turned about and gave my heart up to despair over all the toil of my labors under the sun, 21 because sometimes a person who has toiled with wisdom and knowledge and skill must leave everything to be enjoyed by someone who did not toil for it. This also is vanity and a great evil. Ecclesiastes 2:18–21 (ESV)

 

This, of course, draws another direct line between Qoheleth and Solomon: Qoheleth fears his wealth will be left to a fool. Solomon did leave it to the fool, Rehoboam – you managed to loss 10 of the 12 tribes in a single afternoon.[3]

 

This is contrasted with the one who has received a blessing from God:

 

18 Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot. 19 Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil-this is the gift of God. 20 For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart. Ecclesiastes 5:18-20.

 

Yet, even at this point, one might think that Solomon did not sour on wealth and privilege until the very end of his life.

 

The Blessing Solomon Lacked

 

However, Ecclesiastes 6 puts a dagger in that theory:  Ecclesiastes 6:1-3 shows that the acquisition of tremendous property and extraordinary comforts provide not real comfort with the added blessing of God to transform the external into a true subjective blessing. However, it is best to read this as not just a speculation but an experience. To see the pain of Ecclesiastes 6:1-3, we must not abstract it from an actual life.

 

The relationship between Ecclesiastes 6:1-3 is not merely at a general leval. When look at the precise language used to describe Solomon’s wealth as recorded in 2 Chronicles 9:22-23 and compares it to the man recorded in Ecclesiastes 6:1-3, it seems that we may be looking at the same person:

 

22 Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 23 And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind.

 

2 Chronicles 9:22-23. Now consider the man of Ecclesiastes 6:1-3

 

1 There is an evil that I have seen under the sun, and it lies heavy on mankind 2 a man to whom God gives wealth, possessions, and honor, so that he lacks nothing of all that he desires, yet God does not give him power to enjoy them, but a stranger enjoys them. This is vanity; it is a grievous evil 3 If a man fathers a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with life’s good things, and he also has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better off than he.

 

 Consider this closely: First, both Solomon and the man described in 6:1-3 have received profound material “blessing” from God. God says to Solomon, “I will also give you riches, possessions, and honor, such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none after you shall have the like.” 2 Chronicles 1:12. The lists almost match. Moreover, as just noted, it also matches the list of 2 Chronicles 9:22-23.

 

Second, note that God did not promise Solomon that he would have enjoyment from all his property. In fact, God’s covenant with Solomon contains the express condition of obedience: 2 Samuel 7:14.[4] When God blesses Solomon with the promise of material good, he makes the quality of life a matter of obedience:

 

And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days. 1 Kings 3:14 (ESV)

 

As in the NT, the matter of “eternal life” is not merely a matter of duration but of quality.[5]

How Then May We Receive That Blessing?

 

This of course begs for an answer to the question, How does one obtain the blessing of the Lord to enjoy the pleasant things of this life?

 

First, we must think rightly about wealth and its true benefit. For this we have help of Proverbs:

 

10 The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.

 

11 A rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and like a high wall in his imagination.

 

12 Before destruction a man’s heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.

 

Proverbs 18:10-12. The middle proverb of the triplet notes that wealth is an imaginary protection. Reliance upon one’s wealth is pride, which will only result in destruction. However, the one who trust in the Lord will be safe.

 

Second, we must thus avoid the sin of seeking protection from money; rather, we must place our hope solely in the strength of God:

 

5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

6 So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

 

Hebrews 13:5-6. It is interesting to note that here love of money is contrasted with trusting in God:

 

24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money. 25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Matthew 6:24–26 (ESV)

 

And lest we think such talk is a mere fairy tale, the Apostle Paul gives us a picture of such in action. To make the point more plainly, God graciously – for our sakes – has Paul write from prison:

 

10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. 11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.

12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

 

Philippians 4:10-13.

 

 

 


[1] The reference to a miscarriage is brutal and disturbing.

[2] William Varner in his excellent commentary James a New Perspective lays out the elements of a discourse peak on pages 20-28.

[3] Interestingly, the only wealth passage which does not seem to parallel Solomon is the man who has no other, the miserable, lonely miser (however, perhaps Solomon did at times feel himself to be lonely despite the ocean of human beings about him):

7 Again, I saw vanity under the sun: 8 one person who has no other, either son or brother, yet there is no end to all his toil, and his eyes are never satisfied with riches, so that he never asks, “For whom am I toiling and depriving myself of pleasure?” This also is vanity and an unhappy business. Ecclesiastes 4:7–8 (ESV)

 

[4]

“All” Solomon must do to secure these blessings is to follow David’s example of adherence to the Sinai covenant. If he keeps the “statutes and commands,” Solomon will honor his father and thereby have “a long life.” This reference to Exod 20:12 underscores the continuity of God’s covenant with Israel, with David, and with Solomon, the new generation. It also emphasizes the conditional nature of Solomon’s kingship, an idea that is repeated every time God addresses Solomon directly (cf. 6:11–13; 9:3–9; 11:11–13). Long notes that in these four addresses “the editor-author(s) forged a kind of unity of exhortation out of the material, which then can be turned on end to become a deadly serious, twice-repeated message of conditions violated, promise lost, glory tarnished (ch. 11).”11 God’s covenant with David is eternal, but Solomon can be replaced with another “son of David” if he disobeys the Lord.

 

Paul R. House, vol. 8, 1, 2 Kings, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 111-12.

[5] While the text does not explicitly entail happiness, yet it does seem that a “long” and bitter life would be no blessing. This is consonant with the understanding of Deuteronomy 5:16 which corresponds obedience to covenant with long life – and thus a quality of life.

 

16. Prefer the Lord and His kingdom before all things, for the Divine Love and Wisdom have shown the soul that these are the fountains of life, that thus states of blessedness may be acquired in heaven, and that the soul may be led into the state of order and happiness which is designed for it by the Divine Love and Wisdom.

 

A. Payne, A Study of the Internal or Spiritual Sense of the Fifth Book of Moses Called Deuteronomy (London: James Speirs, 1881), 47.

 

Calvin commenting on Ephesians 6:3, which quotes the OT commandment likewise long life to happiness and not solely duration:

The promise is a long life; from which we are led to understand that the present life is not to be overlooked among the gifts of God. On this and other kindred subjects I must refer my reader to the Institutes of the Christian Religion; 63 satisfying myself at present with saying, in a few words, that the reward promised to the obedience of children is highly appropriate. Those who shew kindness to their parents from whom they derived life, are assured by God, that in this life it will be well with them.

And that thou mayest live long on the earth. Moses expressly mentions the land of Canaan,

  “that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.” (Exodus 20:12.)

Beyond this the Jews could not conceive of any life more happy or desirable. But as the same divine blessing is extended to the whole world, Paul has properly left out the mention of a place, the peculiar distinction of which lasted only till the coming of Christ.

John Calvin, Ephesians, electronic ed., Calvin’s Commentaries (Albany, OR: Ages Software, 1998), Eph 6:3.

 

Puritans and Wealth as a Sign of Election

13 Monday Aug 2012

Posted by memoirandremains in Church History, Puritan

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Church History, Election, Max Weber, Puritan, Puritans, Sign of Election, Wealth

There is a commonplace that Puritans believed that material blessing was the result or sign of election, and thus wealth was somehow tied to godliness. This canard is widely cited without reference to the writings of actual Puritans. The idea seems to come from Max Weber (he at least routinely receives credit for this idea – his own thought may have been substantially more nuanced – I simply have not taken the time to read through everything he has written), not the Puritans. At least some scholars are noting that the received wisdom may be questionable; see, e.g., Marjorie E. Kornhauser, “The Morality of Money: American Attitudes Toward Wealth and the Income Tax,”Indiana Law Journal 70, no. 1 (1994): 119-69, see esp. fn. 11. More typical is the bald statement made without reference to the source documents, is something such as this:

American Puritans linked material wealth with God’s favor. They believed that hard work was the way to please God. Created more wealth through one’s work and thrift could guarantee the God’s elect. The doctrine of predestination kept all Puritans constantly working to do good in this life in order to be chosen for the next eternal life. God had already chosen who would be in heaven or hell, but Christians had no way of knowing which group they were in. Those who were wealthy would obviously be blessed by God and in good standing with Him. The work ethic of Puritans was the belief that hard work was an honor to God which would lead to a prosperous reward. Any deviations from the normal way of Puritan life would be strictly denied and disapproved.

Ning Kang, “Puritanism and Its Impact Upon American Values,” Review of European Studies 1, no. 2 (December 2009): 148-51. Here is another:

 

Sanctification: Proof that one is justified (or “elected” by God). Proof is exhibited by living a life of good works and outward proper moral conduct. One might also receive a “sign” of sanctification (such as wealth) that would signify one’s election. One’s minister, in private counsel, could help a puritan determine a sign.

 

http://learning.hccs.edu/faculty/janice.whitehead/eng-2327/intro-to-puritanism/, accessed August 13. 2012. Or this (and yes, Puritans regarded laziness as a sin, because the Bible calls laziness a sin. Interesting that we would find a concern for laziness quaint):

 

Puritan Ethic: Term that characterizes the strong sense of purpose and discipline that Puritans had. Part of the work ethic also resulted from a belief that wealth and success were a sign of saintliness and that idleness was a sin.

 

http://www.course-notes.org/US_History/Unit_Notes/Unit_One_1600_1763/Puritans accessed August 13, 2012. Yes. This are not necessarily scholarly sources in each instance, but they are indicative of the received knowledge and common teaching on the subject, particularly in the pre-graduate level. Compare this with the statement of an actual influential Puritan such as  Manton:

 

Worldly good things may be given in anger, lest men should be marked out by their outward condition, rather than the disposition of their souls. God would not distinguish the good by the blessings of his common providence, nor brand and mark out the bad by their afflictions. Therefore these mercies that run in the channel of common providence, are dispensed promiscuously. But God hath another way of internal government, carried on within the soul by troubles of conscience for sin, and the comforts of a good conscience as the reward of obedience. Now in this sort of government, the influence of the Spirit is mainly seen ; God showeth his anger or his love, his pleasure or displeasure, by giving and withholding the Spirit; when he is pleased, we have the testimony of it in our consciences by the presence and comforts of the Spirit; when displeased, he withdraweth the Spirit ; this is reward and punishment, the accesses and recesses of the Spirit, if we have sinned : Ps. li. 10, ‘ Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not away thy Holy Spirit from me.’ The retaining and withholding the Spirit is one of the greatest calamities in the world ; ver. 2, ‘ Renew a right spirit in me ; ‘ ver. 12, ‘ And uphold me by thy free Spirit. On the contrary the reward of obedience is the increase of the Spirit : Rom 14:17, ‘ For the kingdom of God is not in meats and drinks, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.’ Now this being God’s constant way of internal government, whereby he manifesteth his pleasure or displeasure by witholding, or withdrawing, or giving out his Spirit ; and this is a surer way than the effects of his external providence. I cannot say God hateth me, because he denieth earthly blessings, or blasteth them when bestowed; this may be for other reasons than to manifest his anger or hatred: I cannot say God loveth me because I enjoy outward prosperity; but if I have the Spirit, that is never given in anger.

 

Sermon 12, Sermons on Romans 8. Found volume 12, pages 8-9 of Manton’s collected works. And, Thomas Brooks in his book The Mute Christian Under the Smarting Rod:

 

God’s hand sometimes may lie very hard upon His people, when His heart, His affections, at those very times may be yearning towards them. Jeremiah 31:18-20.

 

No man can tell the heart of God—by His hand. God’s hand of mercy may be open to those against whom His heart is set—as you see in the rich poor fool, and Dives, in the Gospel. And His hand of severity may lie hard upon those on whom He has set His heart—as you may see in Job and Lazarus.

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