vent

April 1, 2017

The anger and fury of Yahweh on Jerusalem (Ezek 5:13-5:15)

“My anger shall

Spend itself.

I will vent my fury

On them.

I will satisfy myself.

They shall know

That I,

Yahweh,

Have spoken

In my jealousy,

When I spend my fury

On them.

Moreover

I will make you

A desolation.

I will make you

An object of mocking

Among the nations

Around you,

In the sight

Of all that pass by.

You shall be a mockery.

You shall be a taunt.

You shall be a warning.

You shall be a horror,

To the nations around you.

I will execute judgments

On you

In anger,

In fury,

With furious punishments.

I!

Yahweh!

Have spoken!”

Yahweh said that he was going to spend his anger on the people of Jerusalem. He was going to vent his fury on them. He was going to satisfy himself. They would know that he was Yahweh. He was going to speak out of jealousy against them. This is a very strong statement about the anger of God against the people of Jerusalem, because he was a jealous God. Jerusalem would become a desolation, an object of mocking, a taunt, a warning, and a horror among all the nations around her. Angry Yahweh was going to execute his judgments on them with his furious punishments. Yahweh has clearly spoken.

February 16, 2016

The wise man (Prov 29:8-29:11)

“Scoffers set a city aflame.

But the wise turn away wrath.

If the wise go to law with fools,

There is ranting.

There is ridicule without relief.

The bloodthirsty hate the blameless.

They seek the life of the upright.

A fool gives full vent to his anger.

But the wise quietly hold it back.”

The scoffers or the cynics will set a city in flames with their comments. The wise, on the other hand, will turn away or stay away from anger. If there is a dispute about the law, the wise will win out because the fools will be ranting away and ridiculed non-stop. The bloodthirsty evil men hate the blameless since they seek the life of the upright ones. Fools give vent to their anger but the wise ones hold back quietly.