The Joy of the Lord and the Word Rightly Divided

(Neh 8:8 KJV) So they read in the book in the law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading.
(Neh 8:9 KJV) And Nehemiah, which is the Tirshatha, and Ezra the priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the people, said unto all the people, This day is holy unto the LORD your God; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the law.
(Neh 8:10 KJV) Then he said unto them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions unto them for whom nothing is prepared: for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.

The believer who seeks to hold onto the belief that all scripture is "God-breathed" must surely one day come to study the verse in scripture in 2 Timothy where Paul exhorts Timothy in the mannner and method of his study of the Word of Truth, (2 Tim 2:15 KJV) Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. It was through the study of this very verse of scripture that the writer began to see that all of the supposed contradictions, all of the supposed errors of the writers, and all of the challenges to the literacy of the Bible, began to fall away.
Every day, it seems, articles are written by believers and others that question the veracity of Scripture, and I am sure that this article will come under scrutiny of these same people who just can't quite believe that, (2 Tim 3:16 KJV) All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
(2 Tim 3:17 KJV) That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works--no matter how sincere their desire may be to believe these verses.

Without applying the principles of "rightly dividing", it becomes immediately a challenge to discriminate between the tenants of the Law and Grace, of the Kingdom of Heaven and the Kingdom of God, and "the Church which is His body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all" from all other references to "Churches". Early in my studies, someone gave me a tract regarding the interpretation of Scripture and in that tract I found great insight from a quote of a student of Scripture who lived over 500 years ago. The author I quote is Miles Coverdale and this is what he wrote:

“It shall greatly helpe ye to understande Scripture,
if thou mark not only what is spoken, or written,
but of whom,
and to whom,
with what words,
at what time, where, to what intent, with what circumstance,
considering what goeth before, and what followeth".

When one considers the greek word translated "rightly divide", orthotomeo, the root comes from temno meaning to cut and this root is also found in the Greek word for circumcise and is used by Paul in Col 2:11 where he likens circumcision to the believer's baptism into Christ, both Christ's death and resurrection. In the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament (Greek Translation) this same word used for "rightly divide" in 2 Timothy 2:15 is found in Proverbs 3:6, "In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Considering these three verses together, the believer is left with the idea that "rightly dividing" the Word of Truth is meant by Paul to be a journey, not alone, but with God himself taking the believer on the journey of discovering the meaning of His Truth. This was the awakening that I received as I studied these verses together and when I knew that I was not alone in the study of God's Word, but was being directed and lead by the Holy Spirit in study, relief, and then great joy came unto me.


As we see in the example of Nehemiah and Ezra, that by being distinct in their reading of God's Word(possibly even reading in Chaldee as well as Hebrew as some of the returnees from captivity may not have been conversant in Hebrew), the people could understand what had been read and as a result the people were exhorted not to "sorry" (worry) but receive "The Joy of the Lord" and He would be their strength. My hope for anyone who wants to understand God's Word and His purpose for all the ages, is that one would prayerfully consider Paul's charge to Timothy to "rightly divide the Word of Truth" and be strengthened by the Lord and receive His Joy!







More to come.









DLB